Souder a Sycamore -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

CHRIS SOUDER LEAVING MERCER COUNTY TO ACCEPT ASSISTANT JOB AT INDIANA STATE.

Chris Souder probably won't be at a lot of Seygan Robins games for UofL this year. He and Robins were essential in getting Mercer Country girls high school basketball to two straight Kentucky titles in 2016-17 and 2017-18. His team last year had four seniors headed off to play college basketball...Robins maybe the most significant...with her joining Jeff Walz's Cards. 

And it now looks like Chris Souder will be departing with those seniors. After being named the Coach of the Year for two straight years in Kentucky girls basketball venue, he's leaving the high school scene for the collegiate ranks. He'll be an assistant on first year coach Vicki Hall's staff at Indiana State University.  Hall took over the Sycamores WBB program on March 21st...after ISU finished 11-19 and 9-9 in Missouri Valley Conference play. The ISU squad saw their head coach Joey Wells resign after a 2-11 start in the 2017-18 season and finished the season under interim Josh Keister. 

"I will not be returning to the sidelines (at Mercer County) next season to pursue an opportunity I just can't pass up".  Souder texted. "This is definitely bittersweet for me."

A chance to be a part of something from ground level. A chance to work with an up and coming former assistant coach at Toledo who helped build the resurgence in Rockets basketball. It has to be quite hard for Souder to just walk away from all that he had built at Mercer County over the past 19 years. A 490-214 record. Teams that won 20 or more games in 16 of those 19 seasons. 

Be there no doubt about the next statement. Chris Souder knows high school basketball talent. A very wise move by Hall to bring someone on board who has been evaluating, scouting and developing high school girl cagers for the last 19+ years. That's a huge boon to Indiana State recruiting possibilities. The Sycamores also have five seniors listed on a ten-player roster...so new troops will be needed. With the dynamic Hall in charge, it shouldn't be too hard for ISU coaches to get into living rooms and talk to student-athletes and parents. 

Hall was the 1988 Indiana Miss Basketball at Brebeuf High School in Indianapolis...plus the Gatorade and Naismith national player of the year. A Hoosier legend, so to speak.  Terre Haute and Indiana State is one hour west of Indy....on I-70. 

Souder was a 1984 graduate from Harrodsburg High School, the county seat of Mercer County. Leaving an area where he basically grew up and has many relatives can't be easy. I know that the decision has to be rough. I'll follow the Sycamores next year. After all, Larry Bird went to and prospered at ISU. Basketball has a history in Terre Haute.  The Missouri Valley conference is a strong one in women's basketball with Bradley, Drake, Evansville, Illinois State, Loyola, Missouri State, Northern Illinois, Southern Illinois and Valparaiso being members along with Indiana State. 

Cardinal Couple became a fan of Souder and Mercer County back when Robins was a sophomore in high school. His dynamic style on the court, his down-home friendly approach in media interviews and his willingness to talk to Cardinal Couple and have his players do the same won us over. Paulie made travels to Harrordsburg to watch Mercer County play, to interview Robins and Souder and also caught up with them at Girls' LIT events and when they would traverse to Louisville for games against the Jefferson County schools. 

Souder invited me to watch a practice during last year's season. I arrived in Harrodsburg to catch about the last half hour. Entering through a side door to the Mercer County gym, I may have caught the participants a bit off guard. Souder stopped practice, though, came over to me, shook my hand and took a brief minute to introduce me to the team before resuming the practice. 

I stood in the end zone watching the drills and the scrimmage that ended practice. There with me was one of the Lake sisters, (Lexy), who was icing a sore ankle. We chatted about the team casually, what it was like to play for Coach and eventually...I got my interview with Coach Souder and Seygan. A fun and informative interview. You can find it here in our archives, if you want to recall it, on the Thursday Nov. 17th, 2017 edition of Cardinal Couple.  

LINK: https://cardinalcouple.blogspot.com/2017/11/seygan-robins-interviewwbb-faces.html

Souder cared about all of his players. If a player's ride or parents were late to pick them up after practice, he would tease them that it was a long walk home...but would wait with them until they were safely picked up. His niece Emmy was on those championship squads. Stories of Sunday cookouts and get together's lent a "we are all family" approach to what is Mercer County girls basketball. Exactly what you want to see in a program. 

A new opportunity. A chance to see if the principals and theories that Souder used in high school and which got multiple Mercer County girls to the NCAA, Division I and college work once you are coaching college hoops. Souder won't be the most popular man in the county like he was in Mercer, nor will he be the top dog of hoops in Terre Haute. What he will be is an experienced, successful and engaging staff member that will try and help to right the ship in Terre Haute after three years of less-than-stellar-ISU WBB.  

Bittersweet. I hate seeing him go but wish him well. 


I'll miss my chats with Coach in the Mercer County venue. I'll miss the drives to Harrordsburg and stopping on the way for a few pieces of Bojangles chicken and fixins. There are no Bojangles in Illinois. J Ford's Black Angus Steakhouse serves up a quite decent rib eye and you have to try their their lobster corn dogs...yes, you read that right...lobster corn dogs.  Cackleberry's served a pretty good breakfast last time I was up there...I hope they're still around. 

Maybe we'll get a chance to chat with him in his new role as a assistant. We can only hope that Mercer County's loss turns into the Wabash Valley's gain.

New horizons. 

Coach Souder was one that I figured would eventually retire from Mercer County after 30 or so years of coaching. A native son of that area. Sometimes, though, you have to take the chance. Grab that golden ring of opportunity and see what it can get you. Where will it lead you? I have no doubt that Chris could return to just about any high school gig he wanted if it didn't work out at ISU...but let's take the positive and high road approach here. I'm sure there was a lot of thought involved in the move. 

Remember, a kid from Iroquois High School took a chance and left the safety of Rick Pitino's staff years ago and that move turned into a love affair between Scott Davenport and Bellarmine.

A journeyman assistant coach took a gamble and asked for an interview at a major university right after he had been on a staff that had won a national championship. UofL and Tom Jurich took a chance on Jeff Walz and that worked out pretty well, right?  Remember the players coaches took chances on who turned out to be relevant parts of championship teams? It's your turn to see where the road of opportunity takes you. Travel confidently. After all, one never knows until they try. 

Go pursue that dream, Coach Souder. See where it will take you. Go...knowing that there are a whole lot of fans in your corner wishing you the best and want to see you succeed. Players that are grateful for your guidance. Reporters who enjoyed interviewing you. Friends and family who want the best for you. Ride the tiger, climb the Sycamore, join the staff and grow with the trees. The Sycamore variety. 



paulie
xxxxx 

SEYGAN ROBINS INTERVIEW...WBB faces Michigan tonight! -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

THE SEYGAN ROBINS INTERVIEW

Seygan Robins is a senior at Mercer County High School and one of three signees headed to the University of Louisville for the 2018-19 season. She is also a part of the Mercer County Titans girls basketball squad that won the 2017 Kentucky Girls High School Basketball Championship. She is a friendly, hard-working and caring teammate and person, as well...qualities that stay with you a lifetime and are admirable. 

I got the chance to drive to Harrodsburg, KY on Wednesday afternoon for an exclusive interview with her and her head coach Chris Souder. It was a fun and informative time and trip. I arrived a little early and got to watch a little practice in addition. The Titans look strong again this season and a special thanks to Coach for letting me come down and chat with him and her...plus senior Lexy Lake, who is headed to Campbellsville University to play hoops next year and kept me entertained as we watched the final part of practice.

Seygan saved the team from running a couple of extra "up and backs" running drills after practice by sinking two free throws in a row. Cool under pressure, both tosses were nothing but net.  

They have a Bojangles about 10 miles away from the school. Of course, I stopped there on the way back. It's an easy 66-mile drive from my driveway to the gym and you can bet I'll make that trip several more times this basketball season to see the Titans and Seygan go for the repeat. Why not combine the best in chicken and the best in Kentucky girls basketball, right? 

Here's our chat, and there's a link to listen to it at the end of this section. 


PAULIE:  Let's start by stepping back and looking at Mercer County winning the state title last year. What were some of the emotions and thoughts you went through on that ride to the title? 


SEYGAN: It was a very surreal experience. I remember a lot of locker room moments, talks from Coach Souder before and after games. It was a fun experience! 

PAULIE: Coach is pretty easy on you all, isn't he. He doesn't really get mad at you, does he? 

SEYGAN: Oh, yeah! He doesn't really get mad. 

PAULIE: He's over here grinning right now. You can tell that for sure. Let's take a look at this year's team. Obviously, you've got Faith and Lexy back and some other really good talent...are we excited about a repeat? 

SEYGAN: I really like our team coming back and everyone seems to be working hard in practice. We have a load of talent and a lot of people stepping up this year...so we hope to repeat! 

PAULIE: You get a chance to get out on the court Saturday. It's gotta be nice getting a chance to play someone else than your own teammates. 

SEYGAN: I think we're all definitely looking forward to that. Playing some one other than the practice team. 

PAULIE: It's Bullitt East...so it's going to be the battle of the Chris's right? 

COACH SOUDER: Yeah, Coach Stallings...he's probably my best friend, in the coaching realm, we've been good friends for a long time. It'll be a little different for him, too, with Linsdey Duvall graduated and at Louisville. I'm kinda glad. (laughter) We scrimmaged them last year and I think it was like 107-104 or something. Seygan and Lindsey were just putting on a show. It was pretty fun. I'm kinda glad she's not there. 

PAULIE: So, if regulation ends in a tie, will you and Coach Stallings have a shootout or something? 

COACH SOUDER: Yeah, I'd outshoot him. Best of out five and it wouldn't take but a couple. (More laughter) 

THESE TWO WILL REMATCH THIS SATURDAY
AT BULLITT EAST IN MT. WASHINGTON 

PAULIE: So, Seygan, you're going to Louisville, you did all the announcements Monday, Coach Souder had the red shirt on, it had to be a fun experience. As you go through the season, it that going to be kinda in the back of your mind...'Gosh, I'm going to miss all this next year, I'll be at Louisville?" 

SEYGAN: It definitely will but I'm really looking forward to going to Louisville. It'll be in the back of my mind that I'm going to miss I'll this. It'll definitely be a bittersweet year. 

PAULIE: This summer, you had the chance to get to play with a couple of the girls that will be going with you to Louisville in this class, playing a little club ball with them. Talk about them a little bit. 

SEYGAN: Definitely. When Molly and Mykasa committed I was super excited for them. I think our games mesh very well and we play with each other well so I'm looking forward to doing that.

(To hear the rest of and the entire interview click on the link below.) It's on Soundcloud, so you may need to do the free download to hear it.) 

THE SEYGAN ROBINS INTERVIEW

We will also replay this on our Saturday radio show, THE CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR, on WCHQ 100.9 FM at 11 a.m. Download the WCHQ app at: 

www.crescenthillradio.com

While there you can also listen to the show and interview. Plus previous shows and all the great local music and chat that embodies what WCHQ is.  

A special thanks to Coach and Seygan again for having me in and doing this! I look forward to my return visits. 



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WBB VS. MICHIGAN

The #5 in the nation Cards roll on in the preseason WNIT and next up is #24 Michigan. 

No easy task against the Wolverines tonight at the KFC YUM! Center for Walz, DOOO-BLAY and Nite-Nite. Kim Barnes Arico has talent on her roster galore and Katelynn Flaherty is one of the leaders. She's nine points away from becoming the leading scorer in Michigan women's basketball and had 20 in U.M.'s 74-50 win over Liberty in the quarterfinals. She was was a perfect 10-10 from the charity stripe. 

Junior Hallie Thome has impressed as well. She averaged 16.2 ppg in 2016-17 and grabbed an average of 7.1 rebounds a night. Walz got to see both of these stars in the U23 trials. 

Michigan won the post-season WNIT last year with a triple-overtime victory over ACC's Georgia Tech 89-79. The Cards and Wolverines have squared off three times in the series, Louisville holds a 2-1 edge. They last met way back in 1980 in Freedom Hall...UofL gathering a 89-80 win. 

This one begins at 7 p.m. and will be on the ACC Network Extra. We recommend you check out the radio feed of Nick Curran and Adrienne Johnson on WKRD 790 AM. 


RECOGNITION

Myisha and Asia have been named to the John Wooden Award watch list, that recognizes the top 30 in women's college basketball. 

The two have certainly brought a standard of excellence to Cardinal WBB this season and throughout their playing careers. 

Louisville is one of eight universities to have multiple players on the watch list. As you might guess, UConn has a starting five in Collier, Nurse, Samuelson, Stevens and Williams listed. In the ACC, Duke had Greenwell and Brown chosen. 

Excellence on the court. 

At CARDINAL COUPLE, it is our goal to cover the excellence, joy and excitement of Louisville women's athletics each and every day. We're "full in" with basketball season now, but we'll still keep you up on Volleyball and any other sports events that the Red and the Black are participating in. 

We feature article about the up and coming stars, like today's article about Seygan. We look into the past and have brought you interviews with ex-stars such as Asia Taylor, Candyce Bingham, Sara Hammond and more. We'll be here every day reporting on something Cardinal related and we'd love it if you join us.

Identify this former Cardinal WBB
star for an entry in our Panera Card
Drawing. First correct answer in the
comments section is entered! 

NOVEMBER Is DONATION MONTH HERE AT CARDINAL COUPLE. We've gotten off to a good start the first half of the month but there is still work to be done, money to be raised and that's where YOU come in. 

We feel that we have a great collection of writers and radio show participants here at C.C. The young and the old. Male and female. All dedicated to what they do for love of game. 

We don't make thousands of dollars, we don't bomb you with commercials. Our information IS NOT premium or pay-per-view. We lay it out here each day and basically say, come and get it. Read, react and return. We're independent, non-profit and that'll never change. 

Give what you can. No amount is too big or too small. You can help us via PAY-PAL if you want or send us a check. We appreciate the support so far and hope that there is more on the way. You can mail your tax deductible donation to our non-profit site here: 

Cardinal Couple
c/o Paul Sykes
P.O. Box 91521
Louisville, KY 40291

Thank you. As we say, YOU are Cardinal Couple and WE never forget that.


paulie
xxxxx

Cardinal women's soccer schedule released...Some WBB news and transfers - THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

CARDS WSOC FEATURES 10 HOME MATCHES

It's schedule-releasing time for the women's fall sports at UofL and women's soccer has put out theirs for the 2017 season. 18 regular season games, two exhibitions and 10 chances to see the Cards at Lynn Stadium. Just in the ACC alone...the Cards will have a total of six matches against NCAA Tournament qualifiers from last season. . 


Coach Karen Ferguson-Dayes recognizes the tests ahead: 

"Once again, our schedule proves to be very challenging and competitive. We're committed to playing a rigorous non-conference schedule to help us prepare for the ACC portion. The ACC is arguably the top conference in the country and we're thrilled to host FSU, Miami, Duke, Pitt and Wake Forest at Lynn this fall. We have a very experienced senior class, who have invested immensely in the success and development of our program. I am very excited for their senior year." 

It gets underway with an exhibition at Ohio State on Aug 9th. DePaul comes to Lynn for an exhibition on Aug. 12th. and the Cards open the regular season at home against Boston University on Aug. 18th. and Miami, (OH) on Aug. 20th.

Louisville takes to the road to face IU and returns home to finish August with a Aug. 27th. match against Marquette. 

September starts in Lexington against the Wildcats and a trip to Cape Girardeau, MO to go against SEMO. The kickin' Cards return home to close out the non-conference schedule with battles against Purdue and Gardner-Webb.

The Cards start the 10-game conference slate on the road at Boston College and comes home for a crucial and early three-game home stand against defending NCAA Tournament participants Florida State and Duke..plus Miami. 

October begins at Clemson and Virginia before returning to Lynn and ending the home slate with Pitt and Wake Forest. UofL ends the season on the road at UNC and NC State before ACC Tournament play starts on Oct. 29th. The top eight teams play for the ACC title. 

Louisville will not face conference members Notre Dame, Syracuse or Virginia Tech in 2017. 14 teams consist of the ACC women's soccer group...Georgia Tech does not participate in the sport. 

The Cards (7-7-4 in 2016) return top scorers Brooklyn Rivers, Gabrielle Vincent, Sarah Feola, Allison Whitfield, Kaela Dickerman and Alison Price. Key defender Inger Katrine Bjerke is back to direct the defense and the goal keeping battle should be interesting between Tori Gabor and Gabrielle Kouzelos. 

Transfer Kennedi Carbin, from Mississippi State, should add offensive punch to the lineup as well. She played her high school soccer locally at Waggener High School before going to MSU for two years. She also has extensive experience with Javanon and the Bahamian National team. 


********************************************************


TRANSFERS AND DE-COMMITMENTS 

Interesting news out of Harrodsburg, KY...where rising senior twins for the Mercer County girls basketball team Faith and Lexy Lake have backed of their verbal to SEMO and re-opened their recruitment. They were part of the nucleus that led Mercer County to the Kentucky State Girls Championship a few months ago and key components in Coach Chris Souder's squad for the 2017-18 season. 

No official word on why the duo have decided to switch directions. Pure speculation on my part here is that maybe the two would like to play closer to home or possibly saw that head coach Rehka Patterson at SEMO has four transfers on the roster for next year. Two key assistants that were influential in recruiting the Lake sisters and Emma Davis are gone now, as well . Emma Davis being another Mercer Co. player who verballed to SEMO, but backed out of her commitment earlier this month to the Cape Girardeau, MO school. 

The two would be a nice addition for quite a few 2018-19 college rosters. Along with Davis, Louisville commit Seygan Robins and NKU future baller Emmy Souder...MCHS looks perfectly capable of a repeat as state champs. 

Kiah Gillespie @Kiah15Gillespie

Next Chapter: Florida State University #BuiltForIt 

7:57 PM - 22 May 2017

 
•  5757 Retweets
 
•  188188 likes
• 
  

In the ACC WBB world, it looks like FSU has brought in yet another top-flight transfer with the announcement that Kiah Gillespie has left Maryland to be a 'Nole. Head coach Sue Semrau continues to attract transfer talent to Tallahassee...Imani Wright, Chatrice White, AJ Alix and Leticia Romero all headed south to the Sunshine State to don FSU jerseys. 

Gillespie played two years for Brenda Frese at UofM. She averaged 4.1 ppg her sophomore year. The 6'2" forward will sit a season before having two years of eligibility for FSU. 



paulie
xxxxx

Louisville women's basketball -- Future WBB Cards shining brightly -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

ROBINS, EVANS HAVING SUCCESS

Two girls, two different teams, two different states and two different recruiting classes...two reasons that Louisville women's basketball fans should be excited abut the future of Cardinal WBB. 

Seygan Robins and her Mercer County Titans entered the St. Elizabeth Healthcare/KHSAA Girls Sweet Sixteen at BB&T Center on the Northern Kentucky University campus as one of the teams to beat for the title. They did nothing to diminish that status...with a run-away 78-50 win over Boyd County on Wednesday night. The Titans set a new state tournament record by making 14 of their 28 three-point attempts and Robins led all players with 25 points. 

Head Titans coach Chris Souder wasn't surprised: 

"That doesn't shock me. They've all got the green light. We shot fifteen threes in the first half, which is not uncharacteristic for us...but they were quick threes. We wanted to attack a bit more. We did much better in the second half and that came from our energy and our defense." 

The Titans had a few sputters before getting the engine cranking. Boyd County pulled to within one of Mercer County near the end of the first half. A few adjustments and a more disciplined approach in the third quarter allowed MCHS to jump out to a 14-3 start and the game was never in question after that. 

Seygan Robins provides the details on the halftime discussion. 

"At the half, he was definitely in our face. We expected it, though. We weren't playing up to our potential." 

Whatever was said...and Coach Sounder is not a shy nor silent man...it worked.

Any NKU Norse WBB fans in attendance got a glimpse into the future. Emmy Souder, a Titan junior along with Robins and coach's niece, is a NKU verbal commit and had a 18 point, 10 rebound double-double. 

28 attempted threes. Somewhere Syracuse Coach Quentin Hillsman is nodding in approval. The Titans advance to The Great Eight...where they'll face a dangerous Clark County team on Friday that knocked off Harlan by 18 in the final game of day one action. 

It would appear that "Robins' hood" and her band of merry hoopsters is thriving very well in the Sweet Sixteen forest. 


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DANA EVANS NAMED TO TWO ALL-AMERICA TEAMS

The senior from West Side High School in Gary, IN headed to Louisville this summer has been selected for the Naismith Trophy and WBCA High School All-American teams. 

It's two more accolades for Dana Evans in a season where they've been falling in her lap like fall leaves on a front lawn. She'll also play in the McDonald's All-American Game on March 29th in Chicago for the East squad and face future teammate Loretta Kakala.

Evans is currently ranked seventh overall in the 2017 class and third at the guards position by the folks over at espnW HoopGurlz. 

She's also a Miss Indiana Basketball candidate and has led the state in scoring the last two years. This year stats...a whopping 36 points per game and 7.6 rebounds...along with 6.2 assists and 4.8 steals. 

At 5'6"...she also qualifies for our Attack Yorkie team (players 5'6" or shorter). Evans ended her high school career with 2382 points...which is fifth-highest of all time. She also received the Times Indiana Player of the Year award for the second year in a row.

Robins and Evans. Two guards that should be able to up the quality of Cardinal guard play for a long time and when you think of a possible back-court of Carter, Durr, Zambrotta, Duvall, Evans and Robins two years from now...it could be just as good and talented as the current stellar back-courts that Duke, Syracuse and Notre Dame currently have. 

The madness of March. It's a wonderful thing, ain't it folks? 

it's nice to be important but it's more imprtant to be nice paulie
xxxxx

Women's Golf 2nd in Central District Invitational -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

LAUREN HARTLAGE TIED FOR FIRST GOING INTO FINAL DAY

Thoughts of golf near the end of February aren't traditionally on our minds here at Cardinal Couple. But, with the unseasonably warm weather we've being having in Louisville over the past several days...and the success of the Louisville women's golf team in Port St. Lucie, FL....let's talk a little chip and putt.

Lauren Hartlage has had a wonderful two days in the Central District Invitational and is tied for first place with a 36 hole total of 4-under-par 140. The freshman out of Elizabethtown, KY put up an opening round of 68 on Sunday and followed that up yesterday with a 72. 

The team is hitting the fairway and sinking the putts as well. Louisville is in second place at nine-over-par 585 and trails only Furman in the 14 team field. Furman has a 14 stroke lead over the Cards going into the final day. 

The Cards have six golfers on the fairways in Florida...four on the team and two participating as individuals (That term always makes me smile in golf...aren't we all individuals...with our own needs and desire and thoughts...?) Molly Skapic is having a fine couple of days for UofL with a two-day score of 147...which has her tied for seventh...and Olivia Cason a stroke back of her at 148.  A full individual and team listing at the end of this article. Skapic is a junior out of Miamisburg, OH and Cason a sophomore from Owensboro, KY. 

The Cards are a rather young bunch for head coach Courtney Trimble this season. Only two seniors are on the roster, one junior, three sophomores and three freshmen. Besides Hartlage and Cason, Ellen Kehoe is also from Kentucky...the sophomore played her golf in high school in Campbellsville, KY at Taylor County High School . 

Central District Invitational
Feb. 20, 2017
St. Lucie Trail Golf Club (par 72/6,265 yards)
Port St. Lucie, Fla.

TOP-FIVE TEAM SCORES PLUS LOUISVILLE (36-hole totals): 1. Furman – 282-289; 2. Louisville – 287-298; 3. Augusta – 297-299; 4. North Carolina – 298-301; 5. Memphis – 301-299

LOUISVILLE GOLFERS (of 75): t-1. Lauren Hartlage – 68-72; t-7. Molly Skapik – 71-76; t-16. Olivia Cason – 72-76; t-32. (i) Shannon Gramley – 79-75; t-50. Louise Oxner – 82-76; t-56. Jacqueline Twitty – 74-87

BULLITT EAST WBB STARTS DISTRICT PLAY

Kentucky Girls High School basketball tournament time is here! District play started Monday and continues today as teams strive to reach the Regionals and ultimately the Sweet Sixteen. 

Cardinal signee Lindsey Duvall leads the Bullitt East Chargers into District play tonight when they host Jeffersontown tonight at 6 p.m. J'Town goes by the Chargers as well...so this should be a pretty energized game.  At least for the Bullitt East squad. They defeated J'Town 79-21 earlier in the season. 

Head Bullitt East coach David Stallings has led the Mt. Washington school to a 23-7 record this season. They went 3-0 in District 24 play and 8-1 in the Sixth Region. 

Seygan Robins, the junior Cardinal commit from Mercer County, got started with her squad last night and had no trouble in the 46th. District contest against Burgin...winning 64-19. 

paulie
xxxxx

Battle of Future Cards -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

MERCER COUNTY "SHOOTS" PAST BULLITT EAST 73-59 IN L.I.T. QUARTERFINALS

Robins scores 23, Duvall 20 in Future WBB Cards showdown 

Bellarmine University's Knights Gym was the scene Friday night as #2 Mercer County and #11 Bullitt East squared off in the quarterfinals of the Republic Bank Girls L.I.T.  Each squad hoped to advance to today's semifinals at Assumption High School to face Louisville Male but Mercer County used a dominating fourth quarter to down the Mt. Washington school 73-59. 

2018 Louisville verbal Seygan Robins led all scorers with 23 points and proved clutch in the game late...scoring 11 of her points in the decisive fourth quarter....where the Titans outscored the Chargers 24-15. Winning coach Chris Souder was pleased with her effort and the win: 

" She took over the game in the second half and that's what UofL signees do... Coach Walz has to be ecstatic knowing he's getting Seygan and Lindsey Duvall." 

After a close first quarter where Mercer County led 11-10, Bullitt East senior guard and 2017 Louisville commit Lindsey Duvall had four points. Twins Faith and Lexy Lake were handling the scoring for Mercer County...hitting three 3's in the quarter. Robins hadn't scored yet. Souder wasn't pleased.  

" I wasn't real happy. I felt like they were the aggressors and getting every loose ball and second and third shot. They just took it at us." 

Bullitt East started the second quarter on a 11-1 run...which was part of a 16-1 run going back to the first quarter...and led 21-12 after Alyssa Peak scored, got fouled and converted the free throw at the 6:14 mark. Mercer County responded with a 15-6 run and tied the contest at 27-27 on two Robins free throws after a Duvall foul with 3:01 until half. The teams went to the locker room for the halftime break tied at 31-31...Robins scoring with two seconds on the clock. Coach Stallings on the Mercer County run: 

"They just shot the ball a little better from the arc. They were a few loose balls they got and kicked out for open threes. We just didn't shoot the ball as well as we normally do." 

Mercer County was 6 for 17 from the deep in the first half and Robins had five points. Duvall was on the board with six points and an exciting second half seemed to be in the offing. 

A Lexy Lake three gave Mercer the early third quarter lead and they never trailed again. They started with a 10-2 run. When Robins nailed a jumper... the Titans had pushed out to a 41-33 advantage with 5:10 left in third quarter action. Bullitt East made a run to get within four at 43-39 after a Peak jumper but Robins responded with a three thirty seconds later and the quarter ended with the Titans holding a five-point 49-44 edge. 

Duvall was driving the lane and having success or getting fouled for the Chargers but the fourth quarter belonged to Robins and Mercer County. 

A 16-4 run over the first five minutes of the final quarter...they play eight minute quarters in high school hoops, which took this observer a bit to get used to...was keyed by seven Robins points. It put the Titans up 63-48. Mercer County held their biggest lead at 67-49 after Robins two final points and two free throws with 2:25 left to play. Duvall would score Bullitt East's final seven points but the late efforts weren't enough to overcome the Titans lead and Duvall's three with 10 seconds left in the game set the final total at 73-59. 

Faith and Lexy Lake, who have been offered by Southeast Missouri State University, joined Robins in double figures with 12 each and Lyric Houston added 11 for Mercer County...including 7 for 8 free-throw shooting. The Titans went 10 for 25 from three-point range. SEMO is getting a great 2 for 1 special in these twins...aggressive on defense, they shoot well from the distance and they pass the ball well for assists also. 

Duvall was gallant in defeat with 20 points. Peak joined her in double figures with 11 points. Bullitt East held a 42-28 rebounding advantage but ended with just 35% accuracy from the floor (21-60) while Mercer shot 46.9% (23-49).

Both Duvall and Robins showed why Coach Walz and Louisville is eager to have them on campus and they are two of the best girls high school players in the state this year...if not the best two. A great evening of hoops! A nice sea of red and black dotted the Bellarmine bleacher to see the contest and Louisville's future stars. 

As an aside, Tony Montano was one of the referees in the contest. I didn't get a chance to "say hello to my little friend". (Sorry, Al Pacino...for the pun and yes, I know...it was Montana in the movie "Scarface").  

COACH STALLINGS POST GAME REMARKS

COACH SOUDER POSTGAME REMARKS  


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In earlier action, Sacred Heart Academy got 21 points from junior Grace Berger and 18 from junior Kiki Samsel and defeated Simon Kenton 56-45. They'll face Louisville Butler in the first Saturday semifinal. 

Simon Kenton went down shooting...firing 25 threes but hitting just six. Allyson Niece had 18 for the Pioneers. Berger is a verbal to Indiana University for 2018 and the Hoosiers and getting a good one in the 5'11" guard. A good defensive job by the Valkyries in holding Simon Kenton to about 20 points under their season average.  

I arrived at Knights Hall in time to catch the start of the Sacred Heart/Simon Kenton contest and stayed through the Mercer County/Bullitt East game. I was impressed with the friendly L.I.T staff and their eagerness to help me get where I needed to be. Plus, they had Chic-Fil-A in the media/break room....always a plus with this guy's appetite. 


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RADIO TODAY! 

We'll be in full force at the Crescent Hill studios this morning for THE CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR. Join Case, Worldwide and me as we review this game, Louisville basketball and whatever else crosses our agenda.

11 a.m. on WCHQ 100.9 FM and streaming live on the Internet at www.crescenthillradio.com  Download the WCHQ app and join in the fun! 

Live radio, three generations and no messy clean-up or hard-to-remove stains afterward. if Attila the Hun had been able to do radio, it probably would have been...hmmm...where I am going with this? 

Never mind...

Have brunch with us today. We won't mind one bit if you pick up the tab. 


paulie
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Robins Rockin' As Mercer County Girls Basketball Rolls Along -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

2018 LOUISVILLE WBB VERBAL AVERAGING 22.6 PPG EARLY FOR MERCER COUNTY. 

( Some of the information and some of the photos for the article are courtesy of Jeremy Schneider of the Advocate Messenger - Danville, KY. Nice work, Jeremy! ) 

Mercer County girls head basketball coach Chris Souder knows he's got a top-five powerhouse down in Harrodsburg, KY with his 2016-17 squad. As impressive as that is...he's thinking that there might be a lot more ahead. 

"We're nowhere near where we need to be and could be. We will get better and that's scary. The sky's the limit, but it's going to get pretty tough"  Souder commented after his squads' 90-54 win over Danville Monday night. 

For Danville, it may have felt like the sky was falling...Souder's Titans jumped out to a 26-12 first period lead and advanced that to 45-25 at the halftime break. 

Helping lead the charge was 5'9" junior guard Seygan Robins...who poured in three trifectas and 13 of her 26 points in the opening stanza. Robins and her Titans have had three contests in the young season. After a 76-65 close loss vs. D-1 laden Hamilton Heights (TN) Christian Academy, the Titans have won their next two...downing Mason County 78-51 in addition to Danville. 

Just how tough and talented is Hamilton Heights? Four of their 2017 players have already committed to D-I programs -- (Nickeil Alexander-Walker to Virginia Tech, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to Kentucky, Amber Hunt to Alabama St. and Therren Shelton-Szmidt to Middle Tennessee.) A fifth star, junior Elizabeth Balogun, is on the list of many of the top DI programs...including Louisville, Kentucky and Indiana.  

Robins is averaging 22.6 ppg so far this season and is a key component in Mercer's stifling defense...that can go from zone to man and not lose anything. She's also one of the main bombardiers from the stratosphere on a squad that also includes twins Faith and Lexy Lake (committed to Southeast Missouri) and 6'1" forward Emmy Souder...who is Coach Souder's niece...as is Robins. 

Keeping it in the family has worked over the last couple of seasons for "Uncle Chris" and Robins started catching schools' eyes and attention as a seventh-grader. Her choice came down to either Louisville or Kentucky and she was clear on why she chose the Cardinals: 

"It was definitely a combination of things. I've always really loved the coaching staff at Louisville and it's a wonderful family environment that just made me feel at home. The players are really comforting and inviting." 

How much was she influenced (or influence) friend and Kentucky Premier teammate and 2017 UofL commit Lindsey Duvall from Bullitt East we'll probably never know...but Coach Souder and Bullitt East skipper Chris Stallings have been friends for years and promote a family atmosphere in their programs. Both schools have that small-town feel and atmosphere...Bullitt East about 15 miles out of Louisville and Mercer County about an hour's drive away from the KFC YUM! Center. Duvall changed her commitment to Louisville over Kentucky in late July...about two weeks after Robins said "yes" to the Cards. 

Jeff Walz has had a pattern of having a local or state-area player or two on his roster since he arrived at Louisville. Candyce Bingham, Monique Reid, Tia Gibbs, Nita Slaughter, Sara Hammond, Shelby Harper and now Jessica Laemmle are names near and dear to Cardinal women's basketball fans. Duvall and Robins will keep that tradition alive and you can expect that they'll also bring a large contingent of fans up US 127 or US 150 to the KFC YUM! Center to watch their hometown heroes. 

It's been mentioned to us here in the past that UK and Matthew Mitchell do a better job of recruiting the Commonwealth of Kentucky. A scan of this year's UK roster includes six players from Kentucky, so that may bear out as accurate. How many final fours (or even Sweet Sixteens?) has Mitchell been to, though? And part of that Kentucky immigration occurred because of the clearance sale, all-items-must-go Mitchell move over the summer. 

Home-grown isn't always best, although we do believe here at Cardinal Couple that Duvall and Robins are "cream of the crop" and will make several Final Four excursions in their time at Louisville. 

Guards with motors that run all day at high speed. It's a Walz trademark. Witness Briahanna Jackson and Asia Durr on the current team. Plus Jazmine Jones, Taylor Johnson, Jessica Laemmle and Sydney Zambrotta. Duvall and Robins are from that same sorority. We can't put either in our "Attack Yorkie" classification...since they are both over 5'6"...but they easily qualify for the "Six or less and creating a mess sparkplugs". 

Mercer County entertains 46th. District foe East Jessamine tonight at 6 p.m. It's a pretty easy drive from Louisville if you want to catch the game. 

paulie
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