< PreviousT he Louisville baseball program has taken three international trips, visiting the Dominican Republic in 2015, 2019 and most recently in the fall of 2023. The trips, which have coincided with the university’s mid-term break, provided the Cardinals with the opportunity to gain valuable time on the field against talented Dominican teams while also assisting with multiple commu- nity service projects. Louisville has racked up a 4-6-2 mark in 12 games against international competition. Louisville became the first American college program to play against Dominican Repub- lic Professional Baseball League franchise Estrellas Orientales in its home ballpark dropping a 5-3 decision on Oct. 4, 2015 at Estadio Tetelo Vargas in San Pedro de Macorís. The Cardinals have played seven games against Dominican Winter League (LIDOM) franchises, including a 9-2 win over 16-time league champions Leones del Escogido Oct. 8, 2023 at the New York Yan- kees Academy in Boca Chica. Away from the field, the Cardinals have participated in many community service opportunities. Upon arrival in the capital city of Santo Domingo, the Cardinals have hosted a trio of baseball clinics, teaching the fundamentals of baseball to groups of more than 100 kids ranging from ages 8 to 18 years old. Louisville has also visited Pasitos de Jésus, a facility founded to help care for a young girl with Down Syndrome which also provides assistance to abused and aban- doned youth girls in the Dominican Republic. The visits have included a tour of the facility, time spent interacting and play- ing games with the children, and singing by many of the 50 girls at the home before the Cardinals served everyone a meal. The Cardinals have also spent time visit- ing rural villages in the Dominican Republic. While at the villages, the players and coaches interacted with numerous local families while sharing food purchased through donations to SCORE International. Louisville has partnered with SCORE International for their hous- ing, transportation and community service work while on the ground in the Dominican Republic. SCORE International is a short term mission organiza- tion with extensive experience providing all-inclusive trips. 20 University of Louisville n gocards.comgocards.com n University of Louisville 21 Tradition of Excellence Consistency. It is the mark of true excel- lence in any endeavor. In today’s intercollegiate athletics, com- petition is so balanced and so competitive that it is virtually impossible to maintain a high level of consistency. Yet the Atlantic Coast Conference has defied the odds. Established in 1953, the ACC has long enjoyed the reputation as one of the stron- gest and most competitive intercollegiate conferences in the nation. And that is not mere conjecture, the numbers support it. Through 70 years of competition, ACC schools have captured 182 NCAA team championships, including 92 in women’s competition, 85 in men’s sports and five in fencing. In addition, NCAA individual titles have gone to ACC student-athletes 204 times in men’s competition and 202 times in women’s action. Since 2015, the ACC has won a com- bined seven national championships in foot- ball, men’s basketball, women’s basketball and baseball. The ACC is the only confer- ence to win each of those four titles over that stretch. If success is best measured in terms of wins and losses, then the ACC is unrivaled in NCAA basketball annals. Eight of the last 21 NCAA Basketball Championships have been won by teams currently competing in the ACC. No conference has compiled a better NCAA Tournament record than the ACC. Since the inaugural tournament in 1939, league teams have posted an NCAA Tour- nament-best mark of 474-250 for a sterling .655 winning percentage on college basket- ball’s biggest stage. The 15 teams currently in the ACC have combined for 664 NCAA Tournament victories – more than any other conference. Since 1985, the ACC has produced 32 Final Four teams, seven more than any other conference. The ACC has had at least one Final Four team in 25 of the last 34 years. Since the NCAA Tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985, ACC teams have com- piled a 370-193 (.657) record, including 101 Sweet 16 appearances and 55 Regional Final berths – all NCAA Tournament bests. Since 1985, half of the league teams (104-of-208) receiving NCAA berths have won at least two NCAA Tournament games. Teams currently in the ACC have com- bined to win 17 NCAA Championships. North Carolina leads the way with six national titles, followed by Duke with five, Louisville two, NC State two, Syracuse one and Virginia one. In the five NCAA Tournaments from 2015-19, ACC teams combined to win an NCAA-record 74 Tournament games, better- ing the previous mark of 65 set by the ACC between 2014-18. The ACC’s 74 wins were 24 more than any other conference. The ACC has posted 10 or more NCAA Tournament wins 19 times and has finished .500 or better in 34 of the last 35 tourna- ments. In 2016, ACC teams combined to win an NCAArecord 19 NCAA Tournament games, eclipsing the previous mark of 18 set by the Big East in 1985. Since 1981, the ACC has produced 52 consensus All-Americans – more than any other conference – and more than 20% of the nation’s consensus All-Americans. During the 2022-23 season, 91 players from the current 15 ACC schools earned spots on NBA rosters, more than any other conference. In addition, over the past 14 years, 154 ACC players have made their NBA debuts, including an all-time high 19 during the 2019-20 season (previous high was 15 in 2006). The ACC has had at least three first- round picks in 14 of the last 15 NBA Drafts – the only conference to do so. Since 2009 the ACC leads all conferences in both first- round selections (84) and overall selections (135). The ACC’s current membership further enhances the league’s reputation in college basketball. The 15 schools that comprise the ACC in 2022-23 have made 67 trips to the Final Four and have won 17 NCAA Championships, including three of the last eight. Current league members have won nearly 25,000 games and have had 826 NBA Draft picks, including 285 first-round selections. The Championships The ACC conducts championship com- petitions in all 28 sports – 13 for men and 15 for women – including women’s gymnastics, which has been added for the 2023-24 school year. No Autonomy Five conference sponsors more than 28 sports. The 15 women’s sports are the most of any peer conference. The first ACC championship was held in swimming at North Carolina State University on February 25, 1954. The 13 sports for men include football, cross country, soccer, basketball, fencing, swimming & diving, indoor and outdoor track & field, wrestling, baseball, tennis, and golf and lacrosse. Women’s sports were initiated in 1977 with the first champion- ship meet held in tennis October 6-8 at Wake Forest University. Championships for women are currently conducted in cross country, field hockey, soccer, basketball, fencing, swimming & diving, indoor and outdoor track & field, gymnastics, tennis, golf, lacrosse, softball and rowing, with volleyball deciding its champion by regular- season play. Brendan McKay was named 2017 ACC Player of the Year and 2015 ACC Freshman of the Year. 22 University of Louisville n gocards.comACC History The Atlantic Coast Conference was founded on May 8, 1953, at the Sedgefield Inn near Greensboro, N.C., with seven char- ter members - Clemson, Duke, Maryland, North Carolina, North Carolina State, South Carolina and Wake Forest - drawing up the conference by-laws. The withdrawal of seven schools from the Southern Conference came early on the morning of May 8, 1953, during the South- ern Conference’s annual spring meeting. On June 14, 1953, the seven members met in Raleigh, N.C., where a set of bylaws was adopted and the name became officially the Atlantic Coast Conference. On December 4, 1953, conference offi- cials met again at Sedgefield and officially admitted Virginia as the league’s eighth mem- ber. The first withdrawal of a school from the ACC came on June 30, 1971, when South Carolina tendered its resignation. The ACC operated with seven members until April 3, 1978, when Georgia Tech was admitted. The Atlanta school had withdrawn from the Southeastern Conference in January of 1964. The ACC expanded to nine members on July 1, 1991, with the addition of Florida State. The conference expanded to 11 members on July 1, 2004, with the addition of Miami and Virginia Tech. On October 17, 2003, Boston College accepted an invitation to become the league’s 12th member starting July 1, 2005. The ACC added its 13th and 14th mem- bers on Sept. 18, 2011, when Pittsburgh and Syracuse accepted invitations to join the conference. The two schools officially joined the ACC on July 1, 2013. Notre Dame also officially joined the ACC on July 1, 2013, after announcing on Sept. 12, 2012 its inten- tion to enter the league for competition in all sports but football, bringing the membership of the conference to 15. On July 1, 2014, Louisville entered the ACC on the same day Maryland withdrew, keeping the conference’s membership at 15 institutions. Dan McDonnell was named ACC Coach of the Year in 2015, 2016 and 2017. Louisville celebrated its fourth ACC Atlantic Division title in five years in 2019. Drew Harrington was tabbed ACC Pitcher of the Year in 2016. Devin Hairston was named 2017 ACC Defensive Player of the Year Reid Detmers was named the 2019 ACC Pitcher of the Year. gocards.com n University of Louisville 23 Cardinal Athletic Success 3 National Championships 23 Individual National Championships 336 All-Americans 240 NCAA Appearances 15 Final Four Appearances 5 College World Series Appearances 1 College Cup Appearance 11 Bowl Wins 165 Conference Team Championships 19 Conference Athletes of the Year 4 No. 1 Draft Picks 28 Olympians 4 World Championships 3 National Players of the Year 62 First Round Draft Picks 1 Dick Howser Award Winner 1 Heisman Trophy Winner 1 Ann Meyers Drysdale Award Winner 2 Golden Goggle Award Winners 22 First Team Academic All-Americans 24 University of Louisville n gocards.comgocards.com n University of Louisville 25 26 University of Louisville n gocards.com UofL Athletics Facilities Bass-Rudd Tennis Center Jim Patterson Stadium L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium Thorntons Academic Center of Excellence Trager Stadium Cardinal Park Ulmer Stadium Swain Student Activities Center G. Garvin Brown III Rowing Center Marshall Center KFC Yum! Centergocards.com n University of Louisville 27 UofL Athletics Facilities T he University of Louisville features impressive facilities that have enriched the campus and entire Louisville community. Every Cardinal sports team has a new facility since 1994, with most being built within the last 25 years. The state-of-the-art, 22,090-seat KFC Yum! Center has been the home of Cardinal Basketball since open- ing in 2010. The Cardinals kicked off their 1998 football season in L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium, a 60,800-seat on-campus facility that was expanded in 2010. Another expansion that enclosed the end zone was completed in 2018. L&N Federal Credit Union Arena, expanded in 2017 as the home for UofL volleyball, and many athletic offices are housed in the Swain Student Activities Center on the northeast corner of campus. Built in 1994, the Bass-Rudd Tennis Center was hon- ored as the 1995 USTA College Facility of the Year. It was the first component of Cardinal Park, an area which features multiple playing facilities for the Cardinals: Ulmer Stadium (softball), Cardinal Track Stadium and Trager Stadium (field hockey). The University of Louisville Golf Club, located just east of Louisville in Simpsonville, Ky., is the home to the UofL men’s and women’s golf teams. Patterson Stadium, the home to the Cards’ baseball team, opened in 2005, as did the Ralph Wright Natato- rium and Trager Center fieldhouse. Planet Fitness Kueber Center provides a stellar basketball practice facility and offices as well as a practice home for women’s basket- ball and women’s lacrosse. UofL opened in 2008 the Marshall Center, a multi- sport weight training facility, and the Field Hockey Com- plex, to house offices and locker rooms for field hockey. The G. Garvin Brown II Rowing Center riverside boat house for the Cardinals’ rowing team opened in 2011. A state-of-the-art soccer stadium, Dr. Mark & Cindy Lynn Stadium, opened in 2014. The sparkling Thorntons Academic Center of Excellence opened in 2016 at the south end of the football stadium structure. Ralph Wright Natatorium Dr. Mark & Cindy Lynn Stadium Lacrosse Stadium Trager Center Fieldhouse University of Louisville Golf Club L&N Federal Credit Union Arena UofL Athletics Broadcast CenterS ince its opening in 2005, Jim Patterson Stadium has provided the University of Louisville baseball program with one of the great home field advantages in all of college baseball. With an initial seating capacity of 2,500 upon opening, the ballpark under- went an expansion project prior to the 2013 season increasing capacity to more than 4,000 and maintaining Jim Patterson Stadi- um as one of the elite facilities in the nation. Spearheaded by the leadership gift of Mr. and Mrs. Jim Patterson, the privately funded expansion of Jim Patterson Stadium was a $4 million facility development plan which featured the addition of 1,500 chair back seats, a 6,400 sq. ft. terrace directly acces- sible above the chair back seats and a two- tiered ground level terrace extending from the first and third base dugouts. The project also included an expanded press box, which doubled the previous space used to facilitate media and hospitality, and a visiting team locker room behind the third base dugout. The expansion doubled the number of chair back seats taking the total to 3,000 while the overall seating capacity of more than 4,000 places Jim Patterson Stadium among the Top 30 of university controlled collegiate ballparks in the nation. Since its opening, Jim Patterson Stadium has hosted nine NCAA Regionals (2009, 2010, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2022) and six NCAA Super Regionals (2007, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019). After starting construction in August of 2004, the University of Louisville unveiled Jim Patterson Stadium, located at the cor- ner of Central Avenue and Third Street, on Friday, April 15, 2005, when the Cardinals battled East Carolina in front of a then- school record crowd of 3,213. A pregame ceremony to officially dedi- cate the stadium featured UofL graduate, former baseball team walk-on and local entrepreneur Jim Patterson, whose seven- figure donation led the drive to construct the $8.5 million ballpark. Joining Patterson were Louisville Mayor Jerry Abrahamson, UofL Board of Trustees Chairman Junior Bridge- man, U.S. Representative Anne M. Northup, UofL President Dr. James Ramsey, UofL Vice president for Athletics Tom Jurich, and more than 100 UofL baseball alumni. Along with the 3,000 chairback seats, Jim Patterson Stadium has a tiered, turf berm in left field. The press box features an expanded television suite, two radio booths, game operations booth, an expanded seating area for non-broadcast media, an AD suite and a development suite. The ballpark measures 330 feet down the lines, 375 to the power alleys and 402 to straightaway center. Prior to the 2015 season, the University of Lou- isville partnered with ANC Sports for the installation of a new LED video board in right-centerfield at Jim Patterson Stadium. The all-digital surface more than quadrupled the size of the previous video space and measures 36-feet wide and 23-feet tall. The playing surface is FieldTurf, same as the Tampa Bay Rays’ Tropicana Field, as well as Louisville’s Cardinal Stadium. The playing field was completely resurfaced in the sum- mer of 2013 providing the Cardinals with one of the nation’s best surfaces. The exte- 28 University of Louisville n gocards.com“I love this ballpark. I love this setting — you have Churchill Downs on one side and Cardinal Stadium on the other. It’s sitting right in the middle of Louisville. I love it. This is just a cool college ballpark.” – Kyle Peterson, ESPN College Baseball Analyst rior of the ballpark has elements that mirror UofL’s nearby football facility. The adjacent building along the first base side of the ballpark houses the baseball offices, while the basement of the building features full club house facilities with a play- ers’ lounge, theatre style team-meeting room, weight room, equipment room, training room and laundry facilities. The locker room, train- ing room and weight room were renovated prior to the start of the 2024 season. The Flaker Family Pro Locker Room was unveiled in January of 2019. Located behind the UofL dugout and accessible from the first base concourse, the Flaker Family Pro Locker Room features 10 spacious lockers, two showers, one kitchenette and lounge space with a couch, two chairs and two televisions. The Pro Locker Room is open to UofL alumni in professional baseball for off-season training while also serving as an umpires’ locker room on game days at Jim Patterson Stadium. Prior to the 2023 season, enhancements were done to the entrance and concourse of the stadium. A new entry gate featuring six new columns with arched entry ways was built in addition to the third base concourse being widened to provide additional space for con- cessions while improving the flow of patrons. The first eight feet of the roof supports are constructed with green brick from the left field wall at historic Parkway Field, and infield dirt was taken from Parkway and placed in the batters box as a tribute to a facility that has seen the likes of Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Honus Wagner, Grover Cleve- land Alexander, Satchel Paige, Pee Wee Reese and Jackie Robinson among others. In January of 2007, crews converted the home plate area from dirt into a field turf surface complete with permanent batters boxes. The only dirt on the field is on the pitcher’s mound. The stadium was placed on display to a nationwide audience and received rave reviews during the 2007 Super Regional between the Cardinals and Oklahoma State, with all three games being televised by ESPN and ESPN2. Fans poured into the stadium, establishing impressive attendance numbers. The 2008 off-season included a complete reconstruction of the left field berm, with terracing giving the fans a place for a lawn chair or blanket. Children of all ages can enjoy the playground beyond the fence in centerfield. The Cardinals have won more than 77 percent of their games at Jim Patterson Stadi- um since opening the gates during the 2005 season. Of the 15 NCAA postseason rounds contested at Jim Patterson Stadium, the Louisville baseball program has advanced through 12 of those, including the 2019 NCAA Regional and NCAA Super Regional to clinch the program’s fifth College World Series appearance. In NCAA Championship games at Jim Patterson Stadium, the Cardi- nals have produced a 37-10 record, includ- ing 11 straight wins from 2013 to 2015. A school record crowd of 6,237 packed the ballpark to watch as Louisville defeated UK on June 10, 2017 to clinch a trip to Omaha. All areas of the park are accessible to those with physical disabilities. gocards.com n University of Louisville 29 Next >