Softballers on Academic All-District Team -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Five Cards Recognized by CSC

The College Sport Communicators (CSC) identified their Academic All-District teams this week, and Louisville softball placed five Cardinals on the Division I list. CSC honors baseball and softball across four divisions of collegiate athletics. The district-level is the only subset prior to the CSC Academic All-American honor, which is voted on via national ballot of specific players from the district list. 

Louisville's five honorees were Bri Despines (JR), Maddi Grant (SR), Char Lorenz (R-FR), Easton Lotus (R-JR), and Alyssa Zabala (JR). The award is the first for Grant, Despines, and Lorenz, and the second for Lotus and Zabala. This marks Zabala's second straight CSC All-District award, as Louisville's ace was honored for her 10 wins with a 4.00 ERA over 140 innings pitched this season. 

In her first year with the team, Despines hit .318 with 37 runs, 47 hits, and 37 RBI. Defensively, she led the team in putouts (narrowly edging Grant (1B) 226-221) and had 12 assists with only five errors. She allowed just four passed balls and caught four runners stealing. Grant, as mentioned, was steller at first, tying with Taylor Monroe for the team lead in double-plays turned (9) and tallying just three errors on her way to a .987 fielding percentage. With 233 fielding opportunities, that percentage is stellar, and it led the team among players with at least 50 chances. Grant also hit above her career average with a .236 clip in 106 at bats (the most of her career by a long shot). She tallied 25 hits, 10 runs, and 13 RBI with two homers. 

Easton Lotus returned from injury with a strong season. Louisville's primary leadoff hitter tailed off a bit down the stretch, but still finished second on the team with a career high .357 batting average. She had 65 hits and 16 walks, which contributed to her 38 runs scored. Her five triples were tied for the team lead, as were her 18 stolen bases. As the leadoff, she didn't get a ton of opportunities, but she still managed to knock in 26 RBI. 

You'll notice that a lot of the stats so far have been "tied for" or "second on the team". That's because Char Lorenz was that good. How she was only second-team All-ACC is beyond me, but I guess it speaks to the quality of the players in the league. Lorenz led the team in average (.368), OPS (1.130), doubles (11), triples (tied; 5), home runs (9), and RBI (53). She walked 17 times and was hit by eight pitches. She also stole 13 bases. Defensively, she was no slouch in left field, fielding .967 with 87 putouts, two assists, and just three errors. Lorenz is the only one of the five Cards on the All-District list to be tabbed for the national ballot, so we'll keep an eye on her potential ascension to the All-American ranks. 

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case

PS: To give everyone an early heads up, the CCRHP hiatus will continue this week. We intended to return on Saturday, but host outages mean we'll have to skip another episode. 

Softball Key Returners and Departure -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

While the NCAA Softball Tournament moves onto the Super Regionals, we turn our focus to Louisville softball. The Cards did not make the NCAA Tournament, but we can start to look at who is departing and who should be returning.

Departures

Possibly the most common name across the departures is Ally Alexander. The Spencer County native spent all four seasons with the Cards and played a utility position role. Whether she was thrown in at shortstop, second, third, or catcher, Alexander quickly accepted that position. She posted a career high in batting average her final season.

Sam Booe is another common name. Hailing from less than two hours away in New Palestine, Ind., Booe was one of the go-to pitchers over the span of her career. In her later years, she provided a great deal of leadership to the pitching staff.

Maddi Grant saw her role increase in her final couple years, primarily playing first base. She also proved to be a strong hitter, consistently putting balls in the outfield.

Returners

Alyssa Zabala has been the ace almost since the moment she stepped foot on campus. As a rising senior, her role in the circle should not change and she will be able to mentor the other pitchers.

Easton Lotus had a healthy season this past year and proved to be her most successful yet, as she was one of the top two on the team in batting average and led the team in hits and runs scored. She will have her redshirt senior season left.

Bri Despines transferred in this past season and immediately assumed the starting catcher position. She was one of five players to hit over .300 while also limiting stolen base attempts by opponents. Despines was second on the team in rbis. She will have one season remaining.

Char Lorenz is the odd one out on the returners as she just completed her redshirt freshman season and has three years of eligibility remaining. Lorenz led the team in batting average, doubles, home runs, and rbis. 

With NIL and the transfer portal dominating college athletics, it would not be surprising to see a couple folks transfer out or transfer in. As of right now, no one has declared their intent to enter the portal.

Happy Tuesday and Go Cards!

Jared

Cards Can't Quite Complete Comeback -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Softball Loses Opener 10-9

In a season of what if's, Louisville softball saw another opportunity for a huge win slip away last night. The game was pushed back to an 8PM start to avoid the last few showers rolling through the area, which may have been a good thing for Louisville's offense, who turned up late to the show anyway. The Cards were bombarded early, though, and despite late innings matching the early big ones from FSU, Louisville needed one more run in the bottom of the seventh to keep the game alive. The #7 Seminoles escaped and moved to 41-6, while the Cards fell to 23-22. 

Louisville got off to an unfortunate start when a full-count pitch that looked to be over the plate was ruled a ball instead of a strike for Alyssa Zabala against the leadoff hitter and a strikeout turned into a walk. Walks will haunt (as I've put in this column before) and this one did. The leadoff walk was followed by single, fielder's choice (run scored on E1), RBI single, RBI single, 2 RBI single (E9), pitching change. The Cards trailed 5-0, a runner stood on first, and nobody was out. Brooke Gray replaced Zabala and got a flyout, a fielder's choice out, and survived a single and Louisville's third fielding error before getting the leadoff hitter, back up for the second time in the inning, to foul out. The Cards nearly went down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the first, but Char Lorenz singled before Camryn Lookadoo was hit by a pitch. Louisville couldn't bring a run in and trailed 5-0.

Louisville had three fielding errors in the inning. The good thing is that those were the only three they had in the game. The bad thing is that FSU just decided to score earned runs in the second inning instead. Gray rang up the first batter, but gave up a four-pitch walk to the second. A flyout gave the Cards two outs and it seemed like they might escape the inning. Two singles scored a run, and a triple scored two more before another single added the fourth of the inning. A fly out ended the side and, all of the sudden, Louisville was staring down a run-rule after two innings. 

Sensing the ability to rest the ace, FSU made a pitching change to start the second. Madison Pickens greeted the new pitcher with a leadoff single, but the Cards went down in order afterwards. Sam Booe replaced Gray in the top of the third, and Louisville managed their first inning without giving up a run. FSU turned their lineup over again, with the leadoff batter of the third being the Seminoles' leadoff batter in the order taking the plate for the third time in the game. Booe, like the FSU pitcher before her, gave up a single to start the inning but picked up three outs in succession afterwards.

In the third, Lorenz continued her normal approach of picking up hits when seemingly no one else can, singling down the third base line for the Cards only hit in the inning. The top of the fourth saw the Cards earn their first defensive 1-2-3 inning of the game, but they followed suit in the bottom half. After two quick flyouts in the fifth, FSU threatened again, using a pair of singles and a walk to load the bases. Booe was able to coax a flyout, though, and ended the inning with three runners stranded.

Down to their last opportunity with the run rule on the line, Holly Aprile turned to pinch hitters. Ava Venturelli led off by pinch hitting for Maddi Grant, but grounded out. Katie Thatcher pinch hit for Ally Alexander and doubled to right, quickly being swapped back for Alexander to run the bases. Easton Lotus finally found a gap and singled to left to score Louisville's first run. Riley Janda pinch hit for Chelsea Mack and doubled to left center to put runners on second and third. Lorenz reached once more, this time via fielding error, and Lotus scored to make it 9-2. Unfortunately, Lorenz ran herself off the basepaths by being caught stealing. Lookadoo reached via error as well, and Janda scored an unearned run. Bri Despines made that error burn even more with a two run homer to make it 9-5. Pickens fouled out but Louisville was right back in the game. 

The sixth inning opened with a dangerous double, which was made more dangerous by a ground out advancing the runner to third. Louisville's defense stepped up, though, and a liner to right caught the runner from third off guard. Whether it was an attempt to tag and score, or the runner didn't tag, a cannon from right field to the plate was thrown back to third where the runner was out. Double play, inning over. Louisville was still in play. Ally Alexander walked in the bottom half, but Louisville ultimately didn't threaten. Into the final inning we go, still 9-5. 

Booe opened the inning with a walk, but the runner was replaced on the next at bat by a fielder's choice. A steal meant that there was still a runner on second, though, which became a runner on third with two outs after a grounder. Clinging to hope, the chances got slimmer for Louisville when a single through the left side scored the run. Another single ended Sam Booe's day, and Lindsey Mullen came on to get a fly out and end the inning. 

In previous games, we've seen Louisville step up to the plate in the seventh with the game on the line and fold quickly. Not last night. Chelsea Mack hit a soft grounder back to the pitcher to lead off and beat out the single because of course she did. Lorenz picked a bad time to finally end her on base abilities in the game, though, flying out on the next at bat. Lookadoo doubled, putting runners on second and third with one out. Despines was hit by a pitch and all of the sudden, Louisville looked like they were in business. If not for the run in the top of the inning, the tying run would be at the plate. Pickens struck out, and now the Cards needed a two-out rally. Taylor Monroe was hit by a pitch to bring in a run and put the tying run at the plate. FSU made a pitching change, and Maddi Grant welcomed the new pitcher by walking in another run. Ally Alexander singled to score a pair and put the tying run on third base. Needing a base hit to keep the game alive and extra bases to potentially score the winning run from first, Lotus grounded straight back to the pitcher to end the game at a heartbreaking 10-9. 

That's a tough way to go out, to be sure, but Louisville's resilience was commendable. At the end of the day, the record shows just another loss, but the Cards see the latest in a line of missed opportunities against very good teams. With some luck, Louisville will be able to keep things rolling the way they did near the end of the game rather than repeat the early issues in today's second game of the series. The Cards will honor their seniors prior to the 3PM first pitch, with Izzy Harrison, Ally Alexander, Maddi Grant, and Sam Booe listed as seniors on the roster. Weather should hold out, so get out and support the team if you can. If not, the game will be carried on ACC Network Extra.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

We'll have three on board today, with Paulie, Jared, and me bringing you the latest in Louisville women's athletics. As is tradition, we'll be off next week for the Kentucky Derby, so check out this week's episode before the brief break. Check out the show after it posts around 1PM, and be sure to subscribe so that it comes to your feed automatically. 

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Until next time, Go Cards!

Case

Softball Sweeps Friday -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Softball Wins Pair of 5-1 Games

Louisville softball is playing in the Joan Joyce Classic this weekend, and they opened the event with a pair of games against Villanova and Minnesota. After dropping their second game last Saturday against Radford, the Cards demolished Cleveland State on Sunday and entered the weekend 3-2. After yesterday's matching 5-1 victories, Louisville moves to 5-2 with their Saturday game underway at 9am and two games tomorrow. 

In the opener, Louisville played host against Villanova and Alyssa Zabala got the start. She walked the third batter she faced, but struck out the fourth to end the inning. Louisville came to the plate and decided to functionally win the game right out of the gate. Easton Lotus walked, stole second, and then took third on a wild pitch. Bri Despines ended up getting three more out of the zone and walked as well. Like Lotus ahead, she also stole second, leaving a pair of runners in scoring position for Char Lorenz to bring them home on a single. 2-0.

Lorenz wasn't able to be the third Cardinal in a row to steal second, as she was thrown out, but Madison Pickens took her spot after a hit by pitch. Maddi Grant doubled to put runners on second and third again, but Katie Thatcher popped out to give the Cards two outs. Taylor Monroe doubled both runners in, and Ally Alexander followed with another double to score Monroe. Chelsea Mack moved Alexander to third with a bunt single, but the inning ended on another caught stealing attempt. That gave Louisville a 5-0 lead on five hits, two walks, a hit by pitch, and no errors. Pretty good. 

Unfortunately, the Cards were only able to pick up one more walk and two more hits through the remaining six innings. The walk and one of the hits were strung together in the third, but nothing came of them and every other inning was fairly sad. Fortunately for Louisville, Zabala was strong in this one, pitching four innings and giving up just the one walk to go along with three hits. One of those hits was a solo home run in the fourth to score Villanova's only run. She struck out four. Sam Booe relieved Zabala in the fifth and pitched two innings with two hits, two walks, and a strikeout. Booe was replaced by Ryann Sanders for the seventh inning, and Sanders went three-up, three-down. 

Game two saw Louisville win with the same final score but in a rather different manner. Like the first game, Louisville functionally won in the first inning, but they didn't expend all of their offensive output in one go. Louisville was the away team and Easton Lotus opened the game with a single. In an effort to play a bit of small ball, Despines laid down a bunt to move her to second, but Minnesota's pitcher was willing to be a little more generous than that. An errant throw saw both runners go 180 feet rather than just 60, and the play ended with Lotus back in the dugout after scoring an unearned run and Despines standing on third. Despines would go on to score on a fielder's choice RBI by Pickens. 

Alyssa Zabala got the start again, though she would only go 2.1 innings in this one. Brooke Gray relieved Zabala after Alyssa gave up six hits and a run with two strikeouts. After Louisville scored a third run in the top of the third inning (Lorenz walked, Pickens walked, Grant productive groundout, wild pitch to score), Minnesota followed a ground out with a double and two straight singles to score their first run of the game. With runners on first and second and one out, Gray was called on to end the threat, which she did with a strike out and a pop out. Gray would go on to give up four hits and one walk and struck out three in her 4.2 innings. Louisville led 3-1 after three. 

Louisville put a runner on base in the fourth on a single and in the fifth on a walk, but they weren't able to bring either batter around. The Cards looked to be in for a big inning in the sixth when Taylor Monroe reached on an error to lead off and Jordan Williams singled to follow. The good vibes ended pretty quickly, though, when Monroe was thrown out trying to stretch the Williams single into two bases. A ground out gave the Cards two quick outs, but a Chelsea Mack single brought in Williams, who had moved to second on the throw out of Monroe. A fly out ended the inning with the Cards up 4-1. 

Louisville scored their final run on a two-out rally in the seventh. Madison Pickens singled to keep Louisville's inning alive and Maddi Grant rewarded her with an RBI triple. Louisville led 5-1 going into the final frame, and Minnesota looked like they'd consider putting up a fight. After a fly out, the Gophers found a gap for a double and followed it with a single to put two runners in scoring position. Gray was able to buckle down, though, and nab a strikeout to mean any out would win the game. A fly out to center did just that. 

All in all, it was a pretty good afternoon for the Cards. If there's one thing to clean up, it would be to not give up so many hits. While they spread just five against Villanova, they gave up ten to Minnesota and were lucky to not give up more runs. Part of that was not luck, as I'd be remiss to not mention a pair of web gems from Ally Alexander at third base. In one game, she had a leaping grab on what looked like a double if it got over her, and in the other she had a diving stop toward short before popping up and firing to first for the out from a knee. Pretty good stuff at the hot corner. 

Louisville is back in action with one game today against Minnesota, which is going on at the time of publication, and they'll play two tomorrow against Purdue (1:15) and host FAU (4). The Owls are ranked 25th in the country. 

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

I'm out this week for some home improvement items and Jared remains away. Daryl, Jeff, and Paulie will still bring you plenty of show with an exciting week for WBB and good showings from softball and lacrosse. 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

Spotify: Link

Apple Podcasts: Link

Google Podcasts: Link

Overcast (free account required): Link

Pocket Casts (free account and app required): Link

RadioPublic: Link

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case

Softball Takes Opener at UNC -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Cards Win Solo Shot Battle 2-1

Louisville entered yesterday's game in a bit of a must win situation. The Cards need to pick up some series victories over the last few weeks of the schedule to be in contention for an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. Losing midweek games to teams like EKU doesn't help, but a Friday win over UNC will hopefully get them back on track. The Cards got things started in the first and Alyssa Zabala held on to pick up her 18th win of the year, which leads the league. 

After two quick outs for the Cards in the top of the first, Riley Frizell sent a ball over the wall in straightaway right to give Louisville a 1-0 lead. That may have shaken the UNC starter a tad, as Bailey Richardson and Vanessa Miller both drew walks to follow. A ground out ended the threat, but Frizell's homer turned out to almost be enough in this one. 

Zabala got back-to-back ground outs to start the second, but a single ended her perfect game effort quickly. A foul out at the plate ended the inning. After a ground out to open the top of the second, Maddi Grant followed Frizell with a bomb to right center. That put Louisville up 2-0, which is how the game would stay until the final out. 

The Cards had plenty of chances to extend their lead, and had things gone differently, they'd be kicking themselves for the wasted opportunities. The Cards left at least one runner on in all but two innings. Their biggest chance for more runs came in the fourth, when a ground out left the bases loaded. Coincidentally, UNC's best chance at small ball runs also came in the fourth. A four-pitch walk opened the side, but a fielder's choice and a popup gave UNC two outs with still just the runner on first. Another walk put two on base, but a ground out ended the threat. 

After a ground out and a fly out put Zabala one out away from a complete game shutout, her 1-0 pitch was knocked over the fence in left, putting the tying run at the plate. The at-bat opened with a called strike, and the batter fouled away the next pitch. Down to her last strike, UNC's freshman catcher Raeghan Carlson spoiled four more strikeout pitches with foul offs and drew one ball. Ultimately, Zabala was able to induce a ground out to end the game. Zabala's final line was 2 hits and 1 run (earned) with three walks and two strikeouts. She threw 110 pitches in the complete game. 

Her counterpart, Kenna Raye Dark, also threw a complete game, and somehow managed to do it on fewer pitches. Dark threw 105 en route to 6 hits, 2 runs (both earned), three walks, and two strikeouts. Eerily similar lines for the sophomores. Maddi Grant was the only Cardinal to pick up multiple of those six hits, finishing with a pair. Vanessa Miller drew two walks. 

Louisville will look for a bit more offense today, as they'll wrap the series with a double-header due to forecasted bad weather on Sunday. The first game will get started at 2PM and will air on ACC Network Extra. The second game is scheduled for 4:30, but will start 20-30 minutes after the conclusion of the first if it runs long. 

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

Happy Thunder Day, Cardinal Fans. While the more virtual nature of the show means that we aren't obligated to cancel the show due to inability to access our studio, a few conflicts will mean there's a small cast on hand. Paulie, Jeff, and Jared will bring you the news and notes of the week, looking at softball's ups-and-downs, the upset bid that wasn't for lacrosse, and big WBB commitments and signings. We'll see if Jeff has streaming sorted out, but if he does, 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

Spotify: Link

Apple Podcasts: Link

Google Podcasts: Link

Overcast (free account required): Link

Pocket Casts (free account and app required): Link

RadioPublic: Link

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case

Cards Softball Loses To EKU -- -- Ja'Leah Williams to WBB from Miami -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 EKU SOFTBALL JUMPS EARLY ON CARDS FOR 6-2 WIN

 

Louisville Softball surrendered six runs early yesterday and could not make up the deficit  in a loss in Richmond, KY  to Eastern Kentucky University Tuesday afternoon. Cards freshman Brooke Gray (3-4) got the midweek start for the visitors, but was met with six runs on four hits in the bottom of the second. 

Meanwhile, at the plate, the Cards were stifled early in the game, but did try to mount a couple of rally attempts to get back in the contest late in the contest.

The first one occured in the top of the sixth, when the Cards loaded the bases with just one out. Kiley Goff beat out a infield grounder for a single and Daisy Hess reached on a slow throw on a fielders choice. Chelsea Mack delivered a single to load the bases for Lousville, but EKU ace Maddi Rutan (19-2) got a pop out and received a spectacular fielding stop from EKU second baseman Madison Scott to end the Cardinals threat. 

The Cards would also threaten again in the seventh and plate their first runs of the contest when Bailee Richardson reached on a single and came home on Maddi Grant's home run to center. The Cards left the scoring there,,though, with a line out  and a fly out,

Louisville (24-19) returns to conference play Friday, when they travel to North Carolina. 

A tough road loss to a surprisingly good EKU squad, that has a sparkling 33-5 record

JA'LEAH WILLIAMS HEADED TO LOUISVILLE WBB

Cards WBB picks up one of the the better defensive guards in the ACC from last season with upcomng senior Ja'Leah Williams announcing she will join the Louiisville squad from Miami for the 2024-25 season

Williams has been a key contributor to Katie Meyer's squad for the past three seasons and averaged 7.1 points and 4.5 rebounds in 30 games last year for the Canes. 

Her addittion will help fill the void in the Cards guards game, with the graduation of Syd Taylor, Nina Rickards and Kiki Jefferson.

paulie