Monday Cardinal Couple -- Lacrosse wins at Drexel

MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE


 TOURNAMENT NEWS:  Louisville WBB is a #5 seed in the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament and will face #12 seed Middle Tennessee on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. in the KFC YUM! Center. The other teams headed to Louisville are #4 seed Purdue and #13 seed Liberty. Jenny O'Bryan will have much more on this in the TUESDAY Edition of CARDINAL COUPLE. Get your tickets!


-Lacrosse goes to 7-1 with 9-8 win at Drexel

-Rowing gets four wins at Oak Ridge Cardinal Invitational

-Soggy softball stats

-Selection show tonight at KFC YUM! Center for Lady Cards

The University of Louisville lacrosse team once again overcame the elements and a worthy opponent with a 9-8 win over Drexel in Philadelphia Sunday.

The Cards started strong with freshman Kay Morissette scoring the first three goals of the game in the first eight minutes of play...a "hat trick" in hockey terms...to give the Cards a nice early advantage. The Dragons were not going to let Louisville dominate them on their home turf, however, and responded with three straight scores to knot the contest.

Monica Negron and Katie Oliverio returned the favor for UofL to give the Cards a 5-3 advantage with ten minutes left in the first half. Drexel roared back with three in a row to take a 6-5 advantage into the end of the first half.

Morissette found the back of the net six minutes into the second half to tie the contest and just 34 seconds later...fellow freshman Erica Eipp connected to give Louisville a 7-6 lead. Drexel countered with a score to tie it at the 22:18 mark.

Morissette had four goals for the Cards in the win.

Eipp broke free to regain the lead for Louisville and Colleen O' Malley added a goal with 10:39 left that had Louisville leading 9-7. The Dragons scored their final goal to draw within one with 7:10 showing on the clock. Solid ball control by the Cards prevented any Drexel scoring opportunities the rest of the way.

Freshmen Eipp and Morissette accounted for seven of the nine Louisville scores. The Cards held a 23-12 advantage on shots.

At 7-1, this is the best start in Louisville Lacrosse history and ties the best eight game stretch in Cardinal history also. The 2011 squad had a 7-1 stretch also.

Louisville returns to the road for a BIG EAST conference match for a 6 p.m. tussle against #11 Loyola (MD) on Friday, March 22nd. 

( Jeff McAdams has written a moving article about the tragic Seton Hill lacrosse deaths and posted a link to it in our Sunday comments sections. Please take the time to read it. Our hearts go out to the Seton Hill Lacrosse community and fans over this tragic and saddening loss of three lives.)

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Louisville rowing has started the spring season and kicked it off with the Oak Ridge Cardinal Invitational on Melton Hill Lake in Oak Ridge, TN. The two day event capped a week long spring-training for the team and saw Louisville compete against Virginia and West Virginia on Saturday morning, Duke and Eastern Michigan Saturday afternoon and Notre Dame, Kansas, Buffalo and Miami (FL) on Sunday.

Virginia is the 2012 NCAA Champs and Notre Dame won the BIG EAST championships in 2012.

The Cards won four races in the Saturday afternoon sessions. Duke won the other two. 

Louisville had five seconds in six events Saturday morning. Although the Cards did not beat Virginia in any of the morning events, they did beat West Virginia in all six.

On Sunday, the girls had four runner-up finishes in six events. Notre Dame won four events and Kansas the other two.

The Cards will return to Melton Hill on Saturday, March 30th to face Tennessee.

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Even though Louisville Softball got rained out Sunday and it's not looking promising for today...we managed to get some statistics for you on the Cardinals season so far. Louisville is 23-3 on the season and 11-0 in Ulmer Stadium.

BATTING

Batting Average                Hits                 RBI's

1. Katie Keller .476       1. Keller 35         1. Keller 27
2. Alicja Wolny . 444     2. Wolny 32         2. Ruckenbrod 25
3. Maggie R. .408          3. Maggie R. 31    3. Wolny 21


Runs Scored                      Home Runs       Walks

1. Keller 35                   1. Keller 7           1. Wolny 19
2. Wolny 22                   2. Wolny 6           2. Keller 16
3. Jordan Trimble 20     3. Maggie R. 4      3. (four with 8)


PITCHING

                        ERA    W/L   Games   Starts   BB   Strikeouts

Rachel LeCoq     1.07   9-1        16        11       11      42
Caralisa Connell 2.02   14-2      20        15       46     101
Smithson-Willet 99.00  0-0         1          0        0        0

Louisville is batting .344 on the season while holding opponents to .216 and has hit 24 home runs.

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Join Cardinal fans and the team tonight at the KFC YUM! Center for the NCAA Selection Show Viewing party. Doors open at 6 p.m. and the show begins at 7 p.m. Bouncies for the kids and face painting also!

Coach Jeff Walz will do his weekly radio show with Matt Andrews there as well...beginning at 7 p.m.

Should be a fun family-oriented event tonight. Several CARDINAL COUPLE columnists will be there as well and Jenny O'Bryan...back in Louisville after failing to make the Indiana Fever WNBA team...will have coverage in the Tuesday edition of CARDINAL COUPLE. 

Jeff and Jenny will attempt to keep track of Paulie
as he roams the KFC YUM! Center with a recording devicei...
the odds are he gives them the slip and ends up in trouble.

We'll also be roaming the stands and court to get fan and (hopefully) player and coaching reactions that we'll play on the Saturday radio show.  

This event has come a long way from the days when it took place in the Parrish House. Where will Louisville be seeded and who will be the opponents headed to Louisville for the 1st and 2nd rounds of action?

If you can't attend, the Selection Show will be on ESPN at 7 p.m. this evening.

Also, congrats to the UofL men's basketball team...a #1 seed, headed to Lexington for Thursday opening NCAA Action and the #1 see out of all 68 teams! Way to go, guys!

Paulie

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Friday Cardinal Couple -- The Derby Dozen

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FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE


-Louisville women's athletics has experience, success at the head coach level. 


-I'll Have Another has a close call Thursday morning.


Did you know that the University of Louisville has 12 women's sports that they compete at on the D1 level? 

Is this the UofL soccer coach?

Take a second and see if you can name all twelve. Then, after you've done that...count off how many that you've actually gone and watched in live competition. Finally, see how many of the 12 coaches -- the Derby Dozen, we'll call them -- you can name.  


Here's a short quiz on the current head coaches that guide UofL women's sports...and then we'll give you a list of all 12. Answers follow that.


1) Which UofL coach below played locally in high school in Louisville?


A) Sandy Pearsall         C) Arthur Albiero
B) Jeff Walz                 D) Anne Kordes


2) Which UofL coach has the longest tenure as a head
coach at Louisville? 


A) Mark Beckham         C) Kellie Young
B) Sandy Pearsall         D) Ron Mann


3) Which UofL coach was head coach at Massachusetts before taking the Louisville job? 


A) Laura Aubrey           C) Jeff Walz
B) Justine Sowry          D) Karen Ferguson-Dayes


4) What's the breakdown on the 12 coaches by gender?


A) 11 men, 1 woman    C) 5 men, 7 women
B)  4 men, 8 women     D) 3 women, 8 men


5) Which coach below did not win a conference title
in 2012? 


A) Anne Kordes             C) Jeff Walz
B) Sandy Pearsall          D) Arthur Albiero 


6) Which coach would have no use for a goalkeeper in their sport?


A) Arthur Albiero            C) Karen Ferguson-Dayes
B) Justine Sowry            D) Kellie Young


7) Which matchup below is incorrect?


A) Sowry & Field Hockey  C) Walz & Basketball
B) Pearsall & Softball        D) Moth & Water Polo


8) EXTRA CREDIT !!! Who was the softball coach at UofL before Sandy Pearsall? 


A) Tom Jurich                  C) J. Fred Muggs
B) Natalie Novosel           D) Art Vandoley


 (ANSWERS BELOW...KEEP READING) 


Here's a listing of the 12 coaches in women's sports at UofL and their years of service to the Cards: 


Basketball -- Jeff Walz ( 5 yrs. ) 
Cross Country -- Taryn Sheehan ( 1 yr. ) 
Field Hockey -- Justine Sowry ( 2 yrs. )
Golf -- Kelly Meyers Rothberg ( 12 yrs. ) 
Lacrosse -- Kellie Young ( 5 yrs. )
Rowing -- Laura Aubrey ( 5 yrs. ) 
Soccer -- Karen Ferguson-Dayes ( 12 yrs.) 
Softball -- Sandy Pearsall ( 13 yrs.) 
Swim/Dive -- Arthur Albiero -- ( 7 yrs. ) 
Tennis -- Mark Beckham -- ( 3 yrs. ) 
Track & Field -- Ron Mann -- ( 8 yrs. )
Volleyball -- Anne Kordes -- ( 1 yr. ) 

Is this the UofL water polo coach? 

The Cards are fortunate to have such a talented and caring group of individuals teaching and coaching the womens' athletes on campus. This time of year, they are busy planning for their upcoming seasons, holding clinics, evaluating talent for future teams and making sure their current athletes have a knowledge of what individual training and workouts they can do over the summer months to prepare for their events. 

Is this the UofL
swimming coach?

Coaching doesn't stop after the final whistle, buzzer or goal of the season. Hats off and a big thank you to the coaches and staffs who prepare the athletes we enjoy watching! Hopefully, today's article helped familiarize or remind you of the 12 individuals who have the title "head coach" of a women's athletic squad at UofL. Next time you see one of the "Derby Dozen"... thank them for a job well done!  Or, better yet...make a commitment to go out and watch his or her athletes compete in the 2012-13 season. 


(Now....to those answers!) 


1.  D. Anne Kordes played volleyball for her Dad here in Louisville at Assumption High School 


2. B. Sandy Pearsall has 13 years on the books as the Cardinal Softball coach. 


3. B. Justine Sowry was head field hockey coach at Mass. before taking the Louisville job. 


4. B. Jeff Walz, Ron Mann, Mark Beckham and Arthur Albiero are the four male coaches in the UofL womens' sports programs


5. C. Jeff Walz. The women's basketball team did not win the BIG EAST regular season or tournament titles last season. Wait until this year! 


6. A. Arthur Albiero's swimmers don't need a goalkeeper...but it might be an idea to use one to stop opposing swimmers from reaching the wall.


7. D. Louisville doesn't have a water polo team...but it might be fun watching Sean Moth coach if they did.


8. This was a trick question. Sandy Pearsall started the Softball program at UofL, so there was no head coach before her. Give yourself a point if you knew this. 




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(And now...our biting and sarcastic commentary on how well or poorly you did. Maestro, hit it!!!) 


8 correct =  Congratulations! You are now an honorary CARDINAL COUPLE "Know it All" (Like we don't have enough of those lurking around the site..)


7 correct =   Your really know your coaches! Grab your whistle and get out there!


5-6 correct =   Not bad. We'll put you on the list as a possible 'fill-in' if one of the staff chimps quit here at Cardinal Couple. 


3-4 correct =   Average. You need to pay a little more attention during the starting lineup introductions instead of watching Louie and the LadyBirds...


1-2 correct =  Welcome to your first visit to the world of CARDINAL COUPLE! See our intern Timmy for a guided tour. (He'll expect a tip, be forewarned...) 


0 correct =   You've stumbled upon this site looking for birds, haven't you? Stick around, if you like...you may just learn a thing of two and have a little fun! 


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Triple Crown contender I'll Have Another had a very close brush with collision and possible injury while training Thursday morning for the Belmont Stakes. Maybe they need a traffic cop or flight controller out there...


Link:


Close call for I'll Have Another
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..
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Cards women swimming freshman class ranked #7...Dream win...Cardinal rower named to Canada team...Lady Cards WBB to play at EKU.

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FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE...

-Freshmen swimmers ranked #7.

-Fawcett to coxswain Canadians.

-Dream down Liberty.

-Lady Cards to play at EKU

The University of Louisville women's swimming team's freshmen recruits have been ranked seventh in the nation by CollegeSwimming.com.  Louisville will have eight freshmen making a splash in the Ralph Wright Natatorium this fall...joining a team that won the BIG EAST Championships last season. The top ten rankings:

1) California
2) Georgia
3) Stanford

Lindsey LaPorte was a backstroke specialist
in last year's freshman class.

4) Texas

5) Virginia

6) Florida

7) LOUISVILLE

8) Auburn

9) Harvard

10) Minnesota

The Cardinals arriving:

- Tanjya Kylliainen (Towson, MD)
- Danielle Barbiea (Springboro, OH)
- Victoria Mitchell (Cary, NC)
- Abigail Chin (Columbus, OH)
 -Emily O'Neill (Freehold, NJ)
- Johanna Cowley (Grosse Point, MI)
- Erika Wozniak (Savannah, GA)
- Rachael Lewis (Wilmington, OH)



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The coxswain faces the rowers and gives them
instructions as they row...

Sophomore coxswain Ellen Fawcett will guide the Canadian National Team in the Would Under 23 Rowing Championships scheduled for July 20-24th in Amsterdam, Netherlands. As a sophomore at UofL this past season, she guided the second varsity eight boat squad to a second place finish at the BIG EAST Championships and three wins during regular season matches.

Fawcett is a native of St. Catherine, Ontario and received her training at the St. Catherine's Rowing Club...coached by former and current Olympic rowers.  

Rowing is a big activity in the province of Ontario...an area which has many lakes and waterways. To make the squad, Fawcett had to endure four weeks of tryouts against the elite of Canada. Being selected over the competition was a surprise for her.

The coxswain is in charge of a boat's direction and navigation. She faces the rowers and shouts out instructions as they row. Hmmm..sounds like my mother-in-law when she's in the car with us...

Good luck to Ellen in the World Championships!

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Angel got some help last night in
the Dream's six point win over New York.

The Atlanta Dream finally notched one in the win column last night, getting 27 points and 15 boards from Erika DeSouza and 25 points from Lindsey Harding in a 87-81 win. The Dream rallied from a 10 point 3rd quarter deficit to take a 62-61 lead late in the quarter and held on the rest of the way. 

Angel McCoughtry had seven points in 18 minutes of court time. The Dream (3-7) get a week off and will be bolstered by the return of Sancho Lyttle...who has been playing for Spain in the European Championships....when they return to action. Spain went 2-3 in the tournament and did not qualify for the quarterfinals.


It'll be interesting to see if Atlanta retains the services of Courtney Paris...signed to replace Lyttle over her five game absence. Paris has played solid ball for Atlanta and had six points and four rebounds in a reserve role at center last night for Atlanta.

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Another piece of the Lady Cards non-conference schedule has been fitted into place....Louisville will travel to Richmond, KY on Thursday, November 17th. to play the Eastern Kentucky University Lady Colonels. It will be EKU's opening game and the Cards first visit to EKU since 1990. Louisville did play EKU in 2005 in Murfreesboro, TN. during the MTSU classic...winning 75-45. The Cards are 17-8 all-time against the Colonels..

EKU head women's basketball coach Chrissy Roberts is excited about the impending matchup:

"Our team, our coaches and our staff are excited to host a program the caliber of Louisville. The Cardinals are one of the best programs in one of the best women's basketball conferences in the nation, and we look forward to playing them on our home court." she commented. 

Sara Hammond will have a
large following in attendance
for the Lady Cards game at
EKU November 17th.

Great chance for Sara Hammond fans to make the short drive from Rockcastle County to see the Cardinal freshman and EKU is only a two hour drive from Louisville, in case local Lady Cards fans want to get an early viewing of Jeff Walz's 2011-12 team. 

It's good to see that Louisville is making the effort to play some of the in-state schools in women's basketball besides Kentucky. WE still miss the annual matchup against Western Kentucky back in the days when Crystal Kelly (Sacred Heart) led the Hilltoppers. The two teams met seven straight years from 2000-2007 and WKU held a 4-3 advantage in these match ups.

WE'LL never forget the 2007 game at Diddle Arena in Bowling Green...a rowdy affair where hundreds of UofL fans made the trip to see Louisville beat WKU 76-60 in Jeff Walz's first year as Cardinal head coach. Four days later, the Cards travelled to Lexington and defeated UK 80-65 in a classic matchup at Rupp Arena. Angel McCoughtry left the game in the second half after getting smashed over the eye by a UK player going after a loose ball. 15 stitches later, McCoughtry returned to the court and helped seal the win for the Cards...
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Rowing ends season with 6th place finish

The University of Louisville women's rowing team finished their season with a sixth place finish in the South Region and 13th place standing overall in the competition in Oak Ridge, TN. The Cards were coming off a three week layoff since competing in the Big East Championships...where they finished 4th. The Big East competition was held in Worcester, MA.

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With the spring signing period now ended and still no word on Shoni Schimmel's college selection, the Cards will now wait and see if a letter of intent will surface over the summer months. Let's not forget the five incoming freshmen Louisville head coach Jeff Walz already has headed to campus. A brief introduction of each one follows...

CHARMAINE TAY. 5'10" Point Guard. Bloomfield Tech, NJ

Tay brings to Louisville a knack for getting the team into the transition game quickly and is good at controlling the pace and tempo. Can either put it up or distribute to teammates. A good rebounder. Tay will challenge for time at the point..where Dez Byrd returns, Rachel Story saw time last year and Shelby Harper filled in as a walk on. Tay was the 6th ranked point guard in the class of 2010.

SHAWNTA' DYER. 6'2" Post/Wing Marion Harding, OH

Dyer is a versatile front line player who can play all three spots. She's good at driving to the basket, can spot up and shoot the mid-range jumper and rebounds on both ends of the court. It should be interesting to see where Walz will use her...especially with the Cards lack of depth at the power forward and center spots. Dyer was ranked #12 at the wing in the 2010 recruiting class.

SHERRONE VAILS. 6'4" Forward/Post Arundel, MD

Vails has great arm span and is a shot blocking machine inside. Her height and length give her a superior rebounding advantage and she can score underneath pretty easily. She should be in the mix for playing time in the post...where foul prone Keisha Hines returns for her senior season or at the power forward spot..where Asia Taylor impressed late in the season.

ANTONITA SLAUGHTER. 6'1" Small Forward Christian Academy, Lou., KY

Slaughter is an all-around player who excels at scoring from the wing or inside, is a defensive stopper and reminds many of a young Angel McCoughtry because of her court awareness, ability to make impossible plays and sweet shooting touch. Whether she joins the battle for inside play or is designated to play the wing for Walz...she's one that will see plenty of time because of her many skills.

POLLY HARRINGTON. 6'0" Power Forward Hickman Mills, Kansas City, MO.

Don't let the height on Harrington fool you. She plays like she's 6'3" and is a ferocious rebounder and scoring machine in the paint. She can also hit the mid range jumper and her aggressiveness on both ends of the court will serve Walz's transitition style of hoops very well. She'll challenge for time at the power forward immediately and is a bona fide front line product.

This class has been ranked as high as #5 for 2010 and will provide the Cards the depth and skills to make a deep run in Big East conference play. Schimmel would be a great addition to this group...but even without her...it may be Walz's best job of recruting since he arrived at Louisville.

Written by Paul
5/20/10

#19 Rowing Cards get five wins in Knoxville

(Jordan Trimble smacked a two run double in the bottom of the seventh to give the Cards a come from behind 5-4 win over DePaul in Ulmer Stadium on Sunday. She also connected for her first home run of the year in the contest.)


The University of Louisville women's rowing crew defeated #17 Dartmouth in two events Saturday and gained three wins over Alabama on Lake Loudon.

"We have some things we must continue to work on as we prepare for our meet against Minnesota and Wisconsin...but I know we'll work the kinks out and make a good showing," Rowing coach Laura Aubrey commented after the contest. The Cards swept the varsity races and only lost with their novice crew...which is contining to improve, according to Aubrey.

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Jordan Trimble powered the University of Louisville's softball team to a 5-4 win in Sunday's final of the three game series. A big double in the bottom of the 7th inning, scoring Tesha Paysen and Melissa Roth proved to be the difference for the Cards, who lost the doubleheader Saturday to the Blue Demons. Trimble accounted for three of the Cards RBI's in the game, adding a solo homer in the bottom of the sixth to draw the Cards within a run of DePaul at 4-3.

Melissa Roth smashed two solo homers earlier in the contest for Louisville to complete the Cards run total.

Kristen Wadwell (11-7) went the distance for the Cards win. Louisville (21-12)travels to Providence for a three game series starting April 1st.

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Were you staying up nights wondering how the Women's Basketball Invitational turned out after Louisville bowed out in the first round to Bradley? Yeah, didn't think so...Just in case you can't live without the championship game result, though...Appalachian State defeated Memphis 79-71 Sunday afternoon in Boone, NC.

The Memphis Tigers led by three at halftime after squandering a 19 point lead early in the game and also surrendered a 7 point lead in the second half to the Mountaineers in the loss.

Former Lady Card Mary Jackson will suit up for the Tigers next year after sitting out her transfer year.

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Credit where credit is due to Matthew Mitchell's Lady Cats win a big win over #1 seeded Nebraska yesterday in the NCAA regionals in Kansas City. The Cats, led by the 1-2 scoring punch of A'dia Mathies and Victoria Dunlap advance to face Oklahoma Tuesday night to try and get to Kentucky's first ever Final Four appearance for the women's team.

We figured they were pretty good when they dusted the Lady Cards in Memorial Auditroium this season. And, Dunlap and Mathies both return next year. Seven of the final eight are just playing for second place, though...no one will get within 15 of UConn the rest of the way out.

Michigan State's head women's basketball coach Suzy Merchant's very accurate statement about the Kats after losing to them in Freedom Hall last Monday:

"They're the most physical team we've played in my three years here."

Just ask Keisha Hines or Asia Taylor, who bumped, banged and battled with the aggresive Cats in Lexington. Dunlap was the MVP of the SEC this year and Mathies the Freshman of the Year in the conference. Will Big Blue Nation rally behind the women's team...now that Calipari's Cats are headed home? Except the unexpected out of these overacheivers...they could very well knock off their next opponent...a very talented Oklahoma squad that sent Notre Dame home yesterday.

Sorry, Muffett. No chance to wear the leopard skin scarf on national TV again until November.

Written by Sonja
3/19/10

Cardinal women's golf finishes second in BYU Classic

As spring approaches the Louisville area, a young woman's thoughts drift to...golf, of course!

The Cardinal women's golf team, though, has been at it for quite a while this year and recently finished second in the BYU Golf Classic. Daphine Parker finished second overall in the event, just one Stroke off the lead. San Diego State won the event that featured other highly ranked women's golf teams like Nebraska and Fresno State.

Next for the Cards is the Bryan National Collegiate in Brown Summit, NC. beginning April 2nd and then the Big East Tournament at Palm Harbor, FL.

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The #19 UofL rowing team defeated Texas in the Longhorn Invitational over the weekend. During the two day event, the Cards went 3 out of 4 in varsity eight matches...also knocking off Kansas State and Oklahoma but losing to Texas.

The rowing Cards are headed to Knoxville next to face Alabama and Dartmouth on March 27th.

Written by Sonja
3/24/10