A New Era -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Welcome Back! 

Before I get into today's article, which will be fairly short given that the schedule is bare and I don't feel like being the umpteenth person to provide an in-depth primer of the red/blue game, allow me to say "hello!" I feel like I need to reintroduce myself for as long as I've been gone. I've gotten all moved, and I finally became a world traveler. I've been to 38 states so far in my life, but to this point last week, had not yet put my passport to use. Thanks to my cruise, that fact is a thing of the past as I spent all last Saturday lounging on a beach bed on a private beach in Haiti. It was beautiful, and the social disconnect over the five day cruise was fantastic. My wife and I have also turned in the keys at our old apartment, making the move to our new house complete and final. We still have some unpacking to do, but it's really coming together. Anyway, that's where I've been for the last month, so how about some Cardinals talk.

MBB Hosts UK Today at 2PM

There isn't much on the schedule as far as Louisville sports go. The next women's game isn't for nearly a week, and there isn't anything other than this game on the calendar before that. This annual match-up is a pretty good one, though, and there is a lot to be excited about for Louisville fans this year. First, if you haven't read Mike Rutherford's article about what this game means for Calipari for the college basketball SB Nation site yet, I would advise you to go do that. You can find it on his Twitter or on Google. Mike is a great guy and he is really the reason that I am still writing about sports five years after deciding to give it a go (big shoutout to Paulie as well). The article is about how Cal has owned Louisville during his time at UK, which is no surprise to Louisville fans, but how this game may be a key to UK's season and to Cal's legacy at the school. 

There are a few things that are working in Louisville's favor for the game today. (I was going to say two things, but then the list kept getting longer in my head.) The first two things that came to mind are in a very similar vein; Louisville looks a lot better than people expected them to be this year, and Kentucky looks a lot worse. That is not to say that Louisville looks on paper like they could beat the brakes off of Kentucky, it just means the game looks a lot closer than it would have three months ago. Vegas agrees, as they've tabbed UK as just a one point favorite. A favorite has not covered the spread in 8 of the last 10 meetings.

The next major thing is that this is a home game. The Yum! Center at its best is an insane environment. I've been a part of a lot of the biggest games there. Add on the fact that this is a game against the team's most hated rival and the environment ratchets up one or two notches. As Rutherford pointed out in his article, the two times that Calipari has lost to Louisville while at Kentucky were both games in which his team was playing its first true road game of the season. Guess who hasn't played a true road game yet this year... (Also, can we talk about the fact that we're two months into the season and a perennial powerhouse hasn't yet played a true road game? Come on, man. Man up with the schedule.) In addition to the "first true road game" issue, this rivalry against Calipari has mostly been determined by home court advantage. Cal is 9-2 against Louisville, which is admittedly bad for the Cardinals. However, only two of those nine wins have come in Louisville. Cal is 7-0 in Rupp or on a neutral floor, but is only 2-2 in Louisville (against the Cards). Chris Mack's squad has a chance to push that to a winning home record.

The last item I'll talk about that is working for Louisville this season is the addition of head coach Chris Mack. John Calipari was in Rick Pitino's head. He lived there. Pitino hated the way that Calipari succeeded at the forefront of the one and done era, and he regularly couldn't get it done against Cal. More than that, though, Pitino really wasn't great against UK before Cal got there. Louisville was only 4-4 against UK under Pitino before the Cal era and almost half of those games were against Billy Gillespie. Chris Mack is different. He allows himself to be caught up in the rivalry, but no differently than he allows himself to be caught up in any other game. To say that rivalry games don't mean more to Mack would be a lie, but that doesn't mean it's going to eat him up to the point where he doesn't know how to coach for a week. Mack is ready for this game, and he's clearly getting his team ready for it. He said himself of the game, "As a competitor, if you haven't internalized that and thought about that 90-61 ass-whooping, then I don't want you on my team." Chris Mack comes from a history of a fierce rivalry. You'd better believe he's excited to be in charge of another one.

I'm not going to give a prediction for today's game. Call me a coward if you'd like, but I just can't do it. Neither team has been consistent enough this year to be defined in any way. I wouldn't be surprised by an extremely close game that comes down to the wire (although I'm already a bit worn out on those types of games from the Cards this season), but I also wouldn't be particularly surprised if this game was a blowout in either direction. Only the guys on the court will be able to tell us how this game will go, and we'll find out that answer in a matter of hours.

Cards-Cats, Yum! Center, 2PM, ESPN2. Appointment television.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour

My return to the pages coincides with my return to the studio! I'll be back on Mellwood Avenue today with the gang for the Cardinal Couple Radio Hour. I can't imagine what we'll talk about. Join us on WCHQ from 11AM-Noon. WCHQ is available on 100.9 FM, the new WCHQ app, wchqfm.com, and on Facebook Live. We don't take call-ins, but if you ask questions on FB Live, I do my best to at least bring attention to them.

LINK:  THE CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR

Until next time, Go Cards!!

-CH-

A Statistical Look Nine Games In -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

How is Louisville Women's Basketball Doing So Far?

With a bit of a lull in the early winter schedule, it has been great timing for Louisville to be taking on Kentucky in women's basketball. Here on Cardinal Couple we've been bringing you seemingly non-stop previews of tomorrow's game, and I'm going to do a bit of that myself.

I'd like to look at how Louisville looks from a statistical standpoint so far this season, and then project how that might look against the Kentucky squad they'll face on Sunday. If you'll indulge me, we'll look at the season long FRED and CASE Reports to this point and then compare those season stats to the Wildcats and see what we see.

The FRED Report

F-Free Throws: On the season, Louisville has taken 16.3 free throws per game. They're not getting to the line an outstanding amount so far this season, but they are making 77.4% of those shots. 147 of their 781 total points (or 18.8%) have come from the line. On a per game basis, that would be 14.5% of their points. Louisville needs to continue to get to the line and make the free ones to succeed this season. They are scoring otherwise, but if you do not continue to make free throws, teams will prevent you from scoring by just fouling. For the record, that 77.4% puts them at a capital F.

Kentucky is getting to the foul line 16.8 times per game and only allows opponents 9.3. Louisville allows 12.7. The Cards will have to force Kentucky to foul, while also avoiding fouls themselves. This game could come down to free throws late, and it may finish with a very close overall foul/free throw number.

R-Rebounds: Louisville is averaging only 38.6 rebounds per game, which is good for 6 better than their opponents. Ideally, those numbers would be much higher. When you look at the offensive rebounds on the season, Louisville and their opponents are tied at 112. While Louisville has been making more shots this year, which would drive that offensive number down, their opponents haven't. This means that the Cards are giving up far too many second chance opportunities. For outrebounding the opponents, there has to be some credit given, but the Cards have got to clamp down on the defensive end and prevent second chance points. Lowercase r.

Kentucky, on the other hand, is being outrebounded on the year. They're only pulling down 36.7, which is a stat that Louisville can really exploit. They have grabbed 136 offensive rebounds, which is more than Louisville, but they're getting hammered defensively. This will come down to a battle of positioning, and the Cards will need to win it to prevent easy points.

E-Effort/Execution: Louisville has been all over the court this year, scoring 100+ on three separate occasions. The Cards have turned the ball over more times than would be preferred, but they still have a positive turnover margin. They're scoring 50% of their field goals, getting to the line more often than their opponents, outrebounding, and scoring more points off of turnovers. They're fouling at about an even rate, but still doing pretty well overall. And they're 9-0. I'd have to grant them a capital E for their efforts so far this year.

Kentucky has also been strong. They're not shooting as well, just 40%, but they're turning the ball over far less than their opponents, getting to the line a lot, and obviously scoring more off of turnovers.They're drawing a lot of fouls and they too are 9-0. Both teams will be hard at work tomorrow.

D-Defense: Louisville has been very strong on defense so far this year. Their average margin of
victory is 24 points. They're out-rebounding, out-blocking, and out-stealing their opponents. They've forced more turnovers and they're holding opponents to only 38% shooting from the floor and 29.6% shooting from behind the arc. I would say that is good enough for a captial D.

Kentucky is not blocking well and we've talked about the rebounds, but they are stealing the ball a ton and they're outscoring opponents about as well as Louisville. They're only allowing 38.8% shooting as well and only 31.3% from the arc. Both teams will be playing top notch defense and we'll see who bends and who breaks.

The CASE Report

C-Care: Louisville has turned over the ball 146 times on the season, compared to 183 for their opponents. That looks like a pretty big gap, but the per game margin is only 4.1. Looking at the opponent averages, you would expect Louisville's opponents to have forced 159.1 turnovers through their games. Louisville is still below that, but they're nowhere near the 70% number I'm looking for. That would be a lowercase c.

Kentucky has turned the ball over fewer than half of the times of their opponents and they're in the top five in turnovers forced per game. Louisville will have to be more cautious with the ball.

A-Assists: On 281 made baskets this year, Louisville has 168 assists. That's up near 60%, which I find very good. Assists lead to higher percentage shots. Higher percentage shots lead to more points, which usually lead to wins. However, their season-long assist-to-turnover ratio is only 1.2. That low ratio indicates that Louisville is throwing the ball away or failing to make the extra pass when they should at about the same rate as they're earning assists. That's still good for a lowercase a.

Kentucky is not a fantastic assisting team. They've got 128 on 246 made baskets, which is still better than 50% but not by much. Their assist-to-turnover ratio is only 1.1, so that's somewhere the teams are similar. If Louisville can avoid Kentucky's defensive pressure and prevent turnovers, they could take advantage of this matchup.

S-Steals: With 97 steals on the season compared to only 65 for the opponents, Louisville is achieving both benchmarks in steals. Their benchmark would be 67.5, so they're actually holding their opponents under that number as well.

Kentucky has a lot of steals. They average 14 per game, which is 4 more than Louisville. This is part of the reason that their forced turnovers are so high. I can't stress enough how important Louisville's guard play will be in this matchup. Capital S

E-Efficiency: The Cards are shooting better than 50% from the floor, 40% from three, and 77% from the stripe. The ball is finding the bottom of the net, which is what we expected from them this year. A lot of those are coming from jump shots, too, which means there is still room to find players inside and out on offense. Jeff Walz's offensive playbook is wide open with how Louisville has been playing so far. Look for the Cards offense to continue to drive this team as the season wears on.

Kentucky is shooting at 40/40/76, so pretty similar. They are not getting as many shots inside, which should be a benefit for Louisville, as they are good protectors of the rim and have pretty strong defensive guards.

Overall, the Cards are earning a F-r-E-D and c-a-S-E on the season. There is room for improvement, but Louisville is performing pretty well. On paper, tomorrow's game is pretty close. We will see if the homecourt advantage helps the Cards and which team will bring more energy. I'd expect a close game, but would love to see Louisville run away.

The Cardinal Couple Radio Hour

I'm off of the air for the next few weeks as life gets in the way, but that doesn't mean Cardinal Couple
Radio Hour will stop. Jeff, Jared, and Paulie are joined in the studio by Daryl Foust this week, and they'll bring you the joy and excitement of Louisville women's athletics as always. Tune into WCHQ FM on 100.9 FM, wchqfm.com, the WCHQ App, or on Facebook Live at 11AM.

I would suspect a whole lot of basketball will be talked about.

Until next time, Go Cards!

-CH-

Friday CARDINAL COUPLE -- My buddy Ed

FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

- An e-mail from my buddy Ed

A picture of Paulie from 1973 with my buddies
Stu, Terrie and Laurie. Who is who?

EDITOR NOTE: I recently received an e-mail from my buddy Ed. We met in high school and became fast friends...despite his loyalty to UK and my devotion to UofL. Ed attended UK, got his degree and now works for a neighboring state's county extension office. We've stayed in touch throughout the years...our conversations usually center around family, our lives, the rivalry of the two schools and about a third friend...who gained some notoriety as a musician. Here's Ed's latest e-mail to me:

HI PAUL!

Happy Holidays to you! Thought I'd send you an e-mail about the UK women's win over UofL and gloat a bit. How did you enjoy the game? Ha-Ha! I kow you don't like Memorial much. Truth be told, I'd rather see our women play in Rupp for all home games. It looks like a good season for both UK basketball squads.

I like your website and did listen to one of your archived radio shows. You still haven't grown up yet, have you? I was telling my wife about our summer of 1972 experience at Seven Oaks. Have you ever told Sonja about it? It'll live in my memory forever. I wonder whatever happened to those guys from Bloomington and the girl? And the security cop?

So, UK gets a chance to beat Louisville again Saturday in hoops. Will you be watching it down in Orlando? I like your football teams chances against the Canes. Teddy Bridgewater is an amazing QB and a great life success story. He should have been a Wildcat. Ha-Ha!.

I see Louisville taking a loss in the hoops game, tho. Your "bigs" can't handle ours inside and that'll be the difference. A close game, for sure. Both teams will probably get a chance to meet again in the FINAL FOUR I hope, depending on the seeding.

My neighbors here will come over for my annual UK vs. UofL party. Even though most of them are UT fans, they like the yearly get-together and chance to spend a few hours eating, drinking and talking. We will even have a UofL fan attending this year (a first!). Guy down the street and his wife and kids recently moved into the neighborhood from Jeffersontown. He's a 30-something who barely remembers Crum and those great 1980's Cardinal teams under Denny Crum. We met one afternoon when I was walking Tank and he has a flagpole that flies the American and Cardinal flag. I joked I was going to steal that flag and I also found out he likes Kentucky bourbon ( Evan Williams) so he can't be that bad of a neighbor, right?

So, tell your readers and listeners to prepare for the loss. I know you don't talk men's sports much on your site, but this game is worth a little coverage from you, right?

Cindy sends her love. Jeff and Kevin say Hi also. They're going to vacation in the Bahamas for a few weeks in January. They'll come over to the UK Man Cave to watch the game with us, even though neither cares about sports all that much.

So, GO CATS! and take care of yourself, Sonja and Sarge's house. How are Rachel and Sissy? Look forward to hearing back from you!

Big Ed


We'll be back to 'normal' articles tomorrow with a look at both the UofL men's basketball and football games and the upcoming WBB contest will be featured Sunday. We also will be doing radio Saturday...so tune in at 11 A.M. @Crescent Hill Radio

-Paulie

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Battle in the Bluegrass

Sunday Cardinal Couple

-Are you ready? It's Cards vs. Cats Sunday at 6 p.m.

( We happily give the pre-game preview from our most excellent columnist Jenny O'Bryan. We are so pleased and impressed with her synopsis that we are foregoing inserting any pictures. The straight and un-diluted Jenny...coming right at you....Enjoy it. We'll have the game recap later today.)  

The Louisville Cardinals defend an 8-0 start today at The KFC YUM Center at 6:00 p.m. with a nationally televised game (ESPNU) pitting two top 10 ten teams against each other, and a inter-state rivalry like no other.  The Battle of the Bluegrass!  Louisville Cardinals vs. Kentucky Wildcats, #6 vs. #8, and both led by young coaches who are changing the landscape of women’s basketball in the state of Kentucky. 

Kentucky leads the overall series 30-17,and they won last years match up 74-54.  The home team has won each of the last 4 match ups (convincingly) and Louisville looks to keep the home team winning ways alive for another year. 

The Wildcats enter the matchup 5-1 with their only loss coming to Baylor.  They are led by Louisville native, senior All-American candidate A’dia Mathies who is averaging 14.5 ppg, who also leads the team in assists, steals and 3 point shots made.   Junior forward Samarie Walker leads on the boards averaging 8 boards per game and junior forward  DeNesha Stallworth leads the team with 11 blocks this season.  

The Wildcats are loaded with talent, across the board.  Look for them to pressure the ball early, and hard.  Coach Matthew Mitchell indicated in their loss to Louisville two years ago, at The YUM Center, the crowd really rattled his team.  Look for them to try to minimize that effect this year, by striking early and often.  Coach Mitchell likes a heavy guard line up and builds his system around pressuring the ball and creating turnovers.   He keeps fresh legs on the court substituting at times.Like last year... an entire line up at a time. 

A likely starting line up for the Wildcats will include the aforementioned Mathies at guard, sophomore guard Bria Goss, junior guard Maegan Conwright, and junior forward/centers Walker and Stallworth, mentioned above.  Walker ( UCONN) nor Stallworth (California) saw minutes against Louisville last year due to transfer rules.
 

Stallworth will be a force in the paint... leading the team with blocks this year, but adds an extra challenge for defenders because she can knock down the 3.  This season will be Walker’s first full season playing for the Wildcats, allowed to play late December and all of conference and post season play last season.   

As mentioned before, Coach Mitchell keeps fresh legs in the game.  Expect a lot of bench play in this game.  The lone freshman in the class, Janee Thompson is seeing lots of minutes as is Jennifer O’Neill, Azia Bishop and Kastine Evans.   Like Coach Walz, the Kentucky bench is seeing a lot of time on the court and the bench riders likely could be a starter on any given day. 

I expect this to be a very physical game, the potential for a lot of fouls, and a fun exciting game to watch.  Kentucky has ventured away from their friendly confines only once thus far, travelling to Waco, Texas to take on Baylor.   Road tested this season they are not, and I believe this will be a huge advantage for the Cardinals today.  

Keys to a Cardinal victory:
 

Contain A’dia Mathies- While there are many weapons on this team, and any of them can hurt you on a given day, make no doubt, this is Mathies’s team.  The Cardinals must contain her. 

Valued possessions- I am sure this has been a talking point all week with Coach Walz and this team.  The Cardinals must take care of the ball.  Kentucky will cause turnovers.  Expect it, but limit it.  Additionally, the Cardinals cannot take mental breaks and contribute to this number by contributing with unforced turnovers.   Take care of the ball!

Free throws- With a physical team, the potential exists to shoot from the line.  Cardinals must do better in this stat.  3 missed free throws could be the difference in this game, let alone 10.   The Cardinals must make fouling a liability and must control this stat. 

40 minutes of basketball- At times this season the Cards have looked brilliant, playing great basketball on both ends of the court.  3 minutes later they have gone foggy and get stuck there for minutes or sometimes for an entire half.  Great teams play the entire 40 minutes, whether you are ahead, or behind.  This team must play the entire 40 minutes of good basketball.  I do not even think it has to be great basketball for 40 minutes, but good solid ball.  40 minutes. 

Full squad affair- Like Kentucky, our Cardinals have a deep and talented bench.  Gone are the days of a dominant, one player team.   Louisville has depth, and will need that depth, as a whole, to have a good game.  While is great to be in the position of a different player every game stepping up, to carry the load, this game is different.  All the girls need to have a good game.  A good game, not great, from every player on the team that sees minutes will equal a win.   

In many ways, Louisville and Kentucky match up in a lot of ways.  Both like to pressure the ball and have deep and capable benches.  This has the potential to be an exciting, back and forth match.  If both teams play to their abilities, it should be a close match, to the end.   This is a winnable game for our Cards.  I look for an extension of the undefeated season for our Cards as well as the home team winning streak, but more importantly, bragging rights for the next year on the hardwood.   

If you were on the fence about attending this game today, I cannot impress upon you enough the need to have butts in the seats.  DVR the game to watch at a later date, but show up, stand up, and stand out for this team.  As the 6^th man on the court we are invaluable to our teams success.  I have been excited to be a part of game changing crowds at many events and expect nothing less from the Cardinal Faithful today. 

One added bonus to get there early is the game day arrival of Nell Fortner and her Nell On Wheels event.  Starting at 5:00 p.m. in the lobby of the YUM Center look for former Auburn Coach Fortner for her game day interviews and activities prior to tip. 

This is a big one folks.  No doubt about it.  Likely the biggest game we will see at home this season, less the first rounds of the tournament.  There is a lot to celebrate right now with Cardinal Athletics.  Get out, show your support and let’s help our team defend home court!  I’ll see you there.  

If you cannot go, the game is on ESPNU.

Postscript 10:30 a.m. Sunday.

Just spent about 30 minutes on the phone with former CARDINAL COUPLE columnist David Watson talking about today's game. The irrepressable Mr Watson also sent me this e-mail about the game.

" I see five key points today. First is Mo often and early. Second is controlling turnovers. Shoni and the Cards guards will be pressured the entire game. How well they respond to that is the deciding between a win and a loss. Next  is free throw conversion. The winner of the free throw attempts will win this one, in my opinion. Also, Louisville needs a huge game out of Sara Hammond. Scoring and on the boards. Finally, bench play is going to be crucial. This game will be played at a helter-skelter pace. If the Cards can get valuable minutes out of Jude, Shawnta and Nita, then they should be able to take the victory.

My prediction? It's going to be a thug-fest with both teams shooting 20+ free throws. Some late game heroics by Shoni and Mo pull the Cards from behind to win. 71-69. Cards."

(Editor comments: We cannot agree more with Jenny than stressing that CARDINAL fans need to be in the KFC YUM! Center early and make a lot of noise. Go talk to Nell Fortner or something if you aren't ready to sit. In the conversations we've had with the current Lady Cards...one thread rings true. The players respond and get fired up when they know that the arena is rocking early for them. Cardinal fans, you have your mission! Get there early, make it loud and wear your RED. It would please us in great deal to write about a UofL win in the MONDAY edition of Cardinal Couple. Help us make it happen!)


11 a.m. Sunday

10 Things You Probably Didn't Know about the UofL vs. UK WBB series

1) Since 1975, UK has won 30 times. Louisville 17. Great. UK fans will start calling the UofL Womens' team "little sister".
2) In the 21st. century, Louisville has won eight times, Kentucky five.
3) The most lopsided game was one of the first ones. In 1975, UK beat Louisville 75-37.
4) Dana Nichols attempted 17 free throws against UK in 1987...most by any player in the series.
5) Jill Morton made 12 free throws against UK in 2000...most by any player in the series.
6) Troya Landrum grabbed 21 rebounds against UK in 1989...secondmost in Cardinal womens' basketball history.
7) Jackie Spencer blocked six UK shots in 1985. Yuliya Tokova blocked five UK shots in 2006.
8) The Cards grabbed only 25 rebounds last year against UK. It was their season low.
9) The largest crowd to ever see the WBB team play a home game came against UK on Dec. 5th, 2010 when 22,152 saw Louisville win 78-52.
10) Both squads had 26 turnovers last year in Memorial Coliseum.

12:15 p.m. Sunday

Syd the Kid

Shayna Harmon #22

It's raining in Louisville. I hope it stops before game time. Can't have any weather-related factors keeping attendance down. Jenny texted me a few moments back and to tell me about a tweet she saw that 2016 prospect Shayna Harmon will be in town to watch the game, this prospect is going to be a big-time guard before she graduates. We also heard from Sydney Brackemyer's mom and Syd the Kid will also be in attendance. Cards fans, we really want Syd in this house...if you see either at the game today...please welcome them and tell them that we want them. Both are from the Buckeye state Ohio. Do you know how many current players on the UofL squad are from Ohio? Pop quiz time:



A) Sherrone Vails and Megan Deines
B) Cortnee Walton and Shelby Harper
C) Shawnta Dyer and Asia Taylor
D) Lindsey Wilson and Rose Hulman



(The answer is C.)

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Friday Cardinal Couple -- Busy weekend for UofL women's sports

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FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

-Volleyball hosts the Cardinal Classic

-Soccer heads to Lexington for UK Invitational

-Field Hockey faces Davidson & Ball State @ Trager

-Did someone say Football?

And you thought this weekend was just about the Louisville vs. Kentucky football game, Labor Day picnics and getting Monday off work. Although the annual clash on the gridiron is grabbing the majority of sports coverage...the Belknap Campus and KFC YUM! Center will be sites for women's sports from Friday to Monday. Pack your ponchos and grab your umbrellas...we're singing in the rain the next three days with Louie the Cardinal Bird. 

VOLLEYBALL HOSTS CARDINAL CLASSIC

Anne's Kordes' VolleyCards get ready for three games over the next two days at the KFC YUM! Center when Duke, Samford and Marshall invade the downtown arena for the Cardinal Classic.

Louisville starts the weekend blitz against the Blue Devils Friday night at 7:30 p.m. The Dookies are 3-0 on the season...winning their own invitational tournament recently with wins over UW-Milwaukee, William & Mary and Fairfield. 

Will there be a slight letdown after the thrilling win over Kentucky on Wednesday?  We can't see that happening. Lola and company know that a strong showing could boost the Cards into a top 25 ranking and a win over an ACC opponent is always good for the RPI. 

Emilky Sklar one to watch for the Cameron Crazies...the 6'3" outside hitter is just a freshman but recorded 33 kills and hit for .333 last weekend in the Blue Devils' wins. 

Next for Louisville, on Saturday at 11 a.m. will be equally impressive Marshall, also 3-0 after winning the Thunder Invitational. They dispatched Wright State, IUPUI and Miami (OH). 

Picked to contend for the Conference USA title, the Thundering Herd has a top-notch setter in Sammie Bane and a tall front line capable of blocks and spikes.

Finally, the Cards will face Samford, who is 0-3 but faced tough competition in the Hurricane Classic in Miami (FL). Losses to Miami (FL), Rutgers and Ole Miss non-withstanding, the Bulldogs are still the pre-season favorite to win the Southern Conference. They return three starters in Elizabeth Neisler, Lauren Hutchinson and Katie Murphy who were All-Conference last season. 

SOCCER WELCOMES BACK EXETER, MELHADO & TRAVELS TO LEXINGTON

Back from their participation in the 2012 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup for Canada in Japan, Christine Exeter and Rachel Melhado will need to shake off the jet lag pretty quickly for the two games in Lexington this weekend. 

Louisville faces Southeast Missouri Friday at 5 p.m. on the UK campus. SEMO (1-2-1) split last weekend at home...downing Drake but losing to UMKC. It will be the first time the two have met in soccer.

The Cards take the field again Sunday @ noon against UNC-Greensboro (2-1-0). No lightweight here, the Spartans traveled to Wake Forest last weekend and won 1-0 before returning home and downing UNC-Asheville 7-0. Due to the format of the UK Tropical Smoothie Tournament, the hosting UK Wildcats and Louisville won't meet over the weekend. 

Louisville (2-0-0) comes off an exciting double-overtime 4-3 win over Purdue at Cardinal Park last Friday night. The Cards moved up four spots in the Soccer America Top 25 poll and are now #14. 

Junior Angelika Uremovich was named to the BIG EAST Honor roll on Monday for her two goal scoring performance against the Boilermakers. She leads Louisville with three on the season.

FIELD HOCKEY TAKES ON DAVIDSON & BALL STATE

Trager Stadium will be the place to be Saturday afternoon as the Louisville Field Hockey squad hosts Davidson (1-1) at 2 p.m. The #23 Cards (1-1) come off a 3-1 win against Miami (OH) after losing to #21 Northwestern.

Louisville is 1-7 lifetime against Wildcats, getting their lone win last year 5-3 on the Davidson campus.

Louisville will face Ball State (1-1) on Monday at 2 p.m. It's a Cardinal vs. Cardinal matchup...the Indiana  birds defeated Lehigh last time out after dropping their season opener to Lafayette. Ball State holds a 15-10 lifetime advantage over Louisville, UofL winning the last meeting in 2007 1-0. 

Haley Jurich leads the Louisville squad with two goals on the season and goalie Erin Conrad has produced six saves in the Cards' first two contests. 

Plenty of UofL women's sports to take in the next four days and CARDINAL COUPLE will have the highlights, results and coverage for you. 

BATTLE OF THE BLUEGRASS

We'll also break from the Louisville women's sports scene briefly Saturday and offer our columnist picks on the Sunday UofL vs. UK football game.

Feel free to join in the fun and leave your prediction in our comments section over the next couple of days. No prize or reward for closest to the final (Bread Boy has been sitting pretty tightly on PANERA Gift Cards these days) just the satisfaction of competition and the pride in your prognostication. 

These predictions should be Pulitzer Prize commentary. We thought of initializing the first annual Cardinal Couple Challenge and invited a UK website to travel to Louisville (more specifically...the Drunken Amish farm in Goshen) and play our staff in a game of touch football or volleyball...but they balked at the idea of our using the staff chimps and Bill the Goat. 

Whatever...we woulda (banana) creamed them in either...according to Jenny and Timmy the Intern.  
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