Soccer's New Gear -- WNBA Protests -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 Soccer's New Gear

Louisville women's soccer released photos of some of their new gear that they will be wearing for the 2020 season.  Adidas and Louisville have had a strong contract for many years and they constantly bring out top-of-the-line gear for everyone in athletics.

We often see student-athletes, coaches, and staff repping nice Adidas gear.  Even us here at Cardinal Couple have been known to enjoy some swag.

Here are a few pictures the team released of some of the gear we will see the players wearing on the pitch:

Also, if you were wondering what happens with the old gear such as uniforms and cleats, the players usually do not get to keep them.  Either UofL or Adidas holds onto those for reasons I am not sure I understand.

The t-shirts, shorts, tennis shoes, and backpacks are for the players to keep forever.  With how high quality the material is, they can last a long time.

WNBA Protests

If you were expecting to see WNBA games last night, you probably already know that those games did not happen.  In protests against current events in the United States, the teams refused to play, and wore shirts spelling out "Jacob Blake" with bullet holes in the shirts.

Jacob Blake is one of the more recent stories right now as police shot him in the back seven times with his children in the car witnessing the event.  Thankfully, Blake survived, but he is permanently paralyzed from the waist down.

Besides the WNBA, we also saw teams in the NBA, MLB, MLS, and individual tennis players refuse to play in protest of recent events.

We are not here to discuss politics on the Cardinal Couple site, but we would be happy to openly discuss politics and the current situation through our various platforms of social media.

No matter your stance on the situation, please understand that these athletes are within their rights for freedom of speech to make their voices heard.  I expect to hear more from some of our UofL alums as they release their own personal statements in the coming days.

COVID-19 Testing

Have you experienced a COVID-19 test yet?  Everyone associated with UofL has.  I know Paulie and Sonya took one shortly after their visit to Gatlinburg.  Due to my interaction with the public on a daily basis at work I took my second test yesterday.

So, what's it like?

The test I take is the one where you sit in the car and run a nasal swab in each nostril.  It goes as far up your nose as possible and is not a pleasant feeling, although it does not hurt.  If you're like me, your eyes water and your nose is a bit runny.

For a process that takes less than 30 seconds, I would gladly take the test everyday if it helped us have faster results on who is positive as well as give us a chance of truly having sports again.

Happy Thursday and Go Cards!

Jared

Happy Labor Day -- Volleyball Faces #7 USC -- Field Hockey today -- Dance on Myisha -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

HAPPY LABOR DAY

Good Morning and Happy Labor Day to you!

As you enjoy this, in many cases, day off and extension of the weekend...remember that the holiday was developed and based around the labor movement here in the United States. We associate picnics and barbeque with Labor Day in many cases and you'll get no argument from us here at Cardinal Couple. 

There was a time in our nation when working conditions weren't so great for tradesmen and skilled laborer. The Unions were formed to help organize and protect laborers and, as a result, greatly benefited the workingman. It's also a weekend many associate with the start of college football, and, we'll take a pass on that this weekend locally. 

Have a great Labor Day and, hey....take the day off! 


VOLLEYBALL FALLS TO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

Facing #4 and #7 on consecutive days is no enviable task, but the University of Louisville Volleyball team experienced that scenario Saturday and Sunday in Gainesville, FL at the Bubly Tournament ("Bubly" is a flavored, sparkling water...in case you wondered).

Worldwide filled you in on Saturday's tussle against Florida in the Sunday CARDINAL COUPLE column, so today we'll look at Dani Busboom Kelly's serve and set Cards against USC, The Women of Troy, Southern Cal...whatever you want to call them...in Sunday's match.

UofL fell in straight sets to the seventh ranked Trojans...19-25, 22-25, 19-25. Despite the sweep, the Cards did some good things and facing such stiff competition this early in the Volleyball season can only help strengthen the Louisville squad, as well as point out some areas the Cards can work on. 

Louisville stayed close to USC early in the first set and it was 11-8 USC after a Emily Scott kill shot found success. It wasn't to last, though, as the Trojans put together a 9-3 run to put some distance between them and the Cards at 20-11. Louisville would regroup and actually outscore USC the rest of the way 8-5 but ended up falling by six in the first game. 

Set two was much closer. (Why do most of the Cards matches this year seem to involve a very close second set?) Tied early at 7-7 and then 11-11 after a Melanie McHenry kill, the Cards looked to even the sets. Unfortunately, The Women of Troy were faring better in the hitting, and pulled out to a 19-15 advantage. The Cards would get as close as two, forcing a USC timeout at 24-22, but lost the next point and the set by three. 

In the final set, Louisville kept battling and kept it close early. McHenry's kill had Louisville down by one at 8-7, but a 9-3 So. Cal run gave them some breathing room at 17-10. With their backs against the wall, Louisville made one last attempt to salvage a set and put together a 10-3 run to make it 20-17 after freshman outside hitter Claire Chaussee aced a serve. USC was undaunted, though, and finished the contest with a 5-2 response to take game, set and match. 

Hitting percentages were quite noticeable and the deciding factor in the match. The Cards fired for a dismal .121 average while USC found success at a .300 rate.
  

McHenry and Jasmine Bennett led Louisville with ten kills each. Bennett was 5 for 6 after the first game. Louisville battled hard against a very good USC squad and gave them all they had. Sometimes, you run into a better team and they beat you. It happens. 

The Cards return to action next weekend with a trip to West Lafayette, IN. to play in the Purdue Invitational. They face Lipscomb, Xavier and Purdue. 


Go. Cards. Beat. Purdue. 


FIELD HOCKEY TO FACE THE BLUE HENS TODAY

Justine Sowry and The Flock continue their road trip today...traversing from Virginia to Delaware for action against the Delaware Blue Hens. The Cards arrive in Newark, Delaware after a 2-1 win in Richmond against the UMass-Lowell River Hawks on Saturday. 

Louisville weathered a scoreless first half and got their offensive production from the Schindler sisters (Katie and Meghan) in the final 35 minutes to go to 2-1 on the season. 

There are three services that rank Field Hockey and they usually post their newest rankings on Tuesday. Louisville was #8 in the latest NFHCA poll and Delaware checked in at #9. 

Last year, the Cards took the Blue Hens to the chopping block with a 3-1 win to open the season at Trager Stadium. Hollyn Barr was the keeper in that one, Ayeshia sitting with an injury.

Minout "Minnie" Mink had two of the scores. Here's the interview we did with her back then. 



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSlEj17Lje8&feature=youtu.be


Minnie's back in The Netherlands this season and won't be walking through that door for the Cards, but Louisville has a very strong squad with lots of scoring options and the incredible Ayeshia McFerran guarding the goal.

This one starts at 1 p.m. and can be viewed at the link below: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-NE9rz7HXo



MYISHA KEEPS DANCING

The Washington Mystics stayed alive in the WNBA Semifinals with a blowout win over the Atlanta Dream yesterday 97-76. These two will decide who goes to the Finals on Tuesday in Atlanta. The series is knotted up at two games apiece. 

Myisha Hines-Allen saw 13 minutes of court time in the victory and totaled two points and five rebounds. Angel McCoughtry is out for the season for Atlanta. 

Elena Della Donne shook off the soreness of a bone bruise on her knee and put in 33 minutes for our nation's capital WNBA squad. She was good for 15 points. 

Just who the Mystics could play in the Finals is up for grabs, as Phoenix pulled off an exciting 86-84 comeback win over Seattle to force a fifth game. Brittney Griner and Diana Taurasi stay alive with win over "Stewie" and Sue Bird. 

They'll decide the series in Seattle on Tuesday night. 

Keep on dancin' , Myisha. 

Have a great Labor Day, readers and give me a call when the ribs are ready. I've got some potato salad I'd be willing to bring.  How are you spending Labor Day? 



paulie
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Holly Aprile Press Conference -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

"THIS IS A DESTINATION JOB" -- HOLLY MEETS THE MEDIA

Holly Aprile was officially introduced as the second softball coach in Louisville history yesterday on the UofL Campus and we learned many interesting things about her, her philosophy, why she came to Louisville and what she wants to do here. 

It's been a whirlwind 48 hours for Coach Aprile, flying into Louisville on Tuesday, meeting with the media and then the team Wednesday and starting off Thursday on Howie Lindsey's "Louisville First" radio show. From all accounts, Holly is quite excited to be here, loves the city, facilities, administration, campus and city.

A destination job. It was her thoughts about Louisville and Louisville athletics the first time she ever stepped onto campus -- back in her assistant coaching days at Pitt. Now that she's arrived, she outlined some of the things she wants to accomplish at her destination. 

She spoke of improving on the already strong tradition of Louisville Softball and taking it to new heights. That would involve taking the Cards to their first-ever Softball College World Series appearance. She's also a fan of Louisville Baseball's Dan McDonnell and cited him as a role model on how to build a successful program. Holly stresses scoring runs anyway you can, defense and pitching. She's a former pitcher, something she and A.D. Vince Tyra have in common, and vowed to develop a strong pitching arsenal at Louisville.

Holly met with the media in the YUM Practice Facilities Interview room on the first floor. A place Cardinal Couple columnist are well familiar with...attending conferences there for Jeff Walz and Scott Teeter. The room was full of media columnists, reporters, television cameras, talk show hosts, a few players, UofL administration (including Vince Tyra, who introduced her to start off the press conference) and sports information directors. 

After a brief, three minute introduction from Tyra, Holly made an opening statement and then opened the room for questions. I was one of several who offered questions to her and she handled all of them with solid answers -- not "coach-speak". 

Holly believes in learning from mistakes -- as she pointed out, you're going to have them in the course of the season -- but stressing the fact that she wanted to see her players "fail forward". That means learning from them, and avoiding committing the same ones again. It's a philosophy we've heard many times from Louisville head women's basketball coach Jeff Walz and Louisville head lacrosse coach Scott Teeter. 

She takes over a team that went 33-20 in 2018, returns their top five hitters (Funke, Hensley, Melton, Ferguson and Newman) top five pitchers (Hensley, Watson, Snyder, Paige Schindler and Hale) and narrowly missed a chance to play in the NCAA Tournament. There are positions to fill...a strong center-fielder and team leader in Nicole Pufahl has graduated. Steady utility player Alison Szydlowski, catcher Jenna Jordan and second-baseman Jamie Soles have graduated. 

When you hear Holly speak, it is immediately obvious that there is a passion, a fire and a dedication in her words, descriptions and in her voice. To match that drive and desire with the resources available at the University of Louisville has the potential to create great things at Louisville Softball. She made a great first impression. I doubt there are many that will out-work her in her recruiting, teaching and mentoring her players. Reaction, of course, by many to her will be simplified to her win/loss record, who she brings in and what she does with what she currently has on campus. I'd encourage readers to give her ample time to build Louisville Softball her way. I think you'll like the end result. 

Hitting the ground running. Eager to meet with local players, club teams, coaches and to get started on the recruiting trail. Holly Aprile made a very strong and good impression in her first appearance before the media and we, here at CARDINAL COUPLE, look forward to seeing what she can do here.  

Welcome to the "Viile", Holly. Do well here and add to the proud tradition of Louisville Women's Athletics. The Louisville airport has a banner that reads "Success Is Created Here." She saw that on her way to baggage claim. She'll get her chance to live up to that phrase. 

You came in, you had your control, threw strikes and produced a strong performance. Consider this columnist quite impressed.

Be envious no more, Holly. You're here. 

You can see/hear a brief promo for her at the link below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rU7HW6SByMI

Note: When there are a bunch of electronic devices in the interview room, like yesterday,  any recordings I try to do in there are accompanied by a annoying clicking, static noise. Nevertheless, if you want to hear the entire presser, follow the link below. Sorry about the quality.  

Holly Aprile Introductory Presser


paulie
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