Cards Crank Colonels in Mid-week Clash Monday, Mar 6 2023 

ACC and Baseball and Christian Knapczyk and EKU and Haven Magrum and Jack Payton and JT Benson and Kade Grundy and Michigan and Patrick Forbes and sports and tcu and Texas A&M Spencer Laws 10:29 pm

By Matthew Muller

Louisville’s 14th-ranked baseball  (7-1) team faced off against Eastern Kentucky University (4-5) on Feb 28th for a mid-week match-up that ended with an overwhelming victory for the Cards.

Another midweek contest that ends with an 11-0 Cardinals victory, moving the team’s record for this year to 7-1.

Louisville showed their pitching power as they sent the first 14 batters back to the dugout, not allowing Eastern to record a run until the 5th inning.

On top of only allowing Eastern to get three hits off the entire game, walking one batter in the process.

Kade Grundy put on a show during the three innings he spent on top of the mound, making a flawless appearance for himself.

Evan Webster was also riding the hot hand by putting on two scoreless frames; those two alone really showed the power behind Louisville’s pitchers this year.

Unanswered Perfection

To add to the beating, Louisville’s batting was executed perfectly throughout the entire game.

It started off with Freshman Patrick Forbes, who scored his first home run of his career at the start of the second inning to take a 1-0 lead.

It didn’t stop there; Jack Payton hit a three-run homer an inning later to push the lead to four, driving in junior Christian Knapczyk and junior JT Benson in the process.

The Cards would add 6 more runs in the fourth inning, with Brandon Anderson sending two home to open the floodgates. Junior Haven Magrum and Christian Knapczyk would add to the fun. Both drove each other home in the same inning to push the lead up to 10.

The team is looking very strong early on this year, both on the offensive and defensive side. It’s very clear that this team is going to be fun to watch this season and they’ve proved that they are still a top-power team.

The roster is stacked with skill from all positions and the team looks motivated and hungry to really show out this year.

While basketball did not reach our hopes and expectations this year, the baseball boys are putting on one heck of a show at Jim Patterson Stadium early on, and showing no early signs of slowing down.

The Cards hit the road for the first time this season, shipping down to Houston to play in the Shriners Children’s College Classic at Minute Maid Park.

They’ll face off with two familiar foes, first playing Texas A&M on March 3rd. The Aggies ended Louisville’s season last year in the super regional sending them to the College World Series.

Following that contest, the Cards square off with Texas Christian University on Saturday, March 4th. They round up the trip by clashing with The University of Michigan on March 5th. The Cards and the Wolverines faced off six times last season, having Louisville end their season in devastating fashion to move on in the postseason play.

This weekend will be a big indicator of how good this team really this after these games.

Photo Courtesy// Matthew Mueller, The Louisville Cardinal // 

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Louisville Slugger Factory now making special 2022 World Series bats Monday, Nov 7 2022 

Baseball and Home and local and News and sports WHAS - Local 1:42 pm

Astros fans can get their hands on one of four editions of the commemorative bat.

        

 

Million dollar upgrade for Jim Patterson Stadium approved by UofL Friday, Jun 10 2022 

Baseball and Home and money and sports and University of Louisville WHAS - University-Of-Louisville 12:11 pm

The upgrades will be focused on the stadium's main entrance and concourse.

        

 

Louisville Baseball Beats Rival Kentucky Tuesday, Apr 19 2022 

ACC and ACC Baseball and Baseball and kentucky baseball and Louisville baseball and sec and sec baseball and sports and U of L baseball and UofL Baseball and UofLvsUK Daniel Rankin 10:22 pm

By Daniel Rankin —

On Tuesday, April 19, the University of Louisville Baseball team beat the University of Kentucky Wildcats by 4-2. With the rivalry win, the No. 11 ranked Cardinals move to 25-11 on the season. 

With both teams battling through the heart of their conference schedules, you’d think that a weekday nonconference game, usually an ignored matchup in College Baseball, would be inconsequential. 

However, the energetic crowd at Jim Patterson Stadium and the players’ mood during warmups indicated that this Battle of the Bluegrass game meant more than your average weekday game. After the game in Lexington was postponed due to weather, this will likely be the only time these two teams play each other. 

After a promising start from young freshman Kyle Walter in the first half-inning, the Cardinals struck first thanks to Cameron Masterman’s 13th home run of the season. 

It became apparent quickly that Head Coach Dan McDonnell was opting for a bullpen game when he switched to Dan Liggett in the second. 

Liggett’s inning did have traffic on first and third, but Centerfielder Levi Usher saved the inning with a spectacular catch against the wall keeping the score 1-0. Fellow freshman Kade Grundy finished a solid third inning with two strikeouts. 

Weekday pitching has been an issue during some segments of the season; however, McDonnell’s trust in three freshmen to start the game paid off. 

Ben Bianco earned a leadoff walk in the bottom of the third after battling to a 3-2 count. Bianco advanced to second after third baseman Ben Metzinger was hit by a pitch. Jack Payton had the opportunity to drive the game open with the bases loaded in his third-inning at-bat after Dalton Rushing walked on four pitches. On the first pitch, Payton nailed a single over the shortstop to drive in two, increasing the Cards’ lead to three. 

The two teams shut down the bats in the 5th and 6th innings with only two singles between both lineups, which included a good inning from Alex Galvan. 

The Wildcats finally got on board in the 6th inning on a bases-loaded sacrifice fly. Junior pitcher Ryan Hawks was able to limit the damage to just taking a 3-1 score into the 7th. Hawks continued his momentum, shutting down Kentucky in three straight outs. 

Isaac Humphrey started out the bottom of the 7th with a single to left field. After advancing to second on a groundout, Humphrey stole third, marking only the third time Kentucky has allowed a stolen base this season. Three of the next four batters walked, bringing home another run for the Cards.

Michael Prosecky came in the 8th with two Wildcat runners on the corners. In a nine-pitch battle, Prosecky finally got the pivotal strikeout call keeping the Louisville lead at 4-1. 

The Cards failed to add an insurance run in the top half of the ninth but wasn’t necessary as Prosecky finished the game giving the Cardinals the big 4-2 win over their in-state rival. 

Overall, this was an excellent win for the Cards that should help build momentum as they look to start the second half of the ACC schedule on a solid note. 

The No. 11 Louisville Cardinals return to ACC play this weekend when the 23-11 North Carolina State Wolfpack visit April 22-24. Game 1 starts this Friday at 8 pm. 

Stay tuned here for more coverage of Louisville Baseball and more! 

Photo by Daniel Rankin // The Louisville Cardinal

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No. 4 Baseball wins exciting series against North Carolina Tuesday, Apr 12 2022 

Baseball and College Baseball and Louisville baseball and North Carolina baseball and sports and unc baseball Daniel Rankin 9:36 am

By Daniel Rankin —

The University of Louisville Baseball team wrapped up another ACC weekend by taking two of three intense games against the North Carolina Tarheels. 

With the series victory, The No. 4-ranked Cardinals improve to a record of 23-8 on the season and a 9-3 ACC record. 

Game 1 – Fri., April. 8

The series got off to a rough start for the Cards, losing 13-9 after falling behind early. The Tarheels exploded from the start putting up nine runs in the first three innings.

Ben Bianco’s solo shot and Cameron Masterman’s three-run homer helped chip the deficit in the bottom of the third. However, the Tarheels responded quickly with three runs in the fourth and a final run in the fifth. 

The use of the long ball this season continued this series as Dalton Rushing and Jack Payton added a pair of back-to-back home runs to a four-run eighth inning, cutting the UNC lead to four. Despite late momentum and solid relief pitching, the Cards couldn’t get any closer, dropping the first game. 

Game 2 – Sat., April. 9

The Cardinals were able to rebound on the Saturday afternoon matchup, winning on an exciting walk-off home run. Once again, the Tarheels jumped to an early lead with two runs in the second inning. 

However, the Cards responded much better than the previous night. Dalton Rushing started the Cardinals’ response in the fourth inning after launching a 2-1 pitch over 400 feet. 

A few at-bats later, Ben Bianco found himself hitting with the bases loaded. Like many times over his Louisville career, the senior delivered, driving a grand slam over the leftfield wall giving the Cards the 5-2 lead. Isaac Humphrey extended the lead in the bottom of the fifth by singling Jack Payton in. 

The two teams traded one run in the sixth inning, making the score 7-3 in the seventh. Despite the Cardinals adding one run in the seventh thanks to Bianco, it wasn’t enough as the Tarheels mounted a late-game comeback. Down to their final two outs of the game, The Tarheels tied the game after a dropped flyball in the outfield. 

Headed into extra innings, Pitcher Michael Prosecky, after a heartbreaking ninth, came out and shut down the Tarheels giving Louisville the chance to win. 

After a full count battle, Ben Metzinger hit his second walk-off home run of the season, giving the Cards the 9-8 victory to tie the series. 

Game 3 – Sun., April. 10

In an intense and unique marathon that lasted over seven hours, the Cardinals took the series’ rubber match in the 14th inning against the Tarheels. 

For the third straight game, the Tarheels ran out to the early lead in the second inning. Humphrey continued his strong series by tying the game after scoring Levi Usher. 

North Carolina put together a strong run in the third inning and jumped out to a 5-1 lead, putting the Cards in yet another deficit. 

The two sides remained scoreless going into the sixth inning when the game was delayed following a stadium evacuation. After a two-hour delay, the game was finally resumed. 

Heading into the ninth inning, the Cardinals were still down 5-1. Ben Bianco started the inning off with a one-run blast to bring the lead within three. Following a walk from Christian Knapczyk and Rushing and a single from Metzinger, Jack Payton had the opportunity to possibly win the game with the bases loaded. 

A wild pitch allowed Knapczyk to score, bringing the game within two until Payton finally tied the game on a base hit. Logan Beard had the opportunity to win the game, but Payton was thrown out at home, sending the game to extra innings. 

The two teams were scoreless until the bottom of the 14th inning when Humphrey singled home Beard to win the game and the series for the Cardinals. 

Overall, this was a solid series for the No. 4 Cardinals. The first game wasn’t ideal, with the pitching showing repeats of early-season slumps. However, solid bullpen work in the final two games allowed the powerful Louisville offense to shine once again. 

Up next for the Cardinals is a matchup with the University of Cincinnati Bearcats April 12, at 6 p.m. 

Photo by Daniel Rankin // The Louisville Cardinal

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Bomb threat at Patterson Stadium interrupts baseball game Monday, Apr 11 2022 

Baseball and bomb detection unit and bomb threat and Crime and News and Patterson Stadium and rave alert and ULPD Madelin Shelton 1:10 pm

By Joe Wilson — 

On April 10, the University of Louisville Police Department (ULPD) issued a RAVE alert shortly after 4 p.m. warning of a bomb threat at Patterson Stadium.

The University of Louisville Dispatch Center was alerted to an online social media conversation, in which an anonymous individual stated that a bomb was planned to detonate during today’s baseball game.

According to the ULPD, “We take these types of threats seriously and immediately evacuated Patterson Stadium as a safety precaution. Subsequently, resources from LMPD’s Bomb detection Unit were contacted for support.”

All athletes and fans in attendance were quickly directed to an off-site location. Then, members of the Bomb Detection Unit completed a thorough review of the stadium. After the Bomb Detection Unit determined the facility to be safe, the baseball players returned to the stadium and resumed their game. In the interest of safety, fans did not return to the stadium to watch the rest of the game.

At 5:31 p.m., ULPD sent a subsequent RAVE alert announcing that Patterson Stadium was safe and clear.

The bomb threat and its origin are the subject of an ongoing investigation. Any person that has any information regarding this incident should contact ULPD at (502) 852-6111.

File Graphic // The Louisville Cardinal 

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Louisville women’s basketball ready for the NCAA Tournament Friday, Mar 18 2022 

Baseball and Jeff Walz and Louisville Basketball and sports and women's basketball Daniel Rankin 11:53 am

By Daniel Rankin —

The journey to the Final Four begins tonight for the University of Louisville women’s basketball team as they set their eyes on winning the program’s first national championship.

At 6 p.m. tonight, the No. 1 Louisville Cardinals will face the No. 16 seeded Albany Great Danes in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The game will be broadcasted on ESPN 2.

The KFC Yum! Center will play host to the first and second round for eight of this year’s 68 national tournament teams, including the Louisville and Albany matchup.

Should the Cards advance to the second round, they will face either the No. 8 Nebraska Cornhuskers or No. 9 Gonzaga Bulldogs on Sun., March 19.

Following an upset loss in the ACC Quarterfinals to the Miami Hurricanes, there was some question about what the Cards’ final seeding would be. However, after a strong season finishing 25-4, Louisville secured the No. 1 seed.

Should Louisville advance to the Sweet 16 and Elite 8, they’ll be making the journey to Wichita, Kansas to play in the tournament. A potential Elite 8 matchup could see the Cards face the No. 2 Baylor Bears, winners of the 2021 National Championship.

The location of this year’s Final Four is in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where fellow No. 1 seed and ACC rival North Carolina State could potentially clash with the Cardinals.

For most of the year, The Cards have been one of the top teams in the nation. With Mykasa Robinson and Emily Engstler, the latter of which being a Naismith Women’s Defensive Player of the Year Semifinalist, Louisville shows off one of the best defenses in the country.

Throughout the season, the Cards have sometimes struggled offensively and with producing turnovers. However, Hailey Van Lith, Kianna Smith, Chelsie Hall and Engstler have all shown to be solid and reliable shooters capable of putting up big numbers.

Forward Olivia Cochran’s second year in red has shown a strong presence under the glass, accompanied by senior Liz Dixon.

While all signs point to a straightforward win for the Cards in this first-round matchup, it is March Madness and upsets are known to happen.

After the surprise Miami loss, Coach Walz’s message was clear, “One game at a time. We’re going to focus on Albany as you can’t focus on the round two opponent unless you get there.”

Luckily, readers, writers, national and local pundits alike can look ahead and speculate for them. Most agree: this is a powerful team that should expect at least a Final Four.

Baylor would undoubtedly pose a tough challenge but is certainly a winnable game. Dominant performances against Notre Dame and the University of Connecticut prove just that, as did the first three quarters against NC State. However, the fourth quarter has proven to be an issue for the Cards.

While Louisville is more than capable of winning against any team in the nation, they’ll need to keep the offense moving in matchups to seal the deal.

Earlier in the season, Coach Walz said, “We’re a good team, good enough to make the Final Four. But we could also be eliminated in the second round [of the NCAA Tournament].”

With the tournament underway, stay tuned for more coverage as we recap and preview matchups.

Photo by Daniel Rankin // The Louisville Cardinal

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Louisville baseball beats in-state rival NKU Wednesday, Mar 16 2022 

Baseball and College Baseball and Louisville baseball and Northern Kentucky Baseball and sports and UofL Baseball Daniel Rankin 10:33 am

By Daniel Rankin —

On March 15, the University of Louisville Baseball team defeated one of their in-state rivals, the Northern Kentucky Norse, by 12-8.

While the rivalry is considered mild compared to the historic UK-U of L matchup, a large and energetic crowd was present at Jim Patterson Stadium. Fans in attendance were treated to some beautiful Louisville weather and an impressive offensive performance from both teams.

The Cardinals finished with 17 hits, with senior Cameron Masterman and sophomore Jack Payton contributing three hits each.

Junior Evan Webster recorded his first win of the season, finishing with two strikeouts in 2.2 innings pitched. Fellow pitcher Evan Webster also recorded his first save of the year, pitching a scoreless 1.2 innings to finish the game for the Cards.

With the win, the Cardinals improve to 12-4 on the season, with a tough ACC schedule looming.

The Cards jumped out to a two-run lead in the first inning thanks to a home run by Christian Knapczyk and RBI by Payton. However, NKU responded by jumping to a 4-2 lead in the second.

Louisville responded in the bottom half by putting up three of their own to retake the lead, 6-4.

The back and forth battle continued with NKU closing the lead to one in the third, but Louisville extended its lead again after outfielder Isaac Humphrey launched a 1-2 pitch over the right-field wall. Ben Metzinger added to the lead with a home run of his own in the fifth.

In the seventh, the Cards put up another two runs on the score sheet, which was all they needed to secure the Tuesday victory.

Up next for the Cards is inner-city rival Bellarmine University today at 11 a.m. Then the ACC will kick off this weekend when the No. 1 ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish visit for a weekend series against the Cards.

A reminder that for UofL Students, admission is free to all home games for UofL students with a valid student ID.

Photo by Daniel Rankin // The Louisville Cardinal

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Louisville Baseball takes weekend series against Dartmouth Monday, Feb 28 2022 

Baseball and College Baseball and Dartmouth Baseball and Louisville baseball and sports Daniel Rankin 4:56 pm

By Daniel Rankin —

The University of Louisville Baseball team won its first weekend series of the season against Dartmouth University by winning two of three games.

With the series victory, the Cardinals move to a 4-3 record to start the season.

Game 1 – Fri., Feb. 25
The Cards routed Dartmouth 19-5 in the opening game, with the offense scoring every inning.

Sophomore Christian Knapczyk contributed 3 of the Cards’ 15 hits. Ben Metzinger, Jack Payton and Levi Usher also had big days, each with a pair of hits.

Dalton Rushing and Cameron Masterman helped expand in the 6th with a pair of back-to-back home runs.

Junior pitcher Tate Kuehner picked up his first win of the year with a solid five scoreless innings. However, pitching struggles still seem to be a lingering issue for the Cards after giving up five in the 7th.

The bats made sure a comeback was out of reach after putting up a game-high six runs in the 8th. Ben Bianco scored three of those eight by unloading the bases with his first career triple.

Pitcher Alex Galvan came in the 9th and finished the game off.

Game 2 – Sat., Feb. 26
Saturday’s contest was the odd game of the series, with the Cards dropping the game 6-4. A seemingly unstoppable offense from the prior afternoon was noticeably missing.

After being down early, Masterman extended his home run streak to three games giving the Cards the lead 2-1.

Dartmouth was able to retake the lead but Louisville responded by scoring two in the 6th. Infielder Logan Beard added to his two-hit game by scoring Usher on a sacrifice fly.

Dartmouth responded by scoring three runs in the bottom of the 7th and one later in the 9th.

The Cards’ offense struggled to get runners on base, allowing Dartmouth to finish off the upset and even the series.

Game 3 – Sun., Feb. 27
After the surprise loss, the Cardinals’ offense responded dominantly, winning 16-3 to take home the series.

The bats produced a season-high 17 hits to compliment a solid day for the pitching staff.

Senior Ben Bianco had a career day with five hits, five runs, three RBIs and was a home run away from completing the cycle. Metzinger was also one hit away from the cycle, missing just a single to achieve the feat.

The Cards’ offense started quickly, putting up two in the first and five in the second. Riley Phillips earned his first win of the season, ensuring Dartmouth could not mount a comeback. Stable appearances from Kyle Walter and Carson Liggett continued the solid pitching performance.

In the 9th inning, J.R. Langworthy finished off the game and series with a win in front of the crowd at Jim Patterson Stadium.

Overall, it was a good series for the Cards with the offense showing signs of being one of the nation’s best. Louisville will need to learn from Saturday’s performance with tougher opponents approaching.

Up next for the Cardinals is an instate weekday matchup against the Morehead State University Eagles on Tues., Mar. 1 at 3 pm.

A reminder that for UofL Students, admission is free to all home games with a valid student ID.

Photo by Daniel Rankin // The Louisville Cardinal

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Louisville Baseball Win Home Opener Against Xavier Friday, Feb 25 2022 

Baseball and sports Daniel Rankin 8:39 pm

By Daniel Rankin —

On Feb. 21, the Louisville Cardinals Baseball team won their first home game of the season against Xavier University by a score of 7-6. Rebounding after two straight losses on their Florida trip, the Cards now move to a record of 2-2.

The win was sparked by a 7th inning rally where the Cards scored six runs after being down 4-1.

After a scoreless start, Xavier got on the board in the second after the wind carried a flyball over the fence.

That lead wouldn’t last long; however, as in the bottom of the inning, Junior Dalton Rushing tied the game, hitting a hanging 2-0 pitch over the left-field wall.

The Cardinals had the bases loaded in the third inning but could not capitalize.

Another home run in the 4th inning saw Xavier retake the lead 2-1.

The 7th inning ended up being the most important of the contest. Miscommunication in the outfield allowed Xavier to start the top of the inning with a leadoff double. A squeeze bunt gave Xavier two runners, and after a sacrifice, ground out and base hit allowed the lead to expand to 4-1.

Down three runs late, it seemed issues from the two losses were still lingering; however, Head Coach Dan Mcdonnell remained calm “It’s part of the process; sometimes you realize, they (the players) need to figure out and get it done, and we have good leaders on this team,” he said when referring to being down late.

Luckily, the Cards were indeed able to figure out and responded valiantly in the bottom of the 7th.

Sophomore Outfielder Isaac Humphrey started the rally with a single to right field.
After advancing to second on a groundball, Humphrey scored thanks to a single from Infielder Logan Beard.

Christian Knapczyk battled out a full-count walk, and Ben Metzinger did the same on four straight balls, leaving bases loaded for the second time in the game.

A sacrifice fly from JT Benson put the Cards within one until Rushing scored two on a double to take a 5-4 lead. Senior Cameron Masterman sealed off the six-run with a two-run homer to left-centerfield.

Xavier closed the gap in the 8th inning by putting up two runs to make the score 7-6.

However, Closer Michael Prosecky was able to get the final six outs and finish the game earning his second save the season.

Up next for the Cards is a three-game series against Dartmouth University, with the first game on Friday at 3 pm.

A reminder that for UofL Students, admission is free to all home games for UofL students with a valid student ID.

Photo by Daniel Rankin // The Louisville Cardinal

 

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