Field Hockey Advances, Volleyball Sweeps -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Cardinal Couple Donation Month

As I joined the Cardinal Couple team last year, this is my second Cardinal Couple Donation Month. Last November, whenever I wrote, I left it to Paulie to fill in this section. As I've taken on a more consistent role with CC, though, I feel just as comfortable writing this as I expect Jeff or Paul would be. We say every week on the radio, and periodically throughout the week on the site, that YOU, the readers, are Cardinal Couple. Without you all, everyone writing for this site would be just voices spouting off into the ether. Heck, maybe we still are, but your comments and kind words keep us going. When it comes to all of the behind the scenes part of the site, unfortunately, just comments aren't enough. 

One of my favorite follows on Twitter is Shea Serrano. He's a former writer for Grantland, current staff writer for The Ringer, and 2x NYT Best Seller. He's also hilarious and supportive of other people wanting to get into writing. One of his biggest pieces of advice is to not write for free. He and I must have different definitions of free, though. I don't collect a paycheck. I didn't get into this expecting one. I don't need or want one to do this. My pay is a media pass, if I want it, to cover the uncovered Louisville sports. Oftentimes, the sports we cover get no further press from their own university than the recap post on the Louisville athletics website. 

Paulie, with the help of others, put together this brainchild and has grown it to what it is today. For those of you that check in often, you see what he does to bring you the news and coverage that he does. The rest of us can't quite offer his same level of commitment, but we do our best. When we have donation month, don't consider it begging, and please don't think that you have to help fund our endeavors entirely by yourself, dear reader. If everyone gave whatever they thought was fair to help keep us going (keep in mind we don't have ad revenue or anything like that), we'd be more than appreciative.

Volleyball Gets Road Win at Wake Forest

As Jeff mentioned on last week's radio show, the Louisville volleyball team needs only to win to stay atop the ACC. After an extended break, they showed that they were completely capable of continuing to do so, sweeping Wake Forest in Winston Salem yesterday afternoon. Wake Forest is no world beater, with an ACC record now of 3-10 and an overall record three games below 0.500, but Louisville struggled with even the lowest teams last season. In fact, Louisville was one of the lowest teams last season. One of the marks of a good team is beating the teams you are supposed to without significant opposition. Louisville defeated Wake with the closest game being decided by six points.

Louisville started the match trading points with the Demon Deacons for the most part, before the Cards put together separate 5-0 and 4-0 runs to extend their lead and win the set 25-16. Louisville hit 0.567 in the set, so good luck to any team having to face that kind of efficiency. The second set started much like the first, with teams working each other down, drawing near to 10 points each, before Louisville set off another extended run to distance themselves. This time, Louisville hit only 0.267 in the 25-15 win, but Wake's 0.000 made them much less of a threat. The third set was the closest of the match, both in points and hitting percentage. Louisville ended up winning the set 25-19 to complete the sweep, but hit only 0.175 to Wakes's 0.111. This time, Louisville actually trailed early before drawing level and then using yet another large run to get out front. Once ahead, the Cards traded points with the Deacs until Louisville reached the magic number.

A few things were concerning to me despite the sweep. Louisville's hitting numbers continually declined in the three sets of the match. Extrapolation is dangerous, but if Wake had managed to squeak out a win in the third set, there was potential for Louisville to continue hitting worse and give the match away. Fortunately, they didn't do that, and there's no real way to know if that would have happened. I would just prefer to see a bit more consistency in the hitting. The second concerning thing was that Melanie McHenry hit only 0.059 with 5 kills. She is usually a rock for the offense, so her swoon could be dangerous for the team if it lasts longer than this match. The silver lining is that the rest of the team was able to makeup for her struggles, but you don't want to continue trying to compete for a conference title with one of your best players struggling. Finally, the fact that Louisville depended so much on large runs surprises me. Obviously, against lesser teams, I expect the Cards to go on big runs, but I expect them to do it consistently with opponent points intermingled. I don't expect them to need long runs to come from behind or stretch out a lead mid match. Maybe I'm being picky, but I guess it goes with consistent hitting. Louisville is a good team, and they need to cut down on errors to keep the ball in their control and win big. 

Louisville continues to strive for a conference title as they head to Duke tomorrow. Duke is 16-8 this season, 8-5 in conference, but are currently riding a five game win streak. Louisville will go into Blue Devil Country to try to shut down that win streak and extend their own streak to five. The match starts at 1PM and is available on ACC Network Extra.

Field Hockey Gets Revenge Against Duke

After a rough 5-0 loss to the Blue Devils earlier this year, Louisville field hockey got the last laugh when they took down Duke in a shootout yesterday in Trager Stadium to advance to the ACC Championship game. This huge win comes just after Louisville won their first ever ACC tournament game against Syracuse on Thursday. Now the Cards will look to beat North Carolina for the second time this year when they face off in the championship game at 1PM (marking the 3rd Louisville event at 1PM on 11/5. Hope you have enough screens.). Regardless of tomorrow's result, Louisville has put themselves in a much better position going into NCAA tournament selection season.

Ayeisha McFerran deserves a tip of the cap from everyone in the field hockey world after yesterday's performance. Looking at offensive stats, Duke looked as though they'd blow Louisville away. The Blue Devils had 31 shots, with 20 on goal. Louisville finished with 8 and 4. Duke had 11 corners to Louisville's 2. By the end of regulation, Duke had taken 16 shots to Louisville's 6. However, the Cards had the score tied at 2-2. In two sudden death overtimes, Louisville fended off 15 shots from Duke. The Cards then won the shootout 4-3. Ayeisha McFerran finished the game with 18 saves, an absolutely stunning effort. Credit also goes out to the Louisville defense for the efforts in the game. 

Louisville's regulars were to thank for their two goals, with the scores coming from Marisa Martin Pelegrina and Minout Mink. Shootout goals game from Nicole Woods, Martin Pelegrina, Madison Walsh, and Mink. Louisville will need continuing strong efforts from both the offense and defense for the remainder of this postseason. They've already made history in winning their first ACC tournament game and advancing to their first ever ACC championship game. Here's hoping that they can make even more and potentially win their first ACC and NCAA championships, both of which will be held on their home turf. 

Check out Jared Anderson's Facebook page for some great photos from yesterday's win!

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour

As it may be clear, we'll have plenty to talk about on today's Cardinal Couple Radio Hour. We'll get things started at 11AM on 100.9 WCHQ FM. You can also find the show on the WCHQ app and wchqfm.com. Tune in for fun and games as we cover all I've talked about today and more.

Until next time, Go Cards!

-CH-

Worldwide Looks On The Bright Side -- Sunday Cardinal Couple

First off...

You might have figured out that many of us here at Cardinal Couple like musical references and borrowing themes from songs.

Today's theme: "Always Look On the Bright Side of Life" from Monty Python's Life of Brian.

You can listen to the tune HERE....be advised there is one "potty" word in the lyrics...if that kind of thing brings you down. There were plenty of potty words out at PJCS yesterday...

To that end, we're going to keep this first section really short.

Football

Boston College, who is, let's face it, the traditional doormat of the ACC Atlantic division, came in to
PJCS and hung an L on the Cardinal Football team, 45-42.  Novels could be written about this one, and I suspect, if you combine the output of various sports media properties associated with Cardinal Athletics, essentially one has already been written.

Paulie reports that Louisville played
 "efense" quite a bit  ( no "D") 

Moving on.

Swimming and Diving

The SMU Classic has wrapped up and UofL Swimming and Diving finished the competition in 2nd place.  8th ranked USC just narrowly edged UofL out of the top spot, by half a point.  UofL came into the competition ranked 7th, and beat out 6th ranked Michigan by 8 and a half points.

Mallory Comerford won all 3 of the events she entered, the 500 free...she's not just a sprinter, folks...the 100 free, and the 200 free relay.  Beyond those victories, there were a lot of 2nd and 3rd place finishes.

The other victory for the Cards last night was in the 200 medley relay, with Alina Kendzior, Maria Astashkina, Grace Oglesby, and Lainey Visscher.  Molly Fears, who won the 1-meter springboard event Friday evening, came in 4th in the 3-meter event.

This meet was a great showing, in a unique format, by one of the most successful teams at UofL right now against very high level competition.

Field Hockey

Minnie

We've said it many times before.  ACC Field Hockey is mind-bogglingly good.  UofL met the latest
challenge in the conference gauntlet with the #11 Cardinals squad meeting the #5 North Carolina squad.  

While it was a bit of a lackluster first half, they did go into halftime tied with the TarHeels at one apiece.  The Cardinals goal came on a corner with 12 minutes left in the first half.  Marisa Martin Pelegrina inbounded the corner, Katie Walsh provided the stop, and Minout "I score goals" Mink fired it home.  If you're keeping track, and I think Jared has given up at this point, that's a team leading nine for her on the season.

The Cardinals would score again early in the 2nd half on another corner.  Abby Grimes gets the tally on this one off the stop by Marigrace Ragsdale.  The insert came from Marisa Martin Pelegrina.  UNC would tie it up again at 2-2 on a rebound from a shot.  The final, game winning, score of the game came just a couple of minutes later with just under 10 minutes left in the game when Taylor Stone to the rock to the hole unassisted.

Ayeshia

With about 8 minutes left in the game, UNC called a timeout and lifted their GK to get a little more offense on the field.  The Cards were able to hold off the extra attacking and finish out the game with the 3-2 win.

This is another huge positive result for the Field Hockey squad.  After their woes early in the season on penalty corners, it's good to see them pull that part of play together and get two goals out of their corners.

In ACC standings, this win leaves the Cards tied for 1st with only Virginia, dropping UNC to 3-2, compared to the 4-1 records of UofL and UVA.  Duke also holds a 3-2 record to hold the tie with UNC in 3rd.  Beyond that, the standings are Wake Forest at 2-3, Syracuse at 2-4, and Boston College at 0-5. The Cards face the Hoos next (at Virginia) for top spot in the conference. 

Next Up

On tap today, all four of the golf and tennis squads are in action.  Only Men's Tennis is here in the 'Ville, at Bass-Rudd hosting the Louisville Invitational.

For a entry in the  Panera Card drawing...be the FIRST
to identify this guy in front
 (by name in movie) in the
comments section.

In team sports, Volleyball finishes the weekend at home with a 3 o'clock start (note the later than
typical start time!) against Georgia Tech.  I've said in past articles and on the radio that GT really shouldn't be a major challenge for this UofL team the way the Cards have been playing, Dani Busboom Kelly, after the Clemson match Friday, disagreed, and GT really is something of an enigma.  In one week of play, they lost in four to Boston College, who isn't an absolutely awful team...but they're not very good, either.  Then they go in Friday and beat Notre Dame in 4.  OK, Notre Dame isn't the powerhouse they used to be, they're rebuilding (and rebuilding fast!), but they can put up some stiff competition and GT rose to the challenge.  Admittedly, Notre Dame is also a bit of an enigma this year, having split a two match home and home weekend with Ohio State, though that's somewhat explicable by pointing out that each team won on their home floor.  Then they went 1-1 on a weekend at home losing to Miami and beating Florida State.  And, ok, you can kind of explain that by pointing out that FSU isn't nearly as good as we thought they were early in the season, but they are still a good team.

The takeaway from all of this I think can only be, if you're trying to predict outcomes in ACC volleyball right now, Good Luck!  If UofL shows up and plays the way that we know they are capable of playing, this should be a win today, but things are topsy turvy enough around the conference that it's really hard to get a good feel of how good various teams are, and that certainly includes the engineers from Atlanta.

This one will be on the ACC Network Extra. Could we possibly get out buddy Cortnee Walton doing some audio?

CCRH

Julie JC Sullivan also goes by the
moniker "Bird Lady".  

The recording of The Cardinal Couple Radio Hour is up on the Soundcloud.  You can listen to the replay, here.  I was able to catch most of the broadcast via TuneIn in my car on my way to Indianapolis where I joined my mother for a zany 20 minute dash in and out of an opening weekend Ikea store.  What I will say is that the Swedes (did you know that they're actually headquartered in The Netherlands, now?) know how to do traffic and crowd control really well.  Over 7,000 had entered the store as we were going in at around 1pm, and yet we were able to make it in, pick up what we needed and get out in 20 minutes.  Impressive!

Back on topic, I was able to hear Jared, JC, and Case cover the latest, and deal with the tense confusion of pre-recorded shows ("This event will have been played by the time you hear this.").  They did a fine job, and it was an excellent show, please check it out if you didn't hear it at broadcast time.

-- 

JMcA

A Busy Sunday -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Soccer Earns First ACC Win

After finally breaking through into the ACC scoring column late in their game against Florida State, Louisville's women's soccer team got their first ACC win of the season over Miami yesterday, with a final score of 1-0. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the goal came at the feet of Emina Ekic, the freshman sensation that has led the Cards in scoring thus far. Ekic can do great things with the ball at her feet and can also create off of set pieces. She has been a driving force for the success of Louisville's young season and will continue to do great things for the Cards in her remaining years at UofL.

Although Ekic's goal didn't come until the 83rd minute of play, the box score shows a relatively lopsided game. Louisville led in shots 16-7, shots on goal 7-2, corners 7-4, and fouls 6-11. Those numbers show one team having a greater time of possession and keeping the other on its heels. Of course, in soccer, one team can dominate an entire game and the other team can win by getting lucky once. Such was not the case yesterday. Louisville finally snagged that first conference win, dropping the Hurricanes to 4-4 (0-2) on the season and improving their own mark to 7-4 (1-2). Louisville returns to the field in Lynn Stadium on Friday at 7:00 PM to take on the Duke Blue Devils. The Cards will look to improve upon their scoring (only 2 goals in 3 conference games so far), but will also hope to continue to play solid defense.

Field Hockey (hopefully) Gets Offense Back on Track

Something that has been missing for Justine Sowry's team this season has been consistent offense.

Scoring has not been a problem for the team in the past, but this year's iteration, for whatever reason, has had trouble putting the ball in the cage. Louisville has lost a couple of games they should have won because the defense simply couldn't support the offensive woes. (As a Seahawks fan, I totally get this.) Yesterday may have been a large step in the right direction. After opening the home conference slate on Friday with a win against Wake Forest, Louisville was back in action yesterday against the thirteenth ranked James Madison University. When JMU scored in the first 7 minutes, it looked as though it might be a long day for the Cards.

Fortunately, Louisville broke through with a goal just before the half ended. Minout Mink tied the score at 1-1. Louisville would not look back, scoring three times in the second half (Martin Pellegrina, Swartwood, and Stone) and not allowing another JMU goal to win 4-1. Louisville created a ton of offense, putting up 14 shots, with 11 being on frame. They also converted 2/6 penalty corners and prevented goals on either of JMU's 2 corners. The defense held JMU to only 5 shots (3) with only the one goal scored. This late in the season, a ranking means something. Yesterday's game was only their 3rd loss of the season. The Cards might have proven that they aren't yet done hanging with the big dogs this season. They'll get a chance to continue their winning ways when they take on Syracuse at 3:30PM on Friday. The game is in Trager Stadium. 

Volleyball Drops Fifth Set to Tar Heels

After a thrilling five set victory over Notre Dame on Friday, Louisville was on the wrong side of things yesterday, falling victim to a reverse sweep by the North Carolina Tar Heels. After winning the first two sets hitting .269 and then a whopping .429, Louisville's hitting broke down. Their best set of the final three was .163. Louisville looked poised to sweep, hitting well and leading 13-10 in the third set. UNC then went on a big run, jumping out to an 18-14 lead before ultimately winning the set 25-18. UNC won the fourth wire-to-wire. Louisville's best and last chance came when they jumped ahead in the fifth set 7-3. They led 8-4 at the turn, but were unable to close it out. Cards fell 15-12 and dropped the match 3-2.

It's a frustrating end to a great start, but sometimes things like this happen on the road. Louisville can only learn from such an experience, and it may prove to be a benefit later in the season to help them grind out a win when the opponent has momentum. Louisville was led statistically by Melanie McHenry (18 kills), Maggie DeJong (6 blocks), Wilma Rivera (53 assists), and Molly Sauer (18 digs). Volleyball will be back in action (you guessed it!) on Friday, when Florida State visits Cardinal Arena. The match is set to start at 7:00 PM.

Until next time, Go Cards!

-CH-

Paulie battles D.P.S. to a scoreless tie

(EDITOR NOTE: The latest update on me against UofL's Department of Public Safety)

(Are these guys my last resort ?) 

In keeping with the various battles concerning UofL...this update in from Paulie's contest against the
University of Louisville's Department of Public Safety. We're tied in a scoreless battle...I did receive a call Monday morning from the D.P.S. informing me that they had approved a four-year handicapped spot for me...first year cost $100.

I had originally asked them to "comp" this for me. We are a non-profit 501c organization here at CARDINAL COUPLE. So is WCHQ 100.9 FM, where we broadcast the radio show and play a lot of the clips that you hear on THE CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR. I mentioned this and asked if there was anyone I could appeal the cost to. I won't declare a win until it's free.

I was sent to a Mr. Becker's voicemail. Now...if this is former Softball pitcher Maryssa Becker's Dad or brother...I may have a shot here.  It probably isn't, though. Could it be my House of Cards buddy George "Screech" Becker? Once again, probably not bloody likely....

My point is this. I am only going to use this sticker 1-2 times a week. For interviews at the "Little Yum" and the SAC building. That's it. I am actively promoting the UofL Sports programs and not asking for a penny in return.

I am walking better with the right hip but, sadly, the left knee has stepped into the batter's box and now giving me fits.  Steps are still an issue with me. I try to avoid walking on grassy, uneven surfaces.

(I wonder if it's too late to get in on this deal?) 

I did receive a call back from Mr. Becker. In all fairness, he was polite but right to the point. He explained that the University had many volunteers and such that work with various departments on campus. To "comp" them all was be impossible. He further added that any possible "comps" should actually be implemented (or paid for) by the organization the volunteer (or media reporter) is covering.

What he's saying is that UofL Athletics would pay for me to park. (With-hold laughter until the end of the performance, please.) We all know the likelihood of UofL Athletics sending me $100 a year to park is like me outrunning Lamar Jackson (or Minnie Mink or Jaz Jones) in the 40 yard dash.

Would someone please get the nice Softball
lady a golf cart? That I could borrow? 

I say this is a scoreless tie. The next thing I have to decide is whether I want to take the money out of a tightly-budgeted, under-funded Cardinal Couple account or pony up the 'sheckles' myself. Or do neither? I can still see me absconding with a golf cart, hiding it in Sandy Pearsall's shed (we BOTH benefit that way) and running a-muck around campus that way. With a few chimps, social director, a Bjerke, Mink, Arica or two and business cards.

Maybe I should have got in on some of that Foundation money-grab or hit Andre McGee up for a few $$$ when the getting was good.

The rich get richer, the non-profits continue to struggle and what else is new in your Monday World.?

Excuse the rant today...mind still turning, revisiting options and strategies...

Paulie

Setting the "Barr" and an away weekend for most UofL sports -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

HOLLYN "SETTING THE BARR" AT GOALKEEP FOR FIELD HOCKEY

Barr named Longstreth/NFHCA NAtional Defender of the Week

After waiting patiently for a season behind the 2016 UofL Field Hockey goalkeeper Ayeshia McFerran...sophomore Hollyn Barr knows a thing or two about patience, learning and being prepared. With McFerran sidelined with an injury right now, Barr...who was the third string goalie last season... was the only goalkeeper left on the roster and was pressed into action for the 2017 season. No need to panic, though...she was ready to raise the "barr". 




Hollyn was impressive in the preseason wins in exhibitions against the alums and Miami (OH). How would she hold up, though, against a better-than-average IU squad and the defending national champions in #3 Delaware? 

The answer is just fine, thank you.

She allowed just one goal in the #9 Cards regular season opener against the Hoosiers last Friday in UofL's 4-1 win. The same scenario Sunday...one goal as the Cards down the Blue Hens 3-1. 140 minutes of tending the nets, an average of 1.0 goals allowed per contest and 13 saves on shot on goal. For comparison, McFerran had a 1.24 average for 2016 on goals allowed per game...which was in the top five in the nation and graduated back up goalkeeper Elina Pereira had an average of 1.96 goals per game in 35 minutes of play. 

Good goalkeeping is promoted a lot by stellar defense and the Cards had a few gaps to fill in there as well. Senior Abby Grimes, normally a midfielder with excellent attacking abilities was transitioned into a defender. So was sophomore Carter Ayars. Junior Taylor Stone has seen her share of defensive work...plus freshmen Meghan Schneider, Alli Bitting and AnnMarie Habelow all getting starts on the back line. 

Good goalkeeping is also benefited by an aggressive offensive attack against the opponents and the Cards have shown the propensity to advance the ball. Favorites Minnie Mink and Marigrace Ragsdale are back for the Cards on the attack and...combined with freshman Marisa Martin Pelligrina...have been responsible for four goals and six assists this season. Maybe we should call them "the M M and M girls" or "Triple M's".

Yes, it is still early in the season. Plenty of hockey to be played. The Cards head to Columbus, OH this weekend to face the Buckeyes in their home opener. The Ohio State University dispatched Lehigh 4-0 on the road last weekend. That's the start of a strenuous six game road swing that will have UofL Field Hockey in Columbus for the Buckeyes and Kent State, in College Park, MD for Maryland and American, visiting Durham for the ACC Conference opener against Duke and going to Evanston, IL for always-strong Northwestern.

I did inquire why Louisville was still ranked at their preseason ranking of #9 after knocking off the Blue Hens. I was told by George Lane...director of ACC Communications...that rankings aren't released until the end of the second week of competition. 

You learn something new every day.

What opponents will learn is that they're playing a rock-solid Louisville team that features speed, multiple scorers and a fondness for controlling the action down around the foe's net...plus a denying defense. 

They'll also discover if you hang around the "Barr" and her "barr"tenders...they'll make you pay. 


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ROAD TRIP(S) 

Besides Field Hockey travelling this Labor Day weekend, we also find women's soccer on the road for tests at UK Friday and Southeastern Missouri State on Monday. Men's Soccer travels to Georgia State for a Friday match and...of course...the Louisville Football team will be in Indy Saturday for a showdown with Purdue. 

Volleyball remains on campus. They host the Cardinal Classic that starts on Friday night with a match against Western Kentucky at 6:30 p.m. They'll face Kent State at 12:30 Saturday afternoon (which will have Worldwide doing his Dagwood Bumstead imitation of dashing out of the Crescent Hill Radio studios to get to Cardinal Arena) and the Wide Net gals will conclude the Classic Saturday night against, yet another Big 10 foe...this time the fighting Illini from Champaign. 

Remember that games at Cardinal Arena (and elsewhere on campus) have now implemented the "clear bag" policy. You can read more about that at the link below: 

CLEAR BAG POLICY FOR CARDINAL ARENA

I'll see you again on the radio Saturday morning for THE CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR and here on these pages next Tuesday. Case and Worldwide will get you through the weekend here at the site. If i don't run into you, have a great Labor Day weekend. Be safe, responsible and stay dry tomorrow...the Louisville area could be pretty wet Friday. 


paulie
xxxxx

Marisa Martin Pelligrina, Hollyn Barr sweep ACC Awards...Asia Back to Australia -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

UOFL FIELD HOCKEY DUO TAKE ACC OFFENSIVE AND DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK AWARDS

UofL head Field Hockey coach Justine Sowry will tell you that this a new Field Hockey team this year and two of the newcomers have made an big impact on the Cardinal squad and are gathering ACC attention as well. 

Midfielder Marisa Martin Pelligrina has been named the ACC Offensive Player of the Week for her efforts against IU and Delaware last week and goalkeeper Hollyn Barr received the ACC Defensive Player of the Week. The Cards defeated IU 4-1 last Friday and then continued to hold home turf by taking down #3 Delaware, who was last year's NCAA Champions, 3-1. 

Pelligrina, a freshman from Mulheim an der Ruhr, Germany, had two goals and two assists in the win over the Hoosiers. The goals were her only shots of the game. On Sunday, she set up Whena Munn for the first score of the contest.  MMP ended the two-game series with two goals and three assists...worth seven points in Field Hockey's scoring system. 


(Since Coach Sowry told us that the team hasn't come up with a nickname for her yet...I'm going with "MMP" for now. Trying saying Marisa Martin Pelligrina fast six times...) 


For Louisville's opponents last week, hanging around the "Barr" proved to be costly...Hollyn Barr had six saves and allowed just one goal against the Hoosiers and seven saves and just one score allowed against the Blue Hens. The sophomore out of Lancaster, PA spent her freshman year watching Ayeshia McFerran defend the net last season but obviously picked up a few things and is filling in nicely for the currently-injured starter from 2016. 

The Stick Girls (2-0) will spend the Labor Day weekend touring the Buckeye state...with a contest at The Ohio State University on Friday and then visiting Kent State Sunday. No Labor Day rest for these warriors and the first half of September has Louisville playing six straight road games. After the Ohio swing, Louisville travels to College Park, MD for matches against American on Friday Sept. 8th and Maryland on Sunday Sept.10th. After that, they start ACC Conference play at Duke on Friday Sept. 15th and then hit Evanston. IL for a Tuesday Sept. 19th date with Northwestern. They'll finally get to take the Trager turf again on Friday Sept 22nd. against Wake Forest...the start of a four-match home stand. 


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ASIA TAYLOR DECIDES TO "FLAME" AGAIN

Louisville's lone representative in the WNBA this season...Asia Taylor has been playing a valuable back up role on the Washington Mystics squad this season...mostly to Elena Della Donne...but when it comes to Aussie hoops...the Columbus, OH native takes a back seat to no one. The leading scorer for the Sydney Flames last season, Taylor has decided to return to "the land down under" and play for them again at the completion of the WNBA season. 


Her current squad, the Mystics, have dropped to third in the East after a hot start to the season and are fifth overall in playoff positioning. Taylor has played 22 games this season...averaging about seven minutes a contest, 1.6 points  per night and 1.9 rebounds.

Sydney is a different story. She led the Flames in scoring last season with 16.2 ppg a night and was a key component in taking Sydney to their first WNBL title in 16 years. She and the Flames other "import"...center Jennifer Hamson led the Flames in rebounds as well....Asia grabbing 7.6 a night. Both will be back in Flames uniform this year. 

A-Tayy with another "Catching Up" interviewee...Tia Gibbs

Asia is one of the most popular players in the league...with her fellow league participants and the Aussie fans....singing autographs, posing for pictures and chatting with fans long after WNBL contests. 

When we spoke with her earlier this year for our "Catching Up" series here at Cardinal Couple...she had not decided whether she was going to return to the land of the roo, billabong and koala for another season...but it looks like things have been worked out 

We wish one of our favorite Cards the best of luck in the remaining WNBA season and with the Flames. Asia returns to Australia and that spells trouble for the other seven teams in the league! 


paulie
xxxxx  

  

Cards Split Sunday -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Field Hockey Notches Big Win

PHOTOS BY JARED ANDERSON

The defending national champions, Delaware, came to town this weekend to get a look at the site for this year's tournament. While they were here, they figured they'd play a couple of games, and Louisville made them wish they hadn't. Even without starting goalie, Ayeisha McFerran, Louisville was able to hold the Blue Hens, the team that knocked them (and multiple other ACC teams) out of last year's tournament, to only one goal. The Cards scored three of their own and took down the number three team in the country, setting themselves up for quite a rise in the rankings.

Much like their game against the Hoosiers, this game came down to penalty corners, with all 4 goals in the game coming by way of the set piece. Whena Munn got the scoring started for the Cards, scoring on a corner sixteen minutes in. This one was assisted by Marisa Martin Pellegrina, who once again proved how big of a contributor she can be for this team. Delaware drew level on a penalty corner of their own ten minutes later. The Cards were sharp on the attack today but Coach Sowry did point out in her post game comments that there were still a few glaring errors that they needed to work on and they would review the contest video to correct these.

Refusing to go into the half without the lead, Louisville forced another corner, and Minnie Mink scored her first goal of the season, assisted by Marigrace Ragsdale, with less than a minute and a half left in the first. The two later hooked up again to provide the final goal of the game and make the scoreline 3-1. Once again, Louisville's corner efficiency was the difference. Louisville converted on 75% (3-4) of their penalty corners and held Delaware to a mere 1-7 effort. The teams tied on shots on goal, and Hollyn Barr was up to the task, collecting 7 saves. Yes, she's feeling the lofty expectations of Jared Anderson...but was very excited to meet her game quota today. 

This was a huge win for the Cards, and one that makes a statement this early in the season. Delaware returned a lot of their team from last season's championship squad. Even if it turns out that their win last year was a fluke, they were still good enough to be in a position to win and writers felt they were good enough for their top 5 ranking this season. Don't forget, also, that they mangled IU on Saturday, with a final score of 7-0. Louisville's opening weekend showed a lot of promise. There is still the buzzsaw of the ACC which they'll eventually have to face, and the inevitable rematches come tournament time, but this team is starting to prove that they'll be a force to be reckoned with. They return to play on Friday when they travel to Ohio State.


PAULIE DISCUSSES DELAWARE WIN WITH COACH SOWRY


PAULIE AND MINNIE MINK ON THE WIN OVER BLUE HENS


GAME HIGHLIGHTS

Soccer Drops Rough Game Against Marquette

Louisville's unbeaten start to the season came to an end yesterday at the hands of the team picked to finish 3rd in the Big East. However, we all know that preseason rankings mean nothing, since Louisville defeated the team ranked second (DePaul) earlier this season. For the first time this season, Louisville was held scoreless, with Marquette netting the only two goals of the game in the second half. 

The game was very physical and inconsistently called, much to the ire of the Cardinal faithful. At one point, while Louisville fans expressed their anger after a Cardinal was pulled down in the box during a free kick, a Marquette fan yelled "Welcome to the Big East, Ferguson!" While I understand the sentiment to mean they play physically in the Big East, that doesn't make me want Louisville to play in that league. (By the way, I'd like to extend a huge credit to the traveling contingent of Marquette fans. It sounded like they took a bus down for the game and they were very passionate about their team. They were mostly respectful toward Louisville and cheered loudly for their team rather than against their opponent.) Marquette didn't just play physically, they fouled. A lot. And they got away with it. A lot. That's not to say Louisville didn't as well, but I'll come right out and say that there's no reason Louisville should have finished yesterday's game having been whistled more often than Marquette.

From my vantage point, it became clear that Louisville should have taken advantage of Marquette's aggression. The Golden Eagles liked to tackle on the ground, and they were good at it. However, they telegraphed their slides, and I think the Cards should have been more willing to pull the ball back and take a slide to the feet in order to get the call. Too often, the ball was given away when slowing down could have resulted in a free kick and potentially even a card. Louisville allowed Marquette to play as aggressively as they wanted, and didn't force discipline which might have changed their approach.

After a physical first half in which there were chances on both sides, the teams headed to the locker room scoreless. Louisville had a few real opportunities, but only tested the keeper once that I remember, on a ball to the near post. In hindsight, and I'm sure this was noticed by the shooter as well, a shot at the back post would have been an easy goal, with the keeper already leaning, but it wasn't meant to be. Something that I noticed during the first half was that Marquette appeared to be the better team from my vantage point. They swarmed on defense, which I found strange, but it worked for them. Despite their fouling, some of which was called and some not, they made good tackles. They cut into passing lanes. On offense they were more technical with the ball at their feet and put Louisville on their heels with passes in the offensive third. Louisville still had a chance, don't get me wrong. They weren't completely outmatched, but the little things add up.

Marquette opened the scoring 5 minutes into the second half on a penalty. The Marquette winger had carried Inger Katrine Bjerke down the bench side of the field and attempted to send a cross into the center. The ball struck KB and the side judge immediately began waving his flag. Hand ball in the box: penalty. The event was pretty far away from me and there was no replay, so I didn't get a great look. However, it looked to me as though the ball played the hand (meaning it was a natural position for KB and the ball struck her) which should not have been whistled. In fact, yesterday's referee had waved off multiple similar calls in the game. Nonetheless, Marquette's Ryley Bugay stepped to the spot and Gabby Kouzelos tipped her hand far too early. Bugay had a slow run to the ball and when Kouzelos took her first jump step to her right (probably encroaching), Bugay slotted it easily to Kouzelos' left. Marquette led 1-0. 

Louisville continued their aggressive pressure trying to level the game, and the over aggression led to the second goal. It is easy to imagine the scenario where a ball gets away from the offense and it leads to an easy counter attack. However, what happened yesterday was far more frustrating. Louisville was pushed up on the attack, with the back line probably 15 yards from the midfield stripe in their own half. A ball was sent through the defense which Kouzelos came to send away. I have been frustrated by some of her choices to come out for the ball before, and yesterday helped validate those frustrations. The defense could have probably retreated for this ball, but Kouzelos went herself to send the ball forward. Rather than give it a safe clearance, perhaps due to the aggressive nature of trying to equalize, she attempted to send the ball back up to the offense immediately. It was mishit, and fell straight to the feet of Marquette's Eli Beard. Beard sent the ball towards the net from about 40 yards out and it was a clear goal from the time it left her foot. Kouzelos, who had been about 10-15 yards outside of the box when she hit the ball, was retreating as quickly as she could, but the ball sailed over her head and into the net. Louisville tried valiantly to get one back as the game wore on but were unable to find the net.

While a frustrating loss, Louisville did show promise. They seemed a bit sluggish at times in the first half but were reinvigorated at half time and never gave up when they trailed. They will face stiff competition in the ACC but they showed resilience in this game that I believe will serve them well throughout the season. The Cards are back in action Friday night in the unfriendly confines in Lexington. The game is at 7:30PM and does not currently list any viewing options. There's a lot of season left, and there is plenty of time for Karen Ferguson-Dayes to clean up some of the issues the Cards have had so far.

PAULIE iNTERVIEWS COACH KFD AFTER MARQUETTE WITH A CAMEO TRAIN APPEARANCE

Until next time, Go Cards!

-CH-

Fall Sports Underway in Earnest -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

After yesterday's competitions, all three major women's fall sports at UofL have officially gotten underway. Cross country, along with the major attention grabbing football, get their seasons started next Saturday. Women's golf hits the road for their first outing in the middle of September and rowing has yet to post their schedule. They'll likely get underway near the end of September if last season is any indication. Let's see how our Cardinals fared yesterday.

Field Hockey (like soccer) Takes Down Hoosiers

While the women's soccer team headed north to Bloomington to take on IU on Thursday night, they likely passed the bus of the IU field hockey team traveling south to face off against Louisville in a mid-afternoon affair yesterday. Like the women's soccer team, field hockey handled the border battle and started their season 1-0. The Cards were led by a new face in their first game. Freshman Marisa Martin Pellegrina earned a point on each of Louisville's four goals, scoring two of her own and assisting the other two. If yesterday is any indication, Martin Pellegrina is a name that you should get used to if you follow Louisville field hockey, because she is likely to continue making noise. Despite the lopsided final score of 4-1, Louisville didn't truly dominate yesterday's game statistically. The Cards finished ahead by only 3 in shots (13-10) and finished tied in shots on goal (7), penalty corners (6), and fouls (0, hooray for a clean game) although an IU player was given a green card in caution, so I'm not sure about the fouls number. It was Louisville's goalkeeping play that won them the game, with Hollyn Barr providing 6 stops to IU's 3. The Cards are still without Ayeisha McFerran, but it is promising that Barr has been able to provide solid play as the last defender. 

The game was never really in doubt for the Cards, as they scored their first goal on a penalty corner finish by Abby Grimes less than four minutes into the game. Martin Pellegrina scored her two goals within five minutes of one another near the middle of the first half. Taylor Stone finished the scoring for the Cards four minutes into the second half on yet another penalty corner goal (3 on the day for Louisville) and Louisville led 4-0. Indiana marred the clean sheet with a penalty corner goal of their own with 15 minutes remaining, but could do no further damage. Scoring on and defending set pieces with consistency is key, as I pointed out after the women's soccer opener, so if Louisville can continue to score on 50% of their penalty corners (unlikely) and defend at a 16% conversion rate (also unlikely) they will be in a good position this season. However unlikely those numbers may be to maintain, that the Cards came out fresh and ready for true gameplay is encouraging. Unfortunately for Jared, Minout Mink was held out in a limited role yesterday, entering from the bench. She was unable to score, which puts her well behind on her quest for 2 goals per game. She'll have some ground to make up if Jared is to be named Nostradamus. Louisville is back in action tomorrow at noon against Delaware. The Blue Hens are No. 3 in the country (Louisville is 9) and are the defending national champions. A win here could set the Cards up with a huge confidence boost and a hefty bump in the rankings.

PAULIE talks with Coach Sowry after the win   (featuring an impromptu walk-by from Minnie Mink).

PAULIE and Abby Grimes discuss the win over IU

Volleyball Falls in Hard Fought Match

The final scoreline, 3-0, wouldn't show it, but the volleyball team started their season with a tough match against a familiar foe to new head coach, Dani Busboom-Kelly, in No. 7 Wisconsin. Like most other Big Ten teams, the Badgers are tough. However, Louisville actually only lost these three sets 18-25, 19-25, and 24-26. The first set was the only one in which the Cards failed to tie or take the lead, and there were actually 11 ties and 5 lead changes throughout the second two sets. Despite a 3-0 loss, Louisville played an encouraging match last night, supported by the fact that they took the third set to extra points. This match is likely one in which last season's team would have been rolled over, especially after taking the painful loss in the first set with a very poor hitting percentage. I'm not one for moral victories, but I can find items about which to be positive in a loss against a superior team. Bouncing back to play hard in the next two sets with significantly better hitting percentages in those sets are some of those positive items. Jeff listened to every minute of this one on the radio last night and I'm sure he'll have quite a bit to add about his thoughts today. Louisville is back in action this evening at 5PM against Minnesota, another tough Big Ten team. DBK likely had a lot of teaching moments for her team after last night's loss, and it will be interesting to see (hear?) how they respond against a similar opponent. 

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour

You can't keep me away for too long! I'm back in the studio with Paulie and Jeff (and maybe Jared? I'm actually not sure. You'll have to tune in to find out.) today and we'll have plenty to talk about with sports finally underway in real competition. There will be post game interviews, thoughts and observations, and plenty of statistical chatter from my end. Tune into 100.9 FM WCHQ in the Crescent Hill area or on the website or WCHQ app at 11AM for the Cardinal Couple Radio Hour, and be sure to comment below or on any article when you've got questions or topics you'd like to hear our thoughts on. We're always happy to send a reply, or fill some air time with a conversation. The replay is HERE

Until next time, Go Cards!

-CH-