Fall Sports Breakout Candidates -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

One week! Yes, we are officially one week away from the first official regular match of any sport for the 2023-2024. Louisville women's soccer hosts Indiana State at 7:30 pm ET on August 17. We expect all home games to be aired on ACCNX if not on one of the linear channels.

Each team has returners that have already locked in their place as a leader and go-to player, but each season we see other players step up into bigger roles and sometimes have a breakout season. I'll take a stab at guessing who might have a breakout role this team.

There's almost no rules or requirements to make the list other than you can't already be a breakout star for a team For example, Aiko Jones for volleyball and Aimee Plumb are already stars that heavily contribute to their teams. We already have seen what they do and expect that again so it wouldn't be a breakout season.

Field Hockey

Izzy Bianco- Bianco is sophomore this season that saw action in every game last season as a reserve that spent the offseason with the Team USA U21 team. As a midfielder, she might not be one of the top scorers but will play a big factor on the offense. Someone who can help with possession and disrupt the passing lanes in the midfield can make or break a game.

Rylie Wollerton- Wollerton played in every game and scored two goals as a freshman last year. She showed glimpses of how strong she can be on offense and has a good shot at doing that this season. Aimee Plumb and Emilia Kaczmarczyk draw most of the attention on offense, which opens the door for Wollerton to have a sneaky breakout year.

Soccer

Addie Chester- Chester started 12 games and appeared in 15 games in her rookie campaign, but was limited two assists. She plays more of an offensive midfield position and holds the Indiana high school state record for goals scored in a season. For a Louisville team that had major offensive struggles last year, Chester is in prime position for a breakout season.

Lizzie Sexton- Sexton saw 13 starts in 16 appearances last season as a freshman. A true midfielder, Sexton can push forward to take an offensive role, but can easily fall back to support the defense. Her candidacy for a breakout role doesn't rely on how many goals she scored, but how much she can assist a defense that lost both Sarah Hernandez and Anouk Denton in the offseason. 

Volleyball

Charitie Luper- Okay, so Jeff will argue and tell me Luper can't have a breakout season after a strong two seasons at UCLA, but most of the expected primary role players are returning from the last couple years. While Luper had a strong two years at UCLA, she has a chance to take her game to the next level, especially in a position where she could replace Claire Chaussee. Being slightly undersized means nothing with the hops Luper has.

Hannah Sherman- The battle for the middles continues. PK Kong and Cara Cresse battled it out with Amaya Tillman last season. Tillman graduated and Sherman has the chance to jump into the spotlight. Even last season, she wowed the coaches in practice and having a full year under her belt now, the power Sherman provides can make her one of the best offensive middle blockers in the conference.

I haven't gotten a chance to see any live action from any players or sports since last season so there's a lot of assuming on my end here. Let's hope we see some of these players- or other players- have breakout seasons.

Happy Thursday and Go Cards!

Jared

A change in the wind? -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 POTENTIAL DEFECTIONS OF FSU AND CLEMSON COULD SHAKE UP THE ACC...

As fall sports are set to begin in the ACC in less than two weeks, maybe just as big a story are the rumors flying around about ACC defections.  You'll remember...back in 2014 it was a defection (Maryland) that opened the door for Louisville to join the conference. Now, after a decade in the conference...the Cards and a dozen or so other ACC members are looking at re-alignment possibilities and defection possibilities again. 

Clemson and FSU see the dollar signs beckon and there is a lot of chatter out there that they'll chase them. Football seems to be the driving force here, and there is already speculation that if the Noles and Tigers hit the trail...California and Stanford from the dying PAC 12 might be knocking on the door, dressed in their Sunday best, seeing an invite to the ACC. Somehow, two west coast Pacific Athletic Conference schools in the Atlantic Coast Conference seems a bit odd to me...but I guess a decade ago...ACC purists thought that a city on the Ohio River being in the Atlantic Coast conference was weird, too. 

Why all this jumping around? It is all about revenue. Repeat and rinse. It's about moolah, greenbacks, benjamins, bank, folding stuff and loot. 

Maybe we shouldn't cast too much of a disapproving eye. After all, it was Louisville who went from MVC to Metro to C-USA to Big East to AAC to ACC...and the motivation wasn't centered around neat places to eat and colorful mascots. 

It was all about the dollars. As much as I am still confused to this day why West Virginia left the ACC to go to the Big 12,...I snap myself back  to the real world and remember why. Money. 

Joel Grey had it right in Cabaret when he and Liza Minellli sang about money. Scarface and the BrotherMob nailed it, too, when they rapped about money makes the world go around. Ig... f you listen carefully enough on a calm summer evening, you can hear Tom Cruise and Cuba Gooding shouting "Show me the money" in the distance. 

Athletics bring in a considerable amount of money to colleges and universities. Clemson and FSU, who have no qualms squawking about the "unfair" ACC dollar split, see more money potential elsewhere and...repeat it with me....money makes the world go around.

(Hi, Daddy. Classes are great but the coaches still don't know what conference we are in)

And, yes, football is the conductor of this money train. 

I was at a lunch recently with some UofL fans and friends of mine and we were talking about the travel snafus California and Stanford would run into...if they joined the ACC and had, for example...a three game conference road-trip to...let's say... Boston College, Miami and then Virginia Tech. Then, think about it for the Field Hockey or Lacrosse programs at these schools...instead of football or men's basketball.  

Of course, Hawaii does a bit of flying each athletic season for their 20 SPORTS PROGRAMS. Who knows...maybe they'll come out next week and proudly announce they,are joining the SEC.

Deion Sanders, head football coach at  University of Colorado gets it:

"All this is about money, you know that. It's about a bag. Everybody is chasing a bag. Then, you get mad at players when they chase it. How's that? How do the grown-ups get mad at the players when they're chasing it when the colleges are chasing it?"

Greed, it seems, should be a new elective for incoming freshmen in course-scheduling. Maybe Gordon Gekko can guest lecture.

Money is the most important thing on campus. And that's sad. But, it's real. College athletes, on the main stage, is all about greed, for the major programs within a college's athletic department. 

I  hope to be here, and not breathing dry air, five years from now. I can't even imagine what conference alignments will look like then.

 

I guess it's time to finally get rid of those old Big East Louisville sweatshirts I have. The ones that Sonja is always nagging me about ( "you never wear this anymore...I'm taking it to Goodwill...you need closet space")  and re-gear.  I used to get nice polo shirts from a certain source at a certain university. That cowboy has saddled up and rode off into the sunset, though. 

I just hope we don't change our logo. Last time I checked, we were the only Cardinals in the ACC. But, saay...is that Stanford coming down the road? Great...the old Cardinal vs Cardinals nickname conspiracy just might be ramping up again several notches...At least they have a crazy looking tree on their sidelines at times. All we got is some screaming intern with a microphone trying to get the crowd to clap their hands. 

Stay tuned...this soap opera could get real interesting...

Paulip

Jared Predicts Fall Sports Outcomes -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Jared Predicts Fall Sports Outcomes

We are 10 days away from seeing the first of the fall sports play on Floyd Street. Women's soccer opens their regular season next Thursday against Indiana State. Field hockey will have an early afternoon scrimmage against Bellarmine the next day. The volleyball Red and Black scrimmage follows suit the next day.

It's time to stir the pot and spark debate as we approach the respective seasons, I'll predict the outcomes of each season. 

Women's Soccer

Overall: 9-9

Non-Conference: 5-3

ACC: 4-6 ACC

Post-Season: None

Women's soccer has had some struggles and difficulties over the last several years, especially with offensive production. They do have a fairly easy non-conference schedule. None of this year's non-conference opponents finished last season ranked.

Women's soccer has already been engaged in a scrimmage this season...falling 2-1 at Miami (Ohio). 

The ACC is the premiere women's soccer conference. Five of the top six teams in the final polls last year hailed from the ACC and the conference had seven in the top 25 total. Not too many teams finished worse in the conference than Louisville, but the Cards do get to see a few of them on the schedule.

The ACC only takes the top six teams for the conference tournament, which I'm sadly predicting the Cards don't qualify for and their overall record and RPI isn't enough to get them into the NCAA Tournament.

Field Hockey

Overall: 11-7

ACC: 3-3

Non-Conference: 8-4

Post-Season: ACC semifinals, NCAA Elite Eight

Justine Sowry doesn't schedule an easy non-conference slate just because the ACC schedule is brutal. Instead, she makes it equally as tough with the mindset of getting better or losing. They'll have one of the top strength of schedules in the country again.

The Cards only have a couple of non-conference matches that are assumed wins.... but many of the matches are at home and Louisville has a knack for winning at Trager Stadium.

ACC play is as challenging as can be. Six of the seven ACC schools finished in the top 25 last season with the sole outlier finishing 30th in the RPI.

One win in the ACC Tournament (minus the 1-seed who gets a first round bye) gets you to the quarterfinals and three total wins earns you the crown. The top seed needs two wins to take the title. Louisville is more than capable of getting at least one win in the ACC Tournament.

An 18-team NCAA tournament makes it difficult to even qualify. Nine spots are automatic qualifiers and nine are at-large bids. There are two "play-in" games where the winners face the top two seeds in the bracket. Outside of those two games, any other team would need three wins to win the championship, so asking the Cards to win one game to advance to the quarterfinals (Elite Eight) seems more than fair to expect.

Volleyball

Overall: 25-3

ACC: 16-2

Non-Conference: 9-1

Post-Season: T-1st in ACC with Pitt, NCAA Final Four

Coming off a National Runner-Up finish and back-to-back Final Fours puts high expectations on this season. With a good chunk of the talent returning and all paid coaches from last year back on the sidelines, expecting a strong year should come as no surprise. There are a couple key pieces from last year's team that Louisville has to fill that can be the "it" factor with another great year. Dani Busboom Kelly has won over the hearts of Louisville fans in her first six seasons and this program has full faith she will continue to build on that success.

Louisville faces some stiff competition in the non-conference part of the season. Fortunately, many of those matches are at home and some are at the KFC Yum! Center. Anyone remember the turnout against a subpar Notre Dame team on a Wednesday night or the two matches against Baylor and Oregon in the NCAA Tournament? Give me 8,000-10,000 fans for a home court advantage.

ACC play seems to be Louisville and Pitt vs the rest of the field still. There might be a couple teams make a surprise run in conference play but it's still the formers' to lose. It's hard to imagine Louisville not finishing top two in the conference and with recent experience and success with some home court advantage possibilities, another Final Four appearance is easily doable.

Let us know your thoughts on how these fall teams will fare this season. Do you have higher expectations or lower? Do we see our first women's team at Louisville win a national championship?

Feel free to leave your thoughts and observations in the comments section. Or leave them bundled up on a doorstep with a note saying free to good home. Or tell them to that annoying cousin who has a contrary opinion to anything that is said...after all, today is National Dying to Know Day. 

Happy Tuesday and Go Cards!

Jared

Cards WSOC plays Miami Oh in exhibition -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 2-1 RedHawks win Sunday over UofL WSOC

And, so it begins...

Louisville WSOC made the trek to the University of Miami (Ohio) to engage in a women's soccer exhibition. Oxford, OH is where Miami is located...about two hours from Louisville and due north of Cincinnati. For nine months a year, the town had an influx over close to 20,000 college students

Courtney Sirmans (pictured above) is the RedHawks head coach, and her squad downed the Cards 2-1.

That's about all we know about The scrimmage, since neither university tweeted about it, put anything in their sports website or alerted the local media. And...that's the way it goes with exhibitions, as a rule. Sure, it's great to win...but getting a good look at players in multiple combinations and situations seems to carry just as much, if not more weight in scrimmages..

And, the RedHawks were 9-5-6 last year. Their record was better than the Cards  (Louisville went 6-8-2) so, I don't think anyone envisioned a blowout   either way. 

In my talk with Coach Karen Ferguson Dayes a couple of weeks ago, she stressed that the Cards needed to find more scoring than they had last year. Let's hope the exhibition doesn't show what the rest of the season might bring. It's early and Sunday's action will give the Cards coaches an idea of what they need to do and give them some insight into what went good...and what didn't.We also wonder if both the prized European freshmen (Viktoria Wik and Fiona Gaiber) have arrived stateside yet.

 

I was tempted to text Coach KFD and Coach Sirmans about the exhibition and get their thoughts on the action. But, since the SID's didn't go to the match, my rationale was that I might want to pass on it...this early in the season. After all, we depend on the SID's of the various sports a lot at Louisville.  Making a move without informing them can burn you -- I found that out early. 

We guessing that the Cards got most of the roster on the pitch today and given the high 80's temperature, that was probably needed.

 

11 days until the season opener...when Indiana State come in to Lynn for a Thursday night tussle August 17th. Plenty of time to learn more and fine tune some things that the Cardinals coaches saw yesterday.. 

It was Hunter Norton's first contest as an associate head coach. He served as an assistant coach for UofL since 2015.

Welcome to the start of the 2023 season, folks. We do hope you'll join the Cardinal Couple crew at Lynn Stadium this summer and fall. 

paulie

Gameday Ready -- SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Hello all and happy Sunday, 

(Daryl checking in to again to close out the weekend while Jeff is still floating off somewhere in the ocean enjoying his summer vacation)

I am winding down on another Bats season and looking forward to fall sports kicking off in the Ville. 

We are a couple weeks out from the start of the seasons.. What games and matches do you have your eye on?  Will you make it in attendance for any or catch them on TV?  How about on the road??  I always love making a trip out of town to support the Cards on the road.   Do you get together with other people and watch the games together?   How bout gameday snacks?  Got a favorite?

My answers:

I would like to make it to the Yum Center for the Cards vs UK volleyball match, will also be making the effort to attend the majority of the home football games especially the one vs Notre Dame. We actually moved our vacation back a week so we could make the effort to be there.  I also hope the Cardinal Couple gang can gather at another soccer match sometime soon and get the chance to see each other in person in 2023    Fingers crossed that we can make that one happen again.  Its always great to get the gang all in the same place.  

I also usually throw it out to the group chat if we will be attending/watching any games on TV and if people want to join/come over they are welcome.   My friends will tell you that I have to bring my buffalo chicken dip to the party or i am uninvited.  lol  

(and someone usually ends up throwing Paulie in the pool on road trips)

So do you have everything ready to go for another successful season?   Get some new shirts, jackets and hats, make sure you've got plenty of ponchos and rain boots and don't forget the sunscreen for any weather forecast! 

We want you have a healthy and happy experience out there representing.  

My go to online shop for UofL gear is below!!   There's usually a promo code offered when you visit the site. 

https://www.fanatics.com/louisville-cardinals 

Looking forward to another season covering the Cardinals! 

As always, 
Go Cards

~Daryl 

Louisville WSOC Kicks Off Fall Calendar -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Cards Head to Miami (OH) for Sunday Exhibition

Louisville women's soccer will get the fall season underway for Cardinal Athletics when they take on the Redhawks of Miami University tomorrow at 2PM. As we discussed last week, there isn't likely to be much in the way of coverage on this game, so we'll have to do our best to pick out what we can from various sources. We'll work to bring you as much on the action as we can.

Let's take a look at tomorrow's game from a historical perspective, though. Louisville, as we've discussed at length, is turning over a new roster (for the most part) as they look to improve upon a 6-8-2 mark from last season. The Cards were one of the teams that, a bit surprisingly, didn't see a major uptick in draws with the rule change. Louisville had a pair of 0-0 draws to close out the non-conference slate (at JMU and home against Indiana), but every game the Cards played in which a goal was scored saw a result, one way or the other. Louisville's 13 goals in the season were front loaded, with eight coming in their first four regular season games. It's tough to pull out draws if you can't score, and the Cards suffered only two of their eight losses by more than two goals. On the flip side, Louisville's three conference wins were all only 1-0 victories.

Enough about that. The Cards and Redhawks didn't play last season. In fact, they've not played since 2017. That 2017 game was part of an ok season that disappointed after a relatively hot start. Louisville went 6-2 in non-conference play, beating IU and UK on the road while losing to Purdue and Marquette at home. The real indicator should have been the 3-2 victory they escaped with in the opener against Boston University. The Cards' woes were compounded by another Boston school when they dropped the conference opener at Boston College. Louisville went just 3-5-2 in conference, missing the ACC tournament with a 2-1 loss at NC State after struggling for a point in a home draw against Wake Forest and stealing a point on the road at UNC in the two games prior. 

Before all of that (except the BU game) Louisville won the game against Miami (OH) 2-0 to take a series lead at 6-5. The Cards first played Miami in 1997, dropping the first game 1-0. The two teams are pretty evenly split, with both teams winning three road games and Louisville holding a 3-2 advantage in victories at home. Both the biggest win (3-0) and the smallest win (3-2) for Louisville have come in Oxford. That said, Louisville also has a 3-0 win (2005) and a 1-0 win (2009) at home. Emina Ekic and Gabby Kouzelos were both in their debut seasons for Louisville in 2017 after Kouzelos redshirted in 2016 and Ekic joined as a true freshman. Ekic had two shots on goal in 48 minutes in the Miami game. Gabi Vincent and Alison Price both played all 90 minutes and scored for Louisville. 

In 2022, Miami slumped a bit early after starting with a 0-0 draw against Austin Peay. They won on the road at Loyola Chicago 1-0 before dropping their next two against Wright State and Purdue. The Redhawks closed out their non-conference slate, though, with three straight wins. Two of those were on the road, with one coming in Louisville against Bellarmine. 

Miami ultimately finished the season 9-5-6, a fair shout better than Louisville. The competition was different, to be sure, but Miami was able to capitalize on the new overtime rule and finish more games tied than behind. Whether you agree with games ending in draws or not, I think we can agree that, since they exist, finishing tied is better than losing. Miami advanced to the MAC tournament after finishing the regular season 8-4-6, but they had to play their first two games on the road. After a 1-0 win against Ohio, they lost their rematch (0-0 tie in the regular season) against Buffalo 1-0. I wouldn't want to play in Buffalo, New York on November 3rd, so more power to them.

Miami Athletics: Makenna Morrison scored five
goals and added an assist as a sophomore in '22.

Despite the number of overall draws, Miami scored 21 goals last year, with 20 coming in the regular season. Only three of their six draws were scoreless, and five of their 20 goals came in games which did not see a winner. Miami also only gave up 14 goals, with 13 coming before the MAC tournament. Although the Redhawks are replacing all 1800 goalkeeper minutes from last season, they return their top five points earners and nine of their twelve points earners overall. The top five accounted for 75% of the team's 58 total points and 11 of their 21 goals. It is safe to say that Louisville's new look defense may have their hands full.

Regardless of tomorrow's outcome, it's exciting to be talking about games for Louisville women's athletics again. The summer, while it can seem so long in the midst of it, really flies by once you reflect on it at the end. We'll see what the women's soccer team can do with their spot at the front of the schedule before other teams get underway shortly after.

No Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

For various reasons (vacation, event travel, work), the majority of the crew is out this week. Let's look at it as the calm before the storm, as it should be our last week off from the show for quite some time as the seasons get underway. We'll be back in your feeds next week, barring something unforeseen.

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case

Returning to UofL Campus -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

FRIDAYS WITH DARYL 

Hello readers and hello weekend!! 

It is August which means Back to Schoooool!!  Not for me, I've already been on the campuses all summer and its been pretty quiet but now students and faculty are returning to begin another semester which we know also means G A M E S are on the horizon!!   We do not forget the term 'student-athlete' at here Cardinal Couple. 

I do a lot of onboarding for the university and get to meet and facilitate in the process of getting them on payroll, including coaches.   This gives me the opportunity to introduce myself and the site and welcome them to Louisville.  I also make sure they know the proper way to throw up the L's!!   

Because of this very busy time for our department, I unfortunately had to miss the annual Press Box golf scramble that I would normally attend to represent the site out at the University Golf Club.   This event actually was the reason I started golfing at all!   I couldn't say no and I am so glad I didn't because I'm proud to say 4 years later I now play a couple times a month, I'm not terrible, I have a good time, and I don't really lose any balls so I call that a bunch of wins! 

I did miss being out there this week and hope to get back out there next year and play with the coaches and other members of the media! 

Hey speaking of coaches..

 

Photo by Karthik Kalvakuri | Louisville Athletics

The University of Louisville was named as the preseason favorite to win the 2023 Atlantic Coast Conference Volleyball Championship for the second year in a row following a vote of the ACC's head coaches.  The Cards also place five on the All-Preseason team - Anna DeBeer, Aiko Jones, Phekran Kong, Charitie Luper and Elena Scott.   

❗❗ COMING UP ❗❗

8/19 RED and BLACK SCRIMMAGE

@ L&N Federal Credit Union Arena

Time is TBD on the schedule as of Thursday night 

(Actress/model Jana is a big UofL Volleyball fan)

You're also gonna wanna mark your calendars for the month of September, the VolleyCARDS have 5 matches at home with the big rivalry against that blue team and Stanford at the KFC Yum! Center in the same week.  

As always

Go Cards

~Daryl 

Getting to Know the Coaches: Swim and Dive -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Getting to Know the Coaches: Swim and Dive

We're back in action with getting to know the coaching staffs of our various Louisville women's teams. The fall only sports are gone but a few sports run through multiple seasons, such as the swimming and diving season, which begins late in the fall and runs through early March.

Arthur Albiero, head coach

Arthur Albiero has overseen the Louisville swim and dive program for 20 years. He helped the program rise to prominence with several top 10 finishes and a handful of individual national championships such as Kelsi Worrell Dahlia and Mallory Comerford. He has also served as the head coach for the Brazilian National Team during this stint.

During his early days as head coach, Albiero played a crucial role in the design and construction of the Ralph Wright Natatorium. The Natatorium continues to be one of the premiere swim facilities in the country for college athletics.

Before coming to Louisville, Albiero was an assistant at Alabama for four years. Before his days with the Crimson Tide, he had a decorated four-year career at Oakland.

Stephanie Juncker, associate head coach

Stephanie Juncker has been with Louisville since 2014 when she was hired as an assistant coach and was promoted to associate head coach in 2011. She has been with the Cards every step of the way in the ACC and has been the women's recruiting coordinator.

Juncker was an assistant coach at Arkansas for one season prior to Louisville and one year at Fresno State before that. She is a Louisville alum, swimming her entire collegiate career under Albiero and earning multiple Big East championships.

Nick Zorn, assistant coach

Nick Zorn is one of the newer faces on the coaching staff, joining Louisville in 2021 during the heart of the COVID-19 pandemic. He came to Louisville from Florida State, where he was an assistant coach for three years.

Zorn was a volunteer assistant at Alabama two years before that. He came to Alabama straight out of college after building a strong resume in his four years as a swimmer at Delta State.

Ryan Rougeux, diving coach

Ryan Rougeux came to Louisville in 2017 as an interim diving coach and was promoted to head diving coach in 2018. Since joining the Cards, the Louisville student-athlete divers have set numerous school records.

He was the head coach at Wright State for three seasons before coming to Louisville. He earned Horizon League honors during that time. Before his time at Wright State, Rougeux was a four-year diver for Centre College in Danville, KY. He also earned a Juris Doctorate degree from the Dayton School of Law in 2016.

We've been fortunate to get out to the Natatorium in the past to witness Louisville swimming and diving events and hope to get back out there again this season.

Happy Thursday and Go Cards!

Jared

2023-24 Louisville women's basketball: Some early thoughts -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 WILL WALZ'S "SOLID 10" SEE A FINAL FOUR AGAIN?

Some of my inspiration for articles comes from questions I get asked about various programs at UofL.  First of all, it's flattering that people think I know enough about the various programs to give them good answers. Or, sometimes...if I can't dazzle those who seek information with brilliance, I resort to baffling question-askers with bullshit. It worked for W.C.Fields...and It can get interesting.

I was recently asked what I thought the 2023-24 Louisville women's basketball squad might look like. We are fresh off the Canadian appearance, so we saw some early glimpses of what the Cards WBB might have in store for the ACC foes...and the fans. 

We do know (as of 8/1/23) that there will be 10 players dressing out for games and one probable redshirt (in Eseosa Imafidon). The way I see it, is six guards and four inside players..Knowing Walz he may just try to find a way to sneak Kasa Robinson into a game...she's a graduate assistant on the squad this year

(Season with Curry)

Jayda Curry will probably land the point guard role. The 5'6" Cal transfer was a good guard on a not-so-great Cal Bears squad, and comes along at just the right time. She's heads-up, a scorer (15,5 points a game last year) and she looked pretty efficient in Toronto earlier this summer. 

At the "shooting guard" or "2" spot, the competition looks to be between Syd "Swish" Taylor and Nina Rickards. Taylor thrilled us all with her output in Canada and she was in double figures her final three years at UMass. She's 5'9" and to those that were clamoring for taller guards this year, after Van Lith and Chrislyn Carr last year...sorry about that...chief. Rickards averaged 8 points a game at Florida last year and is a strong rebounder. 

The "3" or "wing" or :guard forward is the most intriguing aspect on the roster. You've got Merissah Russel, Eylia Love and Kiki Jefferson as contenders there.  Russell and Love know the Cards plays and experienced last year on the roster...Jefferson averaged over18 points a game at JMU and almost eight rebounds night  I would expect all three would see time on the court, and the thing is with six guards, you've got backups for the starting three, if foul trouble arises. In a 40 minute game, that's 120 minutes avalable at the guard slots. Walz could even go 20 minutes each for each one of the six...and totally throw opponents off kilter. 

Inside, I'm seeing Nyla Harris and Olivia Cochran returning to their starting roles, with Alexia Mobley and Hennie van Schaik as backups. Harris and Cochran were fearless rebounders for UofL last year and Mobley can jump out of the gym if she's fully healed. And, van Schail averaged almost a double-double last year in points/rebounds at Cal State Bakersfield...and that's a pretty decent backup to have. 

I would imagine Walz is going to have this team run, run, run and play a withering, pressured-packed defense to force turnovers. They did that quite well in Canada, with very little practice and I'm really excited to see how these ten look when the Cards go into conference play. 

The one major difference I think we'll see, also, is a cessation of everyone standing around waiting for "a certain player" to create or do something. That philosophy got Louisville 12 losses last year and a 4th place finish in the ACC  I think the playbook will alter a lot from some of the things we saw happen last year.

OF COURSE, this is all just speculation from me. Jeff Walz is one of the most brilliant minds in women's college basketball and he sees them every day in practice, knows the combinations that go together well and the opponents ahead. 

Since 2009, the Cards WBB squad has made the Final Four every four or five years, so -- if trends are the order of the day, it'll be 2026 or 2027 before the Cards return to the Final Four.. Phoenix (2026) or Columbus (2027). And, the Final Four returns to Indianapolis in 2028. 

It should be entertaining...this upcoming season for Louisville women's basketball. And it always is...and we'll have fun covering it...

Paulie

Syd Taylor and Team USA -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Photo courtesy of Jeff Walz's Twitter/X

Basketball in August seems like an odd time for the sport, especially with fall sports nearly upon us, but good basketball news is well worth sharing. Louisville women's basketball Sydney "Syd" Taylor has been with the Team USA U23 team and they have qualified for the Nation's League Final.

In the six days of competition and a grueling schedule, Team USA went 15-2. The teams would play a 21-style format where the first team to 21 or whoever was winning at the end of the time limit would win. Each day had its own tournament and Team USA won five of the six mini tournaments.

Taylor played in three of the six days and scored 52 points over nine games. Team USA won the mini tournaments in each of those three days.

Photo courtesy of USA Basketball 3x3

The current roster features Taylor (Louisville/UMass), Azana Baines (Seton Hall/Virginia Tech/Duke), Dyaisha Fair (Syracuse/Buffalo), Leilani Kapinus (Penn State), Madison Scott (Ole Miss), and Hailey Van Lith (LSU/Louisville).

Team USA will compete in the 2023 FIBA 3x3 Nations League Final in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia from Sept. 13-15.

Louisville will get Taylor for her fifth and final season of eligibility for the 2023-2024 season.

In other news, we welcome August today, which means we're officially in the opening month for fall sports!

Happy Tuesday and Go Cards!

Jared