Big Red Louie
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Louisville seeks their 1st National Championship ever

By Cameron Franck

Dec 15, 2022; Omaha, Nebraska, US; The Louisville Cardinals celebrate the win against the Pittsburg Panthers in the semi-final match at CHI Health Center. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 15, 2022; Omaha, Nebraska, US; The Louisville Cardinals celebrate the win against the Pittsburg Panthers in the semi-final match at CHI Health Center. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports /
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For the first time in program history, an ACC team has made it to the Women’s Volleyball National Championship game. Not just any ACC team achieved this feat, but it was none other than the Louisville Cardinals. The Cardinal volleyball team has been synonymous with dominance since Head Coach Dani Busboom Kelly took over.

Coming over from being an assitant coach with her alma mater, Nebraska, she has taken the volleyball program at Louisville to heights it has never seen before. This season the Cardinals have been a two-headed dragon surrounded by a plethora of talent. Led by Claire Chaussee, Louisville finished the regular season with a 26-2 record.

Her counterpart, Anna DeBeer re-joined the team late into the season coming off of a knee injury and since her return the Cardinals have been a freight train headed straight to the National Championship game with full steam ahead.

In the past two tournament games, Louisville has been able to withstand each game going to five sets and even seeing their season on the brink of elimination against the Oregon Ducks. But, they powered through and held them off in the fifth set.

Last night, the Panthers had a chance heading into the fifth set, but Louisville closed that door as soon as the first serve floated over the net to kick off the final set. The Cardinals dominated the Panthers 15-2 to make history not only for the program, but for the entire conference.

The biggest challenge of all is still in front of the Cardinals as they are set to face off a fellow #1 seed in the Texas Longhorns. In the history of the series between these two teams, Texas holds the series lead 3-1.

The good news is that in their last matchup, which dates back to 2019, the Cardinals finished off the Longhorns in five sets. Aiko Jones dominated the entire game recording 23 kills and Tori DIlfer added 47 assists to help Louisville take down the Longhorns. Claire Chaussee added an ace, eight kills, and eight assists in the matchup.

Returners from that team, Aiko Jones and Claire Chaussee look to build off of their previous success and lead this team into their first ever Championship.

Here are the details for the matchup:

Date: December 17, 2022

Time: 8:00 PM EST

Arena: CHI Health Center

City: Omaha, Nebraska

Network: ESPN2

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