Louisville Plays Host to No. 10/11 Kentucky on Wednesday

GAME INFORMATION
Louisville vs. No. 10/11 Kentucky
Date: April 7 2021
Location: Louisville, Ky.
Venue: Don Dobina Field at Ulmer Stadium
Schedule
Wednesday, 7 p.m. - Live Scoring | ACCNX
Twitter Updates: @UofLSoftball
Game Notes: Louisville | Kentucky
Admission: Player pass list, limited free walk-up tickets for inside the stadium. Berm seating available with social distancing.
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The University of Louisville softball team will play host to in-state rival, No. 10/11 Kentucky in a midweek matchup Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Ulmer Stadium. The game will be televised on ACC Network Extra.

In a pregame ceremony starting at approximately 6:45 p.m., the Cardinals will honor 2020 senior Caitlin Ferguson.

ULMER STADIUM ATTENDANCE POLICY
In 2021, attendance will be limited to 20 percent capacity at Ulmer Stadium. Due to these capacity limitations, pass list admittance will be available to guests of Louisville student-athletes, coaches and visiting team, along with a limited number of walk-up tickets for UofL Students and the general public.

In an effort to continue to follow CDC and state COVID-19 guidelines and six-foot social distancing, UofL Athletics will be putting measures in place to stay within these parameters in the berm area at Ulmer Stadium. For the UK game and the remaining two ACC series, fans will find barricades in place that will limit access to the occupancy levels the space will provide.

The berm seating will continue to be accessed on a first-come, first-served basis within the confines of the area. Once it has reached social-distanced capacity, no additional access will be allowed. All fans who get a seat within the berm will be given a wristband that will allow entry throughout the game. Fans are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and/or blankets if they wish to sit in the berm.

All home contests will be televised and/or streamed for those who cannot attend.

For more information please visit here.

PARKING INFORMATION
Fans attending the games held at the University of Louisville may utilize the Floyd Street Parking Garage located across from the Don Fightmaster Playground for a $5 fee. The garage will be open to the public 90 minutes before the game.

CARDINAL NOTES:
• The Cardinals (13-15, 7-10 ACC) have won three of their last four games after claiming a four-game ACC road series at Pittsburgh.
• Carmyn Greenwood leads the team and stands second in the ACC with a .437 batting average. She also leads the way with eight doubles, 17 runs, seven stolen bases and 13 multi-hit games.
               ^ She recently registered a career-high and tied a school record with four hits in the 7-4 win at Pittsburgh on April 3.
• Taylor Roby leads the team with 29 RBI and has belted out a team-high nine home runs, standing second in the conference in that category.
• Roby has also produced a team-best nine multi-RBI games.
• Makayla Hurst is currently on a seven-game hitting streak.
• Roby (7-8) leads the team with a 2.86 ERA in 83.1 innings of work.
   ^ Roby was named ACC Player of the Week on February 23.
• Jennifer Leonhardt, a graduate transfer from the University of Southern Indiana leads the Cardinals' pitching rotation with 56 strikeouts in 46.2 innings.
• Leonhardt is tied for the ACC lead and third in the nation with four saves.
• Leonhardt has been named a top 30 candidate for the Senior CLASS Award.
• Celene Funke currently ranks second on Louisville's all-time list for triples with 20 and needs six more to tie for the lead.
• Funke is also third on Louisville's career list for stolen bases with 67 and needs one more to move into a tie for second.
• Louisville was picked to finish seventh in the preseason ACC Coaches poll.

THE APRILE ERA
• Holly Aprile is in her third season as UofL's head coach. With the 2020 campaign suspended prior to its midway point due to the outbreak of COVID-19, Aprile has compiled a 58-47 record and guided the Cardinals to an NCAA regional final appearance in 2019.
• Prior to her arrival at Louisville, Aprile, 2018 ACC Coach of the Year spent 10 seasons (2009-18) as Pittsburgh's head coach and five years (2004-08) as an assistant. In 2018, she earned ACC Coach of the Year honors after leading the Panthers to the 2018 ACC Coastal Division title and a runner-up finish in the ACC tournament.

SCOUTING THE WILDCATS
Series Record: Tied 20-20
Last Meeting: April 17, 2019 - UL won 8-7
RECAP: Taylor Roby's two-out single in the seventh plated Celene Funke and lifted the Cardinals to an 8-7 win over No. 24/23 Kentucky at Ulmer Stadium.
• In a back-and-forth game that featured four lead changes and two ties, the Cardinals snap a three-game losing streak to the Wildcats and bring the overall series record to 20-20.
• Roby picked up the win in the circle after giving up two earned runs on five hits and striking out one in 3.2 innings of relief. She helped her own cause at the plate, finishing the game with a 2-for-5, two RBI performance.
• Funke led the Cardinals offensively, going 4-for-5 with three stolen bases and tied a school record with four runs. The speedy centerfielder also connected on her 10th triple of the season.
• Autumn Humes took the loss, allowing four earned runs on eight hits and striking out three in 52. Innings of relief. Lauren Johnson paced the Wildcats, going 3-for-4 with two doubles, two runs and two RBIs.
Cardinal Connections
• UofL head coach Holly Aprile and UK head coach Rachel Lawson were teammates at UMass and helped lead the Minutewomen to a Women's College World Series appearance in 1992.
• UofL assistant coach Griffin Joiner is a UK alum and played for Lawson from 2012-15. She also served as a grad manager for her alma mater from 2016-17.
• Cardinals' assistant coach Ashley Lane served as a volunteer assistant under Lawson in 2015.
About Kentucky: Kentucky enters Wednesday's game with a 27-6 overall record, standing at No. 10 in the USA Today/NFCA rankings and No. 11 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll. The Wildcats are coming off of a three-game series at No. 18 Tennessee last weekend. The Lady Vols took the first and third games with scores of 6-1 and 6-2, but the Wildcats posted a 13-2 win in game two.
•UK has tallied SEC wins against then-No. 3 Alabama, and No. 5 Florida.
• Kentucky carries a hefty .346 team batting average with seven players hitting over .300 on the season.
• Kayla Kowalik leads the way, hitting at a clip of .482 with 47 runs and 14 stolen bases. Erin Coffel has a team-high 14 home runs and 41 RBIs.
• Autumn Humes has carried the majority of the pitching duties with a 12.4 record and 69 strikeouts in 82.0 innings of work.
• Kentucky is coached by Rachel Lawson, who is in her 14th year at the helm.

HONORING 2020 SENIOR CAITLIN FERGUSON
Prior to the start of Wednesday's matchup with Kentucky, UofL will honor 2020 senior Caitlin Ferguson.
• The infielder from Versailles, Kentucky, was a four-year starter, helping the team to 109 wins and an NCAA Regional Final appearance in 2019.
• With her senior season cut short after only 23 games, Ferguson still amassed impressive career numbers, playing in 175 games with 170 starts with 28 doubles, five triples and 11 home runs. Additionally, she tallied 89 runs, tying a school record with four runs in a game – twice. She also drove in 94 RBI, including a career-high 40 in 2018.
Caitlin earned 2018 NFCA All-Southeast Region second team honors as a sophomore and was a 2017 All-ACC Freshman Team selection. Additionally, she was a three-time ACC Academic Honor Roll member and named to the All-ACC Academic Team twice.
• The exercise science/pre-pharmacy major earned her bachelor's degree in May 2020 and is currently enrolled in UK's Pharmacy School.

RECAPPING THE PITTSBURGH SERIES
The Cardinals are coming off of a four-game ACC series at Pittsburgh. After the series was pushed back two days due to weather in the Pittsburgh area, Louisville opened the set with a doubleheader sweep winning 6-4 and 7-4 on Saturday. Pittsburgh used a walk-off home run to take Sunday's game 9-7, but the Cardinals responded by clinching the series with a 9-5 win on Monday.
• In the four-game set, the Cardinals scored 29 runs and belted out nine home runs - four from Taylor Roby.
• Carmyn Greenwood batted .733 (11-for-15) with six doubles and scored five runs with five RBI while posting a 1.133 slugging percentage and a .750 on-base percentage.

UP NEXT
Following Wednesday's contest, the Cardinals will depart on Thursday for a four-game ACC series at Georgia Tech.

SCHEDULE UPDATES
Louisville's ACC series at Boston College (April 30-May 2) has been altered as part of ACC Network coverage. The teams will now square off in a single game at 5 p.m. on Friday followed by a 12 p.m./5 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday. The series finale will take place on Sunday at 2 p.m.

TOUGH SLATE
Louisville's 2021 slate is highlighted by seven teams in the USA Today/National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) and the ESPN.com/USA Softball coaches' Top 25 polls including: No. 4/4 Alabama, No. 5/5 Florida, No. 8/7 Kentucky, No. 10/10 Florida State, No. 13/14 Duke, No. 19/16 Virginia Tech and No. 18/19 Clemson
• Four of Louisville's 14 losses have come against teams ranked in the top 10 (Alabama and Florida) and 11 have come against teams in the top 25.
• In response to the ongoing pandemic, the annual ACC/Big Ten challenge has been cancelled and the ACC has implemented four-game series to limit travel between conference opponents.
• Ulmer Stadium is set to host 28 games throughout the season, including two tournaments in March: the Cardinal Classic and the Red & Black Challenge.
• UofL will host the ACC Tournament from May 12-15, where the top 10 conference teams will be eligible to participate this year.

DUAL THREATS
All three of Louisville's starting pitchers can also help their cause at the plate.
Taylor Roby leads the team with a career-high nine home runs and 29 RBI.
• Additionally, the redshirt junior has logged a team-high 83.1 innings and issued 41 strikeouts.
Jennifer Leonhardt leads the team 56 Ks and is tied for first in the ACC with four saves. The graduate senior transfer from the University of Southern Indiana is batting .300 on the season and recently connected on her first home run as a Cardinal. She finished her undergrad career with a .327 batting average.
Gabby Holloway (3-3) has logged 46.2 innings, standing second behind Roby in innings pitched. The freshman has issued 17 strikeouts on the season and has driven in a pair of runs.

HURST COMING ON STRONG
Junior Makayla Hurst is in her first season at Louisville after transferring from Utah. The first baseman has been on a tear recently, having reached safely in the last seven games dating back to the March 27 game against Virginia Tech. During that stretch, she has posted a .476 batting average (10-for-21) with four home runs and 10 RBIs.

TRIPLE TREAT
Celene Funke connected her second triple of the season in the 9-0 win over Bradley, extending career total to 20. She currently stands second on Louisville's all-time list and needs six more more to tie Audrey Rendon (2004-07) for first.
• Funke led the nation in triples with 13 in 2019, setting the school single season record along the way.

FUNKE FAST (STOLEN BASE EDITION)
Celene Funke recently registered two stolen bases in Monday's 9-5 win at Pitt. She extends her career total to 67 and stands third on Louisville's all-time stolen base list - she needs one more to tie Sidney Melton (2015-19) for second. Audrey Rendon (2004-07) holds the record with 82.

SISTER ACT
• Louisville's roster features two sets of sisters: the Schindlers and the Greenwoods.
• Senior outfielder Carmyn Greenwood transferred to Louisville from Auburn in the 2020 season, joining her sister, Cassady who is a junior catcher for the Cardinals.
• Senior pitcher Paige Schindler and outfielder Riley Schindler are among 21 sets of twins in NCAA Division I softball who play for the same team. Paige Schindler is sidelined this season due to injury.
• All four sisters saw action in the Feb. 8, 2020 game against Texas State. Carmyn Greenwood was in left field while sister Cassady was catching and Riley Schindler was playing right field while Paige was pitching.

SUPER SENIORS CELENE FUNKE AND JENNIFER LEONHARDT
UofL has two "super seniors" on its roster in the form of graduate students Celene Funke and Jennifer Leonhardt, both of whom are utilizing an extra year of eligibility granted by the NCAA following the COVID-19 shortened 2020 campaign.
               Funke (Carmel, Ind.) was leading the team in stolen bases (13-for-13) and triples (3) when her senior season came to an abrupt halt after 23 games. In 2019, she led the nation in triples and set a school record with 13 while registering a team-best 48 runs and standing second with a .324 batting average and 29 stolen bases. The speedy centerfielder currently stands second on Louisville's career list for triples (18) and third on the all-time stolen base list with 62.
               Funke is also the program's first three-time CoSIDA Academic All-American (2018, 2019) and is pursuing her MBA after earning her undergraduate degree in finance in May 2019.
               Leonhardt returns to her hometown after completing her career at the University of Southern Indiana where she was a three-time NCAA Division II All-American. The right-handed pitcher will play for the Cardinals while attending UofL's School of Dentistry.
               Leonhardt led the USI to the 2018 NCAA Division II national title and earned Most Outstanding Player of the 2018 NCAA Division II Softball Championship Series honors.
               As her senior campaign was cut short, Leonhardt carried a 7-3 record with a 1.63 ERA and 76 strikeouts in 68.2 innings of work. She also led the team with a .386 batting average.
               Leonhardt finished her career at USI as the program's all-time leader in wins (83), strikeouts (787) and complete game shutouts (35) while standing second in saves (8) and innings pitched (730.2). At the plate, she registered a .327 career batting average with 87 RBIs and 74 runs.

Louisville Plays Host to No. 10/11 Kentucky on Wednesday

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Players Mentioned

Caitlin Ferguson

Celene Funke

Carmyn Greenwood

Gabby Holloway

Makayla Hurst

Jennifer Leonhardt

Taylor Roby

Paige Schindler

Riley Schindler

University of Louisville Athletics