A.D. (after Dyer) What lies ahead for the Lady Cards?

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THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

- Louisville A.D. (after Dyer)

One had to wonder how the Louisville WBB squad would deal with the season-ending injury to stand-out sophomore forward Shawnta Dyer. The Washington State Cougars were headed into town...fresh off a win over #20 Ohio State and Louisville dealing with a loss in Boulder to unranked Colorado. Even though the venue was the KFC YUM! Center, where Louisville rarely loses...the most cautious fans were wary. Was it the beginning of a Cardinal tumble out of the national rankings nest? After all, Dyer shone brightly last year against WSU in Pullman with 16 points...a game where the Cards had to battle back from a nine-point halftime deficit.

Put away the crying towels and step away from the ledge. These Cards are going to be just fine.

Let's take a look at how our newest columnist here at Cardinal Couple...Quentin Voigt saw it. Quentin comes to the site with an out-of-town view perspective..the Oregon resident's thoughts are below:

Cortnee Walton, a 4 star rated recruit out of  high school just six months ago, played well and weith grit and vigor against WSU. She flat hustled,  from patrolling the lane and blocking shots to jumping out on the wing, changing the trajectory so that shots harmlessly bounced off the rim into Cardinal hands. Seven points,  five rebounds, a steal - a veteran  performance by a freshman playing in her first semester for a highly ranked D1 program.

Megan Deines, a gem of a find, also a freshman, with merely a three-star rating out of high school, logging 26 minutes as a starter. Megan's stat sheet shows nine points and a team-high eight rebounds (almost a double-double) while handling the ball extensively and confidently bringing it down court.

Sophomore Jude Schimmel steady with ten points, three rebounds, a three-pointer. Another sophomore, Bria Smith 13 points, four rebounds, six assists, three steals and yet another sophomore in Sara Hammond, who led the Cards with 18 points, seven rebounds, two assists, and a three-pointer played with energy - holding nothing back. Hammond's three and her whirling dervish finish on a layup in the second half received the most in style points. The three, after being surrounded by WSU players, extracting the ball from their clutches, rising up as the last seconds ticked off the shot clock. Hammond let loose one of the prettiest arching three-balls I've ever seen. No rim, all net.

The next generation. Youth is serving the Cards very well.

( A great take on a huge Cardinal win, Quentin! Welcome aboard! We look forward to your "long-distance" take on Cardinal hoops the rest of the season...  Shawnta Dyer will be missed, make no mistake about it, but the cupboard is far from closed when it comes to capable Cardinals controlling the court.)
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