Lax Falls to UNC -- Golf Hosts Regional -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 Lacrosse Bows to North Carolina

North Carolina has not lost since May 24, 2019. The Tar Heels are the clear and obvious choice as the favorite to be taking home the hardware at the end of May 2021. Along the way, North Carolina wants to take home another ACC title and no one is going to stand in their way.

Unfortunately for Louisville, the Cards were the first off the chopping block with a first round match-up with North Carolina. Louisville fell to the #1-seed 19-6.

UNC scored less than 90 seconds into the game, but Louisville had an answer roughly a minute later as Caroline Blalock found the back of the net. Over a span of the next 10 minutes, North Carolina went on a 6-0 run to take a big lead.

The Ally's took turns trading goals as Ally Hall had an unassisted goal at the 15:54 mark to end the run. UNC's Ally Mastroianni responded with a goal over her own shortly after. Louisville's Ally Hall did find the back of the net one more time before halftime for her 100th career goal.

North Carolina would go on to score after Hall's second goal of the match before Louisville put two shots back-to-back inside the net. Nicole Perroni would score unassisted while Hannah Morris would feed a pass from Blalock two and a half minutes later to score and get the Cards within 9-5. The Tar Heels would close out the half scoring the final two goals for an 11-5 lead at the break.

Things turned sour in the second half. UNC scored eight straight over the span of 23 minutes. The 19-5 lead was more than enough to trigger a running clock.

Caroline Blalock did score the final goal of the match with just 21 seconds remaining to bring the score to 19-6.

For the Cards, they drop to 5-11 on the year but remain in the Top 25 for now. They will now be at the mercy of the selection committee to deem them worthy of making the tournament this year. Louisville faced 12 ranked opponents on the season and had one of the toughest schedules in the country.

Rachel Florek had a notable performance in goal. Despite the onslaught she faced from the UNC offense, the senior keeper recorded 13 saves to go with a .406 save percentage for 54 minutes of play.

Hall, who reached the century mark in goals, is just the 11th Cardinal to do so.

Paulie caught up with Louisville Lacrosse head coach Scott Teeter after the match and you can hear his remarks below: 

LINK :  SCOTT TEETER POST UNC GAME

Golf to Host an NCAA Regional

On the lighter side of news, Louisville women's golf will make history as they host their first ever NCAA Regional. 

For the seventh straight season and 13th time in program history, Louisville golf will be competing in the postseason. They are one of 18 teams that will be in the Louisville Regional, which will be played at the University of Louisville Golf Club in Simpsonville, KY.

The Cards have some tough competition in town for it featuring six ranked teams: #1 South Carolina, #8 Auburn, #9 Florida State, #16 Arkansas, #18 Texas, and #21 Texas Tech.

The top six teams as well as the top three individuals not from one of those six teams will qualify for the NCAA Championships. The Louisville Regional will be held May 10-12.

Derby Festivities

www.kentuckyderby.com

Typically, today we would see the Pegasus Parade marching down Broadway as well as many Louisvillians participating in Thurby at Churchill Downs. With COVID-19, things are still altered, but fans are allowed at Churchill Downs. The parade did not happen like it has in past years, but the City of Louisville did take Pegasus around town a couple different days for people to watch from home and cars. At the track, a 50% capacity is the mandate, and if you go, take a poncho -- it's gonna rain on you. 

We are quickly approaching Oaks and Derby (and Paulie still hasn't given us good picks for the two events *cough cough* all eyes on you Paulie). Many folks have some wonderful Derby traditions. I've had my fair share of going to different Derby parties as well as the opportunity to perform "My Old Kentucky Home" with the UofL Marching Band three times.

You can follow Paulie Picks daily this week to see how he's doing each day with the picks and the results at Churchill. He does well, as a rule, with what he gives you -- and it doesn't cost you a penny to look at his selections !! 

LINK:  PAULIE PICKS

There was no live performance of it last year, but UofL invited current members and alumni as well as other colleges and universities in Kentucky to perform and was featured May 2020. You can enjoy that video below.

Do you have any Derby traditions? We'd love for you to share those!

Happy Thursday, Happy Derby season, and Go Cards!

Jared 

WBB Accolades - SB hosts #23/25 Clemson - Lacrosse loses to #1 UNC 19-7; FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

FRIDAYS WITH DARYL

Good morning Louisville fans! 

A few things to look forward to this upcoming weekend and a recap of Thursday night's lacrosse match with North Carolina on ACC Network prime time.  It should be a nice weekend ahead for some outdoor events! Take your TVs outside if you're tuning in for the tournaments.  I'm doing my best to avoid them unless it's the in the Cards interest.  The gang is pressuring me to fill out a bracket... still not convinced. 

Let's get right to it... 

Evans Named Finalist for Naismith Women’s Trophy

The Atlanta Tipoff Club announced today that University of Louisville senior guard Dana Evans is one of four finalists for the 2021 Jersey Mike's Naismith Women's Trophy, symbolic of the most prestigious individual honor in college basketball.

She is joined on the list by Kentucky junior Rhyne Howard, a 2020 finalist, UConn freshman Paige Bueckers and South Carolina sophomore Aliyah Boston.

Dana Evans, Louisville

-- The senior forward leads the ACC in scoring at 20.0 points per game.
Evans has scored 20 or more points in 17 games.
-- She has scored in double figures in 25 of 26 games played this season, including 40 straight games, the longest streak at Louisville in 20 years.
-- Named ACC Player of the Year for the second consecutive season, Evans became only the ninth player in league history to accomplish the feat.
-- She made 92% of her free throw attempts, leading the ACC and ranking fifth nationally.
-- Only player in UofL program history to win four regular season conference championships.

Aliyah Boston, South Carolina

-- Boston led the Gamecocks in rebounds (11.7) and blocks (2.8) this season and averaged 13.7 points per game.
-- The sophomore forward led the team in double-doubles (15).
-- Boston made the 2021 All-SEC First Team for the second straight season and was named to the SEC All-Defensive team for her dominant defensive performance throughout the 2021 season
-- She earned SEC Tournament MVP honors for her 27-point, 10-rebound performance.
-- In addition to her finalist ranking, she is a semifinalist for the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year award.

Paige Bueckers, UConn

-- Bueckers became the second BIG EAST player to win both the Freshman of the Year and Player of the Year awards (Maya Moore, 2008).
-- She had the highest single game scoring total by a UConn freshman since 2007 with 32 points.
-- The freshman forward was the first player in program history to have three straight 30-point games.
-- Her 14 assists against Butler rank as the single-game high in the history of the program.
-- Bueckers led UConn to both regular season and tournament championships in the BIG EAST.

Rhyne Howard, Kentucky

-- Howard averaged 20.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game this season.
-- The junior guard became the Wildcats all-time leader in three categories: points (455), rebounds (160) and assists (78).
-- She led the SEC in assists (54) and blocks (14).
-- Named 2021 SEC Player of the Year for the second year in a row, Howard became one of two players in program history to earn multiple player of the year honors.
-- She was also named to the 2021 All-SEC First Team for the third straight season and the SEC All-Tournament team for the second year in a row.

Norman Named WBCA Division I Assistant Coach of the Year

(from gocards.com ) 

The Assistant Coach of the Year award originated in 2016 and is presented annually.

ATLANTA — The Women's Basketball Coaches Association announced today that University of Louisville women's basketball associate head coach Stephanie Norman has been named the 2021 Division I Assistant Coach of the Year.

The WBCA Assistant Coach of the Year award is presented to one associate head coach or assistant coach in each membership division who demonstrates commitment to their program, their student-athletes and their head coach; their impact coaching on court; their mentorship and impact on other coaches; and their professional manner and attitude.

Norman, in her 14th year at Louisville and her ninth as associate head coach, has served on the Cardinals' staff since the hiring of head coach Jeff Walz. She has helped the Cardinals to a 382-107 overall record since the 2007 season. In that time she has aided Louisville to nine Sweet 16 appearances, five Elite Eight appearances, and three Final Four appearances, including a pair of national championship contests. Norman has been instrumental in the Cardinals' recruiting efforts, helping sign the No. 1 class of 2015 that featured three McDonald's All-Americans; helped pen the No. 6 freshman class in 2016, the No. 4 class in 2017 and the No. 5 class in 2020.

"I would like to thank Danielle Donehew, the WBCA and my colleagues and peers for this amazing award," said Norman. "I would like to thank all of the coaches that I have worked with, including head coach Jeff Walz, who I have worked with the past 14 seasons, as these coaches have been extremely instrumental in my growth, my success and my enjoyment of the game. I would also like to thank the players, it's because of them that we've been lucky enough to have success. Finally, I'd like to thank my family, my parents who always encouraged me to chase my dreams, my husband Geoff and my children Parker and Cassidy."

Softball Opens series with Tigers this weekend

The Cards will play their eighth straight home game in the first ever series opener with Clemson on

Friday at 7 p.m.

• Louisville (9-7, 3-2 ACC) brings a three-game win streak into the weekend.
• UofL is 3-2 in ACC play and stands sixth in the conference.
• The Cardinals are 6-1 at Ulmer Stadium in 2021.

Taylor Roby leads the team with a .419 batting average, five home runs and has driven in 20. She stands tied for second in the ACC in RBI. Roby has also produced a team-best six multi-hit games and multi-RBI games. Roby is on an eight-game hitting streak and has reached safely via a hit or walk in the last nine games.

• The Tigers are 16-2 overall and stand second in the ACC with an 8-2 conference mark.
• Clemson is currently on a 13-game win streak, most recently sweeping Furman in a three-game series last weekend.   

Marissa Guimbarda leads the Tigers with a .447 batting average, an ACC-best 21 RBIs and six home runs on the season. Valerie Cagle (10-1) has shouldered much of the pitching load, logging 65.2 innings and 14 appearances. The freshman has registered 63 strikeouts and is holding opponents to a .214 batting average. She has also helped her own cause at the plate, standing second on the team with four home runs and 13 RBIs.

LACROSSE loses under the lights 19-7 to #1 UNC Tarheels

UNC's Jamie Ortega had her way with 7 goals for the Heels on the night earning a hat trick less than 10 minutes into the first half. Louisville was lead offensively by Alex McNichols and Ally Hall was two each. UNC was fast.. scoring with about a minute off the clock to start.. Louisville matched before allowing the Tarheels to go on a 7-0 run taking a 10-4 into the halftime break. 

The Louisville defense gave up another UNC run allowing 6 straight goals in the second half. The Cards move to 4-3 on the season. Were there some positives to be taken away from this one?? I think Paulie and the guys could come up with something for Saturday's podcast and Coach Teeter outlined a few in his post-game comments.

Jared was out at Cardinal Stadium for the event, braving the cold wind for some quality shots down on the field that I'm sure will be shared once his fingers have thawed out enough to edit. Perhaps no editing will be required since the reason for at hosting Cardinal Stadium was for lighting purposes. :) Perhaps he's just that good by now anyways! I always enjoy his action shots!

Paulie spoke with Louisville LAX head coach after the match. You can hear that interview at the link below: 

LINK:  SCOTT TEETER POST GAME UNC 3/18/21

CARDINAL COUPLE NCAA PICK "EM" 

So, how are your bracket picks going?  We have this in from our Bracket Czar Jared: 

We have a total of nine bracket picks in so far. Entries from David Watson, Kenny Schneider, Paulie, Sonya, Blue Lou, Joe Hill, Nole Knowledge, Arthur and NickO. 

A reminder that we are offering your choice of a $25 Gift Card to either Subway or Raisin' Canes to the winner and second place gets the card that the winner didn't choose. 

Here's three games that are a real debacle;  

1) North Carolina vs. Alabama. So far, we have six participants selecting #10 seed UNC over #7 seed Alabama out of our nine entries. A strong ACC favoritism here. 

2) Michigan vs. Florida Gulf Coast. #11 seed FGCU is getting a lot of lot from our participants so far and has a 6-3 advantage in picks over #6 seed Michigan. No love for Ann Arbor? 

3) Wake Forest vs. Oklahoma State. #8 vs #9 matchups are normally a tough choice but our participants so far are in love with Jen Hoover's Demon Deacons, the #9 seed over the O.S.U squad with a 5-4 margin. Jeff Walz stated last week he fully expected Wake to get in and possibly win a few games. Can they shoot down the Cowboys? 

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

I won't be on the Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast Saturday, as I will be out covering Ulmer action for the new series with Clemson softball this weekend.  My 'Final thoughts' would be that I am very much looking forward to the CARDS WBB first round matchup with Marist on Monday night. Let's do this thing CARDS!! 


Have a great weekend!
~Daryl

Lax Hosts UNC -- Dana Evans -- Pick 'EM -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 Cards Host North Carolina at Cardinal Stadium

It's a Top 20 showdown on Floyd Street. However, this time Louisville lacrosse won't be at the Louisville Lacrosse Stadium. Instead, the Cards will play their first ever match at in the 65,000-seat Cardinal Stadium. No, I don't think we'll see 65,000 fans but that would be darn cool.

Cardinal Stadium has a way better setup with lighting for night games and the setup for video cameras is quite nice too. Plus, as a photographer, it'll be cool to capture the Cards in a large stadium.

The competition fits the setting as #1 North Carolina is in town. The Tar Heels are 7-0 on the year with five of those victories coming against ranked opponents.

North Carolina has been a dominant force this year and is a heavy favorite to take the title at the end of the year. UNC is averaging 16.71 goals per match (fifth-best in the country) while allowing 5.57 goals per match (third-best in the country). Their closest margin of victory this year was by six goals against Florida. Most recently, UNC is fresh off a 22-1 win over Virginia Tech.

UNC's Taylor Moreno has been the primary goalkeeper, but due to several blowouts she has passed the torch to two of her colleagues for a total of 68:17 in four matches this year. Moreno has allowed 33 goals on 125 attempts for a .593 save percentage.

Jamie Ortega leads the team with 27 goals, which is also good enough for second-best in the country. She sits just one goal behind UC Davis' Sorana Larson. Many of Ortega's goals have come from Katie Hoeg, who has logged 21 assists on the year. Hoeg is also second in the country and also one away from leading the NCAA. Ortega does have 12 assists herself.

We do have to acknowledge Rachel Florek, who has 67 saves on the year, third-best in the country. The senior keeper is tied for 13th in save percentage at .532.

The Cards have had a balanced scoring attacked with Caroline Blalock, Ally Hall, and Hannah Morris having scored 14 goals. Seven other Cards have scored at least two goals.

Draw controls have also been by committee. Megan Mangines has recorded 15 draw controls. Caroline Blalock has 14 and Alex McNicholas has 13. Ashley Osbourne showed a lot of promise as well at the draw in the Marquette contest. . 

Now... here's the catch- the weather. Normally lacrosse is able to play in light showers, but the forecast is showing thunderstorms. Personally, I wouldn't want to play with lightning going on if a had a metal pole with a net in my hands, so if we see the match postponed or even potentially moved inside the Trager Practice Facility I wouldn't blame them. Hopefully the weather folks prove to be wrong and we end up with some nice weather tonight.

The match is currently scheduled for 7:00 p.m., on ACC Network. If we hear of any schedule changes we will let you know.

Dana Evans

The awards and recognition for Dana Evans continue to roll in. She was named a First Team All-American. Evans joins Angel McCoughtry and Asia Durr as the only Louisville players named to the first team.

Evans is joined by Paige Bueckers (UConn), Rhyne Howard (Kentucky), NaLyssa Smith (Baylor), and Aliyah Boston (South Carolina).

The Second Team All-American squad included Elissa Cunane (NC State), Naz Hillmon (Michigan), Aari McDonald (Arizona), Caitlin Clark (Iowa), and Charli Collier (Texas).

Another in the Cardinal trophy case for the Gary. IN superstar. We laud her performances as a Cardinal and go by the old adage:  "Is the best yet to come?" 

Cardinal Couple Pick Em

You still have a few more days to get your brackets in. I'm still researching mine so don't stress too much. I do know I have all the 1-seeds and 2-seeds winning their first two games but I haven't gotten much beyond that.

You can enter early to help in the event of a tiebreak or if you need to research more or want to wait to hear of any COVID-19 situations you can hold off for a little while longer.

So far we have four entries in the following order- David Watson, Kenny Schneider, Paulie, Joe Hill. If I missed yours please don't hesitate to reach out so I can get you added! Dave-O's and Joe's are in the comments section from recent days and Paulie posted his pics yesterday.

Kenny emailed his over and they are as follows for those keeping their own tab:

1st Rd: Stanford, Oklahoma State, Missouri State, Arkansas, Oregon, Georgia, Northwestern, Louisville; South Carolina, Oregon State, Georgia Tech, West Virginia, Texas, UCLA, North Carolina, Maryland; UConn, Syracuse, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Tennessee, Virginia Tech, Baylor; NC State, Washington State, Gonzaga, Indiana, Rutgers, Arizona, Iowa State, Texas A&M

2nd Rd: Stanford, Arkansas, Oregon, Louisville; South Carolina, West Virginia, UCLA, Maryland; UConn, Iowa, Tennessee, Baylor; NC State, Indiana, Arizona, Texas A&M

3rd Rd: Stanford, Louisville, South Carolina, Maryland, UConn, Baylor, NC State, Arizona

4th Rd: Stanford, Maryland, UConn, NC State

Finals: Stanford, UConn

Champion: Stanford

Feel free to share your picks in the comments or email us at eupherjared@gmail.com and cardinalcouple@twc.com.

You have until Sunday at 11:59 a.m., ET. Good luck!

Happy Thursday and Go Cards!

Jared

Softball, Lacrosse, Volleyball and Spirit! -- Sunday Cardinal Couple

Softball Splits the Day

Defending national champion Florida State came to town for a 3 game series that was originally scheduled to start Friday, but due to weather forecasts got switched to be a double-header yesterday (Saturday) and a game tomorrow evening.

Sidney Melton throws from 3rd

The Cardinals and the Seminoles split the day yesterday, with the Cards taking the first game 2-0, with all of the scores coming on a Megan Hensley rip to the centerfield berm into the middle of a clutch of fans.  Celene Funke was the other base runner after reaching on a single.  After those first inning heroics, however, the game settled down to a scoreless pitcher's duel the rest of the way.

The second game saw FSU put up a run in the 2nd, a pair in the 3rd, and another in the 5th to reach their game tally of 4.  The Cards would get one back in the bottom of the 6th, after Sidney Melton tripled then got home on a Madison Cousineau sacrifice fly out in foul territory.

The Cards a 'Noles continue the series tomorrow at 7pm at Ulmer.  While there is still a chance of rain in the forecast for tomorrow, it is a smaller chance than today, so there's hope.

Video below of Watson and Coach Aprile

DANIELLE WATSON POST GAME INTERVIEW

HOLLY APRILE POST DOUBLEHEADER INTERVIEW

Lacrosse Loses on Senior Day

The Lacrosse squad honored the lone senior on the team, Canadian Tessa Chad.  The Orono, Ontario native transferred to UofL to continue playing for Scott Teeter and has proven to be a bright spot for a rebuilding team.

Tessa Chad taking a shot

Chad picked up a hat trick in the 17-6 loss to UNC.  This leaves UofL still winless in the extremely tough ACC with two more chances to get a conference victory in the season.

First, though, the Cards will get one last non-conference game in when Ohio State visits the Louisville Lacrosse Stadium Tuesday for a 1pm start.  The stick squad finishes out the season on the road, first visiting Charlottesville to take on the 1-4 in conference, 9-5 overall UVA Hokies.  The season finale will be up in Chestnut Hill with a monumental challenge against undefeated Boston College (5-0, 14-0 overall).

Scott Teeter discusses Senior Day below

SCOTT TEETER REVIEW SENIOR DAY VS UNC

Spirit Squads Bring Home More Wins

Stop me if you've heard this one before.  The Ladybirds won the Division 1A Team Dance
Performance in the NCA and NDA National championships in Daytona Florida.  If you've paid much attention at all the Louisville Spirit Squads, this probably comes as no surprise to you.  This is the 18th consecutive, and 20th overall win for the Ladybirds.

The All-Girl Cheer squad is building their own dynasty and legacy with their 6th straight and 16th overall win in their category.

Also at the top of the podium is the 4 Girl Group Stunt group with their 2nd straight win.  This is a newer category, I believe, so the dynasty may just be starting, here.

Lots of 2nd place finishes as well, with the Ladybirds coming in 2nd in the Hip Hop division, and the small and large Co-Ed Cheer groups also came one position away from the overall wins.

Volleyball

The volleyball squad took part in the annual KIVA Collegiate Showcase at the Ohio Valley Volleyball Center.  The biggest news to come from the event is that Marijke van Dyke is apparently not with the team anymore.  She was not in attendance at the event at all.  There has been no official statement from Coach Busboom Kelly on the topic.  I did get confirmation that while she acknowledges that they aren't the most healthy of snacks, she believes the fried cheeseballs at the OVVC food concession are very good.  Your correspondent concurs in this judgement.

On the court, the Cards continue to progress and excel at blocking, another aspect of the day that kept your correspondent in a great mood, and the development of individual players is evident.

I continue to be impressed in the spring season with Emily Scott and Aiko Jones with both making their presence at the net felt more strongly than ever.  Mia Stander, who stepped up during the season to fill in for an injury depleted defensive squad, is showing that she has adjusted well to the role.  The Cards faithful will be delighted to see the play of Tori Dilfer in the setter role.

Speaking of injuries, I did get to speak to Alexis Hamilton's father Dennis, who reported that she hopes to get cleared to full activity in the mid-May timeframe.  He said she's currently, "about 70%".  I did observe her participating in pepper with Associate Head Coach Dan Meske during warm-ups and she looked to be moving well and showed no impairment.  Cards fans should be excited to see her back out on the court in the fall, I know she is anxious to get back to playing as well.


Cardinal Couple Radio Hour

The knuckleheads gathered on Mellwood Saturday Morning (sans Jeff, who joined via phone from
KIVA)  for the weekly look at UofL women's athletics.

Paulie, Case, Jared and Daryl covered WBB, softball, volleyball, lacrosse and other items of interest in a fast-paced, lively forum.

A special thanks to the "queen mother" of WCHQ FM Kathy Weisbach for coming in to run the board, adjust the sound, video, noises and produce the hour-long foray into Cardinal womens' athletics.

The Facebook Live link below:

THE CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR 4/6/19

-- 

JMcA

Sunday Cardinal Couple - Lacrosse, Softball, Cheerleading and Dance

It's been quite the weekend of mixed results in varsity sports.  Fortunately, there are chances still alive to come out of the weekend ahead.  In the non-varsity world, things are bright and sunny.

Softball

Pearsall's squad dropped the 2nd game of the weekend series in Beantown 6-2 against Boston College.  The highlights of the game for the cards were an RBI by Morgan Meyer that brought Jenna Jordan home in the 4th inning, and an alas-too-little-too-late homer for Nicole Pufahl in the 7th.

Megan Hensley takes the loss with 5.1 innings of pitching, with Maryssa Becker taking over in the bottom of the 6th to get the Cards out of a rough inning, but the damage had been done.

In positive news, Jordan McNary has come back from the concussion protocol and is back in the lineup.  That helps the Cards maintain speed on the basepaths, and fielding of about 3 acres of space out in left field.  Nicole Pufahl continues her power tour through the ACC, and Morgan Meyer continues her evolution from a slapper to a solid, if perhaps not spectacular, hitter.

This game evens the series in Boston, and the Cards with "pahk the cah" for the rubbermatch today at noon.

Lacrosse

Coach Kellie Young was not happy with her team as the Lacrosse squad didn't follow the scout and let the defense cool against UNC standout Marie McCool who scored a whopping 7 times of the Tarheel's 15 in their 15-11 win.  While Young crediting her team with not giving up physically or mentally, continuing to attack and play hard into the final seconds of the game, but was mad, and that was her wording, at her team for not watching the film and following the scout that was particularly set up with a plan to deal with McCool.

The Cards raced out to a 4-1 lead in 7 minutes, at which point your intrepid reporter arrived, and the wheels fell off the bus.  OK, maybe it wasn't quite that dire, but it was clear that the momentum had shifted, UNC had settled in and was determined not to let this one get away from them, which is a big reason they're the #2 team in the country.

There was some back and forth scoring, with the Cards maintaining a 4 point lead until just under 7 minutes left to play when Meghan Siverson fired one home on a free position, and then UNC went on a tear.  For about the next 26 minutes of play, the last 6:46 of the first half, and the first 19:36 in the second, UNC would go on a 10-1 run to 8-13 with Marie McCool scoring all 7 of her goals during the run.  The Cards found themselves again with a Jillian Balog free position score, but the damage had been done.  The Cards would outscore the Tarheels 3-2 in the last 10 minutes of the game including a Hannah Koloski unassisted goal with 11 seconds left.

Brittany Read had 14 saves in goal to keep it from being a much worse outcome, and my subjective judgement was that the Cards should be glad the UNC attack wasn't more accurate as it seemed they took a lot of shots that weren't on frame...some wildly out of frame.

While I maintain that women's basketball is the worst officiated sport around, there were some questionable moment for the white and black stripes in this one.  Whistles stopped play at one point with an offsides call on UofL  (essentials of offsides for Lacrosse: at least 4 field players must remain behind the restraining line on each side of the field.  The restraining lines divide the field roughly into thirds), and there were clearly 5 players in Cardinals white standing in the middle third of the field (on a whistle, players stop where they are on the field as they must resume play from any infraction at the same location in general).  Even if you claim one of the players was beyond the restraining line and stepped back just as the whistle was blown, that still leaves the Cardinals in compliance, and only one player was even close to the line at the time.  OK, inadvertent whistles can happen, I get it, but they consulted about this call, with all of the players standing stock still where they could easily be counted, for about 2 minutes before finally overturning it.  What took so long, folks?  1-2-3-4-5, not even close to an offsides infraction, inadvertent whistle, restart play already.

Lacrosse hits the road next for an April 15th game at Virginia.

LINK: POST GAME KELLIE YOUNG

Cheerleading and Dance

We don't usually pay too much attention to the UofL spirit squads, one of the most successful sets of athletic teams at the University.  They aren't a varsity squad, they don't get scholarships, but they put in massive amounts of work, and if anyone wants to claim they aren't athletes, I'll be more than happy to go toe to toe with them in defense of the spirit squads.

Daytona is the annual convention and national competition for the NDA and NCA organizations with which UofL's spirit squads are associated.

Competing under the banner of the NCA, the National Cheerleader's Association, UofL has already claimed 2 wins, in the small co-ed, and all-girl competitions.  On the NDA, the National Dance Alliance, side of things, the Ladybirds won, again, the Hip Hop division, and the main Dance Team Performance division.

In the dance and cheer worlds, these victories are about as earth shattering news as the sun rose again today, but our spirit squads tend to not draw the attention that they probably should given just how amazingly good they are, so I wanted to be sure to mention their successes here.

JMcA

Conference Play All Around -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Softball Opens Weekend with Win

Louisville headed up to Chestnut Hill this weekend for a series with Boston College. The Golden Eagles have had quite a bit of weather issues recently, but this game went off without a hitch. After Boston College opened the scoring with a single run in the bottom of the first, the bats went cold for both teams for the next couple of innings. The Cards changed that with a huge 5 run inning in the top of the fourth to go ahead 5-1. Louisville would score no more runs in the game, but held off a last chance rally by BC to take the win, 5-3. 

Maryssa Becker picked up her 17th win of the season in this one. She has recorded the win for all but 5 of Louisville's positive decisions. As more of a baseball fan, depending so much on a single pitcher is nearly unfathomable to me, but credit to her for recognizing her role as a workhorse and getting it done day in and day out. Becker added to her day with a double. Morgan Meyer led the Louisville charge going 2-2 at the plate. Unlike the pitching, defense in this game left a lot to be desired. The two teams combined for a whopping seven errors. Three of the four BC errors, unsurprisingly, came in Louisville's big inning. In fact, all 5 Louisville runs were credited as unearned. For a stat chasing pitcher hoping to keep that ERA down, it's great news. For a team oriented pitcher hoping to win, not so much.

Louisville and Boston College take the field for game two at noon today. Louisville will work for the series win, while BC will try to tie it up. 

Lacrosse Hosts UNC

In what will be a huge came for the Cardinals, the second ranked Tarheels come to town today. Louisville and North Carolina are both coming off of a week's rest going into today's game. Louisville used overtime to take down Virginia Tech last week while UNC made short work of Notre Dame, winning 16-9 on the road. North Carolina sits 2 games ahead of Louisville in both conference and overall, having played two fewer non-conference games. Louisville is looking to shore up their resume for the NCAA tournament and not much else would help more this season than taking down North Carolina today. The game starts at 12PM and it should be a bit warmer by then. Head on down to the Louisville Lacrosse Stadium and see one of the premier matchups of the season.

Baseball Uncharacteristically Flat in Loss

Wake Forest is in town for a battle between top 25 teams and a chance to tie Louisville for second in the division. The Cards trotted out Brendan McKay, as they do on Friday nights, and he did what he's been asked to do all season. Brendan pitched seven solid innings, striking out more batters than flyouts and groundouts combined (11-10). His lone mistake was a two run home run in the top of the fourth inning. Those two runs were enough to lift the Demon Deacons above Louisville's one run mustered in the bottom of the third. The final score was 2-1.

It was a disappointing day at the plate as Louisville batters struck out more times than they walked or hit (10-8). They left 8 men on base. Credit goes to Wake's starter, Parker Dunshee. Dunshee, like McKay, went seven full, gave up only 5 hits, and tossed only one walk. Unlike McKay, one of Dunshee's five hits was not a home run and that was the difference. 

Louisville will look to bounce back and tie the series with a win today. First pitch at Jim Patterson is at 1PM and the game is available on 93.9 The Ville or on the ACC Network Extra.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour

We'll travel down the stairs to the studio in Crescent Hill this morning for another exciting edition of Cardinal Couple. We're in the midst of spring sports and that's what we'll look forward to talking about today. Any questions you may have, throw them in the comments section or tweet at any of us and we'll try to answer your question on air. Beyond that, tune in to 100.9 WCHQ or find us on the WCHQ app at 11AM.

Until next time, Go Cards.

-CH-

Softball, Lacrosse take loses on Saturday -- Sunday Cardinal Couple

UNC Wallops Lax Cards 18-5

Saturday afternoon at the Louisville Lacrosse Stadium was Senior Day and the Cards said "Goodbye" to six seniors in pregame ceremonies. The girls aren't actually gone for good just yet, there are three games left in the regular season and the ACC and NCAA Tournament left to play...but seniors Faye Brust, Anna Kopecka, Carissa Corbett, Cat Gordon, Kendall Gordon (not related) and Emily Kolsevich did battle with #2 UNC in front of 600 fans. 

It did not go well for the seniors or Louisville. A 13-point loss after a fairly close first half.

Added to the defeat was a knee injury to Louisville leading scorer and team captain Faye Brust a mere two minutes into the contest. Brust, who was helped off the field, did try to return to play in the second half...but wasn't able to go at full speed and returned to the sidelines. There was no official word on the extent of the injury...but it seemingly shook the Louisville squad and definitely hindered their firepower. 

Ah, yes...the game. We might as well review that.

Louisville hung close with UNC, after being down 3-1 the Cards rallied to tie at 3-3 on two straight goals from sophomore Hannah Kolowski. Cortnee Daley gave UofL a 4-3 lead with 10:01 left in the first half but UNC went on a 4-0 run to end the half and led 7-4 at the break.

Any hopes UofL had of a second half rally were dashed by two quick TarHeel scores. Kaylin Morissette scored her lone goal of the contest to make it 9-5 UNC with 25:16 left to play...but the Cards could not fin the net after that an a 9-0 run by North Carolina ended the contest. 

Molly Hendrick paced the TarHeels with five goals...she also left the contest in the second half hobbling...possibly tweaking a knee or ankle after getting a clete caught in the turf after celebrating winning a draw control. 

Koloski's two early goals were the only bright spot in a Louisville attack that was outshot 28-18 and committed 13 turnovers. 

When Coach Young was asked after the game what takeaways she could use for this game to prepare for Virginia next Sunday...she replied:

"Nothing. We didn't do anything right for 60 minutes." 

The Cards will travel to Charlottesville next to face the Wahoos in conference play. 

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WHO HID THE BATS?  CARDS LOSE TWO BY 2-0 SCORE IN SOFTBALL

 Louisville Softball must have had their bats hidden by the Easter Bunny Saturday in Blacksburg, VA...losing both games of the doubleheader 2-0 to the Gobblers.

Louisville managed just three hits in the first game and six hits in the finale. VT also sweeps the series and the Cards now have a 11-4 ACC record.

Madi Norman in the first game and Maryssa Becker in the second did well enough in their performances to rack up what would normally be a win for each but lack of hitting by the "on-again, off-again" Cardinal power trust proved fatal Saturday.

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HAPPY EASTER!

From all of us at CARDINAL COUPLE, a very happy and joyous Easter Sunday to you! 

Our Easter Saturday Cardinal Couple broadcast should be available on the Crescent Hill Soundcloud later today. Worldwide, Sam and I discuss hoops, lacrosse, volleyball and softball...plus we have words from Sandy Pearsall, Jeff Walz, Bria Smith, Mariya Moore and Maryssa Becker
for you to hear. It's a shortened broadcast...just 45 minutes...we had to make way for the live broadcast of the Frankfort Avenue Crescent Hill Easter Parade...



LINK: 

DOES THE EASTER BUNNY REALLY HAVE A BEARD AND DRIVE A JEEP?


paulie
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