LOUISVILLE LACROSSE ADDS NAKAZAWA TO ROSTER -- AIKO ALL ACC -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 KOKORO NAKAZAWA BRINGS HER TALENTS TO CARDS

The University of Louisville Lacrosse squad doesn't begin play until this spring, but head coach Scott Teeter is busy at work defining the 2021 roster. Teeter announced this week that Japanese attacker sensation KOKORO NAKAZAWA has joined the roster and will play for the Cards Lax squad. 

Nakazawa is from Yokohama and played for Nihon University Senior High School. She led the school to three national championships and was named the team's Most Valuable Player all three years. 

She also has extensive international experience and was a member of Japan's U19 team at the 2019 World Lacrosse Championships in Ontario, Canada. At the conclusion of the event she was name to the event's All-World Team. 

Teeter had this to say about Kokoro: 

"Kokoro is a pure goal scorer with great hands, a creative stick and high IQ. She's one of the top ten players in Japan and comes from a very athletic family. We are very excited to have her join our program." 

Things point to a very successful 2021 season for Louisville Lacrosse...with a lot of depth and experience returning for Teeter's squad.  The squad was 5-4 in 2020 when play was halted due to COVID-19 restrictions and Louisville returns top scorers Ally Hall, Hannah Morris, Caroline Blalock, Shayla Scanlan, Allegra Catalano and assist leader Brenna Shanahan. Defensively, goalkeeper Rachel Florek is back as well. 

AIKO JONES ACC VOLLEYBALL PLAYER OF THE WEEK  

Great news for Louisville Volleyball yesterday when Aiko Jones was named ACC Player of the Week! The redshirt-sophomore from Jamaica had 28 kills and nine blocks in the Cards sweep of #8 Syracuse over the weekend. 

The Cards (4-1) have a bit of time off before travelling to Pitt to end the fall slate with two matches -- beginning Oct 23rd. 

Volleyball is scheduled to have a "split" season with much more action coming in the spring of 2021. 

We were discussing earlier today just how busy the spring could be in terms of Louisville women's athletics. With Volleyball, Field Hockey and Women's Soccer all planning on spring slates, they'd join Women's Basketball, Softball, Lacrosse, Track and Field, Women's Golf and Swimming-- who traditionally hold their contests in the winter and spring. 

Have a Wise Wednesday!

paulie 

 

ACC watching and waiting -- Manatee Rocked by River Mocs -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

WILL ACC FOLLOW BIG 10's CANCELLATION PLAYING OF NON-CONFERENCE OPPONENTS? 

This is one of those watching and waiting days.

In purely "noir" terms and scenario, the car is parked outside the house. It's foggy outside and our heroines (Louisville women's sports student-athletes) go out to meet the stranger. 

Inside the occupants of the house wait to see who is coming and going to happen.  The occupants are mostly fearing the worst from the tall stranger in the hat (raincoat optional) and the news he possesses.  The car door slowly opens and steps are heard heading up the sidewalk. Tense, edgy music plays in the background. The group inside is waiting. What news does the stranger bring? 

Sorry to make a melodrama moment here, I've been watching a lot of old movies lately. 

With the BIG10 Conference cancelling all games against non-conference foes, can the ACC be far behind? 

Looking at the Louisville women's sports non-conference schedule for 2020 that's been posted, only Volleyball has put out a 2020 official-type schedule and Purdue, a Big 10 member, looks to definitely be off the schedule.

(Maybe the other women's sports were wise in not doing so yet...)

In terms of Volleyball non-conference matches, the VolleyCards are still (as of 8:38 a.m. this morning) are headed to Dayton for a tournament on August 22nd. Going to NKU for a tournament after that and playing either Xavier or Lipscomb in Cincinnati and then have a home and away match planned against UK. A 18-game, ACC Conference slate awaits after that. 

We know not (officially) how Field Hockey, Women's Soccer, Women's basketball, golf, tennis and the others will be affected by the Big 10 move or the impending, probable ACC move that walks up the sidewalk of the Belknap Campus.

Right now, though...it doesn't look good for the Cardinal house-dwellers. My guess is the ACC will follow suit and that it's the first step toward the cancellation of fall sports.

Sorry to be a "downer-deliverer" here, but, to use a horse-racing description -- our horse isn't making up any ground on the leaders as they make the turn and head for the stretch. Naturally, I'm hoping for the best here...but I'm also looking at our current situation and, in the words of Bob Dylan...."you don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows". 


That's a great Dylan song, by the way....and is eerie accurate on how things are today, desite being recorded over 50 years ago.  I've got it linked up below: 


SUBTERRANEAN HOMESICK BLUES -- BOB DYLAN


You're going to find tons of speculation about football and the Cards at other sites. We won't go there, we'll leave that to the "experts" in that area. 

Right now, we watch, we wait and wonder what is going to happen within the ACC. It's the seventh inning and we don't know the final-at bat possibilities yet for the opponent. 

(Case prepares for his Saturday column) 

I expect Case will report on the news we're all waiting for in his column tomorrow. I'm not expecting a bouquet of flowers to be delivered at the UofL women's sports front door. 

Just a sign of the times, friends. 

We'll discuss what we know on Saturday's Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast.

The broadcast begins at 11 a.m. on Saturday mornings. We'd love to have you listen in. You can access the show on YouTube. Case will have the link for you tomorrow, so be sure to check out his column tomorrow. You can hear any and all of the previous shows by going to Google (or the search engine you use) and popping YouTube Cardinal Couple Radio Hour in the search bar, or clicking the picture at the top of our website page of me and Jared in masks with Sonya and Katie. 

We cover the week in UofL women's sports in our podcasts and present a quiz for you and the panel each week in the second half of the show. Jeff and Jared lock horns this week again after tying last week in our quiz, so the tension and drama is building there for the impending showdown. 



MANATEE FALL LATE TO RIVER MOCS. 

In a showdown between the first and second place teams in Softball's FGCL league, the Myakka City River Mocs visited the Manatee Squeeze last night and broke open a close contest with four runs in the final two innings to take the 8-2 win. 

Cardinal Jordan Wolfe made three plate appearances for Manatee and delivered a single, plus scored one of Manatee's runs. The Squeeze's right-fielder singled to right-center in the first inning and came home on Nikki Cuchran's two-RBI, fence clearing blast to center. 

Manatee used three pitchers in the loss (none of them Cardinal Paige Schindler) and slips to 10-4 on the season. Myakka City improves to 14-1 on the schedule. 

Have an interesting Friday! Stay safe and make good decisions. Hope for the best but be prepared for the actual. 

paulie
xxxxx