Cardinal women's golf in Central Regional

Anna-Karin Ljungstrom carded an 81 during the first round of the NCAA Central Regionals at Otter Creek Golf Course in Columbus, IN. She overcame a rough front nine to finish with 7 straight pars.

The Cards are in 13th position out of 24 teams participating in the regional tournament, They totaled a 315...led by Laura Anderson and Sara-Maude Juneau, who fired 74's to finish 2 over par for the 18 holes. Daphine Parker made the tour with a 86 and Candace Wiley finished with an 87.

Louisvile is vying to finish in the top eight and advanace to the NCAA Championship. Play continues Friday for the Cards, who are 18 strokes behind front runner Arizona State.

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

Cardinal softball ends the regular season with a weekend series at Connecticut. The Cards are in third place in the Big East and will face a Husky squad currently tied for eight and needing to beat the Cards to gain a spot in the Big East tournament.

Louisville will host the three day Big East showdown beginning next Thursday.

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

Mum is still the word on Portland, OR. combo guard Shoni Schimmel's college selection. Schimmel was expected to make her announcement in early May and it was believed that she might break the news Wednesday but, so far...no word out of the Franklin High School standout.

CARDINAL COUPLE is monitoring the situation and will break into your regularly scheduled internet surfing with any updates. Things always seem to come in twos or three around the late signing period and we're also monitoring any other news that may affect the Lady Cards.

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

We are the proud hosts of a cardinal bird nest in our front hedges at the house. It's quite fun to sit in the den where our computer is and look out the front window early in the morning to watch the hustle and bustle of mama and papa cardinal flitting around the yard. They keep a lively duel going with the mockingbirds that have a nest in one of our blue spruces. Throw in a couple of energetic squirrels and two territory protecting Yorkies and you have "Sonja Zoo." Free admission and fun for all. Just be careful when walking the premises... mockingbirds love to swoop down upon unsuspecting visitors and remind them that this is their turf and they will protect their house.

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

Have you been to the Cardinal Couple-Cardinal Dominance message boards lately? Shannon has done a wonderful job creating a place for all fans to talk UofL women's sports, baseball, football and whatever topic you are interested in. Follow the link for Cardinal Dominance at the top of our home page or go to www.cardinaldominance.net



Written by Sonja
5/6/10

Your favorite Cardinal women's sports moment?

The University of Louisville's win over Rutgers in the Big East tournament ranks as one of my favorite Cardinal women's sports moments. There have been plenty to celebrate over the years. I can still play back in my mind those final seconds...seeing Laura Terry race downcourt to prevent Rutgers from getting the loose ball with seconds remaining. Angel's dump off pass in the paint to a wide open Candyce Bingham who scored the go ahead goal...me jumping into the air and screaming at the top of my lungs when the buzzer sounded and Patrika Barlow leading a charge of Cardinal players onto the court to celebrate the upset win. The look of disappointment on Rutgers head coach C. Vivian Stringer's face and the phone ringing off the hook for the next thirty minutes...calls from friends raving about the win.

The Lady Cards march to the NCAA Championship game in 2009 had plenty of great McCoughtry moments. Louisville softball's Chelsea Bemis and Melissa Roth have created a few big time Cardinal highlights and the success of field hockey, track and field...there are plenty to choose from. How about Aja Sherman's dominance on the mound when she pitched for the Cards?

Being in Rupp arena two years ago and watching Louisville beat the Lady Cats by 15 in a game where Angel took a shot to the eye, left for stitiches and came back to play the final eight minutes of the game ranks up there also. We'll forget about the game up there in Memorial this year...

My friend Christy reminded me recently of the trip we made to Chattanooga a couple of years ago to watch the women's basketball team compete in the Panera Bread tournament. Louisville looked dominating in those two games and we had a great weekend in Chattanooga...watching hoops, touring the city and making a side trip to the Jack Daniels distillery. It was then we knew that Walz had something very special with this group of Cardinals and Angel had put her stamp on this team and on women's college basketball.

Paul recalls the night Angel lit up DePaul for 41 points during her junior year. She was unstoppable in that game and the Blue Demons had no answer for her.

Maybe you remember how Lola Arslanbekova dominated opposing volleyball teams front lines with 513 kill shots last season. She'll be back to do the same this upcoming season and Leonard Yelin's squad is a serious threat to win the Big East.

Feel free to send any favorite Cardinal women's athletics memories to us at Cardinal Couple or comment on the ones we've listed above.

And don't stop believing...tons more of those big play moments are out there in the future for the women who participate in the Red and Black.

Written by Sonja
5/6/10

Softball a solid 3rd in Big East standings

John Belushi contemplates where he wants sit at the upcoming Big East softball tournament that will be held at UofL's Ulmer Stadium May 13th-15th. As the 3rd seed, Louisville will begin play at 10 AM Thursday morning and face either Pittsburgh, Providence or Villanova. Tickets are available thru the University of Louisville ticket office or can be purchase at the gate. Although the late, great comedian won't be there...he'd be excited to watch the Softball Cards and their impressive lineup. Makes me want to have a "cheeseburger, cheeseburger, cheeseburger...Pepsi."

Sandy Pearsall's Softball Cards sit in 3rd place in the Big East standings, behind DePaul and Notre Dame. Louisville will host the 2010 Big East softball tournament again this year and if there is a better venue than Ulmer Stadium to watch the game, you'll have to prove it to me.

Pearsall came to Louisville in 2000 after coaching at Miami, OH for six years. Softball was a new entity on the Belknap Campus and Pearsall wasted no time in pushing the program to prominence...gathering the C-USA Coach of the Year honors during her first season as the Cards skipper. Her teams have won over 400 games and this year's team is a solid contender for one of her best ever. Another example of Tom Jurich making a quality coaching hire decision and seeing it come to a sucessful outcome.

The softball stars are many and senior catcher Melissa Roth leads a talented group of diamond performers that love to pounce on opponents early and seal the deal with outstanding pitching. Kristen Wadwell and Tori Collins are Big East All-Star candidates and Collins has really stepped up and been very effective lately after Chelsea Leonard's season ended with a knee injury.

Roth isn't alone as a Cardinal slugger. Chelsea Bemis recently was named national player of the Week for her at plate efforts and Jordan Trimble, Vanessa James, Alicja Wolny and a multitude of others have made the Cardinal squad a nightmare for opposing pitchers.

CARDINAL COUPLE will provide full coverage of the Big East tournament and if you can't make it to Louisville for the 3 day affair, you can watch the action on Big East TV. Isn't it about time that the Cards get a little live game radio coverage? After all, how many classic rock stations does this city really need?

I'm guessing that if you gave Vanetti unlimited trips thru the media buffet, he'd do it in a heartbeat and I'd gladly do color commentary gratis.

On second thought...maybe it's a bad idea after all...

Written by Sonja
5/5/10 HAPPY CINCO DE MAYO!

Teena Murray receives honor

You see her on the sidelines at University of Louisville women's basketball games. Sitting at the end of the bench, joining the huddles during time outs...occasionally chatting with one of the players or assistant coaches. She is at softball games also, working with players before and during games. What you don't see is the hours she and her staff put in helping strengthen, condition and build stamina with all the UofL women's athletes.

She has finally received national recognition. Teena Murray is now a master strength and conditioning coach and will be presented the award Thursday, May 6th in Orlando, FL.

There are only 92 such titles in college sports. The honor is comparable to being selected to the Hall of Fame for a basketball coach.

Murray has had a dramatic effect on the way UofL women student athletes train and prepare for their contests. Her methods have definitely produced results. A third Big East title for the women's track and field squad. A run toward the national title for the University of Louisville women's basketball team in 2009. Softball near the top of the leaderboard year after year. Look at the records of Cardinal softball and basketball and if you research it, you'll see improvement in the standings and performance of the athletes since Murray arrived on the UofL campus in 2004 after serving as an assistant strength and conditioning coach at UConn. I'm not saying she is the sole reason for the across the board improvement but no one can argue with the fact that better trained and conditioned performers acheive better results.

Watch for her the next time you attend a UofL softball, basketball or soccer game. Quietly advising and observing her players, Murray does not seek or grab the spotlight...content to offer a few choice words...but she's constantly reviewing and rating performances, strengths, areas of needed improvement and overall conditioning of the women who don the red and black.

The next time you see Melissa Roth slug one over the wall or Monique Reid blow past an opponent for two...keep in the back of your mind that the assist goes to the way Murray and her staff keep the Cardinal women at peak performance and optimal skills.

I wonder if she could work wonders on a couple of old ex-jocks whose bones sound like a bowl of Rice Krispies each morning when they wake up?

Written by Paul
5/4/10

Cards, Collins corral Bulls 5-0

(One last look at the 136th Kentucky Derby...a great shot from above the starting gate.)

Tori Collins pitched her second shoutout in as many days Sunday...blanking the USF Bulls in Tampa. Collins tossed a no-hitter for the first six innings of the game and finished allowing only two hits and striking out six. The win for Louisville (34-16, 13-6) cements a 3rd place standing in the Big East as they travel to UConn later this week to end the regular season.

For the Cards, another scenario of pouncing the opponent early. They started the top of the second with 4 straight singles by Colby Wherry, Jennifer Esteban, Alicja Wolny and Katelyn Mann to take a 1-0 lead, got another run on a dropped ball and used a Melissa Roth single to make it 3-0. The final run of the inning came when Vanessa James scored on a wild pitch.

The Cards tacked on an insurance run in the fifth when an Esteban single got home Mann who had earlier singled.

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

Louisville lacrosse got a win on the road at Villanova on Sunday. Bergan Foley netted 7 goals and Katie Oliverio contributed 5 assists in the Cards 19-6 win over the Wildcats to end the season.

Louisville scored the first 4 goals of the game and never trailed the Wildcats. The Cards end the year with a 11-6 record and 4-4 in the Big East. The Cards lose only four seniors and have a strong nucleus returning next season with Oliverio, Foley, Liz Lovejoy, Emily Dashiell and Danielle Pawliw all returning for Kellie Young's squad.

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

The UofL women's track and field team won their third straight Big East Championship in Cincinnati on Sunday. Jere Summers won the discus and hammer throws and was selected field MOP of the championship. The Cards finished 1-2-3 in the discus...D'Ana McCarty earning second spot and Lindsey Cook third. Theresa Lewis got third in the 100 meter hurdles and Chelsea Brown fourth in the 400 meter hurdles.

Written by Sonja
5/3/10

Cards split with Bulls in softball

Tori Collins pitched a two hit shutout in the first game for Louisville. The Cards (33-16, 12-6) prevailed 4-0 but narrowly lost the second 2-1 to USF.

Sophomore pitcher Tori Collins is making the most of the opportunity to be the second pitcher in Louisville's rotation with the injury to Chelsea Leonard. She blanked the Bulls yesterday in Tampa. Collins (14-4) tossed the complete game shut out...her 4th whitewash of the year and struck out six USF batters.

Louisville jumped out early against the Bulls. Vanessa James stroked a two out RBI single in the second inning with the bases full to put the Cards up 1-0.

Chelsea Bemis kept her hot bat going in the fifth with a double and Colby Wherry delivered an RBI single to increase the lead to 2-0. The Cards would finish the scoring in the 7th when Melissa Roth pounded a double, Bemis was intentionally walked and Wherry delivered another RBI single. Bemis would score the final run when Brittany York drew a walk with the bases loaded.

In game two, a pitcher's duel kept the scoreboard at zeros for 4 innings. The Bulls plated two runs when Kristen Wadwell surrendered three hits in the bottom of the 5th inning and two Cardinal throwing errors allowed USF's Cat Olnick to score the final Bulls run at the plate on a close call that Louisville head coach Sandy Pearsall charged the field to protest. Pearsall was unsuccessful on the protest and was tossed from the game by the home plate ref for arguing her case a bit too strenously.

Jennifer Estenban scored the lone Cardinal run in the top of the sixth, getting to the plate on a Jordan Trimble single.

Wadwell pitched well for Louisville in the defeat, allowing only three hits in six innings...one earned run and fanning four.

The teams play the final game of the series Sunday.

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

Louisville Lacrosse visits Villanova today for their final regular season and Big East conference game. Louisville (10-6, 3-4) is 2-0 all time in games against the Wildcats and is coming off a convincing road win Friday against #19 Rutgers. Villanova picked up their first Big East win of the season Friday at home against Cincy.

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

Finally, maybe Calvin Borel checked out CARDINAL COUPLE and saw his picture atop Thursday's column. Maybe we're psychic...but he guided SUPER SAVER thru the sloppy stretch to win the Kentucky Derby Saturday in front of over 150,000 soaked spectators.

Calvin, on the rail, at Churchill. A scene played out so many times in the last 15 years and the same way he won it last year with MINE THAT BIRD.

Our pick, NOBLE PROMISE gained the lead at the top of the stretch and looked to be on his way to the win when the horse stopped badly and faded to fifth.

Trainer Kenny McPeek said he would have the horse fully inspected and "scoped" (a look into the lungs to determine congestion). Jockey Willie Martinez gave NOBLE'S PROMISE an excellent ride, looked to be the one to beat but couldn't hold on despite furious urging from Martinez. Hoping that NOBLE is OK and for just a few seconds there, that one shining moment looked very attainable for McPeek and Willie.

Sonja couldn't come up with ICE BOX to complete the exacta or trifecta...but I know how trainer Nick Zito always seems to get his horses ready for the big events and included SUPER SAVER, ICE BOX, NOBLE'S PROMISE, LOOKIN AT LUCKY and DEVIL MAY CARE in an exacta box for a quite nice payout. Consequently, I am in the "doghouse" today for not sharing my knowledge with her.

Maybe cash will get me out of this one...

Written by Paul
5/2/10

Lacrosse rocks Rutgers 14-9

Louisville broke loose from a 5-5 halftime tie to take down the home standing Scarlet Knights yesterday. Liz Lovejoy aided the Cards with 4 scores.

#19 Rutgers needed a win to stay elgible for Big East tournament inclusion. Since the tournament is being played at Rutgers, the Scarlet Knights came out ready to roll and actually scored on the Cards with only a few second elapsed in the game. Louisville countered with two Emily Dashiell scores and the teams went back and forth in a tough defensive battle that left them even halfway through the contest.


Liz Lovejoy caught on fire in the second half, scoring all her points after the break and Katie Oliverio finished with four goals also and three assists. The Cards jumped out early and led 9-5 and Rutgers got no closer than 2 goals the rest of the way.

The lacrosse team ends the regular season Sunday at Villanova.

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

We gave you BLIND LUCK in the Oaks yesterday and she did not disappoint...winning by a narrow nose over EVENING JEWEL in the feature race of the day at Churchill. Unforunately, my exacta and trifectas didn't work out as planned...but Paul continued his hot hand out at Churchill...using BLIND LUCK on top, EVENING JEWEL in second place with a couple of other horses and putting the entire field to come in third for his trifecta. He got paid well for his efforts and also hit (2) pick threes on the day plus the late daily double. As for me, BLIND LUCK saved what had been a trying day of handicapping and close but no cigar selections.

After a wonderful sun filled, fun filled day in the infield...we met up with old friends for a leisurely dinner and I was asleep by 10 p.m.

It's rainy...thunder and lightning awoke me early and more is on the way as I write this Derby morning. Have a great day and good luck to the Lady Cards softball team, that starts a three game series against USF today. Keep swinging, Chelsea!

HAPPY DERBY DAY ALL!

Wriiten by Sonja
5/1/10