Womens' Cross Country and Golf win titles

TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE:

-Ex CARDINAL Cindy LaCrosse earns tour card

-Grieshaber win at Evansville

-Angel and Dream play tonight



Former UofL womens' golfer Cindy LaCrosse tied for the title in the Price Chopper Tour Championship with a 72 hole total of 5 under and then won the playoff hole to gain her third Futures tour championship in Albany, NY. By also taking the regular season title, she earned a tour card for the LPGA's 2011 events. Battling windy conditions, LaCrosse fired a 69-70-69 to tie Jennifer Song and force a one hole sudden death playoff which she won with a par on the 18th hole on the Capital Hills golf course. LaCrosse also broke the Futures Tour regular season earnings...winning $94,576 for the year. She finished in the top 10 in 15 tournaments this year. Congratulations, Cindy, on making it to the women's professional circuit!



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Kim Grieshaber won the individual women's title and UofL placed first as a team in the Evansville Mid-America Opener to kick off the Louisville cross country season. The redshirt senior covered the 4K course in 14:20. She was 13 seconds ahead of the second place finisher in the race. Louisville runners also placed third, fourth, seventh and eighth in the five team event.

"I'm very pleased with how the women runners executed the race and that they were able to get the team championship." head cross country coach Brice Allen commented. "Our team ran a tactically smart race and Kim won convincingly with a mile to go."

They return to action Sept 16th. when they take part in the Navy Invitational at Annapolis, MD.

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Angel McCoughtry and the Atlanta Dream try to go 2-0 in the Eastern Conference Finals tonight in New York. They broke away from the Liberty in the final minute on Sunday to win the first game of the playoffs 81-75. If they can defeat the Liberty, they'll move on to the WNBA Finals to face Western Conference champs Seattle who eliminated Phoenix on Sunday...getting a game winning three ball from Sue Bird with 2 seconds left to win by three.

Labor Day Tribute

HAPPY LABOR DAY FROM CARDINAL COUPLE

As you go thru your day of picnics, relaxation or whatever you have planned...remember that you live in a land that gives you the personal freedoms to do things without the fear of reprisal, banishment or punishment. It wasn't always that way. We've come a long way, there is still much to do and although the road may seem long and weary...rest if you must...but don't ever quit.

Congratulations to Eric Downs, winner of the final PANERA gift card contest. Eric sums it up well by saying:

"Panera has excellent breads, bagels and muffins and I can get free refills on coffee while I dine and go thru the morning paper. Then, a "to go" order for the gang in the office."

Thanks to all that participated!

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Angel McCoughtry led the Atlanta Dream to a win in the first game of the WNBA Eastern Conference Playoffs at New York 81-75. McCoughtry ended up with 21 points...13 in the decisive 4th quarter. They square off again Tuesday night in Atlanta.

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# 13 Louisville Field Hockey bested #15 American University yesterday 2-1. Hayley Turner put the Cards ahead in the second half after 1-1 first half action. Louisville (3-1). The Cards host Ohio State next. Game time is 6 p. m. on Wednesday.

Success for volleyball and field hockey on the road

SUNDAY @ CARDINAL COUPLE

-Volleyball goes 2-1 in the Wildcat Classic

-Field hockey scoops James Madison

-Our take on the UofL vs. UK football game

Cardinal volleyball went 2-1 over the last two days in the Arizona Wildcat Classic. With a short turnaround after Wednesday's match in Lexington, Louisville met Cal State Bakersfield in the opening match. The meeting was successful for Louisville, as they defeated the Roadrunners 23-25, 25-20, 25-23, 25-19.

Despite losing the first set, the Cards still got good play out of freshman Emily Juhl. They led late in the match but a 8-1 run from the Roadrunners gave them the first game. Lousivlle rallied back in the second, getting a big performance from sub Kasey Heckelman with seven kills, and the Cards evened the match.

UofL squeaked by in the 3rd set and got a huge performance out of Lola Arslanbekova..who also teamed up with Juhl to power the Cards to the win in the final game of the match.

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Next up for Louisville on Friday night was #24 Arizona. Louisville and the Wildcats took this one to 5 games...Arizona narrowly getting the match win 3-2. Louisville and Arizona played a very close first match but service errors plagued the Cards and they went down 22-25. It was a less than spectacular beginning in the second game for the Ville, falling behind 7-0, but behind Gwen, Rucker's blocks at the net and Arslanbekova and Juhl with the slams, the Cards came back to win 25-21

Louisville played a fairly even third game with the Wildcats early but a late 13-4 Arizona run gave them the momentum to go up 2-1 with 16-25 win. The Cards refused to quit, though and Louisville, aided by the play of Amanda Simmons, overcame a late deficit to tie the match at 2-2 with a 25-23 win. In the deciding 5th game, Louisville led early..by as much as 4 points..but could not seal the deal and dropped the final 15-17.

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Louisville next faced Butler on Saturday afternoon in the final game of the tournament. The Cards got Arslanbekova untracked and won the match 3-1. The Cards survived a close first game 25-23 with some outstanding play from Simmons and Arslanbekova and grabbed the second game also 25-20 with Juhl and Arslanbekova dominating net play. Butler managed to avoid the whitewash by coming out on top in the third 22-25 but the Cards sealed the deal in the fourth game behind Arslanbekova again to win 25-21.

Arslanbekova and Simmons were selected to the All-Tournament team for Louisville.

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The #13 Louisville Field Hockey team travelled to Harrisonberg, VA. and defeated James Madison University 2-1 Saturday afternoon. The Cards got on the scoreboard early in the contest when Simone Attles put back a missed shot less than a minute into the contest. They advanced that lead to 2-0 with Erin Schneidtmiller slapping one in about ten minutes later.

The Dukes would score midway thru the second half but couldn't tie the game thanks to the goalie efforts of Erin Conrad.

The game wasn't expected to be an easy one for Louisville...JMU came into the contest undefeated and ranked #12 nationally.

Louisville (2-1) faces #15 American University Sunday morning at 11:30 a.m. next.

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Not a whole lot to say here about the dawning of the Charlie Strong football era that got off to a rocky start Saturday afternoon in Papa John's Cardinal Stadium against UK. The Cards couldn't get the offense rolling in the first half and went in a 20-6 trailer. The "D" picked it up for Louisville in the second half and the managed to get a touchdown on the board..but UK took the win 23-16.

Charlie's got a lot of work to do here at Louisville. Despite the lofty expectation of some in the Cardinal fan base, Strong is trying a mold a team out of Kragthorpe recruits and untested freshmen. It's going to take awhile, Cardinal fans. Next week against Eastern Kentucky should give Strong his first win of the season. If he can get this team to a 6-6 record, they should make him coach of the year.

I'm still not sold on Adam Froman as the right choice at QB and although Powell had a exciting touchdown run in the second half, he and running back Vic Anderson spent most of the day waiting for the offensive line to provide some holes.

Still, Louisville had a chance to tie it with about 3 minutes left on the clock. Hope springs eternal here and let's hope the Cards get a "feel good" lopsided win against the Colonels next week before travelling to Oregon State for a very rough match up.

Women's soccer defeats Toledo 4-1

SATURDAY @ CARDINAL COUPLE

-Freshman Christine Exeter leads soccer to the win

-UofL vs. UK in football today!

The University of Louisville womens' soccer team went to 4-0 with a 4-1 win over Toledo last night in Cardinal Park. Christine Exeter, pictured left, scored twice for the Cards...now ranked #23 in the nation.

Toledo took an early lead in the contest, scoring their only goal in the 20th minute on chip shot by Erin Flynn. Louisville was up for the challenge, though and quickly tied the game when senior Caitlin Rehder slammed a shot in from close range. Exeter got her first goal of the game a few minutes later..driving one by Toledo goalie Vicki Travern...thanks to key assists by Rehder and Angelika Uremovich. The Cards took the 2-1 lead to the end of the first half.

Louisville got a charged up in the final half early from a flying save by sophomore goalie Taylor Vancil of a shot on goal. The Cards picked up their third score when Uremovich nailed a penalty kick past Travern at the 67 minute mark of the game. Exeter scored her second goal and closed out the scoring late in the match with an exciting takeaway and drive to the Toledo goal...where she booted one deep into the net from about 18 yards out.

The Cards (4-0) are off to their best start in school history. They out shot Toledo 18-10 and goalie Vancil contributed two spectacular saves for ensure the victory.

Next for the Cards, the Kentucky Wildcats at Cardinal Park on Thursday, Sept. 9th. Fox Soccer Channel will televise the 7 p.m. game.

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We're off to the Parrish House in a few to tailgate and enjoy the 3:30 p.m. football game against Kentucky today. A sold out crowd of 55,000+ will enjoy clear skies and mid-seventy degree weather for the nationally televised contest.

I expect to see a close game that features the running skills of both teams and the difference maker in this one could very well be who has the ball last. Both Sonja and I are predicting a Louisville victory this afternoon and we'll have a summation of the epic battle...along with updates on field hockey and volleyball tomorrow.

Thanks for checking out this abbreviated version of CARDINAL COUPLE today and....

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO CARDSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS !!!!!!!!!

Women's teams take to the road this weekend

FRIDAY @ CARDINAL COUPLE

-Volleyball, field hockey hit the highway

-Women's soccer in Cardinal Park tonight

-We poll people about the football game Saturday

-We take offense to the LEO cartoonist


" Have a safe trip, fun time and bring back victories" is the wish for the Volleyball and Field Hockey teams this weekend. Both squads are taking part in major tournaments this weekend.

Volleyball goes in the Arizona Wildcat classic in Tucson, AZ. They have a full schedule with games Friday against Cal State Bakersfield and Arizona and Butler on Saturday. A quick turnaround for Leonid Yelin's team after the Wednesday night contest in Lexington but good experience for a young and talented bunch of spikers. WE liked what we saw against the Cats despite the close loss. Emily Juhl, Anastasia Artemeva, Gwen Rucker, Lola Arslanbekova and Amanda Simmons have big time net skills and freshman Caitlin Welch has promise with the set and dig portion of the game. The Cards return to Cardinal Arena on Sept 17th for four straight games...three of them on TV. Louisville will serve it up in front of the cameras a total of nine more times this year...we recommend that you get out and watch the action live if you can, though.

Pam Bustin's Field Hockey flock plays Saturday and Sunday in Harrisburg, VA. against James Madison and American. A pretty patriotic weekend for the stick swinging Cards, let's hope Nicole Youman is at top form and duplicate the five goals she scored against Central Michigan the last time the field hockey team hit the field. Field hockey gets four in a row at the Trager after the trip...beginning with Ohio State on Sept. 8th. California, Georgetown and Radford are also headed to town. No mention of any television for these Cards...but it's an idea that has merit and potential because of the strong field hockey following and high school teams here in the Louisville area.


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Women's soccer puts on a Friday night under the lights at Cardinal Park...hosting Toledo. The Kentucky Wildcats come to town on Sept 9th. Both matches are set for 7 p.m. At 3-0, the kickers are in mid season form already and tough to score on with sophomore sensation Taylor Vancil guarding the net. Louisville has outscored the opposition 7-1 so far this season and the win over South Carolina was particularly meaningful...the Gamecocks made it to the sweet Sixteen last year in the NCAA Championships and returned a veteran team this year.


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OK, whose bright idea was this? That free publication circulating around town has done an injustice to UofL head football coach Charlie Strong. The cartoon image at the top of the page looks more like Bill Cosby than the Cardinal coach. The intent at LEO seems to always be to create shock and awe.

If I was Mr. Strong, I'd hunt down the drawer and demonstrate that I don't have toothpick biceps or bug eyes. Just when we thought racial profiling was beginning to subside, the bozos at the bird cage liner rear their ugly heads...




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The opening game of the football season is less than 72 hours away and it's a hot topic wherever you go in the city. We've talked to dozens of people about the contest and decided to take a little poll. You're welcome to chip in and provide your prediction in the comments section below.

No prize for being right...but, speaking of prizes...this is the last week of the PANERA BREAD gift card giveaway. Hurry and get those entries in...

The poll:

What will be the outcome of the UofL vs. UK football game?

a) Cards win by 7 or more (11 %)

b) Cards win by less than 7 (33%)

c) Cats win by 7 or more (6%)

d) Cats win by less than 7 (50%)

SONJA goes with "a" and I am choosing "b". I'll be happy if either of us are right.

Cards drop a tough one in Lexington to UK

THE THURSDAY EDITION OF CARDINAL COUPLE

- Cards fall in five sets to the Cats in Volleyball

-Laura Terry update

Louisville jumped on Kentucky early and late in the match last night but could not hold on in the final set as Kentucky won the decisive fifth game to win the hotly contested match in Memorial Coliseum last night...3 games to 2.

Hotly contested is a perfect way to describe the event in ancient Memorial Coliseum. The facility is sans adequate air conditioning and the two teams played in the equivalent of a boiler room for 2 1/2 hours in front of a wildly appreciative and rowdy fan base of both Louisville and Kentucky fans. Kentucky head coach Craig Skinner seemed to be toweling off his bald head every time the cameras caught him on screen and Louisville head coach Leonid Yelin spent a lot of time flapping his shirt to get air. The humidity, referred to often by the announcers on the Big Blue Sports Network..which showed the game on the Fox Sports South channel..caused frequent stoppage of play as the match progressed, so that the court could be dried.

Louisville roared out to a quick 5-0 lead in the first set and eventually built that lead to 20-11 thanks to the strong net play of Gwen Rucker and Lola Arslanbekova. The Cards closed out the Cats in game 1 25-14 and it looked like Louisville was much the dominant squad.

Kentucky came back in game 2, though and built a 6-2 advantage on the Cards. Heady play by the Wildcats at the net made sure that the Cards would get no closer than four points and UK took the second set 25-19. Despite some excellent slams by Arslanbekova, Louisville could not catch the Cats and the match was tied 1-1.

The teams battled tooth and nail in set three and Louisville led 9-8 after a spectacular spike from Anastasia Artemeva. Kentucky regained the advantage with the score tied 18-18 and would go on to outscore Louisville 7-4 the rest of the way to win the third game 25-22.

Up against the wall, the Cards knew they had to find a way to win game four and force a fifth contest. They battled the Cats to a 10-10 tie early in the set. UofL gained the lead at 13-12 but then went into a hitting slump and UK took a 18-15 advantage. Emily Juhl picked up the sagging Cards with a couple of power kills, though and Louisville roared back to tie the game at 22-22. UK actually had two chances late to eliminate the Cards in the game and match, but a couple of unforced errors and some heads up net play allowed Louisville to score the final three points of the match and win 27-25.

In the fifth game, Louisville jumped out to an early 6-1 lead and appeared to have UK on the ropes...but some impressive serving and blocking at the net got UK back in the contest and they outscored Louisville the rest of the way to win the final game 15-10 and take the contest.

Impressive for Louisville was freshman outside hitter Juhl, who finished with 12 kills. The Sacred Heart high school grad lifted the Cards repeatedly with her slams from the sidelines and baffling serves that UK had trouble setting. Amanda Simmons rose to the occasion for Louisville also with 13 blocks and 12 block assists...tying a school record.

This is a young Cardinal squad...made up of mostly freshmen and sophomores...and the play of Juhl, Arslanbekova...who had 12 kills for the evening...and Artemeva was encouraging against the veteran UK squad. Rucker plays well up the middle for Louisville and Caitlin Welch showed some excellent digging skills...leading Louisville with 13 digs.

A quick turnaround for Louisville...they head to Arizona next to play in the Arizona Wildcat Classic...where they'll start off against Cal State Bakersfield on Friday.

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Lady Card Laura Terry will finish her career at the University of Louisville as an student assistant basketball coach for Jeff Walz in the 2010-11 season. The popular Terry played bits and pieces for Louisville over the last three years but three knee surgeries kept her off the court most of the time and eventually ended her career as a Cardinal player.

Terry and Keisha Hines are the only two Cardinals that are left from Walz's inaugural season at Louisville and we never really got to see the full talent Terry possessed at Louisville after a stellar high school career at Rose Hill Academy in Ashland, KY.

Terry's experience and knowledge of Walz's system will help greatly in the development and tutelage of the younger Cardinal players and it's good to know that she'll be an active part of Team Cardinal during her senior year at Louisville.

Battle of the Bluegrass gets an early start Wednesday

WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE COMMENTS ON:

-VOLLEYBALL AGAINST THE CATS TONIGHT

-SOCCER SUCCESS

-THE WEEKEND AND ITS IMPORTANCE

Bill the Goat, our IT specialist, sticks his tongue out at a passing car sporting a UK flag. The goat-in-residence on the Drunken Amish farm in Prospect is hoping for a ride to Lexington this evening to watch Leonard Yelin's UofL Volleyball team (2-0) face the #14 ranked Wildcats (0-2) in wide net action tonight. The match will be televised on Fox Sports South and starts at 6:30 p.m. Got a feeling that lofty UK ranking will slip a bit after tonight. The Cards haven't lost in volleyball to the BigBlue since 1999 and Louisville won a hotly contested match in the SAC last year in 5 games in front of a standing room only crowd.

The Cards should move into the top 25 if they can tame the Cats tonight on the road. Louisville defeated North Dakota State and Ohio over the weekend and UK lost to Nebraska and Iowa State...two very good DI programs...in the AVCA Showdown in Omaha. Louisville has won 19 out of the last 20 matches against UK and CARDINAL COUPLE will give you a volley by volley recap of the action tomorrow. WE just don't want to share the ride up and back with Bill. Anyone got a pickup truck?

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The surprising UofL women's soccer team is 3-0 after winning the Gamecock Challenge at South Carolina this weekend. They're now ranked #23 by Soccer America and will go into battle with Toledo Friday night in Cardinal Park at 7 p.m. Could be a good chance to get in some cheering and rooting practice, Cardinal fans.

One of the key components to the Cards early success has been sophomore goalie Taylor Vancil. She's allowed only one goal in the Cards 3 games and was recently selected National Player of the Week by TopDrawer Soccer. She also gained BIG EAST goalie of the week honors for her fantastic performance in the South Carolina tournament. Cardinal head coach Karen Ferguson Dayes told us last year that Vancil, who started as a freshman for UofL, would be a superstar at the position by the time she graduated. Looks like Dayes' foresight is 20/20

Speaking of awards, Louisville field hockey midfielder Nicole Youman was named BIG EAST player of the week for her 5 goal, 2 assist performance against Central Michigan Sunday. The senior has had 35 assists in her career and is only four assists away from setting the school record.

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Labor Day weekend will be a big time recruiting period for many of the on campus sports at UofL. Potential Cardinals in men and women's basketball, football, volleyball, field hockey and soccer will be checking out the campus, facilities and meeting their possible 2011 teammates this weekend. If you see any of them strolling the grounds with the coaches or current players, don't be shy...walk up to them and tell them that you want to see them in Cardinal red and black down the road. We're fortunate enough to usually get the UofL women's basketball team to visit the Parrish House prior to several football games each year and have some great memories of the girls interacting with the fan base. Seeing Dez Byrd beat a soldier from Fort Knox in pushups is one of my favorite womens' basketball visits and mistaking former Cardinal Janae Howard for Candyce Bingham one of my biggest gaffes. Blame it on the Bud Select. I also remember a visit from a shy, skinny freshman girl by the name of McCoughtry gazing wide eyed at the cabooses and tons of people during the pre-game party. Wonder whatever happened to her?