Jeff Walz Radio Show -- Softball Schedule Change -- Lacrosse Today -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Jeff Walz Radio Show

Having a rare free night I decided to venture down to Chili's in Hikes Point for the regular season finale of the Jeff Walz Radio Show last night  I arrived about 5:30, a solid 90 minutes before the start of the show and it was a full house.  Thankfully, a friend saved me a seat front and center.

I immediately dove right into the chips and salsa, the best in town, while watching a rerun of the recent 2019 UCA Championships.  Louisville, which is a part of NCA, does not participate in UCA.  At the time, Kentucky had finished their routine and would later go on and win the Division 1A Championship.

Nick Curran rolled in right about 6:00 to prepare the setup and get everything going.  Jeff Walz, then Beth Burns, both guests on the show, followed by AJ, Al Greener, and Nick Evans all strolled in in the minutes following.

The show began by talking about the Play4Kay Free Throw Challenge.  Similar to years past, Louisville is way out in front in donations.  Lehigh is all alone in second and everyone else is way behind.

We, at CARDINAL COUPLE, are in for $2 a "make".

Recently, the women's basketball officials raised $25,000 to donate to the cause as well.  TV Dee, commonly seen officiating UofL games, is on the board and was a part of the process.  Coach Walz also mentioned that she is going to be inducted into the North Carolina Basketball Hall of Fame.  He went on to joke saying that he told her that officials will have to donate 45 for each missed call in the future.

The show progressed into the question and answer part of the show.  Some questions were common, including many answered in recent pressers or by public knowledge, and other questions went further in depth.  Here are a few of the questions and answers that stuck out to me (summarized):

Q: Status of Mykasa Robinson?

A: Cleared for limited practice and hopefully will be fully cleared by tonight.  The concussion was actually believed to have happened during the first half of the Virginia game on Feb. 21st., but she did not feel its effects until the third quarter when she told the coaching staff and trainers.

Q: Memorable thing about the seniors?
A: They overcame obstacles such as rough freshmen seasons or injuries to become stars by their senior year.  No career is a straight line climb.  There will be bumps and plateaus along the way.

Q: How to handle NC State's post players?
A: "I'll tell you about 9:00 Thursday night."  Never underestimate UofL post players, as teams have to find ways to game plan and guard against Sam, Kylee, and Bionca, three great players.  It's a two-way straight on teams game planning.

Q: Will we see Lucy and Lola in the presser Thursday night?
A: No. Walz said he might bring them to the first round in game during a moment of forgetfulness.  Upon remembering, Walz cracked up and informed us that we will not get to see the duo this year.


Q: Plan for the first round of the NCAA Tournament?
A: With Walz not being allowed inside of the arena at all (NCAA rule) Steph Norman will take over for the game.  Walz will be somewhere TBD still but wants to set up a watch party with fans.  Perhaps Bobblehead Jeff will claim a seat along the team bench for the game.


The radio show, which lasts an hour, is an opportunity to interact with members of the coaching staff and ask questions they normally don't get to.  Whether you choose to arrive early and eat or just show up for the show itself I guarantee you'll have a great time.

As a reminder, if 12,900 (or more) fans show up for the game against #10 NC State Thursday night then UofL will average 10,000 fans per home game this season.  As of last night about 9,000 tickets had been sold.  Needing about another 4,000 people in attendance to reach the goal please bring as many friends and family to the game as possible!

Softball Schedule Changes

In what appears to be a case of expected freezing weather the Cardinal Classic schedule has changed quite drastically.

Louisville will play two games on Friday and two on Saturday.

Cardinal Classic Schedule (revised)
Friday, March 1
10:30 AM                   Indiana State vs. Louisville
12:30 PM                   Missouri vs. Louisville
2:30 PM                     IUPUI vs. Indiana State
4:30 PM                     IUPUI vs. Missouri
Saturday, March 2
10:30 AM                   Indiana State vs. Louisville
12:30 PM                   IUPUI vs. Missouri
2:30 PM                     Indiana State vs. Missouri
4:30 PM                     IUPUI vs. Louisville



The Cards are 7-6 on he young season and step on Ulmer Stadium turf for the first time to play an actual game.

As always, Ulmer Stadium is free admission so bring some blankets and head on out this weekend.  Paulie, Worldwide, and I will do our best to cover the games as much as possible.


Lacrosse Hosts Vandy

Middle of the week, middle of the day, expect more to come.  Lacrosse will host Vanderbilt at 1:00 at the Louisville Lacrosse Stadium.

Lacrosse will continue to play early afternoon games during the week for..

UofL is 1-3 entering the match after taking down Mercer 20-2 in their home opener Saturday.  The Commodores are undefeated at 3-0 and are averaging 18 goals per game.  They're average margin of victory is 10.3 goals, a large margin.

The Cards hold the series 7-2 and 4-0 at the LLS, but have their work cut out for them this time.

Happy Wednesday and Go Cards!

Jared

Jared Anderson's Wednesday Thoughts -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

NOW...TO NOVEMBER! 

Anyone else recovering from a candy hangover? No, just me? Hopefully everyone had a safe and Happy Halloween! 

Coach and fam prepare for
Halloween 2017

I spent mine attending UofL Orchestra's annual 'Halloween Haunt-cert". With pieces such as "Pirates of the Caribbean" and "Harry Potter", they really put on, as Winifred Sanderson would say, a MARVELOUS performance. It was nice stepping away from everything sports for most of the night. I did see that the Dodgers beat the 'Stroes" and Game 7 is tonight! 

We saw that reader Joe Hill had left-over candy bars. My mailing address is...

As we begin November, a couple of teams prepare for the post-season. Field Hockey hosts the ACC Tournament starting Thursday. Their press conference is (still?) scheduled for today at 3:30 and Paulie will be in attendance and report on it tomorrow here on these pages.

12-6 and 4-2 on the year for Justine Sowry's stick swingers isn't too shabby when almost every team they've faced is top 25 ranked. It's a good thing the Cards Football schedule isn't like that or we'd have all crawled into a hole somewhere. The FH Cards earned a #3 seeding in the ACC Tournament, are currently ranked #10 in the nation and will be the home team against the #6 seeded Syracuse Orange, who are #11 in the nation. The Cards claimed a 2-1 double-overtime, regular-season win at Trager against the "Cuse" back when the weather was warmer. Louisville scored at the end of regulation to tie it and got the win on a penalty corner in the final overtime. As much as I enjoy exciting games, I wouldn't mind a blowout win in the first round! And, a dry pitch to play on.

Minnie (in the middle) is a scorer.
It's what she does. 

Minnie Mink leads the team with nine goals. Now she needs a Mickey to help her out. Taylor Stone is a close second, though, with seven goals. Our three wonderful seniors have six goals apiece. (Let's hope 666 isn't a sign of bad luck!) 

Men's soccer also prepares for post-season play. Coincidentally, they are a #3 seed in the ACC Tournament. These Kickin' Cards will find out their opponent after Virginia and Boston College play today. Head to Lynn Stadium Sunday at 1 PM for that...we hope our "Stick Girls" are playing in the ACC Championship game that day and same time over at Trager. Which will you choose to attend? We know where Paulie will be...

Our congratulations to Ayeshia McFerran and Nicole Woods on First TEAM All-ACC selection. And to Minnie Mink and Taylor Stone as well for being named to the Second TEAM! All but Woods return next season. 

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If you prefer warming indoor weather, you can always hit up the tennis team this weekend. They host the Louisville Classic at Bass-Rudd Nov. 4-6. Ball State, Michigan State and West Virginia head to the 'Ville' for that one. Cardinals, Cardinals, Spartie and Mountaineers...oh my! 

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The 2016 Jeff Walz Halloween
gear. Man In The Yellow Hat. 

Much to Paulie's delight, the Jeff Walz Show radio schedule has been released. Check it out at gocards.com. Chow down on some chips and salsa at Chili's Bardstown Road as Coach engages the fans on anything and everything. If you see Paulie there, "get him one" Aptly hosted by Nick Curran, it is recommended you get there early. They have fun contests and such from 6-7 and the show starts at 7 and runs to 8. You can listen on 680 AM locally. First show is Nov. 6th. 

I wonder what Coach's favorite item on the menu is? 

As we progress deeper into some seasons and begin the season for other teams, I will conclude by wishing everyone a Happy Thanksgiving and remind folks that Christmas decorations must wait until Nov. 24th at the earliest. Be a turkey for awhile. 

Jared Anderson 

Louisville women's basketball -- WALZ SHOW!... Breaking Down the women's brackets -- Wednesday Cardinal Couple

THE JEFF WALZ SHOW

THE SHOW WILL BE THURSDAY NIGHT !!!

A special post-season JEFF WALZ SHOW will take place Thursday night at the Bardstown Road Chili's and two very special guests will join Coach and Nick Curran.

Doris Burke and Dave O'Brien will be calling the Saturday action at the KFC YUM! Center and have promised to be on the show and live at Chili's during the broadcast. This is a great opportunity to get their insights into the women's tournament and ask questions. 

The show starts at 7 p.m. and they do not take reservations for the show, so get down there early and take advantage of the chance to ask two of the top broadcasters in the women's basketball realm their opinions.  

Join them...and Paulie too...at Chili's Thursday! 



WHO WILL CHALLENGE U CONN? 

When it comes to deciphering and analyzing the 2017 NCAA WBB Brackets...there is one tenet that would be a good one to follow. Unless you're an over-the-top, blinded by the light, fanatical supporter of you team...put UConn in the final game and then, figure out the other 62 match-ups and if anyone stands a ghost of a chance in beating them. Nothing is guaranteed, we get that...but UConn is pretty close to being a 1/9 odds or better sure thing.

Today, we'll look at Bridgeport and Lexington... not as vacation destinations...but as two of the four regions for this year's women's March Madness destinations. It's said getting there is half the fun...so let's see who has the hot hand and who just might be a flash in the pan. I'll give you who I think will win these four regions and we'll take a look at Oklahoma City and Stockton tomorrow. Don't forget to enter The Cardinal Couple Women's NCAA Pick'Em Tournament! 

BRIDGEPORT

First round games in this region offer a few interesting match-ups. Syracuse as an #8 seed is a bit disrespectful, in my opinion, and should have no trouble getting by an Iowa St. squad that finished 18-12 and 9-9 in conference. The Cyclones finished fairly strong but will run out of wind against "Q" three-point barrage. The winner gets the unenviable task of facing UConn in Storrs...who will romp Albany in the opening round. It'll be "two and through for Q".

Texas A&M gets #12 seed Penn to open. Penn did win the Ivy League, which got them in the dance..but they haven't seen the likes of Danni Williams and Khaalia Hillsman and A&M advances...no #12 ove #5 upset here. The Aggies will most likely face a UCLA squad that gets Boise St. Jordin Canada and Monique Billings should lead the home-standing Bruins to an easy win in the opener but will have their hands full with Gary Blair's College station crew. 

West Virginia opens against Elon in what may be a closer game than many expect. The Mountaineers came on strong by winning the Big 12 and knocking off Oklahoma, Texas and Baylor. Elon should prove to be less challenging. They'll likely draw off against host Maryland in the second round...who inexplicably got a #3 seed. They'll take it out on Bucknell to open and set up a WVU vs. Maryland second round...a fierce rivalry exists between those two...especially in football. Temple and Oregon comes to Durham to face each other in the #7 vs. #10 opener...Temple probably the third best team in the AAC behind UConn and USF. The Owls lost to USF in the AAC semis and I can see them losing against to an Oregon squad that went 20-13 in the tough PAC 12 and beat Washington in the conference dance before losing to strong Stanford. 

Duke will handle Hampton without much difficulty and get the Ducks in the second round. The Blue Devils are dangerous with Lexie Brown, Rebecca Greenwell and Oderah Chidom...I see them advancing past Oregon to face Maryland in Bridgeport. These former ACC foes will be playing this one to face UConn...who should get by Syracuse and Texas A&M to reach the Bridgeport final. I advanced Maryland here but this one could really go either way. Regardless, one would be wise to write UConn in as the Final Four representative form the Bridgeport Region. Yes, the Huskies they'll be tested by Syracuse and A&M...but should move ahead....basically in their backyard the whole time. Connecticut is the pick to advance. (all those words just for that obvious pick?) 

Cinderella Team:  Texas A&M will give UConn all they want. It won't be enough, though. 


LEXINGTON REGION

Notre Dame headlines the sixteen teams that will hope for a trip to Lexington. They'll open in South Bend against Robert Morris. The Colonials won the Northeast Tournament over Bryant...the third time in four years they've done that. They have no shot against the Irish, though. Notre Dame will get the winner of Green Bay vs. Purdue. I haven't been a big fan of Big 10 hoops this year but I can see Purdue, with Ashley Morissette and Andreona Keys...plus a win over Ohio St. in the Big 10 Tournament getting the win. Exciting for Louisville Assumption product Nora Kiesler getting the chance to dance. 

Speaking of Ohio State, they head to Lexington as a #5 seed to face Western Kentucky. The dangerous Kelsey Mitchell against the balanced, CUSA winner with Michelle Clark-Heard guiding them. The heart says go with the Toppers, but logically...the Buckeye should advance. If they do, they'll get the winner of Kentucky and Belmont. Glad that head Belmont coach and former UofL assistant Can Newbauer gets the chance to dance again...he's been a super coach down in Nashville...but I see the Cats advancing to the second round. NC State and Auburn head to Texas to give us a ACC vs. SEC match-up. I'm high on this NC State squad and think they'll move on to get the winner of Texas and Central Arkansas. I think the Wolfpack can and will beat Texas. Stanford hosts at home and should romp New Mexico St. They'll face either Drake or Kansas St. Drake is for real this year and I predict the #10 seeded Bulldogs, who blew through the MVC and have won 22 games in a row, will down the Wildcats. 

Lexington will have no Wildcats in the Lexington Region. They're will be Buckeyes, Longhorns, Irish and the Cardinal. Notre Dame will advance to face NC State and the regional final will be an ACC rematch between Notre Dame and NC State. We'll recommend that Notre Dame represents the Lexington Region in Dallas 

Cinderella team: Drake has the incredible Lizzy Wendell...who will be fun to watch. I'd love to see what she could do against Stanford. 


CARDINAL COUPLE PICK 'EM

Yes, the madness is upon us. 

You can enter the Cardinal Couple Pick 'Em and win a $25 gift card to either Panera or Cracker Barrel if you're picks are the best or second best. 

Leave your picks in the comments section or e-mail them directly to us and the bracket chairman Sonja at: 

cardinalcouple@twc.com

Speaking of Madam Chairman...here's her picks! 

1st Round

UConn, Syracuse, Texas A&M, UCLA, West Virginia, Maryland, Temple, Duke
Baylor, LSU, Dayton, Louisville, Oklahoma, Washington, DePaul, Miss. State. 
Notre Dame, Green Bay, WKU, Kentucky, NC State, Texas, Drake, Stanford,
South Carolina, Mich. St., Quinnipiac, Miami, USF, FSU, Toldeo, Oregon St., 

2nd Round

UConn, Texas A&M, Maryland, Duke, Baylor, Louisville, Washington, DePaul
Notre Dame, WKU, NC State, Stanford, South Carolina, Miami, USF, Oregon St.

Elite Eight

UConn, Duke, Baylor, Washington, Notre Dame, Stanford, Miami, Oregon St. 

Final Four

UConn, Baylor, Notre Dame, Oregon St. 

Championship Game

UConn, Stanford

Winner

UConn


paulie
xxxxx

SECOND SEASON BEGINS FOR FIELD HOCKEY...WBB TIDBITS -- Thursday Cardinal Couple

ACC FIELD HOCKEY TOURNAMENT BEGINS TODAY

It is the start of the second season for the UofL Field Hockey team.

The postseason. 

The Cards will be trying to achieve a deep run in the ACC Tournament and gain a bid to participate in the NCAA Tournament. 

One would think that a 15-4 record, #8 ranking in the polls and #11 RPI would assure Louisville a spot in Field Hockey's version of the "Big Dance". Remember last year? The Cards finished 14-4 and were snubbed of an invite to the 19 team NCAA Field Hockey Championships. 

Yeah. 19 teams. Weird, huh? It involves what basically amounts to three play-in games and then the field of 16 is set. 

First things first. Louisvile kicks off the ACC Tournament in Durham, NC against Wake Forest. It's a 11 a.m. faceoff and will be shown on ESPN3. 

Louisville did defeat the Demon Deacons (that sound weird for a bunch of ladies...maybe Demon Deaconesses?) 2-1 in overtime back on 9/26/14 in Winston-Salem. Chile Garcia knocked home the winner six minutes into the extra session. 

Coach Sowry has indicated the Cards might have gotten outplayed in the contest despite the road win. It's been tough to outplay the Cards lately...they've allow one goal in their last five games...while scoring 14. Their last loss came on the road at Boston College back on 10/17. 

Speaking of wins, the all-time record for Louisville field hockey wins in a season is 16...accomplished in 2001. A win over WFU would set the Cards up against #1 Virginia for a Friday 1 p.m. match. 

Best of luck to First team All-ACC selection Alyssa Voelmle, second team honoree Paige Monson and the rest of the Flock this morning! 

Why not? 

*                  *                    *                     

WBB NEWS 


- They're putting Jeff Walz on the radio again for a weekly coach's show and this year you can go watch him talk and eat too!

THE JEFF WALZ RADIO SHOW debut is Wednesday, Nov.  12th and will be from 7-8 at Chili's Restaurant in Brownsboro Crossings (9720 Von Allmen Court). It can be heard locally on ESPN Radio 680 AM or streamed online through ESPNLouisville.com 

It can also be heard through CARDS TV on gocards.com

The show will be at Brownsboro Crossing on 11/12, 11/18. 12/1, 12/16, 1/6, 1/20 and 1/27. After that, it moves to the Hikes Lane location (3623 Bardstown Road) for the following dates...2/4, 2/10, 2/17, 2/24 and 3/3. You can also call in a question if unable to attend at (502)267-9680.

The voice of the Lady Cards...Matt Andrews will co-host with Coach. No word yet on whether Walz is picking up the tab for everyone like he did with beverages one night last year...

- The Four-Letter network ESPN has announced their picking up five additional WBB games to be shown on ESPN3.  Here's the lineup so far for broadcasts:

11/25  WKU   ESPN3
12/4   IOWA   ESPN3
12/7   UK       ESPN3
12/21 @CAL    PAC12 NETWORK
1/2    GA TECH   ESPN3
1/14  NC STATE  ESPN3
1/18  VIRGINIA  RSN/FOX
1/22  @FLA STATE  ESPN3
1/25  MIAMI  RSN/FOX
2/2    @DUKE   ESPN2
2/15  UNC     ESPN2
2/23 @ NOTRE DAME  ESPN2 
3/1   @VIRGINIA  RSN/FOX

In addition, nine of the Cards home games not selected for television coverage can be seen with a subscription to CARDS TV. Go to GoCards.com to sign up. 

- Tickets, tickets...who needs tickets?  The WBB season has some really great, family friendly full and partial season
ticket packages available for the 17 scheduled home games. 

There are more options available than Walz has paint players...so your best bet is to give the friendly folks down at the Louisville Cardinals ticket office a call @ (502) GO-CARDS and let them run the package deals by you. They're there working 9-5 Mon-Fri EST. You can also stop by the Papa John Stadium Ticket office on Floyd Street across from the Parrish House and talk to them in person. 

paulie