Volleyball Schedule Update; New FH Assistant -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Some minor changes to the lineup this week due to various obligations. Today you've got Case instead of Daryl, who is out on Bats duty. 

KFC Yum! Center Matches Announced

The speculation surrounding which UofL volleyball matches will take place in the KFC Yum! Center can end as the University announced tickets for the six matches were on sale yesterday. Surprisingly, the late-season midweek matchup against Notre Dame will not be one of them. Only two conference matches will be played in the big arena: Stanford and Pitt. 

Louisville will open the season against Tennessee in the Yum! Center on Sunday September 1st. The Cards are on the road after that until the Cardinal Classic, which will be downtown (mostly) this season. Louisville's first three games of the season will be in the Yum! Center, as their Friday match against Northern Iowa and their Saturday match against Creighton will be there. Friday and Saturday's Rice matches against Creighton and UNI will also be in the Yum! Center, but Sunday's final match of the event (UNI vs Creighton) will return to L&N Federal Credit Union Arena.

The Nebraska match, as everyone expected, will be one of the matches in the Bucket. The match still doesn't have an official confirmation according to the schedule as to whether it will be on Saturday or Sunday (the 21st or 22nd of September). The following week, Louisville will host Stanford on September 29th. 

Louisville's last regular season match in the KFC Yum! Center will be nearly two full months later, when the Cards take on Pitt on November 27th in the second to last game of the year. Louisville is on the road at Stanford to close the season. 

That Pitt match might not be Louisville's last game in the Yum! Center in 2024, though. Louisville will hope to host in the NCAA tournament. The arena will also be the site of the 2024 Final Four on December 19th and 22nd, and the Cards would very much like to be part of that event. 

More information on ticketing for these events can be found here.

Schneidtmiller Returns to UofL

After a couple of years with Bellarmine, Erin Schneidtmiller has rejoined Justine Sowry's field hockey coaching staff at UofL. Erin has spent just a few years away from the city of Louisville during her life, as she joined Louisville's squad after graduating from Mercy Academy in 2010. After her collegiate career ended in 2013 with first-team All-Big East and All-West Region honors, she worked with Mercy's program and headed to Bremen, Germany to continue her playing career. In 2015, she returned to the States and served as an assistant at American University from 2015-2017. Schneidtmiller joined the staff at her alma mater in 2018 and worked with Sowry for three seasons. From 2018-2020, Louisville won 43 games and made two NCAA quarterfinals (and one semi). 

Schneidtmiller departed UofL to help usher Bellarmine into Division I. The Knights won seven games last season, including three over MAC opponents. Schneidtmiller said she was "thrilled to be returning" and cited the pride that her previous experiences as a student-athlete and a coach have brought her. She replaces Malachi Mahan, who was with the team for the 2022 and 2023 seasons. 

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case

Spring Semester Academic Success -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Louisville Athletics Posts High Spring 2024 Academic Ratings

For those of you who have been with us at Cardinal Couple for a while, you are familiar with our praise of Louisville Athletics both athletically and academically. Louisville student-athletes post some of the best academic numbers on campus each semester and the spring 2024 semester followed suit.

505 student-athletes were named to the Athletic Director's Honor Roll for the spring semester. The only requirements to make the list are that the student must carry at least a 3.0 GPA and must be an active student-athlete for one of Louisville's 21 sports or a member of the spirit squad (band, cheer, Ladybirds). The cumulative GPA among all student-athletes at Louisville was a 3.311, the 27th straight semester (13.5 years) that the GPA was 3.0 or better. An impressive 98 student-athletes posted a 4.0.

UofL's graduation success rate was a school record 93%, beating out the previous school year's 92%, per the NCAA. It is nearly impossible for a school to post a perfect 100% graduation success rate due to student-athletes transferring out or going pro. Basketball, golf, field hockey, soccer, and volleyball are the women's programs to post a perfect 100%.

The highest GPA of any team at Louisville was women's soccer, who posted a cumulative 3.704 GPA. The top performer men's team was men's golf, with a 3.497 team GPA.

As someone who graduated from Louisville with a 3.25 GPA, I'm impressed by the strong academic numbers that UofL continues to post every semester. As a retired member of the marching band and pep band, I can proudly say that I was a part of this prestigious Athletic Director's Honor Roll back in the day.

Happy Thursday and Go Cards!

Jared

Five softball Cards named to CSC Academic All-District -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

GOFF, BOOE, HESS, RICHARDSON AND ZABALA EARN DISTRICT HONORS

FIVE UOFL SOFTBALL players have been named to the College Sport Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District team. Pitchers Sam Booe and Alyssa Zabala, infielders Daisy Hess and Bailee Richardson and catcher Kiley Goff have earned the honor. 

In order to earn the honor, you must be a starter or important reserve and carry at least a 3.5 cumulative grade point average on a 4.0 scale.  Goff is a transfer to the Cards from Maryland, Hess and Richardson transfers-in from Georgia State.  Zabala arrived as a freshman to campus and so did Booe ,a junior.  Both were recruited and signed by the Cards out of high school.  

Booe

Booe was also named to the CSC academic honor last year and had also been named to the ACC Academic Honor Roll twice. 

Goff

Goff stepped in and took over catching duties when Sarah Gordon transfered out of Lousville last year. 

Pretty "Flower" Daisy Hess

 
Hess came in from Georgia State and took over at shortstop and was named team captan her first season as a Cards student-athlete. She graduates as a five year starter and two time All-ACC selection.

Richardson

Richardson was also at Georgia State before arriving at Lousville and became a Cards starting infielder, either at second or third base. 

Alyssa

Zabala had third team All-ACC honors her rookie season and led the Cards in pitching her sophomore year....gathering 18 wins. 

We are proud of these student-athetes that are getting it done in the classroom as well as on the field.  Although Hess and Richardson will be missed in the infield, Zabala. Booe and Goff should be strong factors on the 2025 Cards roster. 

paulie

ACC Expansion Almost Here -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

SMU, Cal, and Stanford Set to Join this Summer

While we have known about the addition of three teams to the ACC for several months now, the time is nearly here for this to take effect. SMU will be joining the ACC after departing the American Athletic Conference (AAC) effective July 1, 2024. California and Stanford will be departing the Pac-12 and joining the ACC effective August 2, 2024.

Note: Due to the by-laws of the Pac-12, Cal and Stanford are not able to join until August 2, 2024.

Southern Methodist University (SMU) is located in Dallas, Texas. The private Methodist school was founded in 1911 and has an enrollment of about 12,000. Their nickname is the Mustangs and their school colors are red and blue.

The University of California, Berkeley (Cal) is located in Berkeley, California. The public schoolwas founded in 1868 and has an enrollment of about 45,000. Their nickname is the Golden Bears and their school colors are blue and gold, specifically Berkeley blue and California gold.

Stanford University is located in Stanford, California. The private non-sectarian school was founded in 1891 and has an enrollment of about 17,000. Their nickname is the Cardinal (a tree) and their school colors are cardinal and white.

We will dive deeper into the addition of these three teams this summer. We will look into the different sports each school will bring with them.

Happy Tuesday and Go Cards!

Jared

ULRICH COMPLETES THE SWEEP -- SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE  (finally...)

HEY THERE, HI THERE  AND.. what a crazy Sunday it has been  Storms swept theough the Louisville area and knocked out ol' Paulie's power and internet until this afternoon.  And, no one here could pck me up on the article. I have my own thoughts about that, but I will hold them, Let's look instead, at the continuing journey of Jayden Ulrich. 

The Cards throws specialist won the EAST regional shot put first, to advance to the NCAA Finals. I hope you read the article here detailing that. Then, yesterday, she came in second in the discus up in Lexington, with a hurl of 62.95 m ...or 206-6 feet. Once again, a qualifying throw for her to get her in the NCAA Finals. 

( "E" could do a little tossin, as well...)

The Cards have had a long history of excellent throwers in field events...just off the top of my head I can recall  Emmonnie Henderson,  Radisha Harris, Chinwe Okoro, Khadija Abdullah and d'Ana Mccarty,  just to name a few. But, Ulrich may jut be the best of them all. 

Jere Summers was a favorrite of mine, a few years back and I loved to watch when she threw the discus. She was second all time at UofL in throwing discus distance at UofL but Ulrich's throw beat her best ever by 5 meters! That's almost 17 feet...

Ulrich spent her first two years of college throwing at Indiana University And, was 17th in the NCAA shotput in 2022 and 18th last year at the NCAA Finals for the Hoosiers.  But, this year, she has sprung to like and is throwng so much better as a Cardinals field participant. One consistant is her throws coach. Cory Martin came down to take the assistant throwing coaching duties over this season at UofL, and brought Ulrich with him. 

The Cards have three other women also headed to Oregon for field events.. Soledad Jean in the high jump. Alba Cuns Iglessias in the triple jump and Natalie Lark in the pole vault. 

We wish all our Cardinals field event student athletes the best of luck in Oregon !! 

paulie

Spring showers and schedules -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Hey readers!   It's Monday's write and Daryl jumping in after a series of storms rolled through the area, knocking power for several contributors here at Cardinal Couple on Sunday I was luckily able to hop online this afternoon to refresh the CC blog site...not realaizing Paulie was doing the same. So,he mved my article to Monday. to cover Memorial Day.   I did have a couple big limbs come down again...at my place.   

There is an entire BLANK composite calendar for the Cardinals as we look ahead to the beginning of June and the summer months. 

HAPPY MEMORIAL WEEKEND 

Thank you to those who have served this country and lost their lives.  We appreciate your utmost sacrifice.  

As Always,
Go Cards

~Daryl 

Ulrich Looking for Double (Again) -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Jayden Ulrich Trying to Qualify for Two Championship Events

After winning gold in the ACC Championships in both Shot Put and Discus, Jayden Ulrich is looking to sweep both events in the regional qualifiers to try to win two golds at the NCAA Championships. Ulrich got off to a good start with that effort Thursday afternoon, crushing her own personal record and the facility record in the shot put. Her throw of 18.66m (61'-2 3/4") was the fourth-best in the NCAA this season and is the 15th-best in the world (sixth among Americans). Her previous record of 18.27m and the facility record of 18.04m seem small in comparison. That top mark in the East region qualifies her for the nationals in Oregon. 

Image via GoCards

Ulrich's second event, as mentioned, is the discus. That event will go off this afternoon. Ulrich currently holds the top throw in the country. She'll look for a solid throw to solidify her place in the NCAAs, which would make her Louisville's first double-qualifier since 2019. 

Ulrich isn't the only Cardinal advancing on the women's side. After a rain delay pushed pole vault to yesterday morning, Natalie Lark made it six straight years for Louisville having a representative at the NCAAs in women's pole vault. Lark cleared 4.20m (13'-9 1/4") to finish in a tie for ninth. The Cards have five qualifiers across the men's and women's teams so far. Ulrich, Soledad Jean (women's high jump), and Alba Cuns Iglesias (women's triple jump) will look to expand that list today, starting at 1PM.

No Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

With everyone headed their separate ways for the holiday weekend, we'll take this week off from the Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast. I'm also out next week, but I believe Jeff will be back, so we'll keep you up to date on the plans as the week comes closer. Read The Cardinal Couple website, though, daily, to keep yourself up on the best in women's sports at UofL coverage. 

Have a great (and safe) Memorial Day Weekend!

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case

Golf coverage coming to Cardinal Couple -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Goooood Friday morning readers and welcome to the Holiday weekend. 

If you are traveling, please be safe!   I will be enjoying some time at home this weekend for some R&R. 

Last weekend, I was able to make it out to Valhalla for the PGA Championship which was so incredible.  I was already considering attempting to cover the UofL golf team for Cardinal Couple but I think last weekend solidified that desire. If you’ve following me for a while now you’d know I caught the golfing itch back in 2019 and haven’t looked back!   

Paulie has been good at covering big events in the past here on Cardinals women's golf and had done interviews with head coach Whitney Youn and Lauren Hartlage. I hope to cntinue in that fine fashion of coverage. 

Daryl in the "Gilligan"hat...

My dad swears he used to encourage me to play golf in High School but I guess I was too busy on the softball field to hear any of that from him but I sure do wish I took his advice! If I could offer one piece of advice it’s this…. Listen to your parents, people!!

So lets look at the Women's golf program at a glance! 

photos from: gocards.com

Some big time names in the Program’s history

Adrienne White – Big East Player of the Year 2006 & 2007

Cindy LaCrosse - Big East Player of the Year 2009

Sara-Maude Juneau – Big East Player of the Year 2010 & 2011

Lauren Hartlage – ACC Freshman of the Year 2017

Head Coach – Whitney Young

Head coach since July 2019 – moved to head coach after being the assistant coach for two seasons.

Young enjoyed an exceptional collegiate playing career at Georgia that included three top-10 finishes at the NCAA Championships. She aided the Bulldogs to 10 team tournament titles, most notably the 2007 SEC Championship. She is one of just three Georgia and seven SEC golfers to earn first team all-SEC honors four times.

The squad and season

The golf team typically will consist of 8-10 players with 5 of them playing in a tournament. The season starts at the end of the year in September and continues into May for the NCAA tournament. The Cardinals will fly south to the warmer states and even play outside of the USA (Mexico last year) in the cold winter months.

History

Lauren Hartlage holds the record for the lowest round score at 65 set on 10/20/19 at the Cardinal Cup. 
Cindy LaCrosse leads the program with the most career Top 5 finishes with 17 from 2005-2009 and more recently, Hartlage has the most career Top 10 finishes with 23 from 2016-2021 but she is tied with Margot Bechadergue

Home course 

                                  Cardinal Club Golf Course

                                 401 Champions Way, Simpsonville, KY 40067

I will probably find my way to a driving range this weekend to hit some bombs if the weather permits!!! My golf goal this year is to chip one in from the fringe! 

As Always, 

Go Cards!!! 

~Daryl

Lacrosse Final Four Set -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

ACC Guaranteed a Team in the National Championship

Louisville lacrosse's season came to a close a month ago, but the NCAA Women's Lacrosse Tournament is still going on for a little bit longer. The Final Four is set with both matches being played on Friday. The national championship game will be played on Sunday.

Three of the top four seeds advanced to the Final Four: #1 Northwestern, #2 Boston College, and #3 Syracuse. #4 Maryland was eliminated by Florida last round. The Gators have been the ACC killer this tournament, having defeated North Carolina, #5 Virginia, and former ACC school Maryland.

The ACC had six teams make the 29-team field: #2 Boston College, #3 Syracuse, #5 Virginia, #7 Notre Dame, Duke, and North Carolina. Stanford, who joins the ACC in the fall, also made the NCAA Tournament.

Louisville lacrosse at L&N Stadium

Duke fell to Loyola Maryland in the opening round. North Carolina fell to Florida in the opening round. Notre Dame crushed Coastal Carolina 24-6 in the first round before losing to Michigan in a heartbreaker, 15-14. The Wolverines scored with one second remaining in regulation to secure the win. #5 Virginia dominated LIU 21-6 in the first round before falling to the Gators, 13-8.

Syracuse received a first round bye and went onto defeat Stony Brook 15-10 and #6 Yale 19-9 to advance to the Final Four. Boston College also received a bye in the first round and followed it up with wins against Princeton 21-16 and Michigan 14-9. 

Louisville lacrosse coach Scott Teeter

In the regular season, the Eagles capitalized on the golden goal rule to win 11-10 in overtime against the Orange. The two foes met again in the ACC Championship with Boston College earning the win, 15-8. It's tough to defeat a team three times in a season so this has the potential for an upset or at least an epic match. With BC and Cuse facing each other on Friday, the ACC is guaranteed to have a team playing in the national championship.

The ACC has had at least one team represented in the NCAA Women's Lacrosse National Championship every year since 2009, COVID-19 season excluded due to no tournament. This stat includes the time Maryland played in the ACC.

We will certainly pull for the ACC this tournament and hope to see the Cards there next year.

Happy Thursday and Go Cards!

Jared

FIELD HOCKEY's Izzy Bianco Selected for USA Field Hockey squad. -- wEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

BIANCO MAKES TRAVEL ROSTER FOR PAN AM NATIONALS

izzy Bianco, who will be a junior on the 2024 :Louisville Field Hockey squad, has earned a special honor, in being selected for the 2024 USA U-21 roster. The Cards also landed Lauren Masters and Rylie Wollerton as non-travelling alternates on the squad. 

18 student-athetes were named to the travel roster, and they survived three elections camps and a training camp to make the squad, that will participate in the Junior Pan Am Championships, which will be held June 26-July 12th in Surrey, British Columbia.Canada

The event is a qualifier for 2025 FIH Hockey Junior World Cup.

 

Bianco started in 14 of Louisville's 22 games in 2023 and scored a goal in the Cards 15-7 season.  The Cards advanced to the second round of the ACC Tournament Quarterfinals, where they were eliminated by Duke 0-1 and also made and advsanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals, where Northwestern knocked them off 2-3. at Northwestern. 

Bianco hails from Berlin, NJ and the midfielder was also a 2022 selection for the US U-21 squad. She led her high school squad to four conference and two back-to-back state titles. She also holds the New Jersey all-time record for assists (Career and single season). 

ACC Field Hockey will get a big boost to the league roster when Cal and Stanford join the league in August.

Our congrats and best wishes to Izzy for being reognized aabd selected as one of the best in college field hockey and we all here at Cardinal COUPLE are confident she'll have  top notch run with USA. 

We will post the result of USA here and will also list the 2024 Louisville field Hockey schedule on the right hand side of the site when it is finalized and released. 

paulie

Softball Super Regionals Set -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

SOFTBALL GOES ON...WITHOUT LOUSVILLE

Louisville softball may not be in the 'Big Dance', but that won't stop the NCAA Tournament from continuing on as normal. After a wild round of Regionals, including some upsets, the Super Regionals are now set.

#1 Texas vs #16 Texas A&M

The top seeded Longhorns had no trouble in the opening rounds of play, going 3-0 and outscoring opponents 26-2. They have the comfort of remaining home for a little while longer.

The Aggies didn't cruise along quite as easily as their in-state rival, but Texas A&M did finish 3-0 and outscored opponents 15-2. Their only scare was a 1-0 victory over Texas State.

#8 Stanford vs #9 LSU

The Cardinal had quite a scare and needed the if-necessary game to move on. After surviving Saint Mary's 8-6 and Mississippi State 2-1, Cal State Fullerton cruised past Stanford 8-1. In the winner-takes-all game, the future ACC school scored all four of their runs in the third inning to win 4-2.

The Tigers had little trouble in the Regionals, outscoring opponents 18-1 to go 3-0.

#5 Oklahoma State vs Arizona

After cruising to a 6-0 win in their first game, the Cowgirls then defeated Kentucky 6-2 and Michigan 4-1 to advance.

The first unseeded team on this list, Arizona, had an eventful 3-0 Regional. They run-ruled Villanova to start the weekend and then defeated host #12 Arkansas 2-1 to advance to the final. The Razorbacks never made it back to the winner's side and Arizona won the Battle of the Wildcats against Villanova.

Note: Louisville defeated Arizona at Ulmer Stadium this season.

#4 Florida vs Baylor

Florida coasted along to wins of 6-0, 9-1, and 9-1 to take the Regional title. Former Louisville Cardinal Korbe Otis tallied three hits on the weekend.

Another unseeded team, Baylor, came away with some upsets to move on. The Bears defeated Ole Miss 3-1 to start the weekend before enjoying plenty of excitement against #13 Louisiana for three straight games. Baylor won the winner's bracket game 8-0 before the Ragin Cajuns came out of the loser's bracket to win the second match-up 13-0. In the winner-takes-all game, the Bears held on for a 4-3 victory.

#3 Tennessee vs #14 Alabama

The only excitement for the Volunteers came on a three-run home run that became a two-run home run after the batter passed one of the base runners while rounding first. Other than that, Tennessee went 3-0 while outscoring opponents 21-0.

The Crimson Tide went 3-0 on the weekend but had a couple close games in the mix. The began their weekend sneaking past USC Upstate 1-0. They followed that up with a 6-3 nine-inning game against Southeastern Louisiana. Alabama had a rematch with the Lions in the final game, but didn't need extra innings in a 12-2 win.

#6 UCLA vs #11 Georgia

The Bruins outscored the opponents in their three games 25-7. The only close game came during a 7-6 walk-off win against Virginia Tech.

The Bulldogs spent much of the weekend backed into a corner. They opened the tournament with an 8-0 win over UNC Wilmington before being stunned by Liberty 7-3. Georgia won back-to-back games against the Flames 14-5 and 3-2, including a walk-off in the final game to survive and advance. Former Louisville Cardinal Sarah Gordon went 0-6 in a reserve role.

#7 Missouri vs #10 Duke

The Tigers are the only team on this list who lost their opening game and had to play five games in three days to move on. After falling to Omaha 3-1 in the first game of the Regional, Missouri got back in the winner's bracket with a 5-1 win over Indiana and a 4-1 win over Washington. They then relied on late game heroics to defeat Omaha 5-1 (all five Missouri runs scored in the seventh inning) and then a 1-0 walk-off in the ninth inning to advance.

The Blue Devils got better as the weekend continued. After opening play with a 6-1 win over Morgan State, Duke then defeated South Carolina 8-0 and 10-1 to move onto the Super Regional.

Note: Louisville went 1-2 against Duke this year.

#2 Oklahoma vs #15 Florida State

The winner of the last three national championships, the Sooners continue their search for a fourth straight title. They cruised past Cleveland State 9-0 before being challenged by Oregon. Oklahoma won 6-3 and then later held on to beat the Ducks 3-2.

The Seminoles needed late game heroics to defeat Chattanooga 3-2 in their first game and then settled down. They defeated UCF 5-1 and Auburn 10-4 to move onto a rematch of last year's national championship.

Note: Louisville went 1-2 against Florida State this year.

Hopefully we will be reporting on Louisville playing in a Super Regional next year.

Happy Tuesday and Go Cards!

Jared

Frizell earns All-Region Honors -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 RILEY FRIZELL EARNS ANOTHER HONOR FOR LOUISVILLE SOFTBALL

 

The Cardinals Softball first baseman stepped into the lineup this season after three years at Missouri and promptly set the Cards and the ACC on fire this season. 

Frizell batted .337...which led the Cards...and also knocked out a team high 13 home runs. She was also responsible for driving in 49 runs and had 56 hits. 

Getting named to the NFCA All-Southeastern Region First team also made Riley a candidate for the 2024 NFCA Division I All-American squads. 

Frizell was one of the best and most consistant hitters on the 2024 Louisville Softball squad and had a 20 game streak of reachng base safely either by a hit or walk...and did that in 45 of the 52 games she played in. 

She is one of eight players that were listed as a senior or graduate student on the 2024 Softball Cards and  her 11 doubles or triples were second best on the team behind Daisy Hess's 15. 

Louisville Softball went 27-25 on the seson but was unable to quality for the 2024 ACC Tournament or the NCAA Tournament. It was the Cards lowest win perentage season since 2022 , when they were also 27-25 overall. 

Sometimes, you don't get the best very long, so it's important to honor, enjoy and respect the work they they can do while they are among us. We at Cardinal Couple are thankful for the time she graced Ulmer Stadium  and won't forget her play anytime soon...

paule

Pros and Perroni - Sunday Cardinal Couple

Nicole Perroni Interview

No more game recaps, no more consecutive game scoring streaks, and no more schedule rundowns, but we work to keep things interesting.  Paulie and Jared were able to get down to Floyd Street yesterday to interview the extraordinary Nicole Perroni as she wraps up her time at UofL.

Perroni played all five of her eligibility years here at UofL, with the 2020 season being cut short for Covid and extra year of eligibility granted in lieu.  And she will go down as one of the Cardinal greats in Lacrosse.  She built a 54 consecutive game goal scoring streak, only broken in the final game UofL played in the ACC tournament this year.  That is a program record, as you would imagine.

Paulie and Jared caught up with Perroni on the Lacrosse field at the Louisville Lacrosse Stadium, unfortunately with a train passing by in the background, a perennial challenge with all of the Floyd Street sports venues.

You can check out the full interview on the Cardinal Couple Youtube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zF3CLR2V1SU

 

Pro Volleyball Federation Season Wraps

The inaugural season for the Pro Volleyball Federation began in late January, and the Championship match of the post-season tournament was last night.

UofL had several alumnae playing in the league, with Tori Stringer (nee Dilfer) getting involved in the league early and playing with the Atlanta Vibe to start the season, and jumping over to the Columbus Fury mid-season.  Wilma Rivera had a great season with the Orlando Valkyries.  And finally Claire Chaussee took her impressive arm swing to the Grand Rapids Rise.

The final match last night, in which the teams were playing for a million dollar bonus, was between Chaussee's Rise, and the Omaha Supernovas.  Played at the CHI Health Center in Omaha, the Supernovas' home floor, the Supernovas did emerge victorious in three sets.  The Rise were the four seed in the four team tournament and had advanced after upsetting the Atlanta Vibe

Chaussee was named to the All-League First Team on Thursday, which also happened to be her birthday, and the day of the semifinals, so all in all, it's been a pretty good week for the Louisville alumna.

The PVF will be back next year with an already announced increase in compensation for players.  The pay for the league was in the realm of a sustainable annual salary in most markets, and the increase will make that even better, with some of the top players pulling down six figure salaries in the coming year.

The PVF will also be adding three more franchises next year, in Dallas, Indianapolis, and Kansas City.

Also in the works for 2025, however, is a competing pro league called LOVB, or League One VolleyBall.  The ownership model for LOVB is different from PVF, with LOVB owning all of teams and the league itself all under one ownership group compared to PVF's franchise model.

Anna Hall (nee Stevenson) has announced that she's joining the LOVB organization to play, though we don't yet know which team she'll be playing for.  LOVB will initially have teams in Atlanta GA, Austin Tx, Houston TX, Madison WI, Omaha NE, and Salt Lake City UT.

All in all, it's an exciting time to be a volleyball fan.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

The guys put a bit of a bow on the Softball and Lacrosse seasons, discussed a bit of the future for those two programs before turning to the roster construction work for women's basketball.  And finally a quick run-down near the end of the announced fall volleyball schedule, in what was a good show.

We likely won't have a show next week as it appears that both Case and I will be out, leaving no one to engineering it, but this was a good one!

Check it out:

https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/cardinal-couple/episodes/Are-There-Warm-Seats-at-UofL-e2jqmcb

 

-- 

JMcA

Perroni Awarded; Rowing at ACCs -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Nicole Perroni an All-American (Again)

After having been named as an Honorable Mention All-American by USA Lacrosse and selected to the First Team IWLCA West/Midwest Region, Nicole Perroni has picked up another honor for her outstanding season. Perroni was second in the ACC in caused turnovers per game (11th nationally) and led the league in ground balls and free position goals per game. Those numbers helped propel her to an Honorable Mention from Inside Lacrosse on their All-America list. The news was announced Thursday.

In addition to those strong stats league wide, Perroni scored 45 goals and had 10 assists this season. She scored a point in 55 straight games and a goal in 54 straight. Both of those look to stand as program records for quite a while. Perroni has been a keystone for the team since Scott Teeter took over, and her time ends with her ranked in the top-ten in program history in draw controls (fourth), turnovers caused (tied for first), goals, points, and ground balls. Louisville will miss the First Team All-ACC midfielder greatly, but we wish her the best going forward. 

Paulie and Jared will catch up with Nicole for an interview today on campus and Jeff will run the article in the Sunday edition of Cardinal Couple.

Cards Send a Boat to Grand Finals

Photo from @LouisvilleROW on X

Louisville rowing is currently competing in the ACC Championships in Raleigh, North Carolina. The program continues to make incremental headway into success in the league. They saw another step toward that yesterday with the qualification of the second varsity eight boat for today's grand final event. The events of the day will wrap up early, with the last race in which the Cards will participate (the V4 petite final) starting at 9:20 AM. Best of luck to the team as they work to earn a strong finish in the ACC Championships. 

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

We should have a full house on board for this foggy morning's podcast episode. With the summer slump nearly in full effect, we don't have much to talk about in the way of results, but we'll carry the joy and excitement of Louisville women's athletics nonetheless. You can check out the live stream of the show by going to the Cardinal Couple YouTube page and clicking on the live video. Jeff usually creates that about an hour before the show, which officially starts at 11 AM Eastern. If the live time doesn't work for you, there are plenty of playback options, so be sure to check out whichever is best for you!

Cardinal Couple YouTube: Link

Spotify: Link

Apple Podcasts: Link

Google Podcasts: Link

Overcast (free account required): Link

Pocket Casts (free account and app required): Link

RadioPublic: Link

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case