By

They say the University of Louisville is a basketball school. Allow me to put some recent accomplishments of Cardinal athletes into terms that our one-sport fans might be able to comprehend.

Belt wins national championship

Tone Belt did what no other Louisville athlete or team has done since 1986 – win a NCAA National Championship. The sophomore superman jumped a staggering 26-01.75 feet.

The jump, which took place at the NCAA indoor championships, broke his own school record. To put a little clarity to this insane feat, Belt jumped an Edgar Sosa three-pointer against Texas A&M and then some.

Black adds one of his own

Sophomore Andre Black didn’t make U of L wait long for their next NCAA title. Just hours after his good friend Belt brought home the gold, Black won in the triple jump. He posted a jump of 53 feet 5.5 inches.

You could lay out David Padgett, Terrence Williams, Derrick Caracter, Juan Palacios, Andre McGee, Earl Clark, Brandon Jenkins and Jerry Smith and Black would’ve cleared them all.

Preda qualifies for the 2008 Olympics

Vali Preda is just a sophomore here at U of L, yet he is already an All Big East performer and three-time All American. Earlier this month, the Speedo sensation swam for his native Romania in the FINA National Championships in Melbourne, Australia.

Preda swam the breaststroke in the 400-meter medley. The Romanian medley finished in the “elite eight” giving them an “automatic bid” to the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Preda’s split was a lightning fast 1:00.98.

Haig might just be an Olympian too

Joanna Haig, the goalie for the U of L women’s soccer team, attended a national camp in Carson, Calif. this February and was recently asked to return. There is a good chance the “Soccer Buzz” All-American could be the heiress to current national team goalie Brianna Scurry’s throne.

In her first year as a Cardinal, she posted eight shutouts and allowed a Gary Coleman small 0.49 goals against her per game. She didn’t allow a goal in her final 376 minutes on the field.

Haig’s goal-less streak extends two hours longer than Brad Gianiny, Chris Current, Stuart Miller and Jonathon Huffman played for the basketball team ALL season.

Spirit squads are a dynasty

You know those guys and girls that led you in the C-A-R-D-S cheer 183 times during basketball games? Well it turns out they are pretty good. For the fourth time in six years the co-ed cheerleaders, the Ladybirds dance team and the all-girl stunt group swept the national championships.

The co-ed cheerleaders have now won 13 national titles in their 27 years of existence. This is two more titles than John Wooden, who coached UCLA for 27 years, won with what is widely considered the greatest dynasty of all time. If we started hanging up all of the spirit squads banners, maybe we wouldn’t have to look at the dilapidated tiles hanging from the ceiling at Freedom Hall.

So next time you see a sign in Louisville that reads “The greatest college sports town in America,” remember that it is honoring all Cardinal athletes and not just Pitino’s boys.

Trevor Joelson is a sophomore majoring in sports administration. E-mail him at sports@louisvillecardinal.com