Tuesday, November 4
Annapolis, Md. (US Naval Academy)
5:30 PM
University of Louisville
vs
#1 UConn
No. 20/19 Cardinals Open Season With No. 1 UConn
November 03, 2025 | Women's Basketball
The Cardinals and Huskies will face off in the Peraton Armed Forces Classic in Annapolis, Md.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The No. 20/19 Louisville Cardinals are set to begin the 2025-26 season and on deck is the top team in the preseason rankings. The Cardinals are set to face the top-ranked UConn Huskies on Tuesday, November 4 in the 2025 Peraton Armed Forces Classic. The game is taking place at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland on Tuesday and will tip at 5:50 pm on ESPN.
This is the first time in the event's history that the Armed Forces Classic will feature two women's programs. The game was originally set to take place at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany but was moved to the Naval Academy due to the current government shutdown.
This is the third time in the last five years that the Cardinals have opened the season with a ranked opponent. It is the second time in as many years that Louisville is facing a Top-5 opponent after playing No. 5 UCLA last year in Paris. It is the first time in program history that the Cardinals will face the No. 1 team to open the season. The highest-ranked season opener previously in program history was No. 4 Tennessee in the 2010-11 season to open the KFC Yum! Center.
The Cardinals are coming off their 15th-straight 20-plus win season in 2024-25. That is the fourth-longest active streak in the country and the longest active streak in the ACC. Sophomore Tajianna Roberts returns off a stellar freshman campaign where she earned ACC All-Freshman and Second Team All-ACC honors. Roberts has earned a number of preseason recognitions prior to this season. She was named to the Preseason All-ACC team, Naismith Trophy Women's Player of the Year Watch List and Ann Meyers Drysdale Award Watch List.
Senior Laura Ziegler joins the Cardinals this season after playing her first three seasons at Saint Joseph's. She is coming off a junior year where she led the A-10 with 10.4 rebounds per game and was second in the league with 17.5 points per game. She was a finalist for the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year award after she became just the third player in SJU history with 500+ points, 200+ rebounds and 100+ assists in a single season. Ziegler was also on the Preseason All-ACC team, Naismith Trophy Women's Player of the Year Watch List and she was selected for the Lisa Leslie Award Watch List.
Date: Tuesday, November 4
Time: 5:30 p.m. ET
Site: Annapolis, Md. | Alumni Hall (5,700)
TV: ESPN (Ryan Ruocco, play-by-play; Rebecca Lobo, analyst; Holly Rowe, reporter)
Radio: 93.9-FM The Ville (Nick Curran, play-by-play; Cortnee Walton, analyst)
Series History: Louisville trails 3-20 (1-5 home, 0-7 away, 2-8 neutral)
ABOUT THE HUSKIES
UConn comes into the season opening matchup as the No. 1 ranked team in the country in the preseason AP and USA Today Coaches polls. The Huskies are coming off a season where they went 37-3 overall, a 18-0 in BIG EAST play and won the national championship as they ended the season on a 16-game winning streak.
Series History - This will be the 24th meeting all-time between the Huskies and the Cardinals as the two teams were conference foes in the BIG EAST and the American. Louisville trails the all-time series 3-20 and are 2-8 all-time against UConn in neutral venues. The Cardinals and Huskies have split the previous two matchups coming at neutral sites as the Cardinals won back in 2021 at Mohegan Sun and the Huskies won last year's matchup that took place in Brooklyn as part of the inaugural Women's Champions Classic. After this season's meeting in Annapolis, the teams will conclude the four-games series next year as the Huskies will visit the KFC Yum! Center.
FOLLOW LOUISVILLE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL ON SOCIAL MEDIA
For the latest on Louisville women's basketball, visit GoCards.com, or follow the team's Instagram account at @LouisvilleWBB, X account at @LouisvilleWBB or on Facebook at facebook.com/louisvillewbb.
This is the first time in the event's history that the Armed Forces Classic will feature two women's programs. The game was originally set to take place at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany but was moved to the Naval Academy due to the current government shutdown.
This is the third time in the last five years that the Cardinals have opened the season with a ranked opponent. It is the second time in as many years that Louisville is facing a Top-5 opponent after playing No. 5 UCLA last year in Paris. It is the first time in program history that the Cardinals will face the No. 1 team to open the season. The highest-ranked season opener previously in program history was No. 4 Tennessee in the 2010-11 season to open the KFC Yum! Center.
The Cardinals are coming off their 15th-straight 20-plus win season in 2024-25. That is the fourth-longest active streak in the country and the longest active streak in the ACC. Sophomore Tajianna Roberts returns off a stellar freshman campaign where she earned ACC All-Freshman and Second Team All-ACC honors. Roberts has earned a number of preseason recognitions prior to this season. She was named to the Preseason All-ACC team, Naismith Trophy Women's Player of the Year Watch List and Ann Meyers Drysdale Award Watch List.
Senior Laura Ziegler joins the Cardinals this season after playing her first three seasons at Saint Joseph's. She is coming off a junior year where she led the A-10 with 10.4 rebounds per game and was second in the league with 17.5 points per game. She was a finalist for the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year award after she became just the third player in SJU history with 500+ points, 200+ rebounds and 100+ assists in a single season. Ziegler was also on the Preseason All-ACC team, Naismith Trophy Women's Player of the Year Watch List and she was selected for the Lisa Leslie Award Watch List.
Date: Tuesday, November 4
Time: 5:30 p.m. ET
Site: Annapolis, Md. | Alumni Hall (5,700)
TV: ESPN (Ryan Ruocco, play-by-play; Rebecca Lobo, analyst; Holly Rowe, reporter)
Radio: 93.9-FM The Ville (Nick Curran, play-by-play; Cortnee Walton, analyst)
Series History: Louisville trails 3-20 (1-5 home, 0-7 away, 2-8 neutral)
ABOUT THE HUSKIES
UConn comes into the season opening matchup as the No. 1 ranked team in the country in the preseason AP and USA Today Coaches polls. The Huskies are coming off a season where they went 37-3 overall, a 18-0 in BIG EAST play and won the national championship as they ended the season on a 16-game winning streak.
Series History - This will be the 24th meeting all-time between the Huskies and the Cardinals as the two teams were conference foes in the BIG EAST and the American. Louisville trails the all-time series 3-20 and are 2-8 all-time against UConn in neutral venues. The Cardinals and Huskies have split the previous two matchups coming at neutral sites as the Cardinals won back in 2021 at Mohegan Sun and the Huskies won last year's matchup that took place in Brooklyn as part of the inaugural Women's Champions Classic. After this season's meeting in Annapolis, the teams will conclude the four-games series next year as the Huskies will visit the KFC Yum! Center.
FOLLOW LOUISVILLE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL ON SOCIAL MEDIA
For the latest on Louisville women's basketball, visit GoCards.com, or follow the team's Instagram account at @LouisvilleWBB, X account at @LouisvilleWBB or on Facebook at facebook.com/louisvillewbb.
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Basketball
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