Friday Cardinal Coupe -- Catching up on AAC WBB

FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

- Only four teams with winning in-conference records

It's time to catch up on those crazy Americans that the UofL WBB squad is living with for a year. Basically, it's a three-team conference this year and the real battle is going to be over who gets the #4 seed in the conference tournament.

With most of the teams in The American being five games into the conference schedule...only Louisville, UConn, Rutgers and USF are over .500 in league opponent play.

The Cards, Huskies and Scarlet Knights have yet to lose. The Bulls are 3-2. In the cellar is Houston at 0-5. In overall play, all 10 teams are .500 or better except the Coogs...who are 4-12.

Player of the Week last week was UConn's Breanna Stewart. She banged in 24 against Houston and 12 against the Owls last week. Tyler Scaife took Freshman of the Week...she tossed in 18 for Rutgers against Cincy and 16 against SMU.

On the honor roll? Alisha Jenkins (USF), Ariel Hearn (Memphis), Jeanise Randolph (Cincy), SHONI SCHIMMEL ( Louisville ) and Akil Simpson (SMU).


Three AAC teams are in the AP Top 25....any guesses who they might be? (Hint: Dogs, Birds and Julie Hermann's new gig.)

On the national scene...Louisville is the 12th. best scoring team in the country...averaging 84.1 a game. Only UConn is higher in the conference (ninth at 84.7). The Cards are 15th. in the nation in steals (197), 18th. in rebounding margin ( + 11.2) and Shoni is 16th. in nation in  threes with 52 and that number is first in the AAC.

Shoni's 16.9 PPG is fifth best in the AAC. Her .857 from the free throw line is tops in the league and Asia Taylor (.769) is eighth.

The Cards actually lead the AAC in total rebounds with 802 in 17 games.

In attendance figures for home games...UConn leads the league with an average of 8080 in 10 games. Louisville is second with 7894 in 11 games. After that, it drops significantly. USF brings in slightly more than Rutgers, Memphis or SMU but they haven't reached the 2,000 figure yet.

So, a All-American (conference) team so far? I'll toss out five names and feel free to debate them in the comments or by e-mail.

Shoni Schimmel  Louisville   Did you really think I'd leave her off the list?
Breanna Stewart UConn       She just might be best in all of College WBB
Ariel Hearn Memphis           Second in scoring in the AAC. Works for me.
Keena Mays SMU                  UofL shut her down but she can score, baby
Alisia Jenkins USF                Gotta have a rebounder on here. She does.



paulie   

Wednesday Cardinal Couple -- Happy NEW YEAR !!

WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

- WBB faces the Owls today

Happy New Year to Cardinal Couple readers!

Yes, The Year of the Cardinal has come to an end. 2013 will be remembered for a lot of great UofL athletic acheivements.

Who says we can't make 2014 Year of the Cardinal: Part Deux? It starts today...Jeff Walz and his merry band of revelers conga line over to McGonigle Hall in Philadelphia to face the Temple Owls.

It'll be the second AAC conference game for Shoni & Company...Louisville's debut in The American resulted in a 71-51 dismantling of Keena Mays and her Mustangs from Dallas. The main jockeys in that one for the Cards were the "erstwhile" Shoni (18 points), The Hammer (14 points, 10 grabs) and smilin' Bria Smith (13 points, 11 grabs, 1 chipped tooth). The "erstwhile" tag on Schimmel comes from one of the SMU radio broadcast guys I was sitting next to at the game...who described her as erstwhile.

I guess.

It was the same guy who told his listeners that the Cards were proud to be a member of The American this season.

Yes sir, you betcha...


As the Cards settle into conference play, the elder Schimmel leads the way with 16.2 ppg. The Hammer follows with 11.0 and Bria adds 10.0. Asia Taylor has fallen out of double figures at 9.3 per game.

These Owls have roosted to a 7-4 record this season and downed Memphis last time out 63-56. Freshman Feyonda Fitzgerald leads these wise birds with 15.7 a game...followed by Senior Natasha Thames with 12.5

TODAY'S QUIZ:

HOW MANY TIMES HAVE LOUISVILLE AND TEMPLE MET IN WBB?

a) 14...with the Cards winning 77-33 in 2005 to make it 14 straight wins
b) 2....the Owls beating Louisville 56-55 in 1982 to even the series at 1-1
c) 1....Louisville defeating Temple 101-32 in 2008
d) 0....they have never met


(ANSWER AT THE END OF THE COLUMN)

Louisville is on a six game win streak and 13-1 overall. The game will be televised on the WatchESPN app (ESPN 3) via internet. You can also access it through CardsTV (for a fee) and free on Cards Radio 790 with Matt Andrews and AJ providing the call. Tip at 4 p.m.

Louisville will be looking to improve upon several aspects of their game against the Owls. Free throw shooting overall (62%) isn't where Jeff wants it...although three Cards are shooting 80% or better from the charity stripe (Shoni, Asia and Monny). Walz is still wanting more consistency from the squad for 40 minutes as well in the offensive sets...Louisville was held to just five points in the final seven minutes against the Mustangs and only one made basket.

( ANSWER TO THE QUIZ IS "D"...THE SCHOOLS HAVE NEVER PLAYED UNTIL TODAY)

paulie

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Tuesday Cardinal Couple -- The American up and running

TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

- The American open for business.

Louisville's one year stay destination before heading to the ACC has their website up and running now. The American, American Athletic Conference, Louisville and the Nine Dwarfs...whatever you want to call it...has a website that, as of 11 p.m. Monday night, had five articles on it and the logos of the ten teams that will participate in it this season.

Yes, Louisville made the logo inclusion this time on the home page. It would seem rather silly not to put it on there...even if UofL's stay is brief. After all, the defending NCAA men's basketball team and only BCS Bowl game winner in the conference is Louisville. Originally, they had 12 logos there on the site and not Louisville's.

Those crazy Americans.

Link is:

http://theamerican.org

You can read about Memphis getting the men's basketball tournament in 2014, Uncasville, CT and the Mohegan Sun getting the women's basketball tournament and there is one of those flashy one minute or so montages with dynamic music playing in the background. Louisville's inclusion in the montage is minimal...a brief flash of Montrezl dunking and Peyton smiling. Don't blink, you'll miss it.

It's understandable. After all, we're leaving right after the christening party to go to better digs, more money and tougher competition.



They list 15 sports on the site, in alphabetical order, as being ones that will have American competition. They list track twice....indoor and outdoor.

I haven't taken the new site for a spin yet and checked out the bells and whistles. The dramatic music and seeing the Uconn women's basketball team twice in the first ten seconds of the montage was enough for now.

I'll have plenty of chances to go there beginning in August, I suppose. I may even sneak over and check out a fan site for the conference, too. It can be found at:

http://americanathleticconference.net/

They still have the 12 team logo on their site, with no Louisville or Rutgers but ECU and Navy. I saw an Andrea Adelson article posted there also...which means I may not get over there anytime soon.

These Americans can be confusing.

I also saw they had a social media link on the official site. I doubt they list CARDINAL COUPLE on it.

So, a brand new conference is born. Could be a fun year. We'll just see how these Americans do in keeping us informed for a year. The BIG EAST pretended that CARDINAL COUPLE didn't exist. Or the dog ate our e-mail address...something like that.

I'll never forget my hilarious encounter (at least now it is...) a couple of years ago with a BIG EAST official representative at an official BIG EAST event and being informed that my media access was (and I quote) "just barely" approved. I honestly think this individual was either trying to shame me or try and make me cry. I, of course, felt or did neither and countered in typical Groucho Marx fashion by mentioning that it was OK...I had "just barely" found the venue where the event was taking place because of its' diminutive size...and mentioned that Louisville had a much larger venue for events like this.  

Ah, well...water under the bridge for the most part.

I hope these Americans schedule indoor track in the winter and outdoor track in the spring or fall. I can't wait to go to Temple or Tulane.

Or...maybe I can. Chapel Hill or Cameron Indoor, anyone?



-Paulie

Cardinal Couple Thursday

THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

( Jeff McAdams brings us news on the Volleyball schedule
and it looks like Sam Purcell hasn't spent his last 13 days in
Louisville in vain...the "official announcement" is out. He's a
UofL WBB assistant coach.)

Volleyball Schedule

 

Volleyball announced their fall schedule and it starts off with a bang.  Unfortunately, like last year, the later season matches aren't going to give us much challenge.

First, though, we have our first chance to see the team play together on August 24th for the annual Alumnae celebration.  If there are enough alumnae that choose to participate, the match will be vs alumnae, otherwise, it would be a red vs black match.  This is a free, unticketed, event at Cardinal Arena.

The regular season starts the next weekend with two matches at the Penn State Invitational against Syracuse and, obviously, Penn State.  Talk about starting the season off with the best.  Syracuse is a non-conference foe this year, of course.  Its nice to keep the familiarity of them fresh for when we meet back up with them in the ACC in 2014.  Their coach is the former UofL head coach, Leonid Yelin with Assistant Coach, UofL Alumna, Stephanie Cantway nee Marsh.  Leonid has continued his international recruiting ways with several players from Poland, Lithuania, Uzbekistan, and The Russian Federation.  Penn State, with head coach Russ Rose is, as always loaded for bear.  The storyline on this one is a sister vs sister matchup.  Deja McClendon, out of Manual High School here in Louisville, is the sister to incoming UofL freshman Maya McClendon.

The next trip is to North Dakota to match up with North Dakota State, Northern Iowa, and
Wisconsin.  No real catchy story lines for these matches.  North Dakota and Northern Iowa are competent teams, but neither should be much of a threat for the UofL team, but we need to be wary of Wisconsin.  While their results from last year aren't all that impressive, having dropped matches to Indiana, Purdue, Michigan State, Ohio State, and Creighton, this is a team that can be a threat.

Still on the road, but closer to home anyway, the next weekend sees the Cardinals down the road in Lexington for The Bluegrass Battle.  This involves matches against, of course, Kentucky, but also Minnesota and Pepperdine.  Kentucky, well...in-state rivalry match.  While I think UofL typically has a better team than Kentucky, Craig Skinner's Wildcats seem to play very well against us, so they're a team that we always have to be ready to play.  Minnesota will be a heck of a match-up.  Last year they split with Nebraska, Texas, Michigan and Michigan State.  They beat Illinois twice, and Purdue three times.  They, did, however, lose to Penn State three times, but there's no shame in that.  Pepperdine has an absolutely amazing men's team typically, but in women's volleyball they seem to be only mediocre with loses to Dayton, UCLA, BYU, and Colorado State among others.

Louisville finally gets their home opener on September 20th for the annual Active Ankle Challenge at Cardinal Arena.  The Cardinals play host to future ACC conference foe Virginia Tech, as well as Rice and Bowling Green.  Virginia Tech is the only real challenge this weekend, but not much of one.

Then the American Conference slate of matches.  We play all of these home and away, but there really won't be much challenge from most of them.  Memphis, Temple, Southern Methodist, Houston, USF, UCF (Central Florida), Cincinnati, Rutgers, and UConn.  Of those, Cincinnati is frequently a good team, though they really had a rough year last year with new coach Molly Alvey, hopefully they can get things put back together this year.  USF can put together a good team at times as well.  Beyond those two, we really shouldn't have all that much of a threat from our conference slate games.

There are two other non-conference matches mixed in with the conference match-ups, with Wichita State and Middle Tennessee State.  We've played both of these teams several times and they both are good.  Neither is a national powerhouse, but they're good, which will be nice to have some solid teams to play in the midst of a thoroughly mediocre conference schedule.

There is no conference tournament in the American Conference, so the winner of the regular season gets the automatic qualifying bid for the NCAA tournament.

Sam Purcell officially announced as Assistant Coach for Basketball

Nearly two weeks after we broke the news here at Cardinal Couple, Sam Purcell was officially
announced as the new assistant coach for Jeff Walz.  Joining us from Georgia Tech, Sam Purcell replaces Cameron Newbauer who took the head coaching position at Belmont University in Nashville.

Prior to his stint with the Yellow Jackets, Sam was an assistant at Tulsa.  He started his basketball staff duties at Auburn, which is also his Alma Mater.

-Jeff McAdams

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Saturday Cardinal Couple -- Volleyball releases schedule

SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

-Volleyball releases 2013 schedule

-CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO on the air this morning


University of Louisville Volleyball has released their 2013 schedule...a slate that features 31 games, 12 of them at home, and 18 conference games in "The American". Out of the 12 home games, five will be played in Cardinal Arena and seven in the KFC YUM Center. All will be played on Friday, Saturday or Sunday...with the exception of a Wednesday night matchup against Connecticut Nov. 27th.

A challenging schedule ahead for Anne Kordes killers...playing in the Penn State Invitational, at Kentucky in the Bluegrass Battle Tournament and hosting the Active Ankle Tournament in Cardinal Arena with Rice, Virginia Tech and Bowling Green visiting.

The Cardinals will face eight 2012 NCAA participants, eight regional ranked teams, five nationally ranked squads and ten teams in the top 100 RPI.

Kicking things off will be an Alumni Match on Aug 24th. After that, its off to Penn State where the Cards will play Syracuse and the Nittany Lions. The road trip continues with the squad travelling to Fargo, ND. and contests against North Dakota St., Northern Iowa and Wisconsin. Three days later, UofL travels to Lexington...where UK, Minnesota and Pepperdine await.

Louisville's opponents in the American Athletic Conference are UConn, Memphis, Cincinnati, Temple, Central Florida, South Florida, Houston, SMU and Rutgers. The Cards will also have non-conference matchups at Wichita State and Middle Tennessee State.

Anne Kordes returns three USA A2 National Team members in Caitlin Welch, Brooke Mattingly and Hannah Kvitle.

For season ticket information...and there are some very good deals available...check out the UofL official website

www.gocards.com

or call 502.852.5151. Fans who purchase season tickets for the seven KFC YUM! Center matches will have the first chance to purchase tickets for matches at the sure-to-be sold out Caridnal Arena.

The Cards need you out there cheering on each volley, set, kill and serve this season. Get those season tickets ordered today!

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CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO is on the air this morning. We'll discuss the volleyball schedule with our expert "wide-net"
analyst Jeff McAdams and we have exclusive interviews with Lacrosse's Kellie Young and from Jeff Walz's Skill Camp.

Catch us live from 11 am - noon or access any of our previous broadcasts at the archives section of Crescent Hill Radio.

Stunning commentary, BELIEVE IT OR DON'T, Don Paulie and Peekup Dropvoff...we're the radio show your parents warned you about. Click the link below and listen!

CRESCENT HILL RADIO

We are still actively looking for a sponsor for the show beginning in July. We offer you a 120 second spot each week and permanent spot here on the website as well....over on the Left Side of The Site. All this for 50 cents a day. E-mail Paulie at cardinalcouple@insightbb.com for more information. Three, six or year options available.

The sooner someone steps up and takes a spot, the sooner I quit harping about needing a sponsor...


-Paulie

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BOZICH: Jurich Sees A Different Game Than Louisville's Competiti - WDRB 41 Louisville - News, Weather, Sports Community

TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

-Same state, different venue

-Jurich Vision: 20/20

The "American", or AAC, even American Athletic Conference has decided on a 2014 women's basketball site.

Three guesses on the state. Or, as THE WHO said in their classic song "Won't Get Fooled Again"...'Meet the new boss. Same as the old boss.'

The Mohegan Sun Arena, part of Mohegan Sun Casino in Connecticut, will host the event March 7-10. The deal is for one year with a conference option for the 2015 Tournament. It holds 9,518 fans, down from the 16,000 that the Hartford XL could pack in.

I guess losing Notre Dame, DePaul and Syracuse...along with the others remaining in the BIG EAST will do that to you. I wonder how well SMU and UCF travel for women's basketball? It probably won't matter...9,000 of the fans will be wearing Husky gear.

The Cards will play one season in "The Amercan" and in the AAC Women's Basketball Tournament before splitting to the ACC. One year of Mogehan, gambling and Memphis, Temple and Central Florida hoops powerhouses. Pinch me.  

One coach we know won't complain. Geno's Fast Break Restaurant is located in the Mohegan Sun facility. Mr. Auriemma approves. I guess Coach Walz will be pulling double duty up there that weekend...coaching the Lady Cards and waiting on tables.

Coach Walz did comment on the location:

"I'm very excited about playing the conference tournament at the Mohegan Sun. It will provide an exciting environment for both the student-athlete and the fans."

Yes, indeed. And, if you're...let's say, visiting from Texas and down 40 to UConn in the quarterfinals...you can always go roll them laughing bones or try a few one-armed bandits. Or get a plate of pasta.

The format...with just 10 teams this year...for tournament play, will be just four days next March and will begin with a first round double-header on March 7th. with the #10 seed playing the #7 seed and the #8 seed against the #9 seed. Winners advance for quarter-final games against the top six seeds on March 8th. The semifinals will take place March 9th. and final game the 10th.

Louisville, UConn, USF, UCF, Cincinnati, SMU, Houston, Memphis, Rutgers and Temple for a year. Who ya got for a semi-final foursome? I'll go with Louisville, Rutgers, UConn and USF. I'm bold and daring like that...

And could I get a little garlic bread over here at the roulette table?


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Click the link below for a great read from Rick Bozich on Tom Jurich and his visionary decisions:


BOZICH: Jurich Sees A Different Game Than Louisville's Competiti - WDRB 41 Louisville - News, Weather, Sports Community

I.T.W.T....in Tom we trust.

-Paulie

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AMERICAN or BIG EAST? How about both...

MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

-AMERICAN Athletic Conference or BIG EAST? UofL women's sports teams will participate in both next year

-Cardinal Caravan kicks off tomorrow

We now know a bit more (not a lot, mind you) about the AMERICAN conference that Louisville will participate in for a year before going to the ACC. And, it does (if a conference can actually have a persona or identity) want to be called "The American"...not the AAC.

They've even come up with a logo. It's functional, we suppose and gets the basic idea across. They have a web site, too.

http://www.theamerican.org

Not a whole not over at the site yet, but they do have the logos of 12 teams that will take part in AMERICAN sports. (Sorry, but every time I type AMERICAN in bold letters like we do with the BIG EAST or ACC...I want to salute the flag or hum the National Anthem).

Louisville's logo isn't one of the 12 school logos that grace the member page. It's probably just as well, since it's a one-year membership for Cardinal sports. I describe it as a stop at the three-star hotel for a night before arriving at the luxury resort.

So, who are these AMERICAN members and how often will we interact with them?

CONNECTICUT - We're familiar with the Huskies. Home of Geno and fake fair catches in football games. They usually beat us in field hockey and lacrosse, too.
SMU - That stands for Southern Methodist University. I don't know if there is a northern, eastern or western Methodist university. I won't spend any time researching it, either.
UCF - University of Central Florida, to you...sir. We just got two women's golf coaches from them. In Orlando. So is Disney World. Their mascot is not "the Mouse".
TEMPLE - A Philadelphia university, Bill Cosby went there. Louisville knows Philly, because of Villanova. They'll need to reprogram the GPS, though. Owls vs. Cards. I like it.
MEMPHIS - They left C-USA for this? I guess the lure of playing Cincinnati again was just too strong. Louisville WBB beat Memphis so badly the last time out, Sonja got in...
CINCINNATI - They're probably bitter they aren't joining us in the ACC. We'll miss Mick Cronin, Jamelle Elliott and Nippert Stadium. OK, not all that much. Bear it, Bearcats.
USF - a.k.a. South Florida. I think the happiest I've ever seen a coach is when Jose Fernandez saw his WBB hoops team beat Louisville in the YUM! last year. I'll miss Tampa.
EAST CAROLINA - Another C-USA departure. I do know there is a north, south and western Carolina. Whether they are Methodist or not, I'm not so sure. Gordon Gee might...
TULANE - It holds a special memory for me because it was Howard Schnellenberger's first really big win at UofL. They don't play field hockey or lacrosse in Nawlins but do play Sand Volleyball!
HOUSTON - The Cougars did go 40-19 in softball & normally field good hoops teams, too. Another departed from C-USA. They also made the NCAA Softball Regionals. 1-2 like us. 
TULSA - The Hurricanes hosted the C-USA Softball regionals. Another one of those schools that won't pose a threat in lacrosse or field hockey because they don't play.
NAVY - I actually had a reader e-mail me asking if Navy had any women's sports programs. Why, yes...they do. They join in 2015 after Louisville goes to the ACC.

A waiting list for the AMERICAN? Really?

So, we know Louisville will play soccer in the AMERICAN, but field hockey in the BIG EAST. Lacrosse in the BIG EAST but basketball in the AMERICAN. Softball in the AMERICAN 
and Volleyball I have no idea because they haven't released a schedule yet.

Dizzy yet? I thought so...

If I were the University of Louisville athletic purchasing department director, I wouldn't spend a lot of money on AMERICAN stationary or logo patches for uniforms.

So, we will be AMERICANS for a year. Then, maybe to the south of France or Bora-Bora. How about the brilliance of Sean Moth who queried..." If a Louisville player gets 'all-conference' recognition next season, does it mean they are 'all-American' ?" Or All-AMERICAN. Jeez.... 

"Ask not what your conference can do for you. Ask what conference records you can set in one season." 

I'm pretty sure John F. Kennedy didn't say that...but Caitlin Welch, Shoni Schimmel and Caralisa Connell may find out...

Will freshman signees with one of the 12 schools be known as "Young AMERICANS"? and will David Bowie be okay with that terminology?

DAVID BOWIE'S YOUNG AMERICANS

And, at long last...Al Greener can point proudly to his "pep" trombonists and drummers and say (for at least one year):

"We're an American band!"

(apologies to Grand Funk Railroad...)

GRAND FUNK'S WE'RE AN AMERICAN BAND

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CARDINAL CARAVAN rolls into Bardstown and Louisville tomorrow. The whole schedule is at www.gocards.com

If you're headed to the Louisville one, it officially starts at 6:30 p.m. You'll probably want to get there earlier than that, though...it gets mucho crowded. Jurich, Pitino, and a plethora of other coaches and players.

It's fun and the view of the Ohio River from Captain's Quarters is pretty sweet. Unless you're seeing a doozy of a thunderstorm rolling in, like we did at the end of the festivities last year. See you out there!

-Paulie

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Summer camps

WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

( Jenny O' Bryan takes us camping today. No need for marshmallows or insect repellent, though...she discusses the summer camps for athletes that UofL coaches hold for upcoming stars of the sports. Louisville has also released the women's soccer schedule for 2013 and...surprise!...the American Athletic Conference does offer women's soccer. As an entree only, side dishes cost extra... ) 

The academic year is over on campus.  As far as athletic events, all sports have wound down and are over except for the outdoor season of track and field.  They are heading in to their final competition of the year, which will close the entire year of women’s athletics at Louisville. 

Those that remain on campus spend part of their summer taking classes, but they also spend time in off-season workouts as well as camps for their prospective sports.  These camps are offered across the board in every program. 

The athletic summer camp experience ranges in age and talent level, skills camps, team camps and specialized skill development.  From beginners to elite athletes every aspiring athlete can learn something from their favorite athletic team. 

My volleyball-playing daughter is a returning attendee to Coach Kordes camps.  She loves the camp and spends her time at libero/defensive specialist skill development camp.  As a parent, camps like this are invaluable.  Not only is the athlete getting excellent coaching and training from a premiere program and staff, but it also helps the prospective athlete to gain some perspective.  My daughter is very clear that while she loves this camp and works very hard at this camp, that Division 1 athletics are not for her.  While she loves the game and wants to play at the next level, she also wants more out of her college experience than just volleyball.  I applaud her coming to that conclusion on her own, and credit the hard, intensive work at a 3-day camp in helping to give her clarity.   It is a tiny window into the life of a Division 1 athlete. 

From the University’s perspective, I am sure camps are multi-purposed.   It is a time to see young talent and also a time to build future Cardinal fans   Having the opportunity to work with these student athletes cannot help but build an affinity for the program as well as the athletes.    My family has become regular attendees at UofL Volleyball games (when it does not conflict with my daughters own high school schedule) as a direct result of attending camps and getting to know the players. 
.

So while the summer months means a quieter time for the teams that we love to watch compete, there is plenty going on and keeping them busy and active.  If you haven’t already, check out one of the many camp opportunities awaiting your daughters!

http://www.gocards.com/camps/lou-camps.html

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Louisville women's soccer has released their 2013 schedule and we finally get a glimpse into some of the teams that will compete in the "American"...or American Athletic Conference. The Karen Ferguson-Dayes led charges with play 18 regular season games and two exhibitions before the AAC Conference Tournament. Eight of these will be at Cardinal Park. Memphis, Rutgers, SMU, Houston, USF, UCF, Temple, Connecticut and Cincinnati will be conference games for Louisville and the Cards will also play future ACC foes Virginia Tech and Wake Forest on the road.

The game against Kentucky will be in Lexington this year.

Home games have Louisville facing Butler Fri. Aug. 23rd. and Illinois Sunday Aug. 25th. In September the Cards will host Morehead State on Friday the 13th., UTSA on Sunday the 15th., Memphis on Friday 27th. and Rutgers on Sunday the 29th. Louisville has two home contests in October...USF visits the 11th (Friday) and UCF comes to town the 13th (Sunday). We like and applaud the schedulers for making these home games on the weekend! Let's show our gratitude by getting out there and attending them!

We'll have a preview of the women's soccer team when the season gets a bit closer and you can probably expect us to cover the schedule and team on Saturday's CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO

 www.crescenthillradio.com

on Crescent Hill Radio. We're on the air from 11 a.m. to noon on Saturday and the broadcasts are also archived and available on the SoundCloud in case you miss one.

The squad returns a veteran defense and several high profile scorers, so
the one season in the AAC should be an eventful and successful one for the 
Soccer Cards. 


The full schedule can be found at www.gocards.com

-- Jenny O'Bryan

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