FH and Volleyball Fall on the Road -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Field Hockey Drops ACC Finale at Cal 2-1

Louisville field hockey's offensive woes continued Friday night, as a swing out to the west coast didn't jolt any life into the goal scoring sticks. Facing a Cal team that had not yet won an ACC game, Louisville needed a win to ensure they would make the ACC tournament. At 6-7 (0-5) entering yesterday, Cal had given up 26 goals and only scored 23 on the season. As we discussed on last week's CCRHP, that number in conference was markedly worse. Unfortunately, Louisville couldn't find the back of the cage consistently enough to get the win. 

Cal scored twice in the first ten minutes of the game, with both coming from Liz Klompmaker. Klompmaker is the leading scorer for Cal, and her second goal in this game was her thirteenth of the year. The first quarter saw Louisville give up 11 shots to Cal, with seven of those being on target. Those came with the help of five penalty corners. The Cards managed to earn zero shots in the first quarter. 

Louisville's offense and midfield did manage to turn it around throughout the rest of the game, but they just couldn't score. Despite the massive difference in the first quarter, Louisville and Cal finished the game tied with 14 total shots. Louisville managed to get one more shot on target, finishing with 10, and the Cards took a total of nine penalty corners, while Cal got just one more to finish with six. Louisville managed to cut the deficit to one goal with three minutes remaining in the first half, but they were unable to find an equalizer in the second. 

Rylie Wollerton scored the lone goal for the Cards, and she was assisted by Aimee Plumb. The box score doesn't say it outright, but the goal came four seconds after a penalty corner, so I'm counting it as a PC conversion. That still means Louisville only converted 11%, but it's better than 0. The goal was Wollerton's sixth of the year. 

In goal, Brandelynn Heinbaugh took the start this game and played 56 minutes. Louisville went empty net in the waning minutes to try to tie. Heinbaugh finished with seven saves, which should have been plenty for Louisville's offense to keep them in this game. 

The Cards have one more regular season match before they find out their fate about the ACC and NCAA tournaments. Louisville will take on UC Davis tomorrow at 2PM Eastern. The match will be available on America East TV and the link can be found on GoCards as well. As with pretty much every other match in the current skid, Louisville needs a win to keep their NCAA tournament hopes alive. Unfortunately, their ACC tournament fate is out of their control. Last night saw both Cal and Stanford pick up their first ACC wins as Stanford beat Wake 1-0. Cal will play Wake tomorrow and the two California teams will face off on Halloween. Since one team is guaranteed to finish with two wins, it will come down to tiebreakers for the last spot. As best I can tell, Louisville needs Wake Forest to beat Cal and for Cal to beat Stanford. All four teams currently have one win and Louisville only holds the tiebreaker over Stanford. Wake also plays Virginia, so the wrong results for the Cards could potentially see them as the only ACC team to finish 1-7 and out of the conference tournament. 

Volleyball Loses 5-Set Thriller at Pitt

Two of the top teams in the country went head to head last night and the battle for the top of the ACC went down to the wire. Facing a team that had only dropped four sets all season entering the match, Louisville was able to add just two to that total. The Cards and Panthers went hammer and tongs for the entire match before the Cards ultimately fell 15-12 in the deciding fifth set. Given the pattern, Louisville may have very well won a sixth set if they played it, but they potentially would have lost a seventh. Louisville won the evens and lost the odds, with the final scoreline being 21-25, 28-26, 17-25 (eek), 25-22, 12-15. 

This match was everything you'd expect: even almost across the board. Louisville finished with more kills (70-68), but they were surprisingly outblocked (13-16). Statistically, the serving line was almost a non-factor. Louisville went 1-7 and Pitt went 3-12, giving the Cards a net +3. However, stats don't tell the whole story with serving, and when those plays happened could matter a lot. The big differentiator was the total errors and playing in system. Louisville had 70 assists on their 70 kills, so every kill was played through the offense. Pitt had only 65 assists, meaning they had three free points from Louisville over passes. Louisville also finished with 35 errors to Pitt's 20. Since blocks count as errors for the hitter, that means Louisville had 19 true hitting errors and Pitt had seven. That'll do it, folks. 

Pitt set the tone straight out of the gate by blocking Anna DeBeer for the match's first point. Charitie Luper tied it up, but Pitt went on an 8-2 run to take a 9-3 lead. The Panthers kept Louisville at arm's length for nearly the remainder of the set. As I mentioned, though, the timing of service line swing plays can be very important. With a 23-17 lead, Pitt had a service error, starting a three-point run that gave Louisville life at 20-23. Unfortunately, that knife cuts both ways. A service error from Louisville gave Pitt set point and the Cards could win just one more before the bell. 

The second set appeared to flip the script entirely, with Louisville taking the early 9-3 lead and looking to be in control. As the scores crept up, points were largely exchanged one-for-one and Louisville was flying high at 19-13. All good things must end, it is said, and so it was for the Cards as an 8-2 Pittsburgh run tied the second set at 21. With the Panthers at home and carrying all the momentum, Louisville was in danger. They won two quick points to go up 23-21 and could take a breath, but Pitt punched right back to take set point at 24-23. From there, it was do or die for both teams. Louisville won a pair for their own set point, and the teams traded to tie it at 26. In came another key service error, and Louisville finished the set with a big block to win 28-26.

The third set was nothing to write home about. It was Louisville's worst set from a hitting perspective and Pitt's best. The Cards hit 0.182 and Pitt put up a whopping 0.433. Surprisingly, Louisville's error number (8) was not their highest of the match (they had 10 in the second), but a hitting deficit of 25% is pretty tough to overcome. Unlike the first two sets, the third was close early, with Louisville keeping it within two points up to 13-15. Unforced errors and Pitt blocks came home to roost, though, and Louisville dropped the set out of the halftime break 25-17. 

Down 2-1 against the top team in the country in a very hostile environment, Louisville was on the ropes. The Cards continued to struggle offensively to start the fourth, but the Panthers very generously gifted them three service errors in the first 15 points. Those points were crucial for the Cards, as they were blocked twice and had two hitting errors over the same stretch. Trailing just 7-8, though, Louisville was able to put their heads down and get on track. The Cards committed just two more errors over the remainder of the fourth set and managed to stretch a lead over time to 20-17. They took a 23-20 lead, and it looked briefly similar to the second set. This time, though, they held strong, putting the brakes on a Pitt run after two points and holding on to the 23-22 lead. Louisville won the next two to set up the tiebreaking fifth. 

In retrospect, the start of the fifth may have been a sign that a win wasn't on the books last night. As the match started with a block of DeBeer, the fifth began with a DeBeer service error. Pitt won five of the first seven points, and the Cards looked like they could be in trouble. Louisville managed to bring it back to 6-7, but the ball just wouldn't fall their way. After a kill by Charitie Luper looked to keep the Cards alive with the score at 8-10, Elena Scott had a crucial service error, her only one of the night (DeBeer only committed two). Instead of a chance to make it 9-10, Louisville was down 8-11 and that quickly became 8-12. In a set to 25, that wouldn't be so bad. Unfortunately, the fifth set is a race to 15. Again, Louisville managed to chop out a point and, again, an untimely service error flipped the ball right back. This time, it was Nayelis Cabello committing her only service error of the night. The Cards had just seven service errors and three came in the fifth set. Brutal. Louisville managed to go on a short burst thanks to back-to-back blocks and drew to within 12-13, but Pitt took the last two points to secure the win. 

Obviously, Pitt is very good, but they've been proven to be beatable and this match looked very winnable for Louisville. It's a tough way to end, but the Cards will get another shot at the Panthers on Thanksgiving week in the Yum! Center. In last night's match, Louisville was led by Anna DeBeer and Charitie Luper. DeBeer tied the match high of 22 kills with Pitt's Olivia Babcock. Luper was third among all players with 19. Louisville also got double-digits from Reese Robins, who had 10. Cara Cresse finished with nine kills and Sofia Maldonado Diaz had seven.

Defensively, Elena Scott finished with 21 digs and was forced into seven assists. Both Luper and DeBeer completed double-doubles, finishing with 17 and 14 digs, respectively. Elle Glock also had a double-double (technically) as she picked up 11 digs to go along with her 38 assists. Phekran Kong led the team with six block assists, while DeBeer was close behind with three BA and the only solo block of the night for Louisville.

The Cards are back in action tomorrow as they head deep into the heart of Texas to take on SMU. The Mustangs have been giant killers this season, so Louisville needs to have maximum focus to avoid a losing streak. SMU is ranked 12th in the country and swept Notre Dame last night. Tomorrow's match will get underway at 1PM and will be on ESPN. I'm sure Jeff will have more to say tomorrow about both matches as he was in Pittsburgh last night.

No Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast This Week

With Cardinal Couplers scattered to the wind this week, the choice was down to me as to whether I'd like to monologue the hour. Had things gone a bit better for the Cards this week, perhaps I would have considered it. As it stands, though, we'll have no show this week. We should be back next week barring any unforeseen circumstances.

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case

Volleyball Sweeps; FH Offense Goes Cold; Louisville Live -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

DeBeer is Back as Volleyball Beats Clemson 3-0

Louisville volleyball took care of business against Clemson ahead of their big matchup tomorrow and moved to 3-0 in conference. After a big win over Stanford last weekend and with Georgia Tech on the horizon, it was important for the Cards to not have an emotional letdown when the Tigers came to town. No such thing was at hand, as Louisville ripped off a 25-13 first set to establish the tone of the match. Clemson fought back by making the second set closer at 25-22, but Louisville separated again at the end with a 25-17 victory to complete the sweep. 

The Cards finished with 20 errors in yesterday's match, but the first set was fairly clean. Louisville only hit 0.28 but they had just four errors. With only 25 attack attempts, it's not so difficult to see why the percentage was low. Clemson, meanwhile, hit 0.0 in the first set. The Cards won the matchup in both aces and blocks for the match and they had far fewer serving errors. In fact, Louisville was +6 at the line while Clemson was -5, netting the Cards a +11 advantage in serving. Coupled with their 12-6 advantage in blocking, it becomes apparent how Louisville could sweep while committing more overall errors (Clemson had 19). 

The second set, where Clemson closed the gap, saw the Cards hit 10 errors. They had 51 attempts in the second, putting 15 kills on top of their errors. They managed to stay positive and still outhit Clemson 0.098-0.07. It was nothing to write home about, and Louisville actually played from behind for most of the set. After going up 3-2, Louisville gave up a 6-1 run to Clemson to go down 8-4. They slowly clawed back the deficit throughout the set before regaining the lead at 18-17. The teams traded points until a tie at 20, after which Louisville took five of the next seven points to win. 

Halftime was likely filled with a bit of a wakeup call, which it seemed Louisville responded to. They came out of the break and jumped out to a 4-1 lead which they extended to 11-6. From there, the Cards kept the Tigers at arm's length before ultimately going away at the end. Clemson won three straight points to make it 19-16, but they'd only score one more for the remainder of the match. 

Leading the way were Anna DeBeer and Charitie Luper (of course). Luper had 11 kills and 4 errors to finish with a .250 hitting percentage. DeBeer, on the other hand, was back with a vengeance. We've been waiting for her to return to form and she has shown signs of getting there recently. Yesterday was another indication. DeBeer hit 12 kills with no errors, finishing with a .522 percentage. She assisted on 4 blocks and had two aces with no service errors. She also finished second on the team (and third in the match) with 11 digs. Hello, Anna DeBeer. 

Elena Scott led all players with 19 digs and added three aces and a pair of assists. She had just one service error and an error in reception. Light work for the player of the week, who continues to make her case as the top libero in the nation. Many will say it's still debatable. Most in this region would disagree. 

The Cards take on Georgia Tech tomorrow. The Yellow Jackets have slipped a bit this season but they are still plenty dangerous. It's a 1:30pm start in L&N Arena, and the match will air on ACC Network. 

Field Hockey Scores First, Falls 2-1 at Syracuse

Justine Sowry would desperately like for her team to find some offense. I know you're saying, "Case, they've scored 21 goals in 11 games; that's not bad." I hear you, but there is a bit more nuance to that. While they've scored 21, they are 5-6. Of their 21 goals, 16 have come in their five wins. Three came in their 4-3 overtime loss to Ohio State last weekend. That means they've scored two goals in their other five losses. That's... not going to get it done.

Yesterday, Louisville looked to be off to the races. The Cards earned a corner in the first three minutes and Chloe Plumb tipped in the goal after an assist from Izzy Bianco. They were 1-1 on corners and 1-1 on shots. Unfortunately, the game doesn't end at the three minute mark. Louisville went on to get just three more shots in the game and none of them were on target. That's even with earning four more corners. Eek. 

Syracuse, on the other hand, calmly took the first goal in stride. The Orange earned two corners in the first quarter, taking a total of five shots. They forced two saves from Brandelynn Heinbaugh, but they finally got by her as time wound down in the quarter, tying the game at one with just 19 seconds remaining. While the second quarter was silent for both teams, Cuse took seven more shots in the second half, putting four of those on target. For those not keeping track, that means Syracuse outshot the Cards 12-4 and outshot them on target 6-1. The Orange scored the go-ahead goal (which would prove to be game winning) with five minutes left in the third quarter.

We've talked about how Louisville's offense needs to support the keepers in women's soccer, and the same is true in field hockey. Heinbaugh finished with four saves, which isn't world beating, but it could have been enough. Louisville forced no saves from Syracuse. Outside the first goal, they couldn't even put the ball on the cage. That's not how you're going to win games. 

I don't want to be overly negative. Field hockey is difficult at the top, and that's where Louisville fancies themselves. The non-conference schedule is a gauntlet, which is supposed to help prepare them for their conference schedule. Unfortunately, for the second year running, we're looking at a team under .500 halfway through the season. The Cards may remain ranked even if they lose to #3 Virginia tomorrow, but they're going to have to find a way to get out of the offensive slump. With UNC and Duke still on the schedule, as well as Wake and Cal on the road, Louisville field hockey need some wins to be considered for the NCAA tournament. I think they're good enough to do it, but they'll need to prove it to the committee.

Louisville Live at the KFC Yum! Center

Louisville men's and women's basketball have put aside the flashy outdoor venues of 4th Street Live, Louisville Slugger Field, and Churchill Downs in favor of the friendly confines of the KFC Yum! Center. I think they should consider Lynn Family, but I doubt Soccer Holdings would be too keen to allow them to put something on their well-manicured field. L&N Stadium could also be fun with the new field level suites.

That said, there's something quite right about doing your kickoff event on your home floor. Given all that has happened with the men's basketball program in recent years, there's not a thing wrong with getting everyone to bring good vibes to the Yum! Center. Last night there were good vibes galore. Plus, how can you not get excited for the upcoming year with an introductory picture that goes as hard as this one?

Last night's festivities included a 3x3 game, 3-point contest, and a dunk competition. Taking home victory in the 3x3 were Ja'Leah Williams and Mackenly Randolph from the women's team along with J'Vonne Hadley and Terrance Edwards on the men's. They were joined by Stephen Van Treese representing the alumni. Their team was coached by Aly Khalifa and Kobe Rodgers. The team they defeated featured Imari Berry, Anaya Hardy, and Chelsie Hall along with Koren Johnson and James Scott. It was coached by Merissah Russell, Olivia Cochran, Elif Istanbulluoglu, Nyla Harris, and Jayda Curry. 

It's nearly impossible to tell who all participated in the 3-point contest, but unfortunately the women couldn't quite keep up this year. The finals were between grad transfer (and 6'-11" forward) Noah Waterman and transfer senior guard Reyne Smith. The aptly named Reyne took home the victory. 

Freshman Khani Rooths was the winner in the dunk contest, earning 10s across the board, except for the (well within his rights) strict judgement of Darrell Griffith. Dr. Dunkenstein still scored Rooths a 9. Anaya Hardy got it on the action in the dunk contest as well, exciting the crowd with (just about) a dunk of her own. I'd score it a "standard Peyton Siva breakaway" style dunk but it'd be pretty difficult for anyone to defend, so I like it. 

This season should be exciting for the Cards, and we're looking for both teams to feed on the energy each can bring to the Yum! Center.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

It'll be a twosome on the show today, as a noon kickoff holds out Jared and Daryl. I'm headed to a friend's shower (it was scheduled before the football game), but Paulie and Jeff will hold down the fort. They'll be happy to talk volleyball and Louisville Live, but perhaps not quite as thrilled about field hockey and soccer. 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

Cards Get Big ACC Opening Win -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Field Hockey Beats Newcomer Stanford 2-0

Louisville field hockey welcomed Stanford to the league with a nice get-back win for the Cards, who shut out the Cardinal in their first ever ACC conference game. Louisville has had some hiccups this season so far, especially on the defensive end, but this win put them back over .500 at 4-3 and gives them their first back-to-back victories on the year. The shutout was especially welcome after a 4-3 barn burner against Cornell last time out. 

Stanford is on an extended road trip to the eastern time zone, as they came to Louisville for their midweek game as well. The Cardinal took on Bellarmine and won 4-0 to move to 5-1 on the season. This loss drops them to 5-2, and they'll go farther east to take on Virginia before returning to the Pacific coast. Virginia is ranked 3rd in the country, so it won't get any easier for Stanford going forward. The Cardinal had a relatively soft opening schedule, having played no ranked teams until Louisville. Their first loss was a 1-0 home defeat against Northeastern. 

It was a tense opening to the match, as the first quarter was the most offensively productive for both teams, but neither could find the back of the cage. Louisville finished the first with six shots and three penalty corners, but their two shots on frame were saved. Meanwhile, Stanford had three of their five total shots and two of their three shots on target in the first quarter. Brandelynn Heinbaugh was up to the task in the first, earning two saves to keep the match level. She'd earn her third and final save in the second. 

Stanford also had a save in the second quarter but it was followed up by Louisville's second shot of the quarter when Chloe Plumb slammed home the rebound from her own shot. That goal came with less than two minutes to go in the half, and it would ultimately prove to be the game winner. After halftime, Louisville had another productive quarter in the third, earning two penalty corners and a total of four shots. Three of those four were on target, including Izzy Bianco's goal off one of the penalty corners. That goal came halfway through the third, and neither team would score afterwards. 

Stanford had a shot off target in the fourth, but the game was more or less wrapped up by that point. Louisville finished with 12 total shots and put seven of them on frame. A 1/5 conversion rate on penalty corners isn't very good, but they held Stanford to 0/4 on their attempts. Despite the low conversion rate, Louisville was active on their penalty corners. The Cards earned a shot on each, with the first two being blocked, the next two being saved, and the fifth being the goal. Aimee Plumb tried very hard to match her sister in the opening stages of the third quarter, having her penalty corner shot saved, picking up her own rebound, and firing it back toward the cage. Unfortunately, that shot was also saved. 

As I mentioned, Louisville needed this win. They'd been reeling a bit and hadn't seemed quite as sharp as we're accustomed to. They'll head up the road to Ball State for a match tomorrow before returning to Trager and ACC play Friday night when the Boston College Eagles come to town. There's no better time to find your groove than the start of conference play, so let's hope the Cards can extend their streak to three games tomorrow before another tough test Friday. 

Softball Wins a Pair of Fall Ball Games

Louisville softball got their 2025 season off to a decent start last night in their first offseason fall ball scrimmages. The Cards brought in Bellarmine for a double-header at Ulmer and walked away with a pair of wins with a combined 21-5 score line. The first game was a bit tighter than the second, as Louisville earned a 9-4 win, but the 12-1 blowout was pretty encouraging. 

The Cards turned out pretty much the whole roster in the two games, giving Jared plenty of whiplash as he tried (unsuccessfully) to identify the new freshmen. Familiar names found the long ball in the second game, though, as Maddi Grant and Katie Thatcher hit home runs. 

Louisville will be back in action on October 6th against EKU in Richmond. 

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

We're without Daryl this week as she tries not to melt like the ice in everyone's drinks at Bourbon and Beyond. Jared is going football tailgaiting with his fmily and then to the  Ga.Tech contest...but we'll have the rest of the crew on hand. We'll talk big wins for field hockey and volleyball for the most part, with various news and notes filling out the show. 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

Field Hockey Drops Opener -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Cards Fall in Double OT at Maryland

Louisville headed up to College Park this weekend where they will play a pair of games. They'll take on American University tomorrow afternoon, but the weekend started with a top-10 matchup against the hosts, 4th-ranked Maryland. The Cards gave it a good run, scoring first and standing strong against a stout Maryland attack, but they ultimately gave up a game-winner with just over a minute remaining in the final overtime period. 

Louisville's goal came from Sophia Parker, which gives the redshirt sophomore her first collegiate goal. Although they don't officially get the credit for a penalty corner conversion, I'm going to say it counts. Chloe Plumb sent the corner to Mia Duchars, who forced a save by the Maryland goalie, Alyssa Klebasko. Klebasko wasn't able to block it very far out of play, and Parker was on hand to score the rebound attempt. 

The Cards' celebrations were short lived. After taking the lead at the 24:27 mark, they gave it up just under a minute later. Maryland earned a corner at 25:15, but they were not able to get a clean shot as a direct result. Louisville couldn't force the offense away, though, and the goal came at the 25:25 mark. That set the stage for a continued tense match, as the two teams would ultimately play just 58 seconds of the 78:42 match not tied. 

Louisville's offense stalled after the first half. Though they put three shots on target in the second quarter, those would be their only three threats of the game. The Cards were unable to find a shot in any of the other three quarters, managed just one off target in the first overtime, and were shut down again in the second OT. Defensively, Louisville was under immense pressure. Maryland had three shots in each of the first three quarters, two in the fourth, and one apiece in the OT periods. Eight of their thirteen shots were on goal, meaning grad transfer Brandelynn Heinbaugh was called on plenty in her first start for Louisville. Heinbaugh finished with six saves, a fantastic effort, but she needed more help from the offense to earn the victory. 

The starting lineup for Louisville was quite different than in their season-ending loss to Northwestern last year. Primarily driven by graduations, the Cards saw just four of their eleven starters from Northwestern game start this game against Maryland. Lauren Masters started in that game but came off the bench yesterday. Subs that moved into the starting line up were the Chloes, Plumb and Cuzzupe, and the only repeat substitute was Tyler Everslage.

While a season-opening loss is unfortunate, let's not forget that it was against a top-5 opponent on the road. Louisville will have many difficult games this season, and this is a good one to get them energized for those big games moving forward. We'll look for a bounce back against American tomorrow at 1PM.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

There will be just three of us today, as Daryl and Jared are both out for various reasons (not least because of a noon kickoff for football). With sports underway, though, we'll have plenty to talk about on the show. We'll talk a huge volleyball win, a fine road draw for women's soccer, and yesterday's tough field hockey loss. 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