By: Lori Korte, Assistant Sports Information Director – University of Louisville Athletics
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – University of Louisville head softball coach Sandy Pearsall has announced the release of the 2014 softball schedule. The slate features 12 teams who played in the 2013 NCAA tournaments including four top 25 teams: No. 6 Michigan, No. 11 Missouri, No. 14 Kentucky, and No. 21 UCLA. The Cardinals will also play 27 games at the newly-expanded Ulmer Stadium.
“We look forward to a challenging schedule in 2014,” said UofL head coach Sandy Pearsall. “We will play several quality teams throughout the season which we hope will prepare us for postseason play. Our schedule will be a test for our newcomers as well as our veteran players.”
Louisville will open the 2014 season in Boca Raton, Fla., at the FAU “KICKOFF” Classic Feb. 7-9 where the Cards will face host Florida Atlantic, Northern Illinois, Ohio State, St. John’s and 2013 NCAA tournament participant Tulsa. The following weekend, the Cards will head to Jacksonville, Fla. where they will face 2013 NCAA tournament teams Missouri, Notre Dame, North Carolina along with host Jacksonville.
The Cardinals will play their home opener against Northern Kentucky on Feb. 21 as part of the 2014 Cardinal Classic which also features Eastern Kentucky, IUPUI, and Central Michigan.
The following weekend, Louisville will go back on the road to Fullerton California for the Mayfair Tournament, where they will face No. 21 UCLA in a rematch of the 2013 Louisville regional elimination game. Also on the Mayfair slate are 2013 NCAA participant – and coach Pearsall’s alma mater – Oregon State, Northwestern UC-Santa Barbara and host Cal State Fullerton.
The Cards will kick off a 10 game home stand with the Red & Black Classic which will be held March 7-10 and include: Massachusetts, Ohio, Illinois State, and Ohio State. The Cardinals will stay at Ulmer Stadium for the second straight week for the Louisville Classic which features Women’s College World Series, sixth-ranked Michigan and NCAA tournament participant Wisconsin. Louisville will wrap up preconference play at Western Kentucky on March 19.
UofL will open American Athletic Conference play March 22-23 when they play host to Rutgers. On March 26 the Cards will play host to former BIG EAST foe DePaul in a doubleheader. The following two weekends bring road trips to league opponents Houston and USF before heading to Lexington to face in-state rival Kentucky. The Cardinals will continue league play with a three-game series against Connecticut at Ulmer Stadium and will hit the road again for a league series at UCF. U of L will wrap up the home season and celebrate senior weekend against Temple April 26-27. A trip to Memphis will conclude the regular season as the Cards and the Tigers face off May 3-4.
The American Athletic Conference Championship will be held May 8-11 in Houston, Texas.
“We are excited to be a part of the American Athletic Conference this year,” said Pearsall. “In this conference we will see some familiar faces in USF, Rutgers, Connecticut and former Conference USA opponent Houston, along with some teams we are not as familiar with in Memphis and Temple. We look forward to the challenges this new conference will bring.”
About the Cardinals
UofL posted a 47-13 overall record in 2013. The Cardinals finished the season at No .19 in the USA Today/NFCA rankings and No. 23 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball coaches’ poll. Louisville reached as high as No. 7 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll – matching a program high – and spent four weeks in the top ten. The Cardinals return eight letter winners from that team, including 2013 All-America selection Katie Keller, All-BIG EAST team members: Whitney Arion, Caralisa Connell, Hannah Kiyohara, Rachel LeCoq and Maggie Ruckenbrod; and 2012 All-American selection Taner Fowler.
Sandy Pearsall enters her 15th season as UofL’s head coach. After building the program from scratch in 2000, Pearsall has guided the Cardinals to five conference championships. Under her watch, Louisville has made 10 consecutive NCAA regional appearances and served as a host site in 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2013.
