By Matt Bradshaw —

It is time to recap Louisville’s athletic year as the spring semester draws to a close.

Along with a summary of every varsity sport’s performance, we will rank each one by relative success and achievements. The criteria for success include performance during 2018-19 (winning percentage, conference play and overall accomplishments), current play and future potential.

21. Women’s tennis

Women’s tennis started strong with 10 straight wins, then struggled against the crucible that is ACC play. They finished the regular season 10-14 with a 2-12 record in the conference.

20. Lacrosse

Lacrosse has yet to win an ACC match under second-year head coach Scott Teeter, though the Cards ended the home slate on a good note with a 19-7 win over Ohio State. Louisville is 5-11 and 0-6 in the conference with one game remaining.

19. Football

Football’s streak of eight straight bowls ended with a historically bad performance by the Cardinals and Bobby Petrino, finishing with a 2-10 record and the worst loss to UK since 1922. With the addition of head coach Scott Satterfield, Louisville’s culture looks to be growing much more positive but remains unproven.

18. Men’s golf

Men’s golf has posted nine top-10 team finishes throughout the 2018-19 season, including a victory at the Old Town Club Invitational. Matthias Schmid leads with five top-10 individual finishes, a title at the Old Town Club Invitational and the lowest average of the team at 67.93.

17. Men’s cross country

Men’s cross country improved its conference finish from last season to place 10th overall at the ACC Championships. Emmanuel Cheboson turned in a noteworthy first year, earning ACC Men’s Freshman of the Week during the season and finishing 15th at the conference championships.

16. Rowing

After a successful fall season, rowing recorded one win at the Oak Ridge Cardinal Invitational and second place overall at the Sunshine State Invitational. With the ACC Championship approaching, Louisville will look to top its fifth place performance at last year’s conference championship.

15. Men’s track and field

Men’s track and field concluded its indoor season with 10th place at the ACC Championships. Since then, Louisville picked up six wins at the Houston Spring Break Invitational and Anthony McRoberts earned ACC Performer of the Week for victories in the high and triple jump.

14. Men’s tennis

Similar to the women’s team, men’s tennis started strong then struggled in ACC play. Louisville is 17-10 overall and 5-7 in the conference to end the regular season. Seniors Christopher Morin-Kougoucheff, Brandon Lancaster, George Hedley and Federico Gomez will lead the Cards into their final postseason run.

13. Women’s golf

Women’s golf highlighted the start of spring play with a 4-1 victory over rival Kentucky in the Battle of the Bluegrass. Louisville has since played in four tournaments and Lauren Hartlage tallied a milestone by competing at the Augusta National Amateur Championship.

12. Women’s cross country

Dorcas Wasike highlighted a successful season by becoming Louisville cross country’s first ACC Champion. The team finished 10th overall in the conference standings. Later, Wasike finished 14th at the NCAA Championships.

11. Women’s track and field

Women’s track and field concluded the indoor season with fourth place at the ACC Championships and 27th at the NCAA Championships. Wasike and Makenli Forrest earned All-American honors at the NCAAs.

10. Field hockey

Field hockey finished with a 13-6 record and 3-3 in ACC play. Louisville missed out on its first NCAA Tournament since 2013, barely denied entrance with tough losses in close games.

9. Softball

Softball has marked Holly Aprile’s debut coaching year with a 27-15 record and 8-7 in conference play. Louisville recently defeated No. 3 Florida State, defending national champs, in a three-game series with a walk-off win in the final matchup.

8. Women’s soccer

Women’s soccer finished its season with a 12-7 record and 6-4 in ACC play, nearly upsetting No. 2 Tennessee in the NCAA first round. They improved greatly from their previous season in which they failed to qualify for the conference tournament.

7. Volleyball

After winning a conference title in 2017, volleyball logged a 22-9 record and 14-4 in ACC play in 2018. Louisville reached the NCAA Tournament and lost in the first round to Illinois.

6. Men’s basketball

Men’s basketball marked Chris Mack’s coaching debut with a season better than any expected. Louisville finished with a 20-14 record and 10-8 in ACC play. The Cards will return with a stellar freshman class and talented veterans.

5. Men’s soccer

Men’s soccer followed up back-to-back Elite Eight appearances with a disappointing NCAA second round loss, but won the ACC Championship for the first time in school history. Louisville finished with a 11-5-3 record and 4-2-2 in ACC play.

4. Baseball

A top-20 team in every poll, baseball currently holds a 29-8 record and 13-5 in conference play. Louisville will look to return to the Super Regional for the sixth time in seven seasons after losing in last year’s Regional Final. The Cards last reached the College World Series in 2017.

3. Women’s basketball

Women’s basketball lost a tough one to Connecticut in the Elite Eight, but won another conference title and logged a fantastic season in the process. Louisville finished with a 32-4 record and 14-2 in ACC play, and graduates the winningest class in program history: Asia Durr, Sam Fuehring and Arica Carter.

2. Men’s swimming and diving

Men’s swimming and diving took second place at the ACC Championships, matching its finish from last season. Louisville then placed fifth at the NCAA Championships, marking the highest finish in program history.

1. Women’s swimming and diving



Women’s swimming and diving takes the top spot with its fantastic finish at the national level. Louisville placed fourth at the NCAA Championships, the program’s highest ever finish, powered by two national titles from Mallory Comerford. Louisville also made history by becoming the only ACC program to ever have both women’s and men’s finish in the top five.

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File Photo / The Louisville Cardinal