Wednesday Cardinal Couple -- Tournament and Softball

WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

-NCAA Women's Championship Pick 'Em Guide (or...How I stopped worrying and learned to love the 'Madness')

-Softball Cards defeat Iowa 6-4

A picture of a bracket

One of the most common complaints I hear (besides not remembering to spray wash my own undergarments and that I snore) is from people who would enter a NCAA Women's Basketball Pick 'Em contest...but aren't real familiar with the teams. Not even Coach Walz is familiar with all the teams. Request denied, sir! Fill out a bracket.

So, today...I will offer sage wisdom, prudent decisions, a few upsets and uncalled-for advice on how you, too, can have a satisfying NCAA Women's Tournament Bracket Pick 'Em. Remember, one man's lock is another man's upset...so don't be afraid to go out on a limb from time-to-time.

Paulie's Rule #1 - Your FINAL FOUR SHOULD READ: Baylor, Stanford, Notre Dame and Connecticut. Anything else is just wishful or moronic thinking.

Paulie's Rule #2 - Play CLOSE attention to where teams are playing the early rounds. Besides the four mentioned above, the majority of NCAA Women's Basketball teams don't do very well too far from home. It's a "village" thing.

OKLAHOMA CITY REGION

Put Baylor in as winning and work your way backwards. Who will they face? The logical (and popular) pick seems to be Tennessee. This is a good "Great Eight" start...but you might want to consider Syracuse and UCLA in place of Tennessee.

I am not scared of Prairie View, Princeton, Liberty, Central Michigan, Stetson, or Oral Roberts. ( I am maybe scared of oral surgery...or wearing a stetson in public.) Creighton may be a dark-horse candidate to uphend Syracuse and Middle Tennessee is a good, not great team. So is Louisville, according to Jeff Walz. I went with Baylor, Louisville, UCLA and Syracuse as the four teams to advance out of the first and second rounds. Yes, Tennessee is playing in Knoxville (let the hate e-mails begin) but I was very impressed with Syracuse this season and like their toughness. I also like pretty balloons and the Three Stooges.

SPOKANE REGION

Write in Stanford (in pencil) as the FINAL FOUR participant in this region but take a close look at these four contenders. South Florida, Villanova, LSU and California. Warch Gonzaga, because they are playing in Spokane (their home town) They'll survive the first round against a good, not great Iowa State squad. They could even advance against a middle-of-the-pack Georgia team who is travelling a long way to be in Spokane.

No fear of Green Bay (unless Aaron Rodgers decides to play), Tulsa, Montana, CalPoly or Fresno State. A great match-up in the first round here is Texas Tech, at home in Lubbock, playing South Florida. But, South Florida went on the road and defeated Louisville in front of the 10,000 rowdy UofL fans. I doubt there will be that many in Lubbock...unless they offer free barbecue.

I have Stanford, Gonzaga, LSU (playing their first two in Baton Rouge) and California in the regional in Spokane. I think Stanford will probably survive...but it wouldn't surprise me to see South Florida or California advance to New Orleans. If Cal-Poly gets there, I'll buy every reader a new laptop...(with Jeff's VISA Card). Pending approval.

NORFOLK REGION

You know the routine. Write in Notre Dame as the winner in the bracket and also scribble in Texas A&M as the team they beat to get there. There are other excellent teams in this region, but they won't advance. Colorado will fall to the Irish. Duke will barely lose to A&M. DePaul will give Duke a test..but lose in the second round. Unless they have cloned Anna Martin and both the clone and the original play. 

Dead zombies...UT Martin (no realation to Anna), Iowa, Kansas, South Dakota St., Chattanooga, Wichita State and Hampton. (I do like the Hampton breakfast bar, though.) I'd love to see Doug Bruno's DePaul squad down Coach Joanie P's Blue Devils and almost picked them. Could be a upset special. I ended up with Notre Dame, Colorado (who beat Louisville in the regular season), Texas A&M and Duke as the teams meeting in Norfolk. Irish eyes will be smiling.

BRIDGEPORT REGION

It's a shame Connecticut has to do such extensive travelling to make the final four. Storrs and then Bridgeport. Maybe they'll go by way of Bristol. Most are liking Kentucky to play them in the final of the GENO Bridgeport regional. I'll offer St. John's, Delaware and maybe even Dayton as possibles to see April Fools Day still alive in Bridgeport. Kentucky did not win the SEC Tournament. That honor went to Texas A&M. Kentucky travels to play in Queens, NY to open the first and second rounds. St. John's is from Queens. I agree with CARDINAL COUPLE reader Joe Hill on one thing...my "uber, outrageous, what's he thinking?"  upset special is St. John's over Kentucky. (Quick, bring my meds!)

Teams that won't need long hotel reservations are Idaho ( a shame they had to travel across country to play UConn) St. Joseph's ( who will need baby aspirin after meeting Vandy), Marist, Quinnipiac, Albany and Navy. The first round match up with Dayton and St. John's will be classic. Delaware and North Carolina will be a close one, too. I have Connecticut, Maryland, Delaware and St. John's going to Bridgeport. The Huskies raise a leg on the Terrapins and Red Storm and trot off to New Orleans.  

FINAL FOUR

I'm leaving you on your own here. I can't spoon-feed everything to you, you know. Baylor won it all last year. Notre Dame came in second. Go from there and good luck in your selections.  Both teams have their best player back.

The CARDINAL COUPLE NCAA Women's Tournament Pick 'Em closes on Saturday, March 23rd. when the first game begins at 11 A.M. All picks need to be in by then. Leave your choices in the comments section or e-mail them to:

cardinalcouple@insightbb.com

Good luck, we hope you play and remember for the tie-breaker you need to give us TOTAL NUMBER OF POINTS you think will be scored in the final game. First prize in a $25 Chili's Gift Card. If there isn't a Chili's in the area you live in...move immediately. Or, if you win...just let us know. We'll think of something to substitute. Maybe Bill the Goat's latest CD. Or an afternoon of watching Quentin throw paper wads at a trash can. A guest spot on our radio show.

Also, remember to put your name on your entry. Duh!!



"Whaddya mean Syracuse has no guards? Sir, you are a
moron! And your socks don't match!"

(You can get brackets to fill out at NCAA.com and the Courier-Journal has a nice one in the Tuesday edition. ESPN.com has them, too.) If you want to e-mail your bracket directly us, that's fine...be advised that IF we don't send a confirmation to you that we got it, we may have not received it. We are quite technology challenged.)

Games begin Saturday, March 23rd. at 11 a.m. EDT. The contest is purely for entertainment purposes and Cardinal Couple is a non-profit entity. That ought to keep the CC laywers happy campers.

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Louisville softball bounced back from the Monday loss to Iowa with a Tuesday win at Ulmer Stadium over the visitors 6-4. The Cards found the bats early in this one...touching the Hawkeyes for four first inning runs.

Katie Keller singled and eventually scored when Whitney Arion was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to make it 1-0. Taner Fowler cleared the bags with a deep double and Louisville was up 4-0.

UofL increased the margin to 6-0 in the fifth inning, picking up two runs on just one hit. Jordy Trimble was safe at first on a Hawkeye fielding error and Alicja Wolny was walked. Trimble touched home on a Maggie Ruckenbrod single and Wolny followed when Arion reached on a fielder's choice.

The Hawkeyes fought back late...two runs in the sixth brought in Caralisa Connell to relieve starter Rachel LeCoq. Iowa added two more runs in the seventh but could not fully close the gap. Le Gran Le Coq gets the win and is now 10-2.

Louisville (24-4) takes on Indiana today at 6 p.m.at Ulmer. TV available on this one in case you can't attend...WHAS 11.2 and the accompanying Insight and Comcast numbers...whatever they are. The BIG 10 tour continues.

Paulie

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Wednesday Cardinal Couple -- Softball tops 'Toppers 7-2

WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

-Ruckenbrod, Keller, Kiyohara key Cardinal 7-2 win

-Lacrosse heads to the Motor City for Detroit match

- Notre Dame 61 - UConn 59 BIG EAST FINAL.

-Whatever happened to ????


Louisville Softball improved their season record to 21-3 Tuesday with a 7-2 win over Western Kentucky Tuesday at Ulmer Stadium. Stepping up with key performances for the Cards were Maggie Ruckenbrod (three hits and one of them a home run), Hannah Kiyohara (three hits and two RBI's) and Katie Keller (homer and triple).

Louisville got on the board in the bottom of the first with Keller's blast over the left field fence, her seventh of the year. Alicja Wolny singled and scored on a Kiyohara single to lead 2-0.

The Cards increased the advantage to 4-0 in the third. Ruckenbrod drew a walk and scored on a Kiyohara double. Jennifer Esteban singled with two outs to score Kiyohara.

Make it 5-0 Cards after the fourth. Keller's triple off the right field fence started the inning and Jordan Trimble hit a fly to center to score KK.

After a two-run top of the fifth for the Toppers, Louisville finished the scoring when Wolny reached on a fielder's choice and Ruckenbrod pounded her second base-clearer of the year over the left field fence. 7-2. Cards win! Cards win!

Caralisa Connell went seven innings for her 13th win of the year...striking out five and allowing just three hits.

The Cards return to action Friday in the Louisville Softball Classic. Two games Friday, one on Sunday and one on Monday.

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Lacrosse searches for their sixth win of the season today when they engage Detroit at 2 p.m. Louisville is coming off a 23-1 victory over Presbyterian Saturday. The Titans (1-5) lost to Niagara in overtime last Thursday.

Louisville has the leading goals-per-game performer in the BIG EAST with Nikki Boltja (4.0). The cross and net Cards are fifth in the nation in scoring, scoring margin and seventh in draw controls. 

Looks like an easy afternoon for Kellie Young and the crew against the Atlantic Sun opponent. Detroit head coach Laura Maness was selected National Lacrosse Conference Coach of the Year in 2011.

It's 2013. Cards win by as many as they want with Young getting the backups some valuable game experience in the second half...

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MArkie MArk, a huge UConn fan, is sad that the Huskies
fell in the tournament. Cheer up, bro! U still headed to
the Dance!

A very exciting finish in the BIG EAST Championship game Tuesday night! Skylar Diggins stole an errant Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis pass, drove the length of the court and found Natalie Achonwa under the basket and for a score with a second to go...giving ND the 61-59 win over Geno's Huskies.

Beating a quality opponent three times in one season no small feat. Hats off to the Irish and let the pre-St. Patrick's Day Party commence.

Hats off, also, to CURTIS FRANKLIN, who was one of three Cardinal Couple Pick 'Em contestants to get all 14 games correct. His entry preceded CARDINAL COUPLE'S Sonja's picks by eight hours and 24 hours before also-undefeated Nick B....so he wins the $25 Chili's gift card.

Billy Ray dances to the new that Curtis has
won the CARDINAL COUPLE Pick 'Em!

Curtis, a regular reader and commenter here at the COUPLE, lives in Southern Indiana and works for a grocery store...in case you're looking for a free meal. He's a huge Cardinal sports fan in general and also roots for Floyd Central High School and the Atlanta Dream. Angel is his favorite all-time Lady Cards WBB player and his current favorite Card is Bria Smith...

Congrats, Curtis! I'll have the loaded potato soup and a burger!

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The Horizon League has announced their All-Horizon League honors and junior RACHEL STORY, of the UIC Flames, has made the All-Newcomer team.

Asia, Shoni and LaToya Johnson were all teammates
of Rachel's at UofL.

Remember Rachel? She was a Card for two years from 2009-11 before transferring to University of Illinois-Chicago and sitting out a season.

She averaged 15.6 ppg and was sixth overall in the league. She had eleven 20 point performances...getting six of them in the Flames last nine games. Her 451 points so far this year and 168 made field goals rank 11th on UIC's single season leaderboard.

Glad to see the ex-Card doing so well. The guard who came out of Milwaukee is playing a little closer to home now and doing well.  

(Thanks to reader Kenny S. for the find on Rachel Story.)


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Also, the Kentucky High School Girls Sweet Sixteen Tournament starts today in Bowling Green. Good luck to all the contestants. Marion County goes in undefeated and the odds on favorite to win the events.

GET YOUR TICKETS!

Paulie

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Monday Cardinal Couple -- Will Irish Eyes be Crying?

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MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

GAME REPORT

It was a smackdown in South Bend...Notre Dame taking a 10-point halftime lead and expanding it to a 93-64 whipping of the Lady Cards Monday night.

As Coach Walz mentioned in the post-game, if you don't rebound, defend or play with toughness...you're not going to win. All three were missing tonight.

We'll have the post-mortem in the Tuesday edition of CARDINAL COUPLE.



- Cards, Irish battle tonight in WBB

(Quentin Voigt brings us his views on the UND v. UofL matchup tonight at 9 p.m. on ESPN2. Paulie follows with comments. Should be a good one!)

The owner of the impish smile, patrolling the sidelines of a game has the ideal name befitting the coach of the Fighting Irish. Although I've never had the chance to interview the legend, Muffet McGraw has never left the top spot on coaches I'd like to do an interview with. The 2001 NCAA Women's Basketball Championship Trophy, runner-up last year, second in all-time wins and a perfect 100% graduation rate in 26 years at South Bend. I could go on and on.

To say she's tough under the lacquered finish requires hyperbole. Her knowledge of the game and will to win have been put hand-in-hand with the yearly battles with Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma. History-making battles.

We're lucky to have her on the sidelines. Coming out of a recruiting trip on September 11, 2001...she was slated to be on one of the airplanes that left Boston and ultimately ended up being hijacked into one of the World Trade Center towers.

She missed that flight. Fate? Divine providence? Sometimes, there are things that happen for a reason.

Her main tour-de-force is Skylar Diggins. All-Everything, Diggins averages 15.8 ppg and is the best guard in the BIG EAST, if not the nation. Natalie Achonwa grabs 9.1 rpg a contest for an Irish squad that rebounds very well. Notre Dame averages 19.6 assists a contest, 79.9 points, has 259 steals and 108 blocked shots. Jewel Loyd is a three-point threat.

I'm looking forward to watching and enjoying this one regardless of the outcome.

-Quentin Voigt

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An epic battle tonight in many aspects. There are questions, yes...so many questions. At least from the fans that are anticipating this matchup. Can the three-headed defensive trio of Bria, Jude and Shelby slow down the "Digs"? Who will counteract Achonwa on the glass? Can the Cards go on the road, in a hostile environment and get a signature win? What color shirt will Jeff Walz wear?

To answer these, one by one...Probably not, nobody, doubtful and white with long sleeves.

So, how do you beat a team that has won 17 straight this season, is 22-1 and is fourth in the nation in scoring margin, third in scoring offense, second in the Associated Press Poll and has lost only once in seven games in the Jeff Walz era at UofL?

You take the air out of the basketball.

You borrow the Villanova vs. Notre Dame game film from Harry Perretta and study it like you're cramming for a mid-term sociology exam. Better yet, you buy the extended DVD version on Blue-Ray which shows how South Florida took them to overtime in a three-point loss and how Connecticut came in and downed them by one at the Joyce Center.

You hope Shoni doesn't have a 3 for 19 night, that Sara can stay out of early foul trouble and Nita shows the consistency she's displayed all season.

The Irish will come at you with unrelenting, hurricane force winds. Diggins, Loyd, McBride, Achonwa, Wright. 
 
Any of these Irish would start anywhere in the nation and all five of them are capable of dropping 20 on you as easy as a chimp peels a banana.

You must weather the storm, create a disturbance of your own and hit free throws and layups (if you get any.)

You walk in with confidence. You are on a business trip. You don't get caught up in the 9,000 or so that will be cheering against you. You remained focused and composed. And...you pray.

The Irish came into the KFC YUM! Center last year and broke open a close first half with a 68-52 win. Gone are Peters, Novosel and Mallory, who accounted for 30 of those points...but the Cards shot a paltry 31% in that contest and went 2-16 from beyond the arc.

Louisville's last win over UND came during the magical 2008-09 season when they knocked off the Irish 71-66 in South Bend.

The whole women's basketball world will be watching tonight, courtesy of the four letter network's deuce channel providing the broadcast. Beth Mowins, who we like here at C.C., has the call. If Bonita Spence shows up as a ref on the court...I'm heading to Mulligans to drown my sorrows. If it's Dee Kanter, I'll send her an extra whistle via rush courier...

Are you ready, Lady Cards?

-Paulie


( We'll have a summation of the results after the contest here at CARDINAL COUPLE tonight and Sandy Walker takes a holiday from the laundry and will have a full-game report in the Tuesday edition of CARDINAL COUPLE. Go Cards! )

Monday Cardinal Couple -- Staff predictions on the Louisville WBB season

MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

-Staff predictions on the upcoming Lady Cards in the BIG EAST

We asked our staff writers to join Sonja and I in predicting how Louisville would do in the BIG EAST this year. Here's what we came up with:

(Note: the majority of these came in after the loss to DePaul)

We also tossed in a tie-breaker. What color shirt will Coach Walz wear Tuesday night against Rutgers?

Paul

I predict a 13-3 record in the BIG EAST for Louisville. I see losses to UConn, Notre Dame and Syracuse. The Cards will win several very close ones (I thought we'd squeak by at DePaul by 2-4) but I see double-digit losses to UConn and Notre Dame. The Syracuse game is one I put a lot of thought into. It's the final game in regular season play and we're 1-3 up there lifetime. The 'Cuse could be battling for a tournament berth by then and they might just squeak by us in that one. In order for me to go 13-3, we better win.

Walz will be in a white, long sleeve dress shirt Tuesday night. Lookin' GQ.


Sonja

10-6 is what I come up with. I predicted the loss at DePaul. We beat them in the KFC YUM! Center. I also see losses to Notre Dame, UConn, Rutgers, St. John and at USF.

Coach is in a red shirt Tuesday.


Jeff M.


I'm tempted to wait until Sunday to turn this in, but I'll go ahead and step out on a limb.

I think we drop 3 games. UConn and Notre Dame and DePaul. I think we've got a chance to win one of these, but my prediction is that we lose three.

I think we also could drop one somewhere else, but I'm not sure where...maybe to DePaul again if they're a little more healthy. Of course, I hope we're healthy then too.

On Walz, I'll go with a light blue thin vertical striped shirt.


Sandy

I show a 12-4 BIG EAST record. I also start with a loss as I would have picked last night's DePaul game as a win for us. If for no other reason, out of loyality and being hopeful.

I don't feel good about us on the road this year and with both UConn and Notre Dame on the road, I show losses in home arenas at Hartford and in South Bend. I predict a split with USF winning at home and losing in Tampa. I also show a final season loss at Syracuse. Hope I am wrong about the Syracuse loss as even with a good Big East Tournament this would particularly hurt our NCAA Tournament draw, which we don't need after finally receiving home games in the first two rounds.

(No shirt selection by Sandy. She's busy enough, we surmise, with her own weekly laundry concerns.)


Jenny

I am going 13-3. Louisville loses the rest of the way to UConn and Notre Dame. I had a wild hair we could beat Notre Dame, then Dyer went down and ND beat UConn. Maybe if we have Asia back by then...we can give ND a run for their money.

(Jenny did not have a shirt selection for Coach either. We interpret that to mean she thinks he'll go shirtless, in order to create a diversion for the Rutgers players and C Viv.)


Mark

I'll say we will go 11-5 with losses to UConn, Notre Dame, Syracuse, Villanova and South Florida. We had to rally last year to beat USF at home. Play them twice this year -- most likely will lose the road game.

Walz wears a black shirt against Rutgers.


OK, there you have it. We've laid it on the line for all to see. Got a different take on it? Feel free to leave a comment or e-mail us at cardinalcouple@insightbb.com

(We should note, in all fairness, that Timmy the Intern turned in a 0-16 selection, but had Seton Hall scrawled across it. Bill the Goat made 11 marks with his hoof in the dirt. Co-Co just handed us a picture of Shoni and then started jumping and running wildly around the CARDINAL COUPLE conference room. Darn chimps!)

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NOTE: This is the 1200th post for CARDINAL COUPLE.  We'd like to thank our writers, staff and readers for their
patronage and loyality. We had a top-five hit count on Sunday's article about the DePaul game. We appreciate you!
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Wednesday Cardinal Couple - Big East play begins

WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

-Louisville WBB nears BIG EAST Conference schedule

-Football Cards play in Sugar Bowl tonight

( Jenny O'Bryan brings us the Wednesday Edition of CARDINAL COUPLE. We're glad she's feeling better and back on the laptop!)

With the New Year comes conference play.  Big East play starts on Saturday, January 5th.      

Below is a link to current Big East standings along with the schedules of each team, thus far. Louisville is 12-2 going into the Saturday matchup and will look to avenge a 86-61 loss that the Blue Demons stuck on the Lady Cards the last time the Cards visited McGrath-Phillips arena in Chicago. The Blue Demons had five in double figures in the rout, routinely beat the Cards in the transition game all night and Katherine Harry grabbed 20 rebounds in the dismantling.

http://www.bigeast.org/portals/5/fls/19400/stats/wbasketball/2012-2013/confsked.htm

This will be the last time in the foreseeable future that Louisville will face some longtime rivals in Cincinnati, Connecticut, Rutgers and BIG EAST schools Providence, Seton Hall, Georgetown, St John's, Villanova, Marquette, USF and DePaul.  

 

Seven of the fifteen teams are already in to double-digit wins for the season with only Connecticut remaining undefeated.    The rugged play of the Big East is upon us.  For all of you who have been worried about the “soft” out of conference schedule, well, no more. 

Atop the conference, as has been historically typical, is Connecticut.  Syracuse, Notre Dame and Louisville round out the top 4.   This conference ranking is based on W-L percentages, so, I expect things will readjust very quickly as we get in to conference play and the competition steps up for a lot of teams.  For instance, Syracuse is off to a 12-1 start, but has played no top 25 teams.   I am not saying they are not good, just that so far this season, they do not seem to have been very tested. 

Saturday’s line up of games to kick off Big East play provides the opportunity to watch some really good basketball.  There are 5 games to open the conference, and likely the toughest of the day to be UConn vs. Notre Dame, to that in a minute. 

As we know, Louisville travels to DePaul to face the Blue Demons at home.  Coach Doug Bruno spent his summer as an assistant to the US Women’s Olympic team.   While the Blue Demons are currently not ranked, they are getting votes and are always very, very dangerous at home.  Look for veteran players, Kentucky native Anna Martin (senior) and Katherine Harry to provide the biggest challenges to the Cardinals. 

In what may be the marquee matchup for the day, depending on whom you ask is Notre Dame at Connecticut.   Notre Dame graduated 3 of their starters in Novosel, Mallory and Peters.  While returning Diggins and others, their lineup took a big hit to graduation.  The flip side to that, Connecticut graduated only Tiffany Hayes and added the # 1 recruiting class in the country in Breanna Stewart, Moriah Jefferson and Morgan Tuck.  After Connecticut’s rout of Stanford this past weekend, I look forward to watching this game and seeing this rivalry matchup early in the season.  Looks to be nationally televised, too.  So, catch it on TV at 4:00 and then tune in to Cards Radio to listen in on the Louisville game at 6:00 p.m. 

Providence will face Georgetown, Seton Hall will face Pittsburgh and Marquette will face Syracuse in the other 3 games in the Big East. 

It is time to buckle up Cards fans.  Big East play is here and things are about to get a lot tougher for our Cardinals.  I think they are up for the challenge, but no opponent can be overlooked!

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Finally, in other news, Louisville Football plays tonight in the Sugar Bowl.  While Cardinal Couple dedicates it coverage to primarily women’s sports, rest assured that we are all rooting for our Cards in Lou Orleans!  Check out any number of our favorite sites (on the left side of the page) for all your football coverage.   As Cardinal football fans like to say, “Get on the train”.  This is a big time game, on a national stage. Cards a 14-point underdog. We have nothing to lose. Go, Teddy, go!

Stay classy, Lou Orleans, stay classy.  Go Cards!!

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Finally, in the "News of the Weird" department, we received a call from ESPN yesterday inquiring if we'd like to do a "skype" with them on the upcoming Sugar Bowl game. At 11 p.m.

We politely told the caller we were a women's sports site and although we will be cheering for the Cards, we probably weren't knowledgable enough to deliver a factual report. Plus, we don't have "skype". 

If we did, we probably would have rounded up Co-Co, Cletus, Jenny, Sandy, Jeff, William Frawley, Mondo Vendo, MArkie MArk, Timmy the Intern, Bud Goode, Sonja and I and delivered a version of the 12 Days of Christmas.

Or put Jeff Walz's last post game interview to a operatic format.

Always thinking, always confused. It's not just a motto, it's a way of life here.
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Thursday Cardinal Couple -- Cardinal Resolutions

( Staff Columnist Jenny O'Bryan returns today with a list of resolutions for 2013. We're going to add a couple here for her...Stay healthy in 2013 and keep our readers informed with the best of Cardinal women's sports! )

Well, it is that time of year again.  Time for most of us to make New Year resolutions, that often fall by the wayside weeks, if not months, in to the New Year.   Over the years, I have become a bit more realistic in my goals for the upcoming year, and with that, have had better, longer lasting success at meeting those goals. 

Last year’s resolution was to do at least one home project a month for at least 6 months.  Any of you that are homeowners know, there is often a never-ending list of things to be done.  Between work, kids activities if you are blessed with them, keeping up with the day to day rigors of dogs, laundry, cleaning, dinner, grocery shopping and yard upkeep, there is not a lot of time left to tackle the bigger projects.  I am happy to say last year I accomplished some great projects that were long overdue.  With one big project a month, it is hardly enough to cut in to the laundry list of things to be done, but this approach made it more manageable for me. 

This past year, thanks to my resolution, I researched, planned, and planted a new tree to replace one that did not make it through the ice storm several years ago.   In keeping with that, the first project included cutting down the aforementioned, medium sized tree that still stood in the front yard, so that a new one could go in.  Against all odds, no one, or the neighbor’s belongings, were injured or damaged in meeting this goal.  An arborist I am not, but it got done.  After a season with a new deck on the back of the house, a huge project was cleaning, water sealing and decorating the new deck.  Many a Cardinal Couple articles were written from that very spot, having accomplished that goal this past year.   Those are a few of the projects knocked off the list last year.  For everyone accomplished, 2-3 more were added.   That same resolution sits atop my New Years list again this year. 

All this leads me to a new resolution to add to my list this year.  Upon reflection, I have come up with a few Cardinal Resolutions.   As many of you regular readers know, basketball seems to be my sport of passion.  Hence, the majority of my Cardinal Resolutions revolve around basketball. 

Follow my team:  I am an avid fan of Cardinal Women’s Basketball.  I never miss a home game.  Last year I traveled to several reasonable away games.  This season, I intend to expand upon that!  A minimum of one away game that requires travel will be attended.  Right now, it is looking like the Notre Dame game, February 11.   Many of the top teams in the country travel well.  While Louisville’s home game attendance ranks second in the country, I am pretty sure not a lot of us travel.  I want to change that.  I am starting that for myself, this season. 

Support my team:  It is easy to be a fan when things are going well.  With injuries to this program the last two seasons, high hopes upon the opening of the season always need to be tempered with reasonable expectations.  Regardless of what is going on with the personnel, I need to support my team, through the wins and especially through the losses.  I am not a coach, and have never been a coach, I remind myself to support my team, and the coaches, they are the experts here, not me as a courtside watcher. 

Watch more high school ball:  The state of Kentucky is loaded with young, upcoming talent.  Not only do I want to get out and see some of that young talent, I want to take in a big AAU Tournament this upcoming summer travel season.  As a fan of the recruiting world, the best way to know the talent is to see it, and I plan to get out and watch some high school ball. 

Learn about lacrosse:  I have never seen a lacrosse game.  I cannot write one intelligent sentence about lacrosse.  I intend to change that.  I am not sure how intelligent my reporting about Lacrosse will be, but I vow to read and learn about lacrosse, and challenge myself to convey that to Cardinal Couple readers.   

Do you have any Cardinal Resolutions you want share?  Email us or comment below.  If you want to join me at Notre Dame, let me know!  I am sure our team would love the support! 

( Editor's Note...Louisville plays at South Bend on Monday, Feb.11th at 9:00 p.m.)

Happy New Year, readers!  May 2013 bring you much peace, health and happiness, and may our Cardinal student athletes continue to excel both in the classroom and on their respective courts!

Friday Cardinal Couple -- Another busy UofL women's sports weekend

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FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

****** These updates on Friday action...The Cards defeated MTSU in three sets 25-19, 25-11, 25-19 in Volleyball. Field Hockey won 3-2 in double overtime against Central Michigan and Soccer fell to Notre Dame 2-1. Full stories on all three games in the Saturday edition of CARDINAL COUPLE. Be sure to check back! ****** 

-Volleyball hosts Louisville Tournament...MTSU first opponent

-Women's soccer travels to Notre Dame

-Field Hockey @ Spartan Invitational 

-Jay Miller joins Softball coaching staff

-Two special WBB recruits in this weekend

-Notre Dame to ACC -- Some final thoughts

A very busy weekend for UofL women's sports coming up...beginning today with volleyball, field hockey and soccer all in action. Let's get right to the coverage! 

Three Volleyball matches in the KFC YUM! Center

UofL will occupy the KFC YUM! Center for three matches as part of the Louisville Invitational this weekend, the first match against Middle Tennessee State University. Despite the Blue Raiders record (3-9), they pose a tough challenge for the Cards. MTSU has had a brutal pre-conference slate of opponents and the roster is young. They'll have a say in the Sun Belt Conference title this season and are led by freshman Chelsea Ross (177 kills, 103 digs) and Ashley Adams (144 kills).

Louisville will also face UNLV and Miami (FL) on Saturday. The MTSU game starts at 7:30 p.m. tonite.

Soccer travels to South Bend

If you're in a road-trip frame of mind...

Karen Ferguson-Dayes' soccer squad begins BIG EAST competition against Norte Dame today at 4 p.m. The match will be televised on ESPNU and also available on-line at ESPN3 at WatchESPN.com. 

The Irish (3-3-1) return from a west coast swing that saw them tie Portland and lose to Washington. Louisville (5-1-0) comes into the game after hosting the Marriott Louisville Airport Classic where they bested Toledo and lost to Kentucky. 

The Irish hold a 8-3 lifetime series advantage over the Cards, but Louisville won both contests last year...winning 1-0 at South Bend and 2-1 in the semifinals of the BIG EAST tournament at West Virginia. 

Field Hockey battles in Auto-Owners Insurance Spartan Invitational

Another destination you could motor to would be catching Louisville Field Hockey on the road. 

Justine Sowry's girls also swing into action with a 4 p.m. clash against Central Michigan on the M.S.U. campus in East Lansing, MI. They'll also face either Michigan State or American University on Saturday, depending on the outcome of the games. 

Central Michigan (3-2) takes the field after a loss at Stanford and win over Maine. They feature Erin Dye, who has netted four goals on the season and Mid-American Conference Defensive Player of the Week in goalkeeper Anastasia Netto. 

The Chippewas lead the series against the Cards 17-11. Louisville won the last match back in 2010...getting five goals from Nicole Youman in a 9-0 drubbing.

Chong, Harris visit this weekend

Jeff Walz and the University of Louisville basketball team host two major players in the class of 2013 this weekend for official visits. Saniya Chong, a do-everything guard from Ossining, NY and Alexandra "Alex" Harris, the 6'3" board terminator from Lorain. OH. will take in the sights and see the best college sports town around this weekend. Could be a busy weekend for the duo, with football at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium against North Carolina and the volleyball at the YUM. 

Chong is one of the best, if not the best, point guard in the 2013 recruiting class. A prolific scorer, distributes the ball well and a team leader. She's down to four schools...the CARDS, UConn, Maryland and Ohio State. WE feel once she sees all that the Louisville campus and facilities offer, she'll pare that list down further. She was low-flying on the national radar until the beginning of her junior year. She's blossomed into the type of guard that can be a difference-maker in a close game. Imagine her in a lineup with Mercedes Russell in the KFC YUM! Center. If we dream it, we can achieve it...

Harris dominates action on both ends of the court with her paint presence. Scores easily from inside and is a ferocious rebounder and defender. She's pared her list to the CARDS, Penn State and Michigan. Watching her game film eerily reminds me of a slightly taller version of Candyce Bingham. She'd be a great catch for the Cards. I bet she'd like playing with Chong and Russell, also. 

Enjoy Louisville, girls! It's a great place to spend four years! If you see the dynamic duo on campus or at a sporting event this weekend, flash them an "L" and tell them you'd like to see them in the red and black. 

Jay Miller joins Cardinal Softball staff.

Miller comes to Louisville as a volunteer assistant after an impressive career. Head coach at Mississippi from 2003-11. Prior to that, 15 years at Missouri from 1987-2002. 11 NCAA tournament appearances. A lifetime record of 1004-668, just one of 13 NCAA Division I coaches to hit the 1000 win plateau. 

"We're very happy to have somebody of Jay Miller's caliber join our staff. He brings a great deal of experience not only with the USA team, but also has an extensive college background and we are excited to have him join our program." -- Sandy Pearsall, UofL head softball coach. 

A great addition to an already stellar staff that Pearsall had on board. Miller replaces Lacy Wood, who has accepted an assistant coaching position at Eastern Kentucky. Miller's offensive strategies will only buoy a Cardinal attack that features eight returning starters this year. The Ulmer will be rocking! 

When Irish Eyes are smiling...

 So much has already been said and discussed about the Notre Dame departure from the BIG EAST to the ACC, that I'll limit my commentary to the effect it will have on women's sports in the BIG EAST. 

Muffett McGraw takes a talented basketball team that has been near or at the top of BIG EAST women's hoops for a decade to a conference that may well be the second strongest in women's college basketball.

New challenges in recruiting. New opponents to learn and face. And, with the vacating of the top rung on the ladder that the Irish shared with UConn, who will climb up? 

Obviously, Louisville will vye for that spot. DePaul, Rutgers and St.John's will try and lay claim to that rare air as well. 

The Irish were contenders in BIG EAST softball, volleyball, soccer, field hockey, track and field, swimming and diving and golf each and every year. Their departure weakens the league but also provides the chances for other programs to capitalize and move up. 

Most people I've talked to in the 48 hours since the Irish announcement agree that it is a strong blow to BIG EAST conference stability but rationalize that it doesn't hurt the already wobbly football coalition.  

These same people, in a vast majority,  also would like to see the Cards follow suit and try their fortunes in another conference. Big 12, Big 10, ACC...with the BIG 12 getting the majority of the favoritism. 

Here at CARDINAL COUPLE, we'll go on record as wondering if it's better to be a big fish in a rapidly draining pond or a new fish in a different lake? 

Notre Dame and Louisville have easily been the top two programs in BIG EAST overall women's sports since the Cardinals joined the conference in 2005. With the departure of the Irish, more conference championships are in Louisville's women's sports destiny. Better to be a giant in a small kingdom? 

Of course, any move in the future will be dictated by the economic engine of football. For now, Tom Jurich better get the UofL maintenance staff busy installing more trophy cases and shelves. Cardinal superiority will only increase.

And, that's not a bad thing at all.

Finally, if you attend the Louisville vs, North Carolina football game Saturday...make sure and stop by 80 under 80 to hear Robbie Bartlett and take a bath with Poobah, Sonja and Carol the Kid. MArkie MArk might even tell you about the festivus stick we left in Charlotte. 

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