Softball announces fall schedule...Fastbreak Club update...Lady Cards off the court

.
THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

-Softball to face 4 opponents in fall

-Fastbreak Club update

-Great video of Cards Canada trip

Cards will look for a replacement for Chelsea's bat and glove

The University of Louisville softball team will face four opponents this fall at Ulmer Stadium. Sandy Pearsall and the team look to replace Chelsea Bemis and Colby Wherry on the left side of the diamond with six new recruits. The schedule:

SEPT 17th. Bellarmine (doubleheader)
SEPT 24th. Murray State (doubleheader)
SEPT 25th. Morehead (doubleheader)
SEPT 30th. Alumnae Game

The softball Cards return pitchers Tori Collins, Caralisa Connell and Chelsa Leonard and starters Jennifer Esteban, Alicia Wolny, Maggie Ruckenbrod, Taner Fowler, Kristin Austin, Hannah Kiyohara and get Jordan Trimble back from injury as they look to better last year's 38-20 record.

We like the fact that softball is also playing an alumnae game. Several readers have asked us why the women's basketball team doesn't have an alumnae game. We've posed the question to UofL's women's basketball assistant sports information director. Who wouldn't like to see Shoni or Asia try and shut down Angel McCoughtry? See if Angel Bradley, Sara Nord and Patrika Barlow could slow down Tia, Bria and Jude? Watch Connie Neal and Becky Burke exchange threes? Watch Mo move against Candyce? Make it so, UofL...

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

AJ...WE GIVE HER A 'THUMBS UP'
here at CARDINAL COUPLE.

Got a nice e-mail from Adrienne Johnson about the women's basketball Fastbreak Club. It's still alive and well and going through some minor adjustments and revisions. AJ promises to forward us the updates and information and we'll pass them onto you. The club is a great way to get the inside scoop on Lady Cards hoops and meet the players and coaches. We hope they'll also plan a few away game bus trips. Kentucky, EKU, and Cincy all within a two hour drive.

With the increasing popularity and success of Lady Cards hoops, we'd also like the see something like a Junior Lady Cards club for the young girls out there. You'd probably have to set a limit on enrollment. While we're speculating...how about a weekly television show with Coach Walz and Matt Andrews and/or Paul Sanderford? Both ideas could only continue to increase the popularity and recognition of the program.

Remember, you can't spell Paul without UL...are ya listening marketing?

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

WE found this video of the Lady Cards off the court during the Canada/Oregon trip. WE think you'll enjoy it. Click the link below. Thanks to Kenny for the scoop!

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=2332731960399

The guys describing the action...

TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE PRESENTS:


-Kelch and Sanderford call it as they see it for Lady Cards.


-Sara Hammond rolling along for Rockcastle County

-From the Mailbag
.
The University of Louisville Lady Cards women's basketball team goes into BIG EAST action tonight at 7 p.m. against #18 St. John's in the KFC YUM Center. Seven BIG EAST teams are ranked in the AP top 25 and (believe it or don't) Baylor has actually replaced UConn as #1 in a couple of polls we've seen.
.

At courtside for this game, like they are for all Lady Cards games, will be Jim Kelch and Paul Sanderford. They handle the play-by-play and commentary for UofL Womens Basketball and can be heard on 790 AM / 101.7 FM WKRD "Cards Radio". They are Sonja's eyes and ears when she listens at work or if the Cards are on the road. I'd put the two up against anyone calling women's basketball in any venue for their knowledge, game call and interaction.
.

Kelch began calling Lady Cards games when he was the radio voice for the Louisville Baseball AAA baseball team. Now in his 16th. year of UofL Lady Cardinal games, he is also now part of the Cincinnati Reds baseball broadcast team. Kelch calls a precise and detailed game, giving listeners a great "mind's eye" visual of where the players are on the court and ball movement.
He's not above making commentary on questionable calls or "no calls" at times during the action...but certainly isn't a "homer" nor does he show the biased and opinionated traits of a certain women's play by play announcer due east of Louisville. Professional, accurate and witty...Louisville is still lucky to have Kelch after his being "called up to the big leagues."
.
Joining Kelch is Paul Sanderford as color commentator. In his first year of Cards Radio, Sanderford is certainly no stranger to women's college basketball. The former women's basketball head coach at Louisburg College, Western Kentucky and Nebraska complied a 453-189 record in his career and is widely considered one of the top 25 women's college basketball coaches of all time. Sanderford offers commentary from a coaches' point of view, providing excellent breakdowns of patterns, plays, trends and tendencies. He also interacts well with Kelch on air and like Kelch, isn't afraid to point out controversial on court happenings. Baseball may have been his first love...and he was an All-American catcher at Methodist University...but basketball and Louisville are very lucky he chose the "orange" ball sport.
.
Adrienne Johnson resumes commentary duties when Sanderford can't make the games. The popular "A.J." handled the duties for several years with Kelch before assuming increased responsibility with UofL in the Marketing department and relinquishing her radio gig. A.J. will always be a favorite of ours at CARDINAL COUPLE...her skills on the high school. college and WNBA levels make her the perfect commentator from the player's aspect and you'll never meet a more friendly, caring and engaging person to be around....unless it's her mom.
.
Cards on internet can be a dicey proposition. Even though the WKRD website has a "Listen Live" option...whenever we've tried it during away games...we've ended up getting the FOX SPORTS Radio show that is on the air. That was particularly distressing when Paul was in St.Pete and the Lady Cards were in Vegas...but thanks to some website scrambling...the action out there was available from the other school's networks and Gametracker. You'd think the nation's leader in women's basketball home attendance would be able to put up an easily accesible inernet feed for the fans out of WKRD's limited range. Shell out the $$$$, Tom.
.
Occasionally, the Lady Cards get on TV. Tonight's game will be on CBS College Sports. WAZOO Network has done some TV broadcasts and Bob Valvano and Drew Deener normally handle those. Both are capable and they're like Oscar and Felix on the air...from what we've heard.
You determine which is who. Neither one can dunk. Deb Antonelli and some pretty boy in a suit usually do the Cards' apperances on CBS College Sports...
.
********************************************************************************************
.
University of Louisville women's basketball signee Sara Hammond recently led her Rockcastle County Rockets in the Greenville (TN) Ladies Classic tournament. They won first day action against South Greene (TN) 58-40...Hammond with 19 points. Next was North Greene (TN) and Hammond led the Rockets to a 66-37 win with 15 points. Mt. Juliet (TN) defeated Rockcastle County on the final day of play 60-47...holding Hammond to four points.
.
*********************************************************************************************
.
Bill the Goat sends these submissions up from the communications center deep in the bowels of CARDINAL COUPLE Central:

CARDINAL COUPLE:
.
Who do you think the most popular current Lady Card is? I like Monique Reid the best!
-Jessica (age 9) Louisville.
.
Thanks for e-mailing Jessica! We have our favorites, too. We decided to run a poll over on the left side of the site to see what the readers think. Vote for as many as you like if you can't narrow it to just one.
-CC
.
Paul and Sonja,
.
What are you hearing about Becca Greenwell out of Owensboro Catholic? Cardinal?
-Donna
.
The Catholic Church does not have women Cardinals. OK, all kidding aside...she's a top prospect in the 2013 class and Louisville, Kentucky, Duke and North Carolina have offered schollys. Tennessee, Purdue and Vandy are also showing marked interest. She hasn't named a favorite list yet. I'll see if high school recruiting guru Jody Demling has any more details next time I run into him.
-Paul
.
Oh wise and honored bearers of the UofL women's sports chalice:

.
Have you ever considered changing your site to a 'straight dot.com' instead of going thru Blogger? And, how about a little more men's basketball?
.
-Jack
.
Hiya, Jack!
.
We HAVE considered the switch to a 'dot.com' venue and will probably buy the domain name for Cardinal Couple in the near future. It's a step we won't go into without a lot of thought and deliberation, though. We're non-profit right now and any expenses are easily covered by our sole advertiser...PANERA BREAD. Going to 'dot.com' costs...and we'd have to go with a different site engine probably and other things we're not really sure that we're ready to add to the soup yet. We experienced tremendous growth in 2010...almost 350,000 "hits" in a 12 month period and the baby has become a adolescent. BLOGGER has been good to us, we're comfortable with the posting, design and setting formats here, and we've never been knocked out of commission for several days because of 'hackers' that have invaded other 'dot.com' sites we know... In short, how big do we want to be? It's never been a prime directive here. We're tickled when people tell us they access our site or greet us in person. We never imagined this growth when we first started...
.
As far as men's hoops, we do occasional pieces over here. Shannon of CD is always good about adding stuff and Paul does articles on the guys over at CARDINAL DOMINANCE and UOFL CARD GAME from time to time. Until we can get a media pass from Kenny Klein, though...we'll be content to watch the games from the corner of the YUM and cheer, have that occasional beer and skip the media buffet for nachos...
-Paul
.

Cards fall short in NCAA Field Hockey bid

Wednesday CARDINAL COUPLE:

-Field Hockey fails to make NCAA Tournament

-Volleyball's Juhl selected BIG EAST Freshman of the Week

-Women's Basketball prepares for Tennessee

-Who's the guy with Jim Kelch?

The selections for the NCAA Field Hockey Tournament were released Tuesday evening and one prominent name was left off the field of sixteen.

The University of Louisville Field Hockey team won't be participating in the event. Finishing with a record of 16-7, TEAM CARDINAL was passed over in the selection process and their season is now over. We at CARDINAL COUPLE felt that the Cards had a good shot at being one of the "at large" picks to make the field but the BIG EAST got only two teams into the field while the BIG TEN is sending four schools to participate. Also faring well is the ACC, with four headed to the Big Dance.

The case for Wake Forest getting in is interesting. They finished 10-9 on the season. The Cards played six of the schools selected for the tournament, splitting two games against Connecticut, defeating American University but falling to Maryland, Ohio State, Syracuse and Princeton.

Louisville's two losses to end the season, a 6-0 defeat to Maryland and a 2-1 loss to Connecticut in the semifinals of the BIG EAST Tournament probably figured heavily in the selection committee's decision.

Still, it was a good season for "The Flock" and Pam Bustin has a solid nucleus of returning players to pick up the sticks and go to the goal for next season. Team leader Nicole Youman and her scoring abilities will be missed, as well as other seniors Tuli Lim, Rachel Hollenbach, Simone Attles, Karah Nall, Nikki Auker and Jenna Ahern. The Cards do have goalie Erin Conrad returning, as well as key players Hayley Turner, Amber Thomas and Haley and Lacey Jurich.

We watched the selection show on line at the NCAA site and wondered what the criteria was for selecting the "host" for the program. It became evident early on that the young lady handling the broadcast duties had very little knowledge of Field Hockey...Kinda like me trying to explain macro-economics. To 3rd graders.

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

Emily Juhl has grabbed her second BIG EAST Freshman of the Week honors this season for her outstanding play against Pitt and West Virginia. Juhl had 23 kills in the two matches...along with seven serving aces against the Mountaineers. The Cards are assured a berth in the BIG EAST volleyball tournament in Pittsburgh Nov. 19-21 along with Cincinnati, Notre Dame, Marquette, and Villanova. Eight teams are still in the hunt for the final three spots. The regular season ends this week and the Cards are on the road for games at Marquette and Syracuse.

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

Jeff Walz has the Cardinals working hard for the Friday night women's basketball game against Tennessee. 22,000 tickets have been distributed for the contest. There is word on campus that several hundred of these tickets were distributed to UofL students at no charge, plus a $5 food voucher. CARDINAL COUPLE has received several inquiries about the availability of tickets for the game. As far as we know, none are left to sell at the ticket office. The contest will be shown on a delayed basis on CBS College Sports at 9:30 p.m. Friday night.

Walz will have to contend with the defensive minded Vols Friday night. Head Vols coach Pat Summitt was none too happy about the Vols giving up 60+ points in their 50+ point win recently. She has stressed that the defense needs to pick it up and the Cards will need to have their offensive game on early against the full court pressure they'll most likely run into.

Who will start for Louisville? No early starting lineup has been released yet but if WE were to make a guess...look for Shoni Schimmel, Tia Gibbs, Asia Taylor, Sherrone Vails and Keisha Hines to get the nod. It all depends on who works the hardest and does the best in practice...so our prediction here could be way off. Regardless of who is on the court for the opening tip, expect the Cards to throw numerous combinations and players at the #4th. ranked Volunteers.

*********************************************************************************************
Jim Kelch has returned to handle the play-by-play radio duties for Lady Cards basketball again this season. Kelch's call is one of the best out there and he spent the last eight months in the announcer's booth calling Cincinnati Reds' games. With Adrienne Johnson concentrating on marketing duties...who was the guy sitting next to Kelch doing the color commentary for the contest? We saw Adrienne before the Indiana Wesleyan game...but forgot to ask.

It is no other than legendary college coach Paul Sanderford. WE originally reported on this site that it was Charlie Just (information provided to us by someone in the UofL S.I.D. office). It is not Just. It's Walz's ex-coach and one ofthe sharpest minds in women's college basketball.

We'll miss the insightful comments and breakdown of the action that "A.J." provided. Her WNBA experience made her an expert at analyzing the action on the court. Paul has some big shoes to fill and we missed his "on air" debut against Indiana Wesleyan but his knowledge of the game is pretty huge and we're sure he'll do a fine job along with Jim.

University of Louisville women's basketball broadcasts can be heard on WKRD 790 AM/ 101.7 FM.

Crunching the Lady Cards numbers

MONDAY MORNING @ C.C.



-Dissecting the Lady Cards win

-The mailbox

-Sonja and the Bear

Top of the morning to you as we start another week of covering the joy and excitement of Cardinal women's sports. Shelby Harper, pictured right, saw seven minutes of action in the Saturday 67-42 Louisville win over Indiana Wesleyan in the KFC YUM Center. Harper dished out three assists, grabbed a rebound and missed a three pointer during her time on the court. She also had a steal and got whistled for a foul. All in all, the game was a chance for Walz and his staff to look at quite a few player combinations.

The freshmen logged 97 of the 200 total minutes on the court...Sherrone Vails with 22 minutes, Shawnta Dyer with 21 and Antonita Slaughter and Shoni Schimmel getting 20. Charmaine Tay played 9 minutes and Polly Harrington contributing 5. They accounted for 35 of the Cards 67 points, Vails leading the way with 12. They grabbed 17 of Louisville's 34 rebounds and dished out 7 of the 20 assists.

Last year's starters (Monique Reid, Becky Burke, Shelby Harper, Keisha Hines and Asia Taylor) were on the court for 76 minutes. Hines and Reid saw 18 minutes each, Taylor 17, Burke 16 and Harper 7. They tossed in 27 of the Cardinal points, Reid with a game high 15. They snagged 12 boards and were credited for 7 assists.

The other three who saw action (La Toya Johnson, Tia Gibbs and Rachel Story) played 27 minutes. Johnson on the court for 11, Gibbs 10 and Story 6. They accounted for 5 points, all by Gibbs. They had one rebound each and 4 assists...three of those to Gibbs.

Statistical leaders were:
-Points- Monique Reid with 15
-Rebounds- Asia Taylor with 6
-Shots- Reid, going 6 for 9
-Fouls- Vails with 4
-Turnovers- Taylor with 5
-Assists- Schimmel with 5
-Steals- Slaughter had 3
-Blocks- Dyer swatted 2
-Free Throws- Tay went 2-4, Reid a perfect 3-3.

Louisville scored 23 points in the first half and 44 in the final half. They shot 36% in the first half (9-25) and 60% in the second half (18-30). The Cards sunk 8 of 15 free throw attempts and went 5-12 from three point range. 10 Cardinals scored in the contest. Harper, Johnson, Harrington and Story went a combined 0-4 from the field and attempted no free throws.

As you can see, very balanced and equal distribution of playing time and point production in this win. Just for comic effect, Steve Martin was one of the three referees. That wild and crazy guy!

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

The mailbag was pretty full when we returned from Gatlinburg Friday night. Thanks to John, Charles, Beth and Eddie for safe and fun trip wishes. WE were safe...and had a great time. Harry, we disagree with you in your comments about Louisville Softball not getting a fair shake here at CARDINAL COUPLE. It's the off-season currently for them and we'll have tons of softball coverage when Sandy Pearsall's season rolls around. Lori Korte, assistant S.I.D. for softball does a great job in getting us information on the sports she is responsible for (as does Kim Pemberton) and I'm sure she'll clear a spot for us in the press box for any home game we attend. Hang in there, Harry.

Michael...We were wondering about Adrienne Johnson not doing color commentary as well for the Lady Cards basketball games this year also. Fortunately, she stopped by to talk with us on press row during the Indiana Wesleyan game and told us that she was concentrating on trying to make the Uofl Marketing Department the best it could be and saw her responsibilities there as a definite career advancement opportunity. A.J. still looks like she could go out and drop 20 on an opponent. She is a joy to be around, with that big smile and witty banter. Show her the money, T.J. You got one fine representative for the University in Ms. Johnson.

Didn't get a chance to hear Jim Kelch's call of the game and not really sure who was with him on the broadcast (forgot to ask) but there will be plenty of time for that during Cardinal road games this year. Louisville women's basketball can be heard on 790 AM/ 101.7 FM WKRD. CARDS radio.

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

While in the Great Smokies and Gatlinburg, we got to do a lot of fun things. We enjoyed dinners at the Greenbriar Restaurant (great steak and trout), The Best Italian Restaurant (out of this world pizza and lasagna) and also created a few fun and tasty meals with the gang at our cabin. We loved our couple of trips to the Mountain Lodge for breakfast...heaping helpings, low prices and excellent coffee. It's where the locals go. Dolly Parton's DIXIE STAMPEDE took up one evening for us. Overall, I rate it a 5 out of 10. Way too much commercialism and glitz. The food was plentiful and pretty basic. The show is OK...they really hype the North vs. South thing.
We sat on the North side and our side lost in the numerous, staged competitions. I really didn't care one way or another.

We also did several hikes. The walk to Clingman's Dome is always a challenge, the view from Laurel Falls very impressive, Ramsey Cascades a strenuous, demanding hike and Hen Wallow Falls a rough and rocky climb and descent. It was during the Hen Wallow Falls trip that Sonja and Anne encountered the bear. We were on the way back from the falls, about a 1/2 mile from where we had parked...Sonja and Anne about 40 yards ahead of the rest of us on the trail.

All of a sudden (as Sonja describes it):

"We rounded a bend on the trail and out in a small clearing to the left of us...maybe 30 yards ahead...a pretty big black bear rushed out in front of us on the trail, gave us a quick glance and bounded off into the brushes and trees to our right. We stopped in our tracks and waited for the rest of the group to catch up with us. After waiting a few minutes, we continued as a group...slowly...but didn't see the bear again."

This isn't Sonja's first encounter with Yogi. Several years ago, she and I encountered a massive black bear on the hike to Andrews Bald in the Smokies. The bear was about 50 yards ahead of us on the trail when we rounded a bend in the switchback and he (or she) showed no signs of fear or willingness to move on. We stood our ground and so did the bear. The bear sauntered down the trail a few yards toward us, maybe out of curiosity...and after a couple of minutes... slowly strolled off into the trees and down the hill to the right of us. This bear was considerably larger than the bear Sonja saw last week. Kinda like Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher compared to Cardinal guard LaToya Johnson. Not saying LaToya looks like a bear. She's a cutie.

Urlacher...yeah, maybe.

Bears...can't live with them or, seemingly...without them when in the Great Smokies.

Women's Basketball releases game times

WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE:

-WBB releases game times for 2010-11 schedule

-Angel arrives in Hungary

-Some thoughts on 2011 recruiting

-And then there is this from UofL...




With the cool air this morning, thoughts turn to basketball. The Lady Cards have released game times for their 2010-11 schedule. Let's look at some of the highlights. Junior Becky Burke (pictured here) and the rest of Jeff Walz's squad will take to the KFC YUM! Center floor for their first opponent, Indiana Wesleyan, at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, October 30th. The exhibition game shouldn't interfere with UofL football on the road against Pittsburgh later that night. Might be a good time to check out the surrounding restaurants and bars surrounding the arena following the contest and make it a downtown Louisville afternoon and evening. The regular season kicks off on November 12th. against Tennessee. The Friday night contest begins at 7:00 p.m. and will be shown nationally on CBS College Sports. Louisville will also appear on CBS College Sports in a match up versus St. John's on January 4th.

ESPN has the Lady Cards hooked up for two contests. They'll show the January 9th. game against Pittsburgh on ESPNU at noon. The West Virginia game gets ESPN2 at 5:00 p.m. on Feburary 13th.

The BIG EAST network has the Cards appearing once. They'll face Rutgers at 6:00 p.m. on January 29th. It'll be shown locally on WHAS-11. WAZOO Sports Network will televise Shoni Schimmel and the gang four times. They've booked Southeast Missouri State on November 19th. at 7:00 p.m., Kentucky on December 5th. at 2:00 p.m., Cincinnati on January 22nd. at 7:00 p.m. and DePaul on Feburary 23rd. at 7:00 p.m.

WKRD Radio (790 AM/101.7 FM) and their network affiliates will handle all of the Cards on the radio. We're assuming Jim Kelch will return for the play-by-play and Adrienne Johnson continues handling her unique stylings of color commentary. Love these two!



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



The Angel has landed. She's arrived for Euro hoops in Hungary and will suit up for MKB-Euroleasing Sopron. McCoughtry will team up with former Middle Tennessee and WNBA standout Amber Holt. They play their first game October 28th. Hopefully, Angel will still be able to return to the 'Ville for the hanging of her jersey in the KFC YUM! Center during the November 12th. game against the Tennessee Lady Vols. If you are good at translating Hungarian, you can read more about it at http://www.wb-sopron.com/ There are a lot of pretty pictures on the site.

Frankly, though...it gave me a headache. And Angel & Amber will most likely give opponents the same.

The team is excited about the addition of the two and re-taken the team photo to include them. McCoughtry and Holt engaged in one of the most exciting battles between two scorers that I can remember in Freedom Hall a couple of years ago. Pairing them together should make Sopron unstoppable.

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



Who is Jeff Walz recruiting for the 2011 class? A reader recently asked this question. Here's what we know. Quaneisha McCurty and Sara Hammond have verballed to the Cards. Walz has also recruited players from Seattle, DesMoines, France and Germany but no word on them yet or what year they'd be arriving. We wonder what the interest level is on Jude Schimmel...Shoni's younger 5'5" sister who will be the point guard at Portland (OR) Franklin this year. She's still uncommitted and may be waiting to see how big sis does here at the 'Ville before deciding. The synopsis on her is that she's a talented point guard who can direct the offense and fill up the hoop but her size might be a hindrance with some of the more elite D-1 programs. I don't buy it. Remember Sara Nord? Patrika Barlow? Angel Bradley? Jessica Huggins? They weren't giants but they were quite capable at Louisville.



What I do wonder about is how she'd fit into the current logjam on the Louisville roster at the guard position. The Cards lose only Toya Johnson to graduation after this year at the guard spot. That means Shelby Harper, Becky Burke, Nikki Burton, Rachel Story, Charmaine Tay, Tia Gibbs, Shoni Schimmel, Antonita Slaughter and maybe even Dez Byrd return to the front court.

Then, there is the transfer factor. The Lady Cards have had 2-3 players transfer out of the program each of the three years that Walz has been here. Girls looking for playing time. And getting it at programs other than Louisville. With Keisha Hines being the only other senior on the roster...one has to wonder just how many spots will be available in 2011-12? And, the Cards only have two juniors on the roster as well...Becky Burke and Monique Reid.

It's way too early to guess and speculate but I'll offer that McCurty and Hammond, plus one more (to be named later) restock the Walz roster to 16 jerseys. Don't forget Cierra Robertson Warren gains eligibility for the 2011-12 season and it's possible Byrd could return.

After last year, this multiplicity is a good thing to have. As long as it doesn't get into problems and attitudes about playing time and roles. As Denny Crum is fond of saying, it's better to go too long in recruiting than too short. With Walz's depth in this area, he's nailed one 350 yards down the middle of the fairway.

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

Interesting things going on with the recent announcement that Rick Pitino is taking a year off from his televised weekly coach's show on WHAS TV and that Terry Meiners will no longer be doing the show or asking Pitino questions at halftime on WHAS TV broadcasts of UofL men's basketball games. Hey, I guess even Jay Leno and David Letterman take breaks from their shows occasionally. Of course, Pitino isn't quite as funny as those two. Rick knows what is best for Rick.

I'm still waiting for the phone call to step in and take the show over. Deener? Flash in the pan...

As far as it goes with Meiners, I used to contribute occasional entries to his web site under the alias of "Your friend -P" Even got the chance to talk with him once or twice, albeit briefly and very generally. Then, there was that whole messy incident with him and Bill the Goat last year at the St. Stephen Martyr summer picnic. Terry is a wonderful guy, dedicated to this community and our signature charity...The WHAS Crusade for Children. My late father loved that charity, loved the telethons each year. He even liked Meiners...'that guy on the radio who smokes a crooked pipe so he can blow smoke up his own a$$' according to Pops.

I doubt Meiners will have to apply for unemployment insurance because he lost this gig.

Meiners is a comedian. A funny guy. He has also been critical over the selection process for seats in the new KFC YUM! Dawntown Arena. What did he expect...for Jurich to grin broadly and welcome him to UofL related broadcasts with open arms? You catch more flies with honey that you do with...well, you know the saying. And, I'm getting tired of putting an exclamation point behind YUM! also...Eric Crawford and et al...

Sonja got in hot water once, at another site...because she made a remark in an article about a former coach's spouse. She was subsequently banned from doing the 'YMCA' dance during timeouts at UofL women's basketball games for 2 weeks. Fortunately, the Cards were out of town on a road trip during the suspension. And, she didn't win the John Deere riding lawnmower either last year when her name was drawn as a final participant at one of the games. She still carries a grudge. And I still have room in the garage for that elusive white whale. Oops, green whale. Are ya listening Hartland Equipment? Can you hear me now?

Coincidence? I think not. You see, there is this massive conspiracy plot down at UofL to silence all media and communications about the program unless Tom Jurich authorizes it with the secret handshake, word, repetition of the loyality oath and ceremonial "Cards First Down" signal. Been that way since he got here. Yes, I'm sure that's right. Doesn't matter if it is positive or negative. They've been spying on CARDINAL COUPLE for quite some time now...I see them out there in the taxus bushes. They tap my phones, follow me to work and tell fast food cashiers to give me incorrect change at the drive thru windows. They make it difficult for me to cross the street from the Parrish House before UofL football games. That guy who stopped by yesterday to give me an estimate on tree removal. He was a UofL secret service agent. I'm sure of it. We've been on double, secret probation with the university since John L. Smith took the head football coaching job. Oh, yeah...it's going on. Meiners is in on it, too. And so is Lachlan McLean. Maybe even Becky Burke. I may dig out my UK hat and t-shirt and wear them to Churchill opening day.

Please...people. Quit making this an issue. Things change. What once were vices are now habits. Terry Meiners will still continue to be the funniest guy and clown prince of Louisville media. Tom Jurich is still the best athletic director in the nation. And if Rick Pitino needs a break from TV, so be it. Quit wasting time on this. Randall Cobb is getting ready to tweet again....

I'm still waiting for that phone call to host the show. And why not offer the UofL women's gig to Meiners? I'd be proud to be his co-host. Even if I still have more hair than him. And Sean Moth.

A "Q and A" with AJ

(We offer this break from the mind numbing and more information that we probably needed to know trial pitting the U.S. vs. Karen Sypher.)

Pictured to the right is a photo that Adrienne Johnson may have forgotten about. Taken around the turn of the century, it only goes to show that she was a pretty foxy lady back then, too.

You know A.J. The broadcast commentator for University of Louisville women's basketball. Spot on and informative descriptions. Not afraid to tell it like it is...whether the news is good or bad on the court.

CARDINAL COUPLE decided to put the full court press on her and find out a little more about her for you, the readers. As you'll read in the paragraphs below, she handled the press easily and took it straight to the hoop and scored...just like she did back at Butler, Ohio State and the WNBA. Enjoy!

C.C.: Tell us about your other duties at the University of Louisville.

A.J: My primary job responsibilities are to market women's basketball. That includes advertising, community outreach, game day promotions and media spots. I also serve as a women's basketball mentor and oversee some volleyball.

C.C.: Tell the readers about your time in the WNBA.

A.J.: It is cool for me to be able to say I was one of the trail blazers for the WNBA. I played eight years (Cleveland, Orlando, Connecticut and Seattle) from the time the league started and it was probably the most amazing and rewarding eight years of my life.

C.C.: Who was had the biggest influence on your life?

A.J.: My mother.

C.C: Name three people that you wouldn't mind being stranded on a desert island with.

A.J.: Oprah Winfrey, Barack Obama and the cast of Law and Order Special Victims Unit.

C.C.: If you weren't here at UofL, what would we find you doing?

A.J.: Day trading the foreign exchange market and futures markets.

C.C.: We're sitting down with you for your favorite meal. What are we having?

A.J.: I love Hispanic and Cuban food! Saffron rice, black beans, quarter chicken cooked on a open flame grill.

C.C.: What's the craziest or strangest thing you've seen while doing a broadcast?

A.J.: The opposing team's radio person eating an entire large pizza during a broadcast.

C.C: What about A.J. and coaching?

A.J: I believe in giving back to the game that has given so much to me. I love to have a coaching influence at the middle school level.

C.C.: If we were riding to work with you, what are we listening to in the car?

A.J. I enjoy a variety of music so my radio station is usually set to a station that plays Top 40 music.

C.C.: How do you see the fortunes of the Lady Cards this season?

A.J.: We have a lot of talent this year. We have returning players that have improved their game tremendously and a Top 5 recruiting class that will join them. Jeff Walz should enjoy the depth he will have...assuming everyone stays healthy.

C.C.: If you are granted three wishes, what do you choose?

A.J.: My mom to receive a kidney transplant. To have eternal good health. Women's basketball to win the National Championship.

CARDINAL COUPLE thanks Adrienne Johnson for taking the time to share a little bit about herself with our readers. Be sure to give her (and her mom) a big hug next time you see them.

Bowling next for Kentucky High School sports?

(Excerpts from this article were taken from Jason Frakes article in the Louisville Courier-Journal 5/20/10)


There's a new commissioner for the Kentucky High School Athletic Association and he's ready to start counting strikes. Not the ones that baseball and softball tossers across the Commonwealth fire into catcher's mitts...the ones hurled down wooden lanes in Kentucky bowling alleys that knock down ten pins

Julian Tackett will have bowling installed as the newest sport in the KHSAA since fast pitch softball (1995) within the next two years and is going to make it one of his top priorities during his first few weeks on the job.

What's next? Archery and bass fishing?

Actually, both activities are approaching 20% participation in Kentucky high schools, the benchmark for an athletic activity to be considered for formal sport/championship status

It's not like bowling is anything new around the Louisville area. There's actually been a state high school bowling tournament held since 1992, sponsored by the Kentucky Bowling Proprietors Association. 58 schools have bowling teams and last year Louisville Pleasure Ridge Park won the girls title. 19 of the teams come from the Louisville metro area.

I've known plenty of bowlers who have participated in the high school ranks and several who have parlayed that success into partial college scholarships. Kentucky has several nationally recognized and ranked collegiate teams, including the ones at Bellarmine University, Pikeville University and Morehead State University. The sport teaches many of the same things that other high school sports do...teamwork, practice, competition, good sportsmanship and learning from instruction.

For the KHSAA to consider putting bowling into the official ranks of sports where an official state-championship event is held brings up some interesting possibilities:

-Will there be a class system, like exists in football? Does a large school, like PRP or Manual have an unfair advantage in the sport...compared to a smaller school like Trimble County or Dayton?

-When would the season take place and how would events be scored? Total pins, total games won, handicaps inclusion and transfer rules...will they be included?

-Will schools now need to hire bowling coaches and will they be required to be certified teachers as well?

-Will there be referees and halftime breaks for the participants? And will cheerleading squads be allowed to attend, perform and raise crowd support?

I always figured that lacrosse or field hockey would be the next official sport added to the current list of 19 sports sanctioned by the KHSAA but it looks like bowling may be rolling ahead of it.


A couple of things for sure about the impending sport inclusion in the KHSAA fold...beer frame definitely won't be an option and the rest of the state will do their best to beat and belittle Louisville area schools...like we see in all the other 19 sports. We'll probably have that same sad and sorry debate about creating separate public and private school divisions and there will be official equipment and uniform rules and regulations.

It's enough to make you throw a 7-10 split...but not quite persnickety enough to send me to Bass Pro Shops for my high school approved regulation tackle and reel.

Bowl on, Kentucky...and make sure the oil pattern is uniform for all events.

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

Adrienne Johnson has reminded me by e-mail that there is still one more chance to see Angel McCoughtry and the Atlanta Dream in the Indianapolis area for this WNBA season. Discounted tickets are available for UofL fans to go see the Dream take on the Fever on Aug. 6th. For more info...you can always shoot A.J. an e-mail at:


adrienne.johnson@louisville.edu

Based on the way the Dream has been playing lately...winless since the All-Star break, Angel could use all the support in the seats she can get. Remember, if you go...watch out for the speed traps on I-65 around Sellersburg...