Cardinal Couple is off today as we all prepare to celebrate Derby in our own various ways. Louisville softball was in action yesterday and dropped a heartbreaker at Boston College when they gave up a 2-run walk-off homer with two outs to lose 3-2. Bailey Richardson accounted for Louisville's runs with a 2-run homer in the first. Jeff will have a bit more on that and cover the second game of the series tomorrow.
Oaks Day held an exciting batch of races, and I'm looking forward to the same from the card today. I still haven't quite decided who I'm going with in the big one. Do you think Fierceness could finally break the curse of the 17 post? I'm not convinced. Are you, like many interviewed yesterday, caught up with just how big Sierra Leone is? The 2 would still be a tough spot to come from. I might even like Epic Ride, in the field after Encino scratched, to be a dark horse candidate.
Let us know in the comments who you like this year! Whether you're sipping on a Mint Julep, a Lily, a Spire, or some other concoction, be safe and have fun this Derby Day. PAULIE'S PICKS BELOW
Until next time<Go Cards!
Case
PAULIE'S HANDICAPPNG HEROES KENTUCKY DERBY DAY STAKES RACES PICKS
Quick Oaks recap, I gave you 19 horses to consider (there were a couple of scratches) yesterday...and had three winners, two places and two shows...today we have nine stakes races,so, I'll have 28 horses to choose from. Goof Luck and stand up and sing when they play "My Old Kentucky Home", OK?
RACE 4 -- KNICKS GO STAKES
6 -- BEST ACTOR
1 -- STRONG QUALITY
11 -- OSCAR ECLIPSE
RACE 5 -- TWIN SPIRES TURF SPRINT
4 -- MOTORIOUS
8 --MISCHIEF MAGIC
10 -- BIG INVASION
RACE 6 -- DERBY CITY DISTAFF
5 -- SPRIRT WIND
7 -- ALVA STARR
10 -- VAHVA
RACE 7 -- DISTAFF TURF MILE
7 -- EVVIE JETS
6 -- DELAHAYE
7 -- CHILI FLAG
RACE 8 -- PAT DAY MILE
7 -- WHO DEY
8 -- TOP CONOR
12 -- NASH
RACE 9 -- AMEI RICAN TURF
5 -- LEGEND OF TIME
6 -- NEAT
11 -- AGATE ROAD
RACE 10 -- CHURCHILL DOWNS STAKES
6 -- ZOZOS
2 -- TEJANO TWIST
11 -- HOIST THE GOLD
RACE 11 -- TURF CLASSIC
6 -- I'M VERY BUSY
5 -- PROGRAM TRADING
11 -- NAVAL POWER
RACE 12 -- KY DERBY
17 -- FIERCENESS
2 -- SIERRA LEONE
8 -- JUST A TOUCH
6 -- JUST STEEL
Best of luck today, and as they used to say in the old Friday Foursomes Leagues...good bowling !
Louisville softball wraps up the regular season at Florida State this weekend. If you're trying to avoid the Derby crowds and traffic, getting the heck out of town is a smart move.
While Daryl will preview the actual series tomorrow, we'll took at look at the current ACC standings and the possible scenarios for the final standings. Spoiler: Louisville could actually win the ACC.
The current standings are:
Florida State 19-2 .905
Louisville 16-4 .800
Duke 19-5 .792
Clemson 18-6 .750
Virginia Tech 14-10 .583
North Carolina 13-10 .565
Notre Dame 11-12-1 .479
Syracuse 7-12-1 .375
Virginia 8-16 .333
Georgia Tech 7-17 .292
NC State 6-15 .286
Pitt 3-17 .150
Boston College 3-18 .143
While many of the teams in the ACC have concluded their respective seasons, there's a few games left to be played this weekend. Boston College visits Syracuse, NC State visits Pitt, and Louisville visits Florida State.
Only 10 teams make the ACC Tournament, which means three teams will be on the outside looking in. While the ACC has 15 total schools, Miami and Wake Forest currently do not have softball.
Louisville is already a lock for the ACC Tournament and has earned a top-four seed and a first-round bye.
The scenarios:
1) If the Cards sweep Florida State then Louisville would win the ACC.
2) If Louisville wins two of the three games then the Cards would finish third with Duke moving up to second.
3) If Louisville wins one and loses two or gets swept then they drop down to fourth with both Duke and Clemson moving up.
(Maryssa Becker{
The last time Louisville was in the top four in the conference was in 2017. The 2017 roster was loaded with talent such as Maryssa Becker, Megan Hensley, Nicole Pufahl, Jordan McNary, Sidney Melton, and Celene Funke among several others.
If Louisville wins at least one more game, they'll match their 36-win total from 2016.
****NOTE**** IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR PAULIE'S CHURCHILL DOWNS SELECTIONS, GO TO http://pauliesykes.blogspot.com/
Happy Derby weekend to all. I love this time of the year but is also means that we really are wrapping up the seasons and the school year as many are celebrating graduations and Mothers Day, as well.
Let's just hope for some sunny skies and wins at the track and for the Cards! For good reason, UofL athletics typically hits the road on Derby weekend.
SOFTBALL
Louisville at #20 Notre Dame
Melissa Cook Stadium
ACC Network 5 p.m.
The Cards are scheduled for a 5 p.m. first pitch Friday, 1 p.m. Saturday and 2 p. m. on Sunday.
Bringing in a 27-21 overall record, 10-11 in the ACC, the Cardinals wrap up the regular season with a weekend series against #20 ranked Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish bring in a 5 game winning streak and a 36-9 overall record but they haven't played since April 26th. ND stands 4th in the ACC at 13-5 with their conferences loses being to Virginia (2), Georgia Tech and Clemson (2).
Notre Dame’s offense is led by sophomore first baseman Karina Gaskins. Gaskins leads the ACC with a .442 average, hitting 11 doubles, 11 home runs and driving in a conference-best 55 runs. Freshman Jane Kronenberger worked her way into the starting lineup and is hitting at a .400 average, playing in 32 games, making 22 starts. She’s third on the team with 27 RBI, hitting nine doubles and three home runs. The outfield trio of Abby Sweet, Emma Clark and Leea Hanks are all hitting .371 or above, and combined have 11 home runs, nine triples, 31 doubles, 42 stolen bases and have scored 140 runs.
The trio of Alexis Holloway, Payton Tidd and Shannon Becker have thrown all the innings for the Irish this season. Senior pitcher Tidd and Grad. Senior pitcher Holloway earned ACC honors in back to back weeks 4/12 and 4/19. Tidd has worked as the series opener owning a 2.58 ERA and a team-best 14 wins, eight complete games and 119.1 innings of work. Holloway has thrown two no-hitters on the year, while earning a 2.92 ERA and 13 wins. She’s started a team-high 18 games while throwing 103.0 innings. Combined the trio have held opponents to a .228 average against.
Notre Dame leads the series with the Cards 23-17. The last time the two teams met was in 2019. Notre Dame won two out of three games in South Bend, sweeping a doubleheader by scores of 9-1 in each game. Louisville won 5-3 in the series finale.
Entering her 20th season as leader of the Notre Dame softball program, Deanna Gumpf continues to ascend the ladder as one of the nation’s premier head coaches.
ACC SOFTBALL TOURNAMENT
As it stands on Thursday evening, the Cards should qualify for the 7th seed in the ACC Tournament which is next week, May 11-14 at Vartabedian Field in Pittsburgh, PA. A sweep over the Irish and the Cards would tie Virginia in the standings while Notre Dame is chasing Florida State and going for the sweep on Senior Weekend. FSU is visiting NC State looking for cushion from the Irish's hunt.
A couple squads at the top of the conference have already wrapped up their regular season as they look ahead to the tournaments -- Virginia Tech, Clemson and Virginia. Georgia Tech has finished 11-13 in the ACC and await to see what the Cards can do this weekend or if they will jump UofL in the conference standings.
Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast -- With the local holiday, the gang is also taking Saturday off from the podcast to spend time celebrating. I plan on picking my Oaks and Derby winners 30 minutes before 'They're Off!!' each day. If you want some suggestions on who to bet on, go to Paulie Picks.
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:
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 !!
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!
The ACC Lacrosse Tournament is all set. Unfortunately for Louisville, Virginia Tech was sneaky and cheated the Cards out of the 7-seed. Louisville is the 8-seed and will face 1-seed North Carolina.
Louisville (1-9 ACC) beat Virginia Tech (1-8 ACC) in the regular season and would have given the Cards the tiebreak over the Hokies. However, Virginia Tech had a couple schedule changes between weather and COVID-19 protocol and were not eager to make up their final game, giving them a half game edge over the Cards.
The Cards, who are ranked #19 in the most recent poll, seem to be in a position to still make the NCAA Tournament, but upsetting an undefeated Tar Heels team would guarantee a bid.
Louisville hosted North Carolina earlier this season at Cardinal Stadium. The Cards had a couple offensive spurts, but like everyone that has faced UNC, Louisville fell by a large margin in the end.
UNC has not lost since 2019, when they fell in double overtime in the NCAA Semifinals to Boston College. The Tar Heels are also looking to win their fifth straight ACC title (there was no tournament in 2020).
For the Cards, Ally Hall is two goals short of scoring 100 career goals. Rachel Florek has 335 career saves, ranking first in program history. Her .427 career save percentage is third in program history.
This match is scheduled for Wednesday at noon on the ACC Network. In other action Wednesday, #4 seed Notre Dame get #5 seed Duke at appox. 2:30 p.m., #2 seed Syracuse faces #7 seed Virginia Tech at5:00 p.m. and #3 seed Boston College will go against #6 seed Virginia at 7:30 p.m.
Softball Concludes Home Season, Thank You Seniors
Louisville Softball concluded its home season on Sunday with a doubleheader against #7 Florida State. The Seminoles took the first game by Mercy Rule victory while the second game ended in a 0-0 tie after 11 innings and more than three hours due to a scheduled flight home.
A 1-2-1 series against one of the favorites to win the NCAA title is a plus in my book. It also knocked the Seminoles out of first in the conference and allowed Clemson to take the lead in the conference. Somewhere our buddy Arthur has a big smile on his face.
Louisville recognized a total of eight players, seven from the current season and Caitlin Ferguson, who played her final season in 2020.
Both Paige and Riley Schindler have had some unfortunate luck with injuries, which prevented them from playing the last couple years. Madison Ciaccio had appearances in dozens of games throughout her career and often subbed in at first base. Jordyn Wolfe has seen plenty of action in the outfield and as a pinch runner but also has been plagued by an injury the last couple of weeks. Jennifer Leonhardt joined Louisville for her final year of eligibility and has made a significant contribution in the circle and is second on the team in strikeouts. Maddy Newman spent four years as a starter at second base and has been a behind-the-scenes leader for much of her career. Celene Funke repped the Louisville jersey for five seasons and was one of the most recognizable student-athletes at Louisville known for her charisma and energy.
This senior class has had to overcome a great deal between a mixture of injuries, a coaching change, COVID-19, and now having one of the toughest schedules in the country. Even with so many obstacles, this senior class has proven to be strong leaders and kept the energy level high. We thank all of the seniors for everything they've done for this program.
The Cards sit at eighth in the ACC currently. They have eight games remaining: a four-game series at last place Boston College and a four-game series against North Carolina, who is currently 10th in the conference. Louisville is 3.5 games ahead of Pitt, who is 11th. The Cards need to finish in the top ten to qualify for the ACC Tournament at Ulmer Stadium in mid-May.
(Softball and Lacrosse photos from Jared Anderson)
Other News
Louisville head Field Hockey Coach Justine Sowry has a press conference this afternoon to discuss the upcoming NCAA Field Hockey Tournament. The Cards still have a few more days before their quarterfinal match-up on Sunday. We'll bring the words to you in tomorrow's Cardinal Couple.
It is Derby Week in the Ville so the parties have begun. Our horse handicapper extraordinaire Paulie is hard at work doing his research for your Oaks Day and Derby Day picks. Stay tuned this week to see what advice and recommendations he has....he's handicapping Weds. thru Sat. this week. Check out his handicapping site PAULIE PICKS at:
The "naming" of Derby Day weekdays began a few years ago with "Thurby" for Thursday at the Downs. Of course, Firday has always been Oaks Day and Saturday is Derby Day -- but recently someone came up with "Mondby" for Monday "Tuesby" for Tuesday and Wednesday has now become "Louisville's Day at the Track" Someone offered "Wednesby" but that's just going too far, right?
(PAULIE FILLS IN FOR JARED TODAY...WHO HAS SUFFERED A LAPTOP CRASH. FORTUNATELY, NO ONE WAS INJURED)
SOFTBALL DODGING RAINDROPS TODAY?
There is a 40% chance of rain today in Raleigh, NC. This matters because the Louisville Softball team is there, hoping to get in their final three game set of the regular season. North Carolina State is the foe. I doubt Ms. Wuf shows up, since I won't be there...but...let's hope the Cards do. We know how the ACC and the teams in it like to adjust schedules to try and get contests in around the rain drops. I haven't seen any changes yet in the scheduled 6 p.m. start today for the first game, nor changes for either of the other two planned this weekend. Don't be surprised if there are, though. 40% thunderstorms in the afternoon and evening are in the forecast for today. Saturday looks only slightly better and Sunday's forecast is a mess for Raleigh. We're hoping that, despite the weather, the UofL pitchers are ready for a bit of success. We'd like to see the Danielle Watson that stymied North Carolina last Sunday with one run and five hits. We're hoping we get the effective Taylor Roby who has kept ACC powerhouse squads silent all season in compiling a 13-2 record and who has a ERA well south of the 3.00 per game mark. It's always nice to see senior Megan Hensley do what she's done effectively for four years here and keep opposing batters off the bases. She's 9-3 and has a 2.85 ERA this season. I've become less worried about Louisville's batting prowess as the season has rolled along. You can count on Celene Funke to boom a triple at any time. She leads the nation in them. Sidney Melton always finds a way on base. Hensley leads the squad in home runs and Roby is also over the .300 mark from the plate -- like the first three mentioned. That's a pretty nice top four to send out against the opposing circle performer. But, wait! There's more !! It doesn't get any better for the other team's hurler after that opening foursome. Kyra Snyder is flirting with the .300 mark at the plate. Freshman catcher Rebecca Chung is over .300 and second in home runs. Shortstop Caitlin Ferguson leads the squad in doubles, Jordan Wolfe...filling in for injured regular left-fielder Charley Butler...is batting .417 and Maddie Newman (the ninth batter in the lineup) is at .260.
It's enough to make an opposing pitcher shake their head and wonder what they did to deserve this? The Cards have rough-housed two of the best pitchers in the league in UNC's Brittany Pickett and FSU's Meghan King this year. And, when they get on the bags, they'll steal, steal, steal on an opponent. Hoping for clear skies, no delays or reschedules, strong arms, active bats and three wins this weekend for the Louisville Softball squad in Raleigh. Quite honestly, it's a good thing they aren't playing here at home. It's Derby Weekend. Get out the umbrella, naturally. KENTUCKY OAKS? IS IT ALL ABOUT BELLAFINA? There are 13 races scheduled at Churchill Downs today...plenty of opportunities to watch the ponies "turn left" (hopefully not into another horse)...but Mother Nature is definitely not cooperating with fans headed out to the track early. Hiya, rain. With some excellent Stakes races going in the slop and yielding turf, nevertheless -- the big one is the Kentucky Oaks. And, #4 on your program for the 11th race -- Bellafina. Can anyone "get"to her?
She is "all that". Unlike the Derby, where six or more runners are making a claim that they'll best the field of 19 (yes, another scratch)...Bellafina is a superstar filly. She could probably even survive a Jeff Walz/Beth Burns conditioning drill or run at pace along-side Lacrosse's Tessa Chad and not breath heavily. You think Dana Evans has speed? Check this gal out. Bellafina, loosely translated from Italian...means "beautiful and fine". And, this three-year-old certainly fills that description. She'll take on 13 challengers in the 1-18th mile Oaks. That we know of. "Scratch" time -- withdrawing horses from races -- is 9 a.m. this morning. In my opinion, there is no way she'll stay at the 2-1 morning line odds. Be thankful if you get "even" money on her. I'll be keeping and eye on those proceedings at Churchill today, as well as tracking what's going on with Louisville Softball. I don't know too many that would refuse $4 back from $2 invested. Profit margin! As a sideline, feel free to check out my selections for the Oaks card of racing at my other website... www.paulsykes.com ... where I combat insomnia by trying to pick out thoroughbred race winners. I'll also have the Kentucky Derby picks, as long as the coffee holds out...on Saturday. No guarantees here. Just my handicapping skills out there for you to see. As always, bet sensibly and within your budget. Play 'em anyway you want. I'm just supplying the car, here. Drive it however you feel like. Soggy Friday to ya! paulie xxxxx
The University of Louisville women's basketball team (22-6, 9-4) hits the court early today for the annual Play4Kay day event...bringing in the North Carolina TarHeels for a noon event at the KFC YUM! Center. Fans are encouraged to wear pink for the breast cancer awareness event. It hasn't been the type of season that TarHeel fans will remember with much joy or excitement. The Rams (14-12, 3-10) have but three wins in conference play...albeit surprising in a couple of them...with victories over NC State, Virginia and a 89-88 battle to the wire against Georgia Tech last time out. All three victories have come at home...so UNC is looking for their first conference road win of the season in 11 attempts. Sophomore Stephanie Watts lead the Tar Heels in scoring and rebounding with 16.9 and 7.9 numbers. Red-shirt sophomore Paris Kea averages 16.8 a game and has 108 assists and 59 steals this year. Junior Jamie Cherry is the third double-digit UNC scorer...adding 113.5 a contest and with 96 assists. Cherry nailed a three with two seconds remaining in the Georgia Tech contest to provide the win last time out. Threes are something the Tar Heels do well...they are 17th in the nation in three-pointers made. Sylvia Hatchell is in her 31st. year of coaching the TarHeels and has amassed a 988-368 record in 41 years as a head coach.
Louisville will go without point-guard Briahanna Jackson again (back spasms) but ACC Player of the Week Asia Durr returns to the lineup after a one-game suspension. The Cards will look to her, the M&M's and Kylee Shook to provide the offense against a squad that is 43rd. in the nation in points scored. It should be a lively one on the Denny Crum Court today. Louisville defeated UNC last year in Chapel Hill 78-60. The triad of Moore, Hines-Allen and Durr had 62 points in the previous match-up. A revisit of those numbers would certainly benefit the Cards again today. ESPNU has the broadcast and former UConn great Sue Bird joins Sam Gore for the call. Cards Radio 790 does the radio with Nick Curran and A.J. We'll be back later tonight with the recap. LACROSSE FALLS IN TRIPLE OVERTIME AT DENVER
#18 Louisville Lacrosse suffered their first loss of the season...11-10 to the home-standing #19 Denver Pioneers yesterday. The LAXGirls (3-1) engaged the Pioneers in a back and forth battle for 73 minutes...trailing 6-5 at the half. Down 10-9 with 3:42 to play, Madison Hoover found the net to send the contest to the first over-time. Neither squad could produce any net success in the first two, six-minutes overtimes...but the Pioneers struck early in the sudden-win format...on a free-position shot just 37 seconds into the third extra session. Hannah Koloski led Louisville with four goals...Meghan Siverson added three and Brittany Read had 13 saves. The Cards fly home to face Vanderbilt Wednesday at the "Ellis" (Louisville Lacrosse Stadium) for a 3 p.m. match that will be sown on ACC Network Extra. SOFTBALL FENCES OVER PURDUE 9-1
Maryssa Becker picked up her sixth win of the season and Louisville Softball sent three Mr. Spalding's over the fence in a five-inning, run-rule win over Purdue yesterday in the ACC v. Big 10 Challenge in Chapel Hill. Nicole Pufahl got the party started with a solo shot in the first inning. Becker provided a three-run "touch 'em all" in the Cards six run second inning and Megan Hensley added a two-run blast in the fourth to provide the final 9-1 win. The Cards out hit (1-7) Purdue 13-3...Becker going the distance for the Cards. Reserve third-baseman Caitlin Ferguson provided a two-run double for UofL in the second. Louisville (7-1) finishes their stay in Chapel Hill today with a 10 a.m. game against Ohio State. THE CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR We had a great time in studio Saturday on The Cardinal Couple Radio Hour. RIVER CITY CARDS editor-in-chief Jared Anderson joined Worldwide and Paulie for a lively discussion on Hoops, Softball, Lacrosse, Tennis and other UofL sports. Jared confirmed he's a TEAM JORDAN man...putting Worldwide in a minority with his TEAM SID,SYD, SZYD preference. Check out Jared's website at this link: www.rivercitycards.com
Show link: THE CARDINAL COUPLE 2/18/17 PAULIE PICKS Today (and yesterday's) ACC slate. The Clemson v FSU game was played yesterday and it slipped by me but, let's face it, I would have gone with the Seminoles and they won easily 80-47...so I'm taking the "W" North Carolina at LOUISVILLE. Louisville brings the TarHeels into their own pit and UNC lives up to the nickname and gets mired by the M&M girls. LOUAHVUL MIAMI blows into Duke and faces the Blue Devils in Cameron. Calling for the upset here...with Bassy's big winds beating Jo Anne's Devils. MIAMI PITT travels to Atlanta to ride the Ramblin' Wreck and they sprint past the southern engineers in what just may be a close one. PITTSBURGH. WAKE FOREST takes I-40 to Raleigh to dance with Mr & Mrs Wuf. This WolfPack is ready to run through the Trees and will beat Jen Hoover's bunch. NC STATE VIRGINIA and Virginia Tech in the battle of the Lovers state. The Cavs have been hot lately and should beat the Gobblers in Blacksburg. VIRGINIA NOTRE DAME dances eastward for a Syracuse showdown. They're giving away 5,000 pink shirts for this one. They'll have leftovers in a NOTRE DAME win. have a great Sunday! paulie xxxxx
Going into the final day of the ACC Swimming/Diving Championships...Arthur Albiero's Swim and Dive squad sits in third place...registering 674.5 points. NC State leads the way with 776.5, Virginia has 750 and the Cards are ahead of UNC...who has 665. I'll be quite honest, I don't fully understand the scoring system of swimming...but you have to be encouraged by Coach Albiero's statements last night: "I am proud of how we performed today. We had 18 swims this morning and all 18 qualified to swim in tonight's finals," said Arthur Albiero, UofL head coach. "That being said, we positioned ourselves to challenge for our best ACC finish in school history. Our seniors have continued to set the tone and our freshman are learning quickly. Looking at tomorrow, we train exactly for the day 4 prelim session. I am looking forward to watching our team tomorrow." Mallory Comerford took first in the 200 Free with a 1:41.70. It was a second better than the nearest competitor and set a meet, pool, ACC and school record for the distance. In the 100 Breaststroke, Andrea Cottrell touched second with a 58.81. She was narrowly edged out of first by Virginia's Laura Simon's 58.46. Cottrell is the defending ACC champ at the distance and meet record holder. The 400-Medley Relay team of Alina Kendzior (52.65), Andrea Cottrell (58.65), Grace Oglesby (52.44) and Mallory Comerford (46.71) won silver with a time of 3:30.45. Kendzior led off the backstroke leg and was fourth, next in the water Andrea Cottrell handed over a second place to flyer Grace Oglesby, who was third before Mallory Comerford anchored and made up a place for the runnerup slot. NC State took gold, clocking in at 3:28.26. The 2017 ACC Swimming & Diving Championships resume Thursday morning at 10 a.m. with the preliminaries in the 200 backstroke, 100 freestyle, 200 breaststroke, 200 butterfly, and the men's and women's platform diving. The finals for those events, in addition to the final heat of the 1650 freestyle and the 400 freestyle relay, begin at 6 p.m. PAULIE PICKS A rare Thursday where UofL WBB isn't playing. Six games on the ACC slate tonight. Let's have a look: NC State goes to Boston to stalk the Eagles. They should have no problem robbing this bird nest and bakes the Beantown team. Wolfpack. Notre Dame heads to the land of boiled peanuts and faces Clemson. They grab these Tigers by the tail and do an Irish jig and Riverdance for a win. ND Georgia Tech drives the 'Ramblin Wreck to Chapel Hill and tries not to get stuck in the TarHeels garage. We'll go with these Engineers solving the NC equation. GT. Pittsburgh defends the Pete against a feisty bunch of Gobblers. Maybe the closest game of the night, we see the felines surviving against the Hokies. Pitt. Florida State goes on the warpath in Wahoo Country. The Cavs will put up a strong fight...but this one should give Chief Osceloa a victory dance chance. FSU. Duke takes I-40 West to Winston-Salem and takes a hike in Trees territory. Wake needs a win to stay on the NCAA bubble but the Devils will get the win. Duke.
10-0 RUN IN OVERTIME SPURS MBB 76-72 WIN On a great night for watching basketball, the University of Louisville men's basketball team watched a seven-point lead evaporate in the final four minutes of regulation, got a clutch performance from a freshman and an Egyptian in overtime and survived in the Carrier Dome 76-72 Monday night. John Gillon's improbable moonshot three with 37 seconds left in regulation tied the contest at 58-58. Deng Adel missing two free throws with 16 seconds to go set the table for Syracuse to win...but a turnover by Gillion gave the ball back to the Cards and Quentin Snider's desperation three at the buzzer was off the mark...setting up the extra session. Seldom used freshman Ryan McMahon got the Cards started in O.T. with a huge three to tie the extra session at 61-61. His offensive rebound and put-back started a 10-0 Cardinal run that gave them a 71-63 advantage with 43 second left and the Cards held on for the win. Anas Mahmoud was huge in the spurt with five points, two rebounds, a block, assist and steal. An exciting win on the road for UofL. The Cards in front of 25,303 fired-up Orange fans hold on and resurface with their leading scorer (Donovan Mitchell) on the bench and go to 21-5, 9-4 on the season. 😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘 HUSKIES MAKE IT 100 Give South Carolina credit for making a game of it for awhile. They had the height and power. But, sometimes quickness and athleticism holds suit and UConn gets their 100th straight win in cozy Gampel Pavilion last night in a 66-55 win last night. Gabby Williams with 26 and 14. Napheesa Collier adding 18 and 9. Another win over a top ten foe. Who will eventually beat UConn and will it happen this season? I also spent time switching over to the Texas v FSU game while watching and listening to the Cards. A crazy double-overtime win for the Longhorns 92-88 with four starters on the bench...seven players fouled out in this one which went to overtime after Leticia Romero hit a desperation three at the end of regulation for FSU. A wonderful night for basketball. 💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛 HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!
From all of us at CARDINAL COUPLE...Happy Valentines Day ! Hopefully, you have that sweetie that you can get a gift for, cook a meal with or just spend time with the one you love. If you don't, remember that expressing happiness for someone who does is a wonderful thing to do as well. Nothing wrong with that or telling your cat, dog, BFF, guy who shovels your sidewalk, co-worker or teammate that you're thinking of them. To all our Cardinal women's sports athletes....be our Valentine!! We'd deliver chocolates if we could...but that would probably get us on the bad side of a bunch of trainers, sports performance folks and nutritionists on campus...plus we know a couple of coaches who just might confiscate selected items and "inspect them for quality assurance". 😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎 PAULIE PICKS We took on eight games over the Sunday/Monday stretch and went seven for eight...Florida State's loss to Texas the only incorrect pick. I stand at 73-19 for the season...which is 79.3%. Happy Valentines Day! Paulie xxxxx
