Cards in the WNBA -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Four Cards Currently on Active Rosters

We're a few weeks into the WNBA season and several former Louisville Cardinals are currently active for their respective teams. Here's how these players have fared.

Dana Evans, Chicago Sky

One of the more well-known graduates from Louisville, Evans has played a crucial role for her team. In 11 games played, Evans is averaging 27.8 minutes per game. She's posted strong numbers with 9.9 points per game, 1.5 rebounds per game, 3.9 assists per game, and 1.4 steals per game. The Sky are currently 4-7.

Liz Dixon, Phoenix Mercury

Dixon is another recent graduate from Louisville, having been with the program during the pandemic. So far, she has played a reserve role averaging 12.4 minutes per game. Dixon has contributed so far with 2.5 points per game, 3.2 rebounds per game, and 0.8 assists per game. The Mercury are currently 6-6.

Emily Engstler, Washington Mystics

Having played only one season with Louisville, Engstler is the only one on this list that did not play all or most of her career with the Cards. Engstler has moved around the league some and is now on her third team. Washington is slowly easing her into the normal rotation as she has averaged 6.9 minutes per game across seven games. She is averaging 1.9 points per game, 2.1 rebounds per game, and 0.7 assists per game. The Mystics are currently 1-12.

Myisha Hines-Allen, Washington Mystics

A veteran to the WNBA at this point, Hines-Allen has proven to be a reliable contributor during her career with Washington. She is seeing 17.7 minutes per game, right on par with her career. Hines-Allen is averaging 7.3 points per game, 4.2 rebounds per game, 2.3 assists per game, and 0.7 steals per game.

There are several other former Cardinals who are free agents.

AD (formerly known as Asia Durr)- most recently with the Atlanta Dream.

Jazmine Jones- most recently with the Washington Mystics.

Arica Carter- most recently played overseas, most recent WNBA team is Phoenix Mercury.

Kiki Jefferson- most recently with the Minnesota Lynx.

Kianna Smith- most recently played overseas, most recent WNBA team is Connecticut Sun.

Kylee Shook- most recently with the New York Liberty.

Sam Fuehring- currently playing overseas, most recent WNBA team is Washington Mystics.

With just 12 teams in the WNBA, trying to maintain a career playing in the states is a tall task. With the expansion to 14 teams next season, we hope to see more former Cards playing in the pros. The 2025 expansion teams will be located in Toronto and Golden State (San Francisco).

Happy Friday and Go Cards!

Jared

WNBA Opener -- Mystics Fall short in 4th quarter to Liberty 85-80 -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

WASHNGTON FALLS SHORT IN FOURTH QUARTER TO NEW YORK IN WNBA SEASON OPENER

FOLLOWING the Louisville WNBA players this season in the WNBA will be something I will try to stay fairly regulary with this WNBA season, and on last night's opening night  Tuesday night, Emily Englstler and Myisha Hines-Allen had their squad, the WashIngton Mystics, in action. So did Liz Dixon's Phoenix Mercury. The Mystics will probably be the team I follow the most, since they have two of my favorite Cardinals great on roster in "E" amd "Mooks"

The Mystics ran into a NY Liberty squad that caught fire in the fourth quarter and caught and passed the DC team, doubling up the score on them in the fourth quarter 26-13 and winning 85-80. 

Not much from the Louisville contingent in the opener. Neither Hines-Allen or Engstler drew the start. Emily didnt play at all and Hines-Allen saw just 19 minutes, putting up five points and grabbing five rebounds in the loss. 

Karlie Samuelson and Shikira Austin drew the starts at forward for the Mystics but the former Stanford and Maryland veterans were not all that effective, combining for just 20 points and nine rebounds in 47 total minutes. 

We all kinda figured that Washington's Dolson, Atkins and Sykes might be prominent scorers this season for the Mystics and they held true to form in the season opener. with 59 points between them. 

It was Washington's game to lose after three  quarters, having built up a 67-59 lead after three,,,but let the visitors take over in the fourth quarter. 

In other early, first night action, the Connecticut Sun ruined Caitlin Clark's opener with the Indiana Fever, thumpimg the visiting WNBA Fever squad 92-71.

The other two opening night contests were later affairs. with the Aces and Mercury hookng up and the Lynx and Storm going against each other. The Mercury are without Brit Grinner, who is oit with a toe injury, so we hoped to see a bit of Liz Dixon, who is on the Phoenix roster. Dixon was in a reserve role and saw six minuues, grabbing three rebounds but not scoring. The visiting Phoenix squad fell 89-80 to the two-time champion Las Vegas Aces. The Minnesota Lynx defeated the Storm 83-70. DI star from last year Taylor Soule saw one minute of action for the Lynx in the win. 

I'll agree with several readers here,...it's good to see basketball's bouncing again and some of Jeff Walz's stars from years past out there. Dana Evans and the Chicago Sky get their start tonight against  Dallas at Dallas. Unfortunately, it'll only be shown on You Tube Primetime WNBA League Pass,  a subscription service.. 

paulie

Four Cards on WNBA Rosters -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Mercury, Sky and Mystics have UofL WBB alumnae on rosters. 

With the WNBA scheduled to start Tuesday., let's look at the Louisville Cards WBB players.that are on the teqam rosters in the league.  

Liz Dixon --  Phoenix Mercury. Dixon was a recent addition to the Phoenix squad,brought back on a training game contract. She did play in 10 games with the Mercury back in 2023 and was re-signed again this year, to replace Charisma Osbourne.  She averages 5.6 points per game, and 4.4 rebounds a contest. 

Dana Evans -- Chicago Sky. Dana returs to the Sky this year, her third season in the WNBA. The sharpshooting guard should be an essential part of a roster that had seven guards most recently listed. Here is an interview with her, done on May 10th.  DANA EVANS INTERVIEW

Emily Engstler --  Washington Mystics. Engstler begins her second year in the league. She was originally drafted by Indiana last year. She'l averaged 1.8 points per game last year and 0.6mrebounds. Here is a brief spotlight on her....EMILY ENGSTLER

Myisha Hines-Allen -- Washington Mystics. Hines-Allen enters her sixth season in the WNBA,and was drafted back in 2018, She vaerages 5.6 points per game and 6.4 rebounds.  The Mystics list only four forwards on their roster currently, so we like her chances to see a starting role and a lot of court time. 

We wish all our "Cardinals Forever" the best of luck this season and we're already ready for a little hoops this spring...

paulie. . 

Sky soar over Phoenix....Dana and Liz meet in WNBA -- Monday Cardinal Couple

 

104-85 CHICAGO SKY OVER PHOENIX MERCURY

It was a relatively quiet day for UofL women's sports Sunday, but we did get a WNBA matchup between the homestanding Chicago Sky (Dana Evans) and the Phoenix Mercury (Liz Dixon). the two Cardinals great played together for a couple of years at UofL, if you will remember and were on some fabulous Cardinals teams in 2020 and 2021. The two were on two Cardinals squad that lost just eight games over the two years they played together. 

They did not get a ton of playing time in yesterday on their WNBA squads...Evans saw 18 minutes, a rebound, two assists and three points and Dixon had three minutes and a rebound. 

It is Liz Dixon's first year in the WNBA, so you have to surmise that the longer she stays, the more time she'll pick up She's on her second, t-day contract with Phoenix...I'm guessing that being a backup to Brit Griner and Megan Gustafson isn't one of the most ideal situations to be in , but they are two very good centers to learn from and -- with Griner needing a brief break from WNBA action --  I am hoping "EBreezy's" time picks up. The Mercury need wins, they stand at 6-18. Who would have figured a team with Taurasi and Griner would have such a unarchiving mark? 

Evans went to Chicago after starting and staying  in Dallas briefly her rookie year. She's developed into a steady, dependable point-guard, behind Marina Mabrey and Courtney Williams and you have to figure that she's being groomed for a starting role down the road for the Sky. She's a hard worker, a superb shooter and can distribute with the best of them . Evans also has a very deadly three-point touch and has excellent passing skills. She had a decision to make, after her junior year -- she made the right one (in my opinion) by staying in college. 

Evans was selected in the WNBA Draft, Dixon wasn't. It just goes to show that if you want it bad enough, play hard enough and show someone you have the skills to compete and contribute, good things CAN happen.

A glance at the current UofL WBB roster makes one wonder what current Cards might be WNBA players in the future? You have to love "O"'s chances (Olivia Cochran)...and Sydney Taylor has the potential to draw a lot of WNBA action if she can go on a prolonged three-point barrage this season. Taylor played well in the recent USA showing, and "Swish" led them in scoring several times. Hmmm...I wonder if she and Heidi roomed together? 

Will any of the current players on Walz's roster reach the pinnacles (or higher) of Liz and Dana?  I'm no prophet or fortune-teller but I can see half this roster getting a lot of eyes on them from WNBA scouts for WNBA rosters and roles. And, that's the beauty of it. You have to show WNBA scouts that you can do a lot more things than score and, if you play for Jeff Walz, you have to be able to do a lot more than just score...

paulie

Myshia's Mystics lose Elena Della Donne (again) and to the Sun -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 CONNECTICUT 92 - WASHINGTON 84

It was a double blow for the Washington Mystics Sunday, first, losing Elena Della Donne for second half with an injury to the same ankle that had her on the sidelines for a couple of games, and, secondly, losing (again) to the Connecticut Sun..  

We got the treat of having two Cards WNBA players ion the rosters in the nationally televised matchup between the Washington Mystics and the Connecticut Sun yesterday. Myisha Hines-Allen, who came in for an injured Elena Della Donne, saw 18 minutes for Washington, scored 14 points, hit three of her four three-point attempts and four out of her eight shots overall. Nope, not a misprint, either on the stats... Mooks went 3-4 from beyond the arc. I guess playing all those years with AD at Louisville finally paid off, in terms of long-range bombing. 

The Mystics lost this one in the fourth quarter after leading by one after three quarters. You can't blame MHA for the loss...but the squad scored just 18 points in the final stanza, while the Sun put up 27 points 

On the winner's side, Liz Dixon is on the Connecticut roster. She did not play in the contest...a coach's decision apparently, since we know of no injury to Liz. 

The two Cards greats have the distinction of being on the second (Connecticut) and third (Washington) best teams in the WNBA's Eastern Division and third and fourth best teams overall in the league. 

The Connecticut (14-5) win makes them 3-0 against the Mystics (10-8) this season. Ageless Dewanna Bonner hit six threes in the game for homestanding Connecticut  and had 28 points for Stephanie White's Sun. 

I

It had to be a heart-breaking ordeal for Mystic fans and players to see "E.D.D" leave the court again hobbling after just getting back out there again. Although limited to 13 minutes and not scoring, her leadership on the floor and respect she draws from opponents makes life a lot easier for the rest of the Mystics when she's on the court. She came down on another player's foot with 1:20 left in the first half and did not return. 

The injury was to the same ankle that she had injured earlier this season. No report has been released on the extent of this injury, but E.D.D. was helped off the court by a couple of Mystics.

Here's hoping Liz can start seeing a bit of playing time at Connecticut and Myisha continues to shine 

*********************************************************************************************************

SAILING, SALING,,,

We'll be tossing a few off-sped pitches at you this week, with Jared "on a boat, "%$#@&" -- his honeymoon cruise with wife Katy. They've told me Case will write Tuesday and Jeff Thursday. I just smile and nod. Glad to see the lads showing a bit of planning...

paulie

A Wedding Celebration - Sunday Cardinal Couple

A Wedding Celebration

Summer is a popular season for weddings.  Our own Jared Anderson got married recently, for example.  Another one happened yesterday that may be of some interest to the Cardinal Couple community.

We don't typical delve into too many non-sports-related personal events for people associated with UofL women's sports, though many of them do frequently come across our awareness thanks to social media.  But, a bit of admission, we have our favorites that we tend to keep track of more than others.  And yesterday's nuptials involved one of those favorites.

One of our favorite Attack Yorkies, Jess Laemmle, is one half of the happy couple.  She married Dalton McDaniel.

Since her playing time from 2016-2020, Laemmle has been most visible serving as color commentator on some of the teams games.  That work has kept her in contact with the staff at UofL Women's Basketball and the picture we saw is evidence of that.  In attendance were much of the coaching staff, including Jeff Walz, Stephanie Norman, and Jonneshia Pineda.  Also there were a couple of beloved former members of the staff, Sam Purcell, and then student manager Jimmy Yu.  Jimmy has joined Purcell as Director of Ops at Mississippi State.  Also picture is recently graduated Mykasa Robinson who played for two years with Laemmle and who is also maintaining a close relationship with the staff and is expected to have some role within the organization this season.

Congratulations to the happy couple, we hope to see Mrs. McDaniel again as color commentator in the KFC Yum! Center this year again.

Cards in the Pros

As we tend to do in the summer, a quick rundown of Cards in the Pros.

Emina Ekic and Racing Louisville FC were on the road, playing in Seattle, against OL Reign.  Normally a draw on the road is considered a good outcome, and Racing did get the point towards overall standings, but after being up 2-0 in the 76th minute, coming away with "only" a 2-2 draw is a bit of a bitter pill to swallow.  Ekic saw only a brief minute or so at the end of the match, and had a touch or two in that brief time, but no stats.

In the WNBA, Liz Dixon saw almost six minutes of playing time and had a rebound and an assist for a positive +/- contribution in what was otherwise a substantial Las Vegas Aces win over Dixon's Connecticut Sun.  The Aces came away with the 18 point win, 102-84.

Emily Engstler and the Minnesota Lynx beat the Phoenix Mercury in Phoenix 86-76.  Engstler too, had a positive +/- with a rebound in just short of 3 minutes of play.

On tap today:

• AD and the AD (Atlanta Dream), take on the Los Angeles Sparks at 3pm in Hotlanta.  ESPN3 streaming has the video.
• Myisha Hines-Allen and the Mystics visit Dallas (technically Arlington), also starting at 3pm.  This one is on broadcast on ABC.
• Dana Evans and the Sky are down in Indianapolis to play the Fever at 4pm.  Also on ESPN3 streaming.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

The CCRHP was not live on YouTube yesterday due to apparent issues at YouTube, but the crew did get together and record the podcast. Whether it was a part of the Twitter dilemma many experienced we can't definitely say for sure or not. If you tuned in to try and listen "live" we apologize on behalf of the Internet. You can catch the broadcast replay, though. See Below

Case returned after several weeks away, joining Jared, Paulie, and myself as we dug through the released fall sports schedules that came out this week.  There was some good discussion about what we can expect out of the Soccer program this fall with who's returning and who isn't.  We also covered the Field Hockey and Volleyball schedules.

This will be a good one to catch for a rundown of what the fall schedule overall will be like.  As always, it's in podcast form at:

https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/cardinal-couple/episodes/A-Look-at-the-Fall-Sports-Schedules-e26e6ad

-- JMcA

Summer Seasons Roll On -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Cards in the Pros

As we hit July, we get a decent look at how some of Louisville's former stars are performing at the next level. Some of those players are getting chances for the first time, as is the case with Morgan Jones and Chrislyn Carr. The other day, Louisville women's basketball boosted the announcements of the two signing with AC PAOK of Greece and the Tokomanawa Queens of New Zealand, respectively. We'll keep an eye on both of these players who, while they weren't Cardinals for long, quickly made their presences on the court known. 

Another player getting another chance is Emina Ekic. Ekic has been out since around Christmas after fracturing her ankle in a game in the W League in Australia during the NWSL offseason. Ekic returned to the pitch for Racing Louisville FC in their home game against Houston on June 14th. Ekic subbed on late in the game and recorded no stats, but her return has been much anticipated by fans of the Cardinals and Racing alike. We're excited to see the former star in red and black return to form for her hometown team.

Moving into the WNBA, some former Cards are doing their best to make the most of their opportunities. 

Liz Dixon has played in two games since being picked up by the Connecticut Sun in late June. In games at Minnesota and Chicago, both times seeing her former teammates on the floor, Dixon combined for six minutes, four points, and one rebound. She's definitely being utilized as a role player, but will surely add production as she is given more time. At the beginning of the year in Phoenix, she had ten points, four rebounds, an assist, and a block in two games where she played more than ten minutes. 

Emily Engstler is also trying to establish herself in a new team. After being waived by the Fever and added to the Mystics roster, Engstler looked like she had found a new home. In a May 10th game against the Dream, Engstler scored 11 points and added eight rebounds, a steal, and a block in 13 minutes. For some reason, Washington decided they didn't want that kind of production around. After sitting idle for a month, Engstler was signed by the Minnesota Lynx. In her first two games, she combined for 27 minutes, eight points, 11 rebounds, and five assists. In the last two games for the Lynx, though, both against Seattle, Engstler saw just seven minutes of court time. She got up just one shot in those two games, but had a steal and a rebound in each.

After a big game earlier in June, AD has slumped a bit in Atlanta. Durr, who was leading the bench in scoring, scored just 4.2 points per game in four games from June 18th through the 28th. That game on the 28th was the first of a double header in Washington. With a bit more knowledge of the Mystics, Durr got the better of the matchup in game two. They picked up 17 minutes, scoring 15 points on 4/7 shooting, going 2/2 from beyond the arc, and added two rebounds and two assists. 

On the other side of that game was Myisha Hines-Allen. MHA has been working to get resituated with the Mystics after getting a late start to the season, though her role may expand with Elena Della-Donne going down last night. In three games against the Sky and Liberty last week, MHA averaged just under 14 minutes but scored no more than five points and averaged a shade under two rebounds per game. On the 22nd, she added two assists and two steals to her two points, two rebounds, and two fouls, creating quite a box score. Her big game came in the first of the two against the Dream, and it looked like it could be a catalyst. MHA played 17 minutes and scored 16 points, going 3/4 from three-point land, and added three rebounds and a block. However, the second game saw a bit of a fall off. Hines-Allen played 14 minutes last night but took just four shots, scoring two points and contributing four rebounds and an assist. 

Dana Evans continues to be a steady role player for her hometown (ish) Chicago Sky. Evans is averaging almost 20 minutes per game, but her scoring hasn't been quite what you might expect. That said, she is obviously a big part of their team in other ways, as evidenced by her minutes. In the back half of June, Evans scored 31 points over five games, with two big games coming this week against the Sparks. Evans scored 11 and eight points in the last two games. She is averaging about one rebound over the last five games but has dished out 14 assists over the four games she played at least 20 minutes.

We're rooting for continued success for all of our former Cards here at Cardinal Couple, and hope you'll join us in supporting your favorites even after they've moved on from the University of Louisville.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

I'm back this week as my normal July 4th weekend plans have been altered due a friend coming into town. We may even manage a full house as the storms will surely put a damper on any golf or Louisville Bats obligations that would keep Daryl away. Join us as we discuss the happenings of the week, driven mostly by a look ahead at the schedules that have been released. As always, 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

Anchor (podcast host): Link

Apple Podcasts: Link

Google Podcasts: Link

Overcast (free account required): Link

Pocket Casts (free account and app required): Link

RadioPublic: Link

Spotify: Link

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case

CARDS in Sunday WNBA Action -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 

FOUR CARDS IN SUNDAY WNBA GAMES

We are fond of following the pursuits of Louisville Cardinals women's basketball players in the WNBA and Sunday had four Cards in action. 

LAS VEGAS ACES 93 - CHICAGO SKY 80

Dana Evans did not start for the Sky, but saw 26 minutes in a loss to the 8-1 Aces. She managed 10 points for Chicago (5-5) and had a team high eight assists for the Sky. Home-standing Las Vegas is atop the Western Conference Standings and A'Ja Wilson had another huge game for Vegas. 

CONNECTICUT SUN 89 - ATLANTA DREAM 77

Two former Cards had the potential to face off in this one -- Liz Dixon (Connecticut) and AD Durr (Atlanta), but Dixon did not see action (a coach's decision). AD came off the bench for ATL and totaled 17 minutes of playing time and nine points. 

The Sun are atop the Eastern Conference with a 8-2 record and the Dream are still struggling a bit in the early season with a 2-5 mark. ATL trailed 48-44 at the half against the visiting Sun, but Connecticut won the decisive 4th quarter 24-17.

WASHINGTON MYSTICS 71 - SEATTLE 65

The visiting Mystics improved to 5-3 on the season with a win over 1-5 Seattle, a game that Washington led 46-21 at the half before coasting in. 

The Mystics are slowly working Myisha Hines-Allen back into the lineup and MHA saw 11 minutes and grabbed six rebounds. She also added a free throw to the Mystics win. The Mystics got the win without Elena Della Donne as well -- who sat with an undisclosed injury. 

Washington will visit Indiana Tuesday and Atlanta heads to New York. 

paulie

Guess Who's Back - Sunday Cardinal Couple

Myisha Hines-Allen Returns

After an off-season knee procedure, Myisha Hines-Allen had been conspicuously absent from the active Washington Mystics roster, but yesterday marked her return to play.

The Mystics played the Minnesota Lynx in a close game, losing in the end 78-80.

Hines-Allen returned only in a limited form, playing only eight minutes, but in that time she did get a layup, a rebound at each end of the floor, and a steal.  Those numbers are expected to go up, of course, as she gets back into full game condition again.

Other UofL WNBA Action Today

Two other Cards in action today in the WNBA.

After yesterday's news that just snuck under the wire to get into Case's article that Liz Dixon joined the Connecticut Sun, they'll be in action today against Dallas at 1pm on NBA TV.  How much court time will Dixon get?  Obviously we all want to see her succeed, but one day after joining the franchise, I'm not sure I have my hopes up that she'll get too much time on the court.

Dana Evans has become a fixture in Chicago, being one of the most productive bench players in the league.  The Sky will have a 2pm game on CBS Sports Network.

Where's Emina?

If you've been following Racing Louisville FC, well first you've probably noticed a significant uptick in their quality of play over previous season, certainly a reason to rejoice.  The squad had their first ever 3-game win streak, for example.  They're still not burning up the pitch, but improvement is there at 4-3-5 on the overall season.

Emina Ekic has been distinctly absent from the active roster, however.  She is recovering from a fractured ankle (or leg?  Reports were not clear.) that she suffered in January playing in Melbourne Australia.  She did post a picture to social media from Derby with several other Racing players in which she was wearing wedge heals and no cast or brace or anything, so presumably recovery is proceeding well.

Claire Chaussee

Claire Chaussee joins the ranks of "Cards in the Pros", though you may not hear too much about her this summer.  Chaussee signed on with the Grand Rapids Rise, a team in a new professional volleyball league forming here in the states.  The PVF, or Pro Volleyball Federation, has been going through the beginning stages of putting the league together.  At this point we're seeing the announcements of initial franchise locations as ownership groups signing on, including Grand Rapids, San Diego, Atlanta, Columbus, and more.  We've seen some head coach announcements, and the Grand Rapids Rise seem to be ahead of the game as the first, that I've seen, announcement of player signings with Chaussee being one of three to join.

The PVF plans to start play in 2024.

Trent Dilfer, former Super Bowl Quarterback, but known more around here as father of Tori Dilfter Stringer, is a partner in the league, and Tori has been prominently features in much of the marketing materials for the league, though I haven't seen an actual signing of her with a team yet.  I would presume that will happen in due course.

Numerous VolleyCards do play professional volleyball, although nearly all are overseas.  Anna Stevenson Hall, Claire Chaussee, and Raquel Lázaro all played in Italy this past season, and yes they all played against each other.  Tori Dilfer Stringer played in Puerto Rico along with Wilma Rivera, which is, of course, home for her.  And Tess Clark has played several years in Spain.  Unfortunately, news from overseas leagues is extremely difficult to find.  Erin Fairs is the only former Card to play professionally in the US, as part of Athletes Unlimited, but they have a very limited season.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

Former Cards that went pro in other things did get together as usual for the CCRHP.  Case, Jared, and myself were on the call, and...well...it's getting to be summer, and news is thin on the ground, so expect some diversions and tangents.

We did cover some spring sport accolades, including some academic ones, most of the CC crew are keeping up with the rest of the Softball Tournament, even after Louisville's departure, so we chatted about that, some.  Mostly, we're cheering for "Not Oklahoma".  And we chatted a bit about WNBA and other "Cards in the Pros".

Check it out at it's Anchor/Spotify home:

https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/cardinal-couple/episodes/The-Summer-Slump-Begins-e255mi0

-- JMcA

Softball in Miami (OH) Invitational -- Liz Dixon signs with Phoenix -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

FRIDAYS WITH DARYL 

Hello again readers!   

Thank you to the gang for covering me last week as the Bats started back up for the 2023 season and I will be working most of the games the team and myself are in town.  That time of the year again!  It really snuck up on me this time around... my 10th season at Slugger Field.   Wowza.  

Lets get right into covering the joy and excitement of UofL women's sports. 

Softball 

Louisville vs Miami (OH)

Ulmer Stadium 

5 p. m. first pitch 

TV: ACCNX

It's the Softball Cards and they are looking to bounce back after a midweek loss to Indiana as they will participate in the Miami (OH) Invitational... first game set for 5 P.M. first pitch at Ulmer Stadium.   There's a couple things I cannot explain here, like why the Cards are playing out of the ACC Conference in this weekend's series.   The other thing is why the Cards will be playing in the M i a m i (O H) invitational but playing three of their matchups in Louisville on Friday and Sunday. Maybe it will work out to UofL's advantage getting to play on their home turf but I also think the two and a half hour trip there and also back to Louisville on Saturday is a little weird.   

Louisville is 25-13 on the season, 11-4 at home, 5-6 on the road and 3-7 against ranked opponents.

The Redhawks are 23-14 on the season and 7-4 at home and currently on a 6 game winning streak with the last 5 being shutouts and 2 of them run rules. 

Karli Spaid leads the Oio school with a .344 batting average, 14 home runs and 40 RBIs. Brianna Pratt (17-8) carries a team-best 3.13 ERA with 130 strikeouts in 152 innings of work.

The last time the two teams played was March 2, 2022 where the Cards fell 6-4 to the Redhawks.  UofL gave up 5 runs in the second inning and were not able to overcome the deficient in a late inning rally when they put 3 runs on the board in the bottom of the 5th. Taylor Roby went 2-for-4 with a double and a two-run homer to lead the Cardinals at the plate.

PRO Cards

Cardinal Couple wants to give a big shout out and congratulations to Liz Dixon who was signed to training camp contract on Thursday!  She will get an opportunity to make the Mercury roster by Opening Day of the 2023 season.  She will join Card forever, Kylee Shook in Phoenix, who I'm sure will help make Liz feel welcome! 

WNBA Season starts in about a month, on Friday May 19th.  make sure you check out the schedule to find some games to watch and attend this summer! 

Rumors about Hailey Van Lith to Stanford? Nothing conformed, but there is chatter about HVL going from the Cardinals to the Cardinal. 

As always, 

Go Cards!

~Daryl 

Strong First Half leads Louisville WBB past UK 86-72

 CARDS GIVE CATS A THUMP IN RUPP

Liz Dixon came to play Sunday at Rupp arena against UK.

Dixon went 5-6 from the floor and 6-7 from the free throw line in 26 minutes against a UK squad that didn't have the answers for stopping her, She even talked about it...albeit briefly, in a post-game couple of comments , indicating she'd played in this rivalry before, knew what to expect, knew what she needed to do and went out and did it. A different venue and different rules for holding post-game pressers with the coach and players Liz was just getting going, when presser moderator asked if there were any final questions for her. We could have listened all night, we few Cardinals media in attendance.  

Hailey Van Lith (21 points) or Morgan Jones (12 points) were big in this one, also. The Cards jumped out to a 14-6 first quarter lead, after a fast break score by Chrislyn Carr and UK never challenged after that. A 21-14 first quarter lead for the Cards, where Dixon had six points and the Cards sank all five free throws.

(Cardinals fans, including former Louisville mayor
Jerry Abramson and wife Madeline were in attendance
Madeline was watching game action, Jerry checking the scoreboard).

Maybe the UK strategy for this contest was "send them to the line and we'll win it there" If it was, Kyra Elzy and crew need to go back to the white board. 27 fouls and allowing a foe 39 free throws can come back to bite you, especially if your opponent make 33 of those free ones. The Cards were not so efficient from the deep, though...going 1-15 from three-point land, All's well that ends well, though, as the Cards win their sixth straight over the school in blue. In his typical slow-play humor fashion, Walz claimed credit for the free throw success and blamed the three-point effort on his assistants. 

1ST QUARTER

(Walz and UK Coach Kyra Elzy share a light moment before the fray)

I mentioned the 14-6 early start for Louisville, the first four Cardinal baskets were scores from inside the paint. If Walz's strategy was to take it inside and out-power UK in the paint, it was working.  After all, it worked for Liz Kitley and Virginia Tech against the Cats, the only team that had handed UK a loss, prior to Sunday. A Merrisah Russell score in the paint, a Josie Williams bucket in the paint, even tiny Chrislyn Carr driving and scoring in the paint -- you get the idea...the Cards had found the key to success. 21-14 and, no, it wasn't football, despite the foot-ball like score. 

2ND QUARTER

Van Lith and Jones jumpers extended the Cards lead to 25-14 and Jones added a couple of (say it with me...) layups in the paint and it was 29-14 with still 6-1/2 minutes to play before halftime Most of the nearly 9,000 in Rupp Arena had gotten strangely quiet, except for the Cardinals fans in attendance. A Dixon jumper plus 1 set the score at 35-22 and the Cards went on a 7-3 streak to end the half with Olivia Cochran connecting (hmmm...I wonder from where?) two seconds before halftime. 42-25 the halftime score and eight Cards had scored in the half, led by Dixon's 10 and Jones 8.

3RD QUARTER

UofL pushed the lead to 20 (50-30) in the first three minutes of the third quarter, on eight free throws...made two-at-a-time by Cochran, Dixon, Dixon again and Van Lith. A Dixon jumper made it 52-30, which turned out to be Louisville's biggest lead of the afternoon. The Cats began cutting into that margin as the quarter progressed and whittled it down to 54-40 with three minutes left in the quarter. The Cats would get within 12 late in the quarter after a Maddie Scherr three, but Carr's jumper as time expired made it 61-47 after three quarters. It wasn't quite nervous time, yet, but stranger things have happen in this rivalry, so Louisville had to maintain for the final 10 minutes. 

4TH QUARTER 

 

Hailey made seven free throws in the fourth quarter and Kasa Robinson six. A Cochran jumper and Van Lith layup pushed the Cards lead out to 65-49 with seven minutes left in the final quarter. A Nyla Harris bucket increased that to 71-51 and Cardinals fans began breathing a bit easier. But UK was going down swinging (sorry, bad pun) and cut the UofL lead to 11 with 2:53 to play. It was 78-67 after Scherr hit two free throws with 2:16 to go, but a Jones put-back on a missed Van Lith three and two Robinson free throws had the tally at 82-67 with 50 seconds to play. Hailey's two free throws ended the scoring with 18 seconds left to give the Cards the 86-72 win. The teams made a combined 16 free throws in the final ten minutes and 43 in the game on 60 attempts. I guess the officiating crew was working on commission...

THE FRED REPORT

(Yabba Dabba Doo! Cards gave Cats loss #2..WOO HOO !) 

FREE THROWS -- We mentioned earlier that Louisville was 33-39 from the charity stripe. That's a whopping 85% and easily qualifies for a CAPITAL "F". Jeff Walz did mention in his post-game remarks that he really doesn't pay attention to the percentage made as much as he does the number of free ones made. We're still "percentage folks" here, if a team is sinking them with a high percent, it tends to make the opponent foul you less (unless you're Kentucky). I'm still convinced the Cats defensive strategy is based on..."if you foul them hard enough and often enough, that'll keep them from making baskets". How'd that work out Sunday, UK? 

REBOUNDS -- Louisville won the battle of the boards 44-35. What I may have liked the most about it was that 22 came from the Cards "bigs". The funniest stat here is that "Team" had 8 rebounds in the game for Louisville and 6 for UK. A CAPITAL "R" is awarded, though, and I guess I need the stats-keepers to explain to me what constitutes a "team" rebound. 

EFFORT/EXECUTION -- The Cards shot 44% from the floor, which is pretty good when you figure they shot 7% from three-point range. 16 turnovers isn't too bad, either, especially with UK's ball-hawking guard crew. 14 assists on 26 made baskets is a decent percentage, also. Only two points off fast breaks is a bit disappointing, though. Louisville scored 33 points from the line and 38 points in the paint and coaches love to see their teams get almost half their points from the paint. I'll award the CAPITAL "E" because of these things, the 86 points scored and the win. 

DEFENSE -- Eight blocks is impressive (Jones with four) and 42% shooting for Kentucky show the effort on the defensive end was good, but not particularly great for the Cards. Allowing 72 points and forcing just 14 turnovers also is a few more points and less forced turnovers than I'd like to see. Defense wasn't the main reason Louisville won Sunday, but it was solid enough to keep UK's point total lower than UofL's. I'll go with the small case "d" here.  

FINAL FRED TALLY:  F-R-E-d

So...a fun and successful visit to Lexington Sunday. They still don't have a media buffet (boo) but they give the media a $11 bucks card to use at the concession stand. Mine got me a slice of pizza and box of popcorn. I guess we're spoiled in Louisville...but, it was pretty tasty pizza, 

What's way more important than the culinary situation, though, is that Louisville looked consistently good, played efficiently and beat an SEC school and their in-state rival.

Convincingly.

Walz has told us all that it might take a while for this team to jell, but they may have taken a big step toward that jelling Sunday. 

The Cards probably won't see a more one-sided ,away crowd this season. But, despite the occasional encouraging roars from the home crowd, these kitties weren't able to sustain a drive, grab a lead or stand up to this task today. It might be a long season for them once SEC conference play starts. 

The Cards return to action Weds vs Bellarmine in Freedom Hall

PHOTOS BY JARED ANDERSON) 

paulie

Cards Bounce Back Against Niagara -- Liz Dixon Grad Photos -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Lacrosse Bounces Back with Win at Niagara

Louisville Lacrosse broke their two-game losing streak with a 19-10 win at Niagara yesterday. The Cards improve to 7-9 on the season.

The Purple Eagles came out ready to play, scoring less than two minutes into the match and played Louisville to a 3-3 first quarter. Niagara would also score two of the first three goals in the second quarter for a one-goal advantage.

Louisville, historically known for big runs, proceeded to go on a 9-0 run over the back half of the second quarter and first portion of the third quarter for a comfortable eight-goal lead.

Niagara would cut the lead to five to close out the third quarter, but a 6-2 run over the final period allowed the Cards to cruise to a nine-goal lead and blowout win.

Caroline Blalock completed a hat trick early in the second quarter and would have five goals by halftime. The super-senior would complete a double hat trick in the third quarter and ended the match with a single game career-high seven goals. 

Nicole Perroni posted a four-goal performance, including three straight of her own spanning over the final minutes of the first half and early second half. Her fourth and final goal came early in the final period.

Louisville's leading scorer Hannah Morris scored two goals while six Cards contributed one goal apiece.

The split goalkeeper philosophy continued today. Sara Addeche got the start and surrendered give goals along with one save over 21:53. J Pleck would come in relief to allow five goals in addition to six saves. The two have nearly identical playing time on the year with the latter having a better save percentage and more saves.

Scott Teeter's squad returns home this Saturday to close out the regular season. Louisville and Notre Dame will square off on the Cards' senior day at Cardinal Stadium at noon. Admission is free at Cardinal Stadium for this match. A win would give UofL two conference wins and tie them for fifth (out of nine teams) in the ACC, pending no other teams earn a third conference win.

Liz Dixon Grad Photos

My Friday did not end following Louisville softball's run-rule victory over Syracuse in their series opener. My next stop was with Liz Dixon to take her graduation photos for her.

Although, Dixon is graduating, she will still be returning for one more season with the Cards and will take a few extra classes while focusing primarily on basketball and winning a national championship.

During our tour around downtown and campus, we ended up inside the Kueber Center, where the four ACC Championship and four NCAA Final Four trophies were sitting out. I picked up the 2022 Final Four trophy to use for the photos and made a comment on how heavy it was. Liz, with her quick witted sense of humor replied with "That's why we lift weights."

Here's a few of her grad photos:

On a side note, good luck to Louisville baseball as they take on their blue buddies down I-64 tonight at Jim Patterson Stadium. Tickets range from $5-$200.

Happy Tuesday and Go Cards!

Jared