Cards WSOC wins Battle of the Bluegarss over UK 2-1 -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 KARINA PEAT'S TWO GOALS THE DIFFERENCE IN LEXINGTON. 

Louisville women's soccer jumped out to an early 2-0  lead over UK and then battled to stay in front when UK added a late goal to curt the lead in half. In 90 degree, humid weather...both teams looked tanked as time expired, but visiting Red & Black outlasted Blue & White on a Thursday night in Lexington. 

The Cards got their first goal with 22:45 gone in the match, or roughly half of the first half gone when Amelia Swinarski and Liza Suydam set up Karina Peak in front of the UK goal and she booted it into the net with her right foot. 

The Cards didn't have to wait much longer before their final goal of the match. At the 26 minute mark, Nicole Jodain found Peak open and set her up for a shot that got by the UK keeper and gave Louisville a 2-0 lead. And, that's how the first half ended. 

In the second half, both teams had great opportunities to score but the ball was going wide or off the top of the goal. UK, getting close to desperation mode, finally came across with their lone goal of the contest when Juliette Rayo kicked one in with 7:58 left in the contest. 

The Cards go to 5-1 with the win. the Cats take their second loss of the year, also being beaten by Ohio St. 

Louisville took 14 shots in the game, with seven on goal, while UK had 10 shots with five on goal. Each squad had four saves and took five corners. The Cards were whistled for infractions six times and UK got two penalty calls on them. 

Louisville returns to action next on Sunday, when they host Mercyhurst. And , who is that, you might ask? They are a private Catholic University in Erie, PA   James "Buster" Douglas, a heavyweight boxer that defeated Muhammad Ali attended Mercyhurst on a football scholarship. We seriously doubt he'll be o the pitch when the two schools face each other. 

Cards win, Cards win!

paulie

Three UofL women's fall sports are 9-2 so far this year -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 FIELD HOCKEY, WOMEN'S SOCCER AND VOLLEYBALL OFF TO GREAT STARTS. 

With the college fall sports season in it's early stages, let's look at the three main fall women's sports on the UofL campus. Field Hockey, Women's Soccer and Volleyball. We certainly hope golf and tennis don't take any offense to us identifying what we believe the three main fall sports are...a lot of the decision to just use these three comes from the responses on what you follow in the fall and like to watch and read about. 

These three sports have had a total of 11 games or matches so far this season. The early results are quite impressive. They re a combined 9-2

Louisville Field Hockey is 2-0 so far. They have wins over Miami (OH) by a score of 2-1 and Indiana by also 2-1. They are ranked 18th or 19th in the nation, depending on which ranking service you follow. Next up for them is a Sept 4th visit to St. Louis. 

Louisville Women's Soccer is 4-1 to open the season. They fell to Nebraska to start the season by a 3-1 margin. Since then, they have defeated Indy-IU 5-1, Belmont 5-0, Dayton 4-2 and Akron 5-0. Their 4-1 record is impressive so far. NCAA Women's Soccer has not released a top 25 ranking yet. They face Kentucky next, on Sept 3rd. 

Louisville Volleyball is 3-1. They started the season with a win over Texas A&M three set to one. Wisconsin was next and the Cards took an "L" there, losing in three sets. Indiana ferried in to play the VolleyCards next and it was a 3-0 sweep for UofL. Dayton visited next and was grounded with a 3-0 set sweep. TCU comes in next on Sept 4th. 

ACC play awaits the three soon and we'll see if these non-conference wins spur the squads on to ACC wins. We haven't seen a 2026-27 ranking poll yet for D1 volleyball, Louisville is 23rd in the NCAA WSOC rankings, and Field Hockey hasn't released a current top 25 yet either. With Justine Sowry, you expect excellence each year out of the Field Hockey squad. What is impressive is that relatively new head coaches in Hunter Norton (WSOC) and Dan Meske (Volleyball) are doing so well. It should be remembered, though, that both were assistants in the programs for a long period of time to two very good head coaches. 

Here hoping for the best for each program as the fall season progresses.  

paulie

Five key players essential to Louisville women's soccer successes -- SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 CAN CARDS WSOC IMPROVE ON 13-5-3 2025 SEASON?

Ashlyn Hule

Louisville Women's Soccer goes into the 2026 season after a very good 2025 season where they went 13-5-2 and 6-2-2 in the ACC. And, now...with Hunter Norton in his first season, Cardinal fans will hope that the soccer squad can keep up the success. 

Junior Amelia Swinarski stands out as the primary returning star. She led the Cards in goals last season with 10, and also accumulated 30 points. 

Along with Swinarski, these other four players are expected to be significant contributors to the squad. 

-- Ella Bard, a sophomore defender, was named to the U.S Under 20 National Team Camp.

-- Grace Maddox, a junior defender, is another returning key anchor to the defensive line. 

-- Ashlyn Hule goes into her sophomore season as a forward with high scoring potential.

-- Kiley Peat will be a sophomore midfielder who contributed scoring last year and figures to add to that. 

Louisville brings in six transfers and five freshmen to the roster. The Cards were picked to finish ninth in the ACC preseason poll 

paulie

  

Cards Called Up -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Bard, Cantu Earn USWNT Attention

Louisville women's soccer saw two players invited to camp with the US Women's National Team youth programs this month, with announcements coming yesterday. Rising sophomore Ella Bard and incoming freshman Cate Cantu heard their names called as they'll join camps for the U-20 and U-18 teams, respectively. Bard will camp in Kansas City 4/7-4/16 with two opportunities to play against Brazil on 4/11 and 4/15. Cantu will camp in West Palm Beach 4/10-4/17. No international friendlies are listed for that one. 

Ella Bard's call-up to the U-20 team indicates that she has impressed the USWNT staff so far in her development. Bard was called up to the U-19 team in October, missing time with UofL to take part in friendlies against the Republic of Ireland and Portugal. In February, she joined that team again to play against Czechia, Wales, and Portugal. This time, an invite to U-20 camp means that Bard is a serious contender to be a part of the team which will participate in the Women's U-20 World Cup in Poland in September. A call up in that window would surely be difficult for the Cards in the early season, as Bard figures to move into a full-time starting role on defense, but the experience she could gain would be unmatched.

Cate Cantu is a name that is likely more unknown to Louisville fans. While Bard made a quick name for herself as a freshman last season, making her debut in the Vanderbilt game and earning her first start against Wright State, Cantu hasn't yet made it to campus. Cantu is an incoming goalkeeper, which is a position you might remember as recently vacated. (Happy belated birthday to the new Racing Louisville keeper, Erynn Floyd, by the way.) Cate has the opportunity to claim that position right out of the gate. If she does so, she could become the third straight long-term starter to claim the job as a freshman, following Floyd and Gabby Kouzelos. Cantu was a three-time All Central League First Team selection in Pennsylvania, and she was a High School All-American as a senior. Her club team, Penn Fusion, were ECNL National Champions in 2024. Cantu will be competing for the starting spot against Brielle Baker, who is the only returning goalkeeper from last season's roster.

While players missing time is difficult for a college team, the opportunity to play for your country are invaluable for both the player and the team. Players get the chance to fulfill lifelong dreams and play against some of the top competition the world has to offer. Teams get to reap the benefits of the additional experiences the players gain as well as show recruits how much they support player development. We see the same with Jeff Walz and basketball all the time. Showing recruits that you're not just going to make them good enough to play for their national team, but that you will also give them the freedom to make the most of those opportunities, is quite enticing. 

All the best to Ella and Cate in the coming weeks. 

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case

images from @louisvillewsoc on Instagram