LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Cardinals chants echoed throughout TEN20 Craft Brewery, Saturday, as hundreds packed inside to watch the UofL Women's Volleyball team cap off a historic 2022 season.
"It is surreal. I feel like the city, the team, the department, the university is just riding an emotional high right now," Zach Day, the assistant director of marketing for Louisville Athletics, said. “ What makes the team so special, in my opinion, is just the authenticity and the genuineness, really. Whenever you hear in press conferences and on social media about grit and determination, that's truly what the team is.”
After a hard-fought three sets, the Cardinal’s historic season ended, as the Longhorns swept Louisville (25-22, 25-14, 26-24), winning the 2022 NCAA women's volleyball championship.
While it isn’t the outcome UofL fans hoped for, they said seeing the women’s volleyball team blaze a historic trail to the NCAA championship is a feeling they won’t forget.
“This is a team that is needed right now. I think they're there in the easy team to get behind and root for,” Day said. “No matter the outcome, I think this is going to be a special program—not only [in] Louisville volleyball history, but the university and the athletic department history.”
The Cardinals went into Saturday’s matchup, coming off two straight five-set victories.
“I think it's just exciting to see where we can go. This really is a foundation that is only launching us so much further,” Sarah Neff, the director of alumni events for UofL, said. “So for me, I'm just so excited to continue to be a fan of this team, continue to support them in town, knowing that they're probably going to probably need a bigger arena soon.”
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