A former Derby Week classic-- THE KENTUCKY DERBY FESTIVAL CLASSIC -- DERBY/OAKS PICKS -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 A FORMER DERBY WEEK STAPLE -- THE KDF HOOPS CLASSIC

Since we are in Derby Week, and there are so many activities going on, we hope you get out and enjoy a few of them. One of the events I attended yearly, when it was being played, was the classic clash of the high school stars called the KDF Kentucky Derby Basketball Classic. I went yearly, from 1973 to it's end in 2018...even though it was a boys event, It featured some great hoops of the nation's high school best. From tickets from my high school coach the first year, to getting free seats from "a certain college coach" at the end (in 2018) ...I counted back and went through three girl friends and my current wife in those years. I had 12 different cars...and even drove down from Indianapolis for three years when i worked up there to attend it. 

Mid April was when it usually took place, and, in latter years, also included a "A Night of the future stars" the evening before. 

I saw some incredible talent over the years in Freedom Hall (and one year in the KFC YUM! Center. Just a few of the stars involved over the years included Moses Malone, Penny Hardaway, Donovan Mitchell, Jamal Mashburn, Dominique Wilkins, Pervis Ellison, Darrel Grifffith, Derek Anderson, Rex Chapman, Malik Williams, Kenny Payne and Darius Perry. 

It was a fun event, but was ultimately ended due to lack of attendance and increased high school basketball tournament with more "pull", prestige and colleges directing future players to other events. 

It was also a rivalry event, with UK and UofL fans rooting loudly for the prospects interested in their school, and booing the other school's potential recruits. The final year, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander came in as a UK recruit and stole the show, leading his team to 29 points (in 19 minutes) in a 13-point win. He out-shot and out-sccored the Cardinals signees in the event..Jordan Nwora, Darius Perry, Lance Thomas and Malik Williams. 

Television covering the event helped killed the attendance, and not many UK signees participating that final year also affected attendance. .there were a proliferation of high scholl all-star events cross the nation, and the Louisville event, sponsored by the local McDonald's restaurants over the years, lost them as a sponsor and no one stepped forward to be a new sponsor. 

Sadly, the attendance the final year was a mere 4,000. Fans in the "300" seating areas of Freedom Hall were invited to come down and sit closer to the action. Plus, Freedom Hall was in disrepair in those days and not nearly the palace it used to be years ago. Cattle and horse shows and  the occasional "second-tier" rock concert had taken over the facility. I remember seeing Def Leppard, Styx and Foreigner there in fall 2018 and my seat was missing a seat  cushion up in the 300 level. Those bands were pretty much past their heydays by 2018 and there were "pot" busts going on all around the arena. 

i'd like to see a return of some sort of basketball classic during the Derby Festival weeks, and maybe organizers could try it with the girls...Louisville, out in the state of Kentucky and Southern Indiana have tons of college scholarship high school girls every year...and maybe a 
KYAN: squad could face off against 12 of the best from the rest of the nation.   

Anyway, happy Derby WEEK to you...and my Derby/Oaks pics ( A YEARLY TRADITION) are below:

KENTUCKY OAKS AND DERBY PICKS 

In the OAKS...i AM GOING WITH Good Cheer and Quietside...IN THE KENTUCKY DERBY...Journalism and Final Gambit

paulie

Race to the ACC Softball Tournament -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

ACC Softball Standings Remain Tight Down the Stretch

With the regular season down to the final stretch, the ACC softball standings have been starting to fall into place, but there is still just enough softball left to continue to shake up the standings. For Louisville, a Sunday evening upset victory over Florida State helped better the Cards' position and it made the battle for the top of the ACC more interesting.

Currently, Louisville sits at 10th in the ACC at 7-14 (0.333) out of 15 teams. This year, only the top 12 teams qualify for the ACC Tournament, leaving the bottom three on the outside looking in. 

The full ACC standings are as follows:

Florida State 16-2 (0.889)

Virginia Tech 17-4 (0.810)

Clemson 19-5 (0.792)

Duke 16-8 (0.667)

North Carolina 15-9 (0.625)

Stanford 13-8 (0.619)

Virginia 14-10 (0.583)

Georgia Tech 10-11 (0.476)

California 8-13 (0.381)

Louisville 7-14 (0.333)

Notre Dame 7-17 (0.292)

Syracuse 6-15 (0.286)

Pitt 6-15 (0.286)

NC State 6-18 (0.250)

Boston College 5-16 (0.238)

Florida State and Virginia Tech are set to play a series in Blacksburg over the weekend. A weekend sweep by the Hokies would put them in first but even one one by the Seminoles guarantees Florida State an ACC title.

California and Syracuse is another ACC series to keep an eye on. A couple losses by the Orange would work in Louisville's favor.

Louisville visits Pitt to close out the season. The Panthers have work to do to get out of the bottom three and could be fighting for survival.

A few factors that work in Louisville's favor include tiebreakers over Notre Dame and Boston College. The Irish have completed conference play so a tie between them and the Cards would give Louisville an edge. 

NC State has completed conference play so they are the only team Louisville is guaranteed to finish ahead of.

Louisville only needs one win this coming weekend to lock in an ACC Tournament birth. One win would put them ahead of NC State and Notre Dame in the standings and help lock in any type of tiebreaker over Boston College.

(Photos by Jared)

Happy Tuesday and Go Cards!

Jared

Softball wins series finale 2-0 vs #7 FSU -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Good morning,

It was a refreshing weekend of reset for myself around the house as we wrap up the month of April and head into the first weekend of May.  Good news, our plumbing issue was resolved this past week so we can breath again.   

Softball

Cardinals 2 vs FSU 0

Photo: Jared Anderson

Louisville secured a huge shutout victory in the final match of the series with #7 ranked FSU.  Alyssa Zabala (9-9) completed the game giving up just 4 hits and no runs and striking out 2.    Louisville scored 2 runs on 3 hits taking advantage of 2 FSU errors.  The Louisville defense made many game changing catches, especially on the left side of the field in the form of line drives at Alexander and diving catches by Lorenz.  

The squad secured an ego boosting victory over the Seminoles who had prior only lost one ACC matchup.    The win put the Cards over the .500 mark heading into the final weekend on the road.  It was the 4th time the Seminoles had been shut out this season.  

RECAP
1st inning

To start the game, the Cardinals defense held up when a groundout third base to first, a strikeout swinging the threat from a standing double to right center and an 8 pitch at bat results in a groundout to SS to keep the Seminoles from taking advantage early on.

For UofL, Lotus struck out swinging and Lorenz managed a triple thanks to the sun in the face of the right fielder and the Cardinals were pouncing quickly.   Followed by a squeeze bunt by Despines allows a face first slide with an unsuccessful tag at the plate and the batter safe at first.  Lookadoo with a line drive out to center field.  Despines caught stealing to end the inning but Louisville came out making some series moves in the first. 


Cards up 1-0

Photo: Jared Anderson

2nd inning

The Seminoles singled to the left side to put a runner on.  Then FSU beat a double play attempt at both first and second, however, the Cards got a second chance on the next batter up. Nice poke to left but Lorenz made a huge catch to end the scoring threat.  

3 up 3 down by the Cards in the bottom half of the inning. 


3rd inning

A couple of groundouts before FSU stranded another runner in first 3 innings after a line drive goes straight at Lotus at 2nd base.

Cards responded by stranding one on third on a swinging strikeout at the plate.


4th inning

3 up 3 down for Seminoles offense.  

Cards tacked on another run taking advantage of an FSU error.  Both FSU errors on the evening would be committed at 1b.  

Cards up 2-0

Photo: Jared Anderson

5th inning

3 up 3 down for Zabala in back to back innings.  

Louisville would do the same. 


6th inning

A bad catch at first allows Lookadoo to get on but nothing became of it for the Cardinals to tack anything on heading into thee final frame of regulation.  


7th inning

Photo: Jared Anderson

Zabala came back into the circle to finish her night how she started... trusting her defense.  There was a moment where Aprile called a huddle to gather the squad when with 2 out FSU singled to LF and the tying run was at the plate. Fittingly a line drive at Ally Alexander for the second or third time in the game ended the game and a Gatorade celebration ensuesd. 

Postgame

Jared Anderson was out there and talked to a couple players about the big win.  

Despines and Zabala vs FSU postgame 4/27/25

Photo: Jared Anderson

UP NEXT

UofL @ Pittsburgh 

5/1-5/3

Its finals week for students, good luck!!! 

As Always, 
Go Cards

~Daryl 

SOFTBALL CARDS FALL 3-0 TO NOLES -- SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 GRAY'S CIRCLE EFFORT FALLS SHORT 

If you love a softball game where pitching dominates and hits come at a premium, Ulmer Stadium was the place for you Saturday.

In a reversal of the slug-fest Friday night against FSU, Louisville Softball and the Seminoles engaged in a dual between two pitchers...the Cards sophomore Brooke Gray and FSU's freshman Jazzy Francilk. The teams remained scoreless for six innings. The hits were at a premium as well...Louisville just getting two in seven innings. and never really threatening to push a run across the plate. Only  Easton Lotus and Bri Despines were able to get singles against Francik and the FSU defense. 

In Gray's best effort of the year, she kept the top-ten Noles (42-6, 16-1) at bay until the top of the seventh. Gray was able to get two out on FSU, before a single and walk put two on for the visitors and Isa Torres cam to bat and delivered the big blow for FSU, a double to left field that scored both runners. That closed the book on Gray, and the Cards inserted Sam Booe into the circle. She allowed one more hit and a unearned run before recording the final out of the inning.  The damage had been done and Louisville found themselves down three going into their last at bat. 

Louisville tried to start a rally. They got a walk, but the bats still weren't working and Ashtyn Dantley, who pitched the final inning for FSU, was able to retire the rest of the Cards she faced and get the save for FSU.  

The loss is the fourth in a row for a Cardinals squad that needs wins this time of year. Three runs is not an insurmountable object to overcome -- Louisville has won at least four games this year where they allowed three runs...the problem is these "on again, off again" Cardinals bats. The Cards have been held scoreless in three of their last four outings 

Louisville goes to 23-23 on the season and 6-14 in the ACC. 

The two squads face for the series finale tomorrow. It's a ACCN game and will be broadcast from Ulmer at 6 p.m.

(PHOTOS BY JARED ANDERSON)

Cards Can't Quite Complete Comeback -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Softball Loses Opener 10-9

In a season of what if's, Louisville softball saw another opportunity for a huge win slip away last night. The game was pushed back to an 8PM start to avoid the last few showers rolling through the area, which may have been a good thing for Louisville's offense, who turned up late to the show anyway. The Cards were bombarded early, though, and despite late innings matching the early big ones from FSU, Louisville needed one more run in the bottom of the seventh to keep the game alive. The #7 Seminoles escaped and moved to 41-6, while the Cards fell to 23-22. 

Louisville got off to an unfortunate start when a full-count pitch that looked to be over the plate was ruled a ball instead of a strike for Alyssa Zabala against the leadoff hitter and a strikeout turned into a walk. Walks will haunt (as I've put in this column before) and this one did. The leadoff walk was followed by single, fielder's choice (run scored on E1), RBI single, RBI single, 2 RBI single (E9), pitching change. The Cards trailed 5-0, a runner stood on first, and nobody was out. Brooke Gray replaced Zabala and got a flyout, a fielder's choice out, and survived a single and Louisville's third fielding error before getting the leadoff hitter, back up for the second time in the inning, to foul out. The Cards nearly went down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the first, but Char Lorenz singled before Camryn Lookadoo was hit by a pitch. Louisville couldn't bring a run in and trailed 5-0.

Louisville had three fielding errors in the inning. The good thing is that those were the only three they had in the game. The bad thing is that FSU just decided to score earned runs in the second inning instead. Gray rang up the first batter, but gave up a four-pitch walk to the second. A flyout gave the Cards two outs and it seemed like they might escape the inning. Two singles scored a run, and a triple scored two more before another single added the fourth of the inning. A fly out ended the side and, all of the sudden, Louisville was staring down a run-rule after two innings. 

Sensing the ability to rest the ace, FSU made a pitching change to start the second. Madison Pickens greeted the new pitcher with a leadoff single, but the Cards went down in order afterwards. Sam Booe replaced Gray in the top of the third, and Louisville managed their first inning without giving up a run. FSU turned their lineup over again, with the leadoff batter of the third being the Seminoles' leadoff batter in the order taking the plate for the third time in the game. Booe, like the FSU pitcher before her, gave up a single to start the inning but picked up three outs in succession afterwards.

In the third, Lorenz continued her normal approach of picking up hits when seemingly no one else can, singling down the third base line for the Cards only hit in the inning. The top of the fourth saw the Cards earn their first defensive 1-2-3 inning of the game, but they followed suit in the bottom half. After two quick flyouts in the fifth, FSU threatened again, using a pair of singles and a walk to load the bases. Booe was able to coax a flyout, though, and ended the inning with three runners stranded.

Down to their last opportunity with the run rule on the line, Holly Aprile turned to pinch hitters. Ava Venturelli led off by pinch hitting for Maddi Grant, but grounded out. Katie Thatcher pinch hit for Ally Alexander and doubled to right, quickly being swapped back for Alexander to run the bases. Easton Lotus finally found a gap and singled to left to score Louisville's first run. Riley Janda pinch hit for Chelsea Mack and doubled to left center to put runners on second and third. Lorenz reached once more, this time via fielding error, and Lotus scored to make it 9-2. Unfortunately, Lorenz ran herself off the basepaths by being caught stealing. Lookadoo reached via error as well, and Janda scored an unearned run. Bri Despines made that error burn even more with a two run homer to make it 9-5. Pickens fouled out but Louisville was right back in the game. 

The sixth inning opened with a dangerous double, which was made more dangerous by a ground out advancing the runner to third. Louisville's defense stepped up, though, and a liner to right caught the runner from third off guard. Whether it was an attempt to tag and score, or the runner didn't tag, a cannon from right field to the plate was thrown back to third where the runner was out. Double play, inning over. Louisville was still in play. Ally Alexander walked in the bottom half, but Louisville ultimately didn't threaten. Into the final inning we go, still 9-5. 

Booe opened the inning with a walk, but the runner was replaced on the next at bat by a fielder's choice. A steal meant that there was still a runner on second, though, which became a runner on third with two outs after a grounder. Clinging to hope, the chances got slimmer for Louisville when a single through the left side scored the run. Another single ended Sam Booe's day, and Lindsey Mullen came on to get a fly out and end the inning. 

In previous games, we've seen Louisville step up to the plate in the seventh with the game on the line and fold quickly. Not last night. Chelsea Mack hit a soft grounder back to the pitcher to lead off and beat out the single because of course she did. Lorenz picked a bad time to finally end her on base abilities in the game, though, flying out on the next at bat. Lookadoo doubled, putting runners on second and third with one out. Despines was hit by a pitch and all of the sudden, Louisville looked like they were in business. If not for the run in the top of the inning, the tying run would be at the plate. Pickens struck out, and now the Cards needed a two-out rally. Taylor Monroe was hit by a pitch to bring in a run and put the tying run at the plate. FSU made a pitching change, and Maddi Grant welcomed the new pitcher by walking in another run. Ally Alexander singled to score a pair and put the tying run on third base. Needing a base hit to keep the game alive and extra bases to potentially score the winning run from first, Lotus grounded straight back to the pitcher to end the game at a heartbreaking 10-9. 

That's a tough way to go out, to be sure, but Louisville's resilience was commendable. At the end of the day, the record shows just another loss, but the Cards see the latest in a line of missed opportunities against very good teams. With some luck, Louisville will be able to keep things rolling the way they did near the end of the game rather than repeat the early issues in today's second game of the series. The Cards will honor their seniors prior to the 3PM first pitch, with Izzy Harrison, Ally Alexander, Maddi Grant, and Sam Booe listed as seniors on the roster. Weather should hold out, so get out and support the team if you can. If not, the game will be carried on ACC Network Extra.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

We'll have three on board today, with Paulie, Jared, and me bringing you the latest in Louisville women's athletics. As is tradition, we'll be off next week for the Kentucky Derby, so check out this week's episode before the brief break. Check out the show after it posts around 1PM, and be sure to subscribe so that it comes to your feed automatically. 

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

Softball hosts #7 FSU this weekend -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

FRIDAYS WITH DARYL


Good morning readers,

Welcome back to another weekend. One week from Oaks and Derby day. Yes, I am still counting down!

Softball

Barring no weather adjustments Louisville vs Florida State are scheduled for a 3 day series. 

The leaders of the ACC conference softball standings and #7 ranked Seminoles are on a 5 game winning streak with the last loss coming to Virginia 0-2 on 4/4. They sport a 40-6, 14-1 ACC record. The series is scheduled to start Friday 4/25 with a 6pm first pitch, Saturday at 1pm and Sunday’s at 6pm all available on the ACCNX.  The UofL program will be celebrating Senior Day on Saturday.  

Sophomore infielder Isa Torres leads FSU's offense with a .448 batting average on 74 hits, nine doubles, seven triples, and one triple. Her 74 hits lead the conference and put her second in the country. 

Freshman Jazzy Francik was named ACC Pitcher of the Week on April 15 for her performance against Cal. Francik has 65 strikeouts, 18 earned runs, 13 walks, and a 1.85 ERA through 68.0 innings pitched, good for second in the ACC.  

FSU leads the series against Louisville 21-8-1. FSU has won five out of the last six games in Louisville. FSU won two out of the three games last season in Louisville.

As Always,
Go Cards

~Daryl   

Golf Makes NCAAs; Winning Programs -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Women's Golf in Lexington Regional

Louisville women's golf was named to the Lexington regional as the number 8 seed in the NCAA selection process this week. The team is making their first regional appearance since 2022, with individuals having advanced to this point in prior seasons. Louisville will be joined by Florida State, USC, TCU, Vanderbilt, Kansas State, Georgia Southern, Pepperdine, Miami, WKU, Morehead State, and Fairleigh Dickinson in the three-day event at Keene Trace Golf Club in Nicholasville. 

The regional event is a 54-hole tournament that will take place from May 5th to May 7th. Five teams will advance and the top individual outside of the top five teams will also advance. Carmen Griffiths is playing in her fourth regional in as many seasons, making the Albuquerque Regional with the team in 2022 and being selected as an individual in the last two seasons. Griffiths was one of Louisville's top performers at the ACC Championships last week, finishing tied for 25th at +5. Griffiths was joined by freshman Veronika Exposito at that score in Greensboro.

The Cards have stiff competition in their quest to move on to the NCAA Championships which will be in Carlsbad, California May 16-21. FSU, USC, TCU, and Vandy are all ranked in the Top 25 nationally and the top eight seeds in the regional are all top-50 (Louisville is 46th). With only five spots available for advancement, Louisville will need a strong performance across the board. Playing close to home should help, if for no other reason than being accustomed to the weather. 

We'll have more on this team as the event gets underway just after Derby. 

UofL Tops Among Power 4 Fall/Winter Sports

The University of Louisville athletic program is getting close to firing on all cylinders again. They're at least close enough to be the winningest program among Power 4 schools for the 2024-25 season in the primary four fall/winter sports. Louisville's football, volleyball, and men's/women's basketball teams finished the year with a combined 75.2% winning percentage, better than all others. Those marks came over significant teams you may have heard of in all of those sports, as the Cards bested Texas (74.4), Oregon (72.5), TCU (71.7), and Florida (71.1) to round out the top five. 

Despite what felt like a year where more was possible in women's basketball, the Cards still finished with a 22-11 record overall. They were 13-5 in conference and advanced in both the ACC and NCAA tournaments. Walz's squad was only narrowly outperformed by the surprise resurgence of the men's team, which finished 27-8 on the year. The volleyball performance was certainly a major driver in Louisville's overall program success, as Dani Busboom Kelly led the team to a 30-6 record and an NCAA runner-up finish in her final season at the helm. As we've mentioned on the site and the show, Dan Meske looks to have another strong group on his hands in spring play as the Cards move into a new phase as a team. 

As a college sports town, Louisville just feels more vibrant when UofL is doing well. The energy in the city is better and that was apparent in the fall. As Louisville baseball makes its return to the national ranks, vibes are good on one end of UofL's campus, while softball works to find consistency on the other. A rising tide lifts all ships, as they say, so here's hoping the success among the teams doing very well continues to buoy those that could be doing better. 

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case

WKU Shuts Out Cards Softball at Ulmer 2-0 -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 TOPS DOWN CARDS 2-0

Sometimes, when the Louisville Softball teams bats are in hibernation, even the mid-majors can come in to Ulmer and beat the home squad with a minimal effort. And, that's what happened Tuesday afternoon at the corner of Floyd and Lee on the south side of the UofL campus. The Cards could only muster singles from Easton Lotus and Ally Alexander against the Hilltoppers Erika Hogue (8-9) in the 2-0 Louisville loss.. 

Cards starter Alyssa Zabala faced only four batters and 2/3rd of an inning before leaving the contest limping noticeably. No disclosure on what happened to Zabala at the time of this writing. Brooke Gray followed in the circle and took the Cards loss, going 4.1 innings and allowing both runs. Gray is now 8-8 on the season. Sam Booe finished the circle duties for the Cards...turning in 2 innings of shutout pitching. 

WKU scored their first run in the top of the third. With the bases ;loaded, Macie Gregor drove in Macy Master, Gay was able to prevent any further damage, but the Tops added a run in the top of the fourth when Annie White hit a sacrifice fly to center that scored Kendle White. 

The WKU win evened the 2025 series at 1-1, the Cards won in Bowling Green a month ago 3-2. 

With the loss, the Cards go to 23-21 on the season. 

The Cards welcome in FSU next to Ulmer for a three game series that starts Friday. The Noles are coming in to Louisville after a weekend series against Ga. Tech was cancelled because of the active shooter situation on the Noles campus several days ago. FSU comes in #3 in DI and sits at 40-6, on a six game win streak. 

(Jared Anderson photos)

pauiie

Softball Hosts Western Kentucky -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Softball Hosts Western Kentucky

Following a seven-game road trip, Louisville softball returns home to Ulmer Stadium for a four-game stretch. First on the docket is a rematch with Western Kentucky. The Cards beat the Hilltoppers 3-2 earlier this season in Bowling Green.

WKU is 24-19 on the season including 10-10 in Conference USA. Most recently, the Toppers swept New Mexico State at home but was run-ruled by Kentucky before that.

Only two Western Kentucky players are currently hitting over .300- Maci Masters with a .320 batting average across 125 at bats and Jenna Blanton with a .545 batting average across 44 at bats. They hit .270 as a team with 204 runs scored. Roughly 10% of their total hits are home runs.

From a pitching standpoint, four Toppers have stepped foot in the circle. They have a combined 3.47 ERA this season, giving up 282 hits and 165 runs. They have struck out 196 batters compared to 149 walks.

For Louisville, where the Cards have lacked in power hitting, they have made up for in speed and aggressive base running. The lead the ACC with 89 stolen bases, 2.07 steals per game, and 23 triples. Chelsea Mack and Easton Lotus lead the conference with 18 steals apiece. The 23 triples is also good for third-best in the country. They rank in the top 15 in stolen bases per game.

Louisville is 4-1 against in-state opponents this season and look to improve on that mark tonight. First pitch is set for 6:00 pm and will be aired on ACCNX.

(Photos by Jared)

Happy Tuesday and Go Cards!

Jared

Miscellaneous Monday -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Good Monday morning readers, 

No games on Sunday or Monday means some random coverage can be shared to hold us over.

Softball

With WKU heading to Ulmer stadium on Tuesday evening, it got me thinking about the in state rivalries and the record against those squads.  Louisville is 4-1 against in-state teams and almost winning that one vs UK was very frustrating.

Beat WKU in Bowling Green back on March 25 a month ago 3-2.  Here's some of my favorite shots from Mr. Jared Anderson at Ulmer this season. 

WBB adds KY kid, Peyton Bradley to the roster

 


Head coach Jeff Walz announced today the signing of one of Kentucky's top prep stars, Peyton Bradley of Meade County High School, to the Cardinals 2025 recruiting class.

Bradley, a 5'8 guard from Brandenburg, Kentucky had over 3,000 career points during her high school career. 

As a freshman, Bradley made an immediate impact by leading Meade County to a Girls' Sweet 16 appearance, scoring 23 points and dishing out six assists in her state tournament debut. She led Kentucky in three-point percentage that year and has consistently been among the state's top scorers ever since.   Bradley suffered a torn ACL her junior season, but she returned stronger than ever in her senior campaign. In her final season, she averaged 28.2 points (ranked #2 in state), 5.4 rebounds and 4.6 assists with multiple 30-point performances. Bradley shot 41.6% from 3-point range and ranked second in the state with 114 makes from behind the arc. She holds the Meade County program record for career points and three-pointers made. Her 510 three-pointers made ranks second all-time in Kentucky state basketball history. Bradley was named Courier Journal First Team All-State, the second Louisville signee in the class to receive the honor.



What Walz said...

 "She's a relentless scorer with a high basketball IQ, and what impresses us most is her toughness. She came back from a major injury and somehow elevated her game even further. She fits the culture and competitive mindset we value here at Louisville."

What Bradley said ...

"I've always dreamed of playing at the next level, and Louisville felt like home the minute I stepped on campus," Bradley said. "The program's tradition, the coaching staff's energy, and the way they push their players to grow — it's everything I wanted. I can't wait to compete in the ACC and give it my all."

As Always, 

Go Cards

~Daryl 

Cards Softball falls in rubber match at Virginia ---SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 HOOS HOLD CARDS TO TWO HITS IN SERIES FINALE

courtesy UVA

Louisville  Softball has a tenancy to disappear offensively against top quality pitching and that was the case Saturday in  Charlottesville, as Louisville ran into Virginia pitcher Eden Bigham (14-7) and she limited Louisville to two singles in a 6-0 whitewash of the Cards. 

Basically, although we didn't know it at the time...this one was over when the first Virginia batter (Jade Hylton) hit a home run off of Cards starter Alyssa Zabala (8-8)

And that would be the end of the scoring until the bottom of the sixth inning, when Bella Cabral homered off Zabala, That four tripper, and and another VA run spelled the end for Zabala's appearance in Holly Aprile's mind, and she went with sophomore Brooke Gray in relief. Saturday was not Gray's day, though...as she allowed three hits, three runs and two walks in just 1/3 of a inning. 

With a the score 6-0, the Cards brought in Lindsey Mullen, who was able to get the Cards out of the inning, with two outs registered in just eight pitches. 

And, so, the Cards return home and wait for their next contest, when WKU comes to town Tuesday, April 22nd. 

HAPPY EASTER

To all our readers, a very happy Easter to you, However you choose to spend it, enjoy this holiday and if the Easter Bunny is kind to you, well, that's just a bonus...friends. (I like Reese's Cups, in case...) 

Paulie

Softball Falls; Volleyball Beats UK -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Cards Can't Repeat Upset at UVA

After the big win on Thursday evening, Louisville looked to sneak the series from Virginia last night, but they'll have to wait until today if they want to finish the job. The Cavaliers scored first and poured it on late to break away and ultimately take an 8-2 victory. Louisville will get another chance at noon today. 

Louisville ran a bit of a different lineup yesterday, with Easton Lotus leading off but Char Lorenz following her instead of Chelsea Mack. Lotus bunted out before Lorenz had an infield single. Madison Pickens was next, and the box score gives her a single with Lorenz out at second, so I'm not quite sure what happened there. Sounds like a fielder's choice to me, but so it goes. Pickens stole second but Bri Despines ended the inning with another infield ground ball. Hey... at least the Cards were putting the bat on the ball. 

Brooke Gray got the start and UVA jumped on her quickly. A double down the left field line opened the inning and a sac bunt turned into a single to put runners on the corners with nobody out. A steal put two in scoring position and a ground ball back to Gray allowed both runners to advance, scoring a run. The trail runner taking the base was what haunted, as the next ball was a sacrifice fly to center. A ground out ended the inning but the Cavs led 2-0. 

Louisville got those runs back in the third. Chelsea Mack, batting ninth, singled up the middle and advanced to second on a Lotus sacrifice bunt. Lorenz got her second infield single and Mack moved up to third. Lorenz then ran herself off the base paths with a caught stealing, which is an interesting choice in the situation. Either way, Pickens singled to score Mack and Despines singled to keep the two-out rally alive. Camryn Lookadoo then hit a sharp grounder to short, but the shortstop missed the throw to second, allowing Despines and Lookadoo to reach safely and allowing Pickens to score, unearned. The defense recovered, with the shortstop herself refielding the ball and throwing Despines out at third. Inning over, but the score was tied again. 

The tie remained to the bottom of the fourth when UVA again grabbed a leadoff double. Instead of a sac bunt turning into a single this time, it turned into an error when the ball wasn't caught cleanly at first. The unearned run was returned, and UVA regained the lead. A fielder's choice erased the lead runner (and the second potential unearned run), but a two-run homer made it 5-2. Gray recovered for a line out to make it two outs, but a single and a walk ended her day. Zabala came on in relief needing to just get one out, but a single to center was booted and two more unearned runs came in to score. A flyout ended the inning, but the lead had grown to 7-2. 

The Cards stranded six runners on base over the final three innings and were unable to cut into the lead. UVA added an insurance run they didn't need to set the final score at 8-2 in the bottom of the sixth. With two on and nobody out in the seventh, Louisville's chances ended on a strikeout, an infield fly, and a flyball to straightaway center. Ballgame. 

With Zabala having only thrown 1.1 innings yesterday and Sam Booe having come in to throw one of her own, it's anyone's guess who will take the start in the rubber match this afternoon. Louisville will need another strong offensive showing if they want to get a series upset. The game will air on ACC Network Extra. 

Meske Wins First Battle of the Bluegrass

Does a spring exhibition count as a true rivalry game? You bet it does. At least when we win. If we lose it doesn't count. Makes sense, right? Either way, the Cards took on the Cats in L&N Federal Credit Union Arena last night in their fourth and final spring match in the first season of the Dan Meske Era. Over 1,000 fans were on hand to watch the Cards take the 3-1 victory. We're still selling out the L&N FCU Arena in spring ball. I think the volleyball support is doing just fine. 

The Cards won 25-17, 20-25, 25-16, and 25-14 and were led by Payton Petersen and Reese Robins who each had eight kills. Defensively, the Cards were on fire. Kamden Schrand, officially wearing the libero jersey full time, finished with 22 digs, and Nayelis Cabello was close behind with 18. Cabello also contributed three blocks and six kills to go with her 24 assists. Petersen added four blocks and Robins had two. Those four will certainly be names we'll get used to hearing throughout the season. 

Other players that earned shoutouts from the official gocards writeup were Cara Cresse, Chloe Chicoine, Hannah Sherman, Kalyssa Blackshear, Ava Utterback, Hannah Kenny, and Alanna Bankston. There will be a lot of new names to get acquainted with after a fair amount of turnover from last season, but things appear to be just fine after Louisville went 4-0 during their spring season. Last night, the Cards also honored Elle Glock with a special senior day ceremony of her own after Glock decided to forego her final season of eligibility to graduate and depart UofL in May. 

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

We'll have three on hand today, as house projects keep Daryl away. Given the updates from last time she was on the show, we'll definitely let that slide. Join us as we talk softball, lacrosse, volleyball, and a little WBB. Check out the show after it posts around 1PM, and be sure to subscribe so that it comes to your feed automatically. 

Cardinal Couple YouTube: Link

Spotify: Link

Apple Podcasts: Link

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RadioPublic: Link

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case 

Softball takes game 1 vs UVA in extras --LAX falls at ND -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

FRIDAYS WITH DARYL 

Good morning and happy Friday readers!  We are officially 2 weeks from the Derby weekend which I am very much looking forward to.  Get your fascinators ready ladies!!! 



Softball

The Cards are on the road in Charlottesville, Virginia for an ACC series with the Cavs ahead of the holiday weekend.  The Cavs are celebrating their seniors this weekend and UofL is celebrating a 3 game winning streak taking game 1 of the series Thursday evening.  Its just the second loss for the Cavs at home this season.  

The Cards eek out a victory over the RPI Top 25 Cavaliers 6-5 in 9 innings. Alyssa Zabala got the start in the circle and looked to complete the game heading into the 7th inning with a 5-1 UofL lead.   After giving up 3 hits in the inning, UofL head coach Holly Aprile made the pitching change. She finished her day giving up 8 hits and 4 runs (3 in the 7th) and 4 strikeouts.

  

Brooke Gray got the win in 2.2 innings of one-hit softball in the circle.  

Easton Lotus finished with 4 hits on 5 plate appearances, scoring 2 runs. Char Lorenz had a 2 run HR to put the Cards ahead 5-1 late in the game.  

The last time UofL and UVA faced off was in 2023 in Charlottesville when the Cards swept em. 

1st inning

The Cards had 5 batters appear to open the game but count come up with any runs.   The Cavs came out swinging to get on the board early with a single and a double and a SAC bunt in-between to score the games first run.  But I will say I think it was a bad defensive effort that allowed that first runner to get on board to begin with. 

2nd inning

Pretty anticlimactic inning as the score remains the same throughout.  

3rd inning

A single up the middle for Lotus to start the offensive punch for the Cards before Lookadoo found herself looking at a bases loaded situation. She singled over third base to score 2 runs and then some defensive chaos throwing the ball around allows for some advancements and then a play at home which was reviewed and upheld as out at the plate. Card up 3-1 

4th inning

Both squads with 1 hit and 1 left on base but no runs to show in the inning. 

5th inning

Three up, three down for both squads for a quick inning. 

6th inning

Zabala started the 6th with a 10 pitch at bat that should've been a strike 3 called on a beautiful pitch on the inside corner but instead resulted in a single to CF which is quite deflating but the Cards were able to get out of the inning unscathed. 

7th inning

A Lotus single to left followed by a quick slap homerun to left center put the Cards in a comfy position heading into the final frame of regulation. But the Cavs would respond with 3 hits and runners on the corners and a chance to tie it at the plate.   Coach Holly Aprile makes the pitching change and put Lindsey Mullen in the circle instead.  She threw just 6 pitches facing 2 batters for the night, giving up a home run and a single putting the Cavs in a position to win in walk off fashion.  Aprile makes another pitching change putting Gray in to clean up the mess.   To extras we go... 

8th inning

The Cards had 3 hits but were unable to plate any runs it in and defensively it was 3 up, 3 down for UVA.

9th inning

Ally Alexander walked to get on base and ultimately score the game winning run on a fielding error from UVA and Maddi Grant doubling to right field to push the run across.  The Wahoos got two runners on but where unable to respond. 

The Cards win! 

Lacrosse

Louisville went to South Bend for the last match of the 2025 season and fell 6-17 against the Notre Dame fighting Irish. UofL finishes the 2025 campaign with a 7-10 record and a 1-8 mark in ACC play. The Irish had lost their 4 previous matchups and finished 7-8, 2-7 ACC.


ND scored in the first minute of the game and the Cardinals responded a minute later when Negai Nakazawa sent a feed to Maggie McMahon who delivered her 12th goal of the season. ND scored nine unanswered goals to close out the first quarter. Reese Whiteman for her team-best 25th goal of the season but the Cards could not come back from the early deficit and went into the break down 10.

This is the Health Science Campus of UofL - Downtown - the School of Medicine

I am working on finishing up a pretty awesome UofL related project here in the coming weeks that I am looking forward to sharing soon =)

As Always
Go Cards

~Daryl