April 5, 2005
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
#11/9 Notre Dame (5-2, 1-0 GWLL) vs. #NR/19 Denver (5-2, 0-0 GWLL)
Thursday, April 7, 4 p.m. (EST/CDT) • Moose Krause Stadium
– Television: Comcast Sports Local (tape delayed)
– Gold Game
– First 200 fans will receive a gold game shirt, sponsored South Bend Orthopaedics
– First 150 fans will receive a Leprechaun Nesting Doll
– Chick-fil-A pre-game tailgating party for early-arriving fans (while supplies last)
#11/9 Notre Dame vs. Air Force (3-4, 0-1 GWLL)
Sunday, April 4, Noon (EST/CDT) • Moose Krause Stadium
– Television: Comcast Sports Local (tape delayed)
– First 300 fans get ND lacrosse seat cushion, sponsored by McDonald Physical Therapy and Famous Dave’s BBQ
– Famous Dave’s pre-game tailgating party for early-arriving fans (while supplies last)
– One lucky Notre Dame student will win 2 round trip airline tickets sponsored by Anthony Travel
#11/9 IRISH SET FOR FINAL TWO HOME GAMES OF SEASON: The #11/9 University of Notre Dame men’s lacrosse team (5-2, 1-0 GWLL) will wind up its home schedule this week with a pair of Great Western Lacrosse League contests, first welcoming #NR/19 Denver (5-2, 0-0) on Thursday for a 4 p.m. (EST/CDT) contest — team’s Gold Game — before playing host to Air Force (3-4, 0-1) on Sunday at Noon. Both games will take place at Moose Krause Stadium, and both will be televised on a tape-delayed basis by Comcast Sports Local.
The “Gold Game” distinction was created by the Student-Athlete Advisory Council to encourage the entire Notre Dame community to attend designated contests, each determined to be the most significant home event of the season for the respective team.
THE TV PLANS: Both games this week will be televised on a tape-delayed basis by Comcast Sports Local, with Ben Holden (play-by-play) and Scott Hiller (analysis). The games will air on Comcast cable channel 3 in South Bend, with the Denver game being shown on Friday at 2 p.m. (EST/CDT) and 7 p.m. and the Air Force game on Monday at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. They also will be shown on Comcast Sports Local in the state of Michigan (Denver game on 4/9 at 7 p.m., 4/10 at Noon, and 4/11 at 7 p.m.; Air Force game on 4/13 at 8 p.m., 4/15 at 2:30 p.m., and 4/16 at Noon). Check local listings for air times in other markets.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THIS NOTES PACKAGE: Below are some of the top points from this notes package. For more details on any topic, consult the remainder of this release.
* Notre Dame stands 5-2 on the season and ranked ninth in the Inside Lacrosse media poll and 11th in the USILA’s Geico/STX Coaches Top 20. The Irish are 1-0 in the Great Western Lacrosse League, tied with Fairfield for the early lead in the conference standings.
* The Irish losses both came on the road against nationally-ranked teams: 11-10 at #10 Cornell on March 5 and 10-9 at #19 Dartmouth (now #12) on April 2.
* Notre Dame has victories at #21 Penn State (14-6), vs. #10 North Carolina (9-7) in The First 4 invitational in Carson, Calif., vs. Butler (22-6), at #13 Hofstra (9-8, 2OT), and at Villanova (11-7).
* Notre Dame is coming off a 2004 season in which it was 7-5, finished second in the Great Western Lacrosse League (4-1 record, behind Ohio State), and was 12th in the final USILA national rankings.
* The Irish returned 17 monogram winners, including six starters, from last year’s team. Among those are junior A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.), a USILA third-team All-American in 2004 after being honorable mention as a rookie. After being one of the 15 nominees for the Tewaaraton Trophy (awarded to the top player in college lacrosse) last season, he is again among the 37 selected for the watch list for this year’s award.
* Other returning starters for the Irish were fifth-year senior G Stewart Crosland (Bethesda, Md./Landon School), senior M Brian Giordano (Princeton, N.J./Hun School), and juniors D D.J. Driscoll (Downingtown, Pa./Malvern Preparatory School), A Brian Hubschmann (Short Hills, N.J./Hun School), and M Matt Ryan (Ridley Park, Pa./Ridley H.S.). Hubschmann will miss the entire season, though, after suffering a knee injury in mid-February.
* The Irish are tied for fourth in Division I in scoring offense this season (12.00 goals per game) after finishing 2004 second at 12.50. Also, Notre Dame is tied for first in man-up offense (.500) and fifth in scoring margin (+4.14 goals per game).
* Notre Dame ranks first in the GWLL in 13 of 17 team statistical categories, while Irish players are tops in six of 12 individual categories.
* Junior All-American A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) is third in the nation in both points per game (5.00) and assists per game (2.71). He leads the GWLL in both categories. Walsh was sixth in Division I in assists in both 2003 and `04 and came in 12th in `03 and seventh in `04 in scoring.
* Junior All-American A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) had six goals — including the game winner in double overtime — at #13 Hofstra on March 26 in a 9-8 victory. It was the first time an Irish player ever had six goals against a nationally-ranked team.
* Senior co-captain A Jim Morrison (Fulton, Md./Mount St. Joseph H.S.) was the first Notre Dame player ever to begin the season with four consecutive hat tricks. He is tied for first in the GWLL and tied for fourth in Division I in goals per game (2.81).
* Freshman G Joey Kemp (Potomac, Md./Georgetown Prep School) ranks second in the nation in save percentage (.664), as well as 12th in goals-against average (7.41).
* Freshman G Joey Kemp (Potomac, Md./Georgetown Prep School) took over as Notre Dame’s starting goaltender against #10 North Carolina on March 12 and helped the Irish to a 9-7 victory. He is the only Irish freshman goalie to beat a nationally-ranked team in his first career start. Kemp began 4-0, matching the best-ever start for an ND goaltender.
* Freshman G Joey Kemp (Potomac, Md./Georgetown Prep School) made 23 saves in a 10-9 loss at #19 Dartmouth on April 2. It was the most by an ND goaltender since Ryan Jewell had 23 against Hobart in 1994.
* Notre Dame has boasted the GWLL Player of the Week four times in six weeks this season, with fifth-year senior G Stewart Crosland (Bethesda, Md./Landon School) winning in the first week of 2005, junior D D.J. Driscoll (Downingtown, Pa./Malvern Prep School) gaining it in week three, junior A Matt Karweck (Penn Yan, N.Y./Penn Yan Academy) following, and junior A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) the latest winner.
* Freshman M Taylor Clagett (Chesapeake Beach, Md./DeMatha Catholic H.S.) has won 63.6% of the faceoffs he has taken this season to rank eighth in the nation. He has the Irish seventh in Division I as a team (.599), after they won just 44.0% of faceoffs in 2004. ND has won at least half of the faceoffs in every game this season after doing that just three times in 12 contests a year ago. Clagett also leads the team in ground balls (37) and is 13th in the nation (5.29).
* Notre Dame already has posted three shutout streaks of longer than 20:00 this season. The Irish held #21 Penn State without a goal in the final 24:17 of the season opener and then shut out Butler for the first 24:51 of the game on March 19 before notching another goalless streak of 20:59 later in the game vs. the Bulldogs.
* Notre Dame just completed a season-opening stretch of playing six of its first seven games away from home. In all, eight of the 11 Irish contests in 2005 will be on the road.
* Moose Krause Stadium will be the eighth venue to see the Irish in eight games this season.
* The Irish will play Denver for the eighth consecutive year and ninth time overall. ND has won all eight previous meetings, but the last two have been decided by just three total goals (9-8 in 2003 and 14-12 in 2004).
* ND and Air Force will play for the 18th consecutive season. The Falcons won the first matchup, in 1988, but the Irish have won every game since then, including all eight at home.
* ND has won 11 consecutive games against teams unranked by the USILA at the time of the game.
* Notre Dame had four players mentioned on the Inside Lacrosse preseason All-America lists, with junior A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) on the second team, junior D D.J. Driscoll (Downingtown, Pa./Malvern Prep School) on the third team, and senior M Brian Giordano (Princeton, N.J./Hun School) and junior A Brian Hubschmann (Short Hills, N.J./Delbarton H.S.) as honorable-mention selections.
* The Inside Lacrosse Face-Off Yearbook also listed Notre Dame as the favorite to win the Great Western Lacrosse League this season, ahead of Denver, defending champion Ohio State, Air Force, Fairfield, and Butler.
SNAPSHOT OF THE IRISH: Notre Dame’s men’s lacrosse program has experienced a wealth of success since the arrival of head coach Kevin Corrigan in 1989. In his 15 seasons, Corrigan has guided Notre Dame to a winning record 13 times, including 10 seasons with nine or more victories, compiling a 144-81 (.640) mark. The Irish have earned 10 berths to the NCAA Championship, including quarterfinal apperances in 1995 and 2000 and a Final Four trip in 2001. Notre Dame has 38 victories over ranked opponents, including nine vs. top-10 teams and holds a 73-23 (.760) overall record at home. Notre Dame has won 12 conference titles (9 Great Western Lacrosse League, 3 Midwest Lacrosse Association Great Lakes Conference) in that span. Since the formation of the GWLL in 1994, the Irish are 42-5 (.894) in conference play — including 23-2 (.920) at home — winning at least a share of the league championship in every season except 1998 and 2004. Notre Dame has had at least one player earn All-America honors in each of the last 12 seasons, a total of 23 honorees since 1994. In addition, the Irish have garnered 85 all-conference honors, highlighted by four GWLL player-of-the-year awards.
The 2005 Irish team returned 17 monogram winners and six starters from last year’s squad that was 7-5, finished second to Ohio State in the GWLL (4-1 record), and finished 12th in the final USILA national rankings, just missing a bid to the NCAA Championship.
Notre Dame had one of the top offenses in all of college lacrosse last year, finishing second in Division I in scoring offense (12.50 goals per game) and first in assists per game (7.9). Back from that team are five of the top seven — and three of the top four — scorers, and the Irish are fourth in Division I in scoring offense (11.83 goals per game), as well as tied for first in man-up offense (14-28, .500). Headlining the attack is junior A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.), who has established himself as one of the nation’s top players in 2005 after being a third-team All-American and one of 15 nominees (seven attackmen, five of whom are back in `05) for the Tewaaraton Trophy (awarded to the top player in collegiate lacrosse) a year ago. After finishing seventh in the nation in scoring in 2004 (3.92 points per game), he is third nationally in scoring (5.00 points per game), as well as third in assist average (2.71). He leads the GWLL in both scoring and assists and has posted 16 goals and 19 assists (35 points) through seven games this spring. He was named the GWLL Player of the Week for a six-goal (seven-point) performance at #13 Hofstra on March 26 that saw him score the game-winner in double overtime. The Irish were slated to have another starter back at attack, as junior A Brian Hubschmann (Short Hills, N.J./Delbarton H.S.) — who was tabbed preseason honorable mention All-America by Inside Lacrosse — made the move back to his prep position after being a starting midfielder in 2004 (and finishing third on the team in scoring, with 18 goals and 11 assists), but a season-ending knee injury suffered in mid-February will preclude him from seeing action in 2005. As a result, Notre Dame moved junior A Matt Karweck (Penn Yan, N.Y./Penn Yan Academy) from being a starting midfielder to a starter on attack. He was on the first Irish midfield in 2003 and last year ran on the second midfield, mostly in an offensive role. He was the GWLL Player of the Week after missing the Irish record for points in a game by one with an eight-point (5 G, 3 A) performance against Butler on March 19. The final starting slot on attack is filled by senior co-captain A Jim Morrison (Fulton, Md./Mount St. Joseph H.S.), a former walk-on who is Notre Dame’s top creaseman. He was earning major minutes in fall ball as a junior, but then missed all of last season due to injuries. He had played in only five games (1 G) prior to this year, but then became the only player in Irish history ever to start a season with four consecutive hat tricks. Morrison leads Notre Dame in goals with 20 and ranks fourth in the nation in goal average (2.86). He scored a career-high five against Villanova on March 28. Senior A Matt Malakoff (Bay Shore, N.Y./Bay Shore H.S.), who has been a contributor throughout his career, is Notre Dame’s top reserve at attack. He had two goals against Butler.
In the midfield, Notre Dame is led by its most-experienced player, senior co-captain M Brian Giordano (Princeton, N.J./Hun School), who is back for his fourth year as a starter. He was named first-team all-GWLL in each of the last two campaigns. Giordano, who had multiple goals in six of 10 games in which he played in 2004, was named preseason honorable mention All-America by Inside Lacrosse this season and thus far has 10 points (7 G, 3 A). Also back in a starting role is junior M Matt Ryan (Ridley Park, Pa./Ridley H.S.), who has been a major contributor in each of the last two seasons. Last year, he led non-seniors in ground balls with 39, and he has 17 points (10 G, 7 A) this season, which matches his total in all of 2004. The final spot on Notre Dame’s top midfield — vacated by Karweck — is filled by freshman M Michael Podgajny (Ridley Park, Pa./Ridley H.S.), a strong all-around player who was a prep All-American at Ridley High School. He had a hat trick against North Carolina and has nine points (5 G, 4 A) in his young collegiate career. On Notre Dame’s second midfield are senior M Colin Fatti (Skaneateles, N.Y./Skaneateles H.S.), junior M Drew Peters (Babylon, N.Y./Babylon H.S.), and sophomore M Ryan Cunn (West Islip, N.Y./West Islip H.S.). Fatti and Peters have played key roles for the Irish in the past, while Cunn was slated to be a starter in his rookie season before missing all of 2004 with a knee injury. Sophomore M Bill Liva (Bryn Mawr, Pa./Malvern Prep School) had been on the second midfield, but he has missed the last three games due to injury, while sophomores M Lucius Polk (Washington, D.C./St. Albans H.S.) — especially in man-up situations — and M John Greaney (Babylon, N.Y./Babylon H.S.) also have been contributors for the Irish. The top defensive shortstick middies are junior M Brandon Schultheis (Babylon, N.Y./Babylon H.S.) — who was an LSM last year and early in 2005 — and freshmen M Taylor Clagett (Chesapeake Beach, Md./DeMatha Catholic H.S.) and M Anson Fraser (Summit, N.J./Summit H.S.). Clagett, whose brother Steve graduated last year after being a four-year contributor in the Irish midfield, has emerged as not only Notre Dame’s top faceoff man, but one of the best in the nation, winning 63.6% (82-129) thus far (including a majority in every game). He also leads the team in ground balls (37) and is among the national leaders in both faceoffs (8th) and ground balls (13th, 5.29 per game).
Defense will be a key factor in Notre Dame’s fortunes this year, as it came in as a relatively-inexperienced unit. Junior D D.J. Driscoll (Downingtown, Pa./Malvern Prep School) is the lone returning starter, but he figures to be one of the top defensemen in the nation this year. He set a Notre Dame freshman record for ground balls (61) in 2003 and last year developed into the team’s top on-ball defender. This season, he is second on the team in ground balls (25) and was the GWLL Player of the Week after holding North Carolina’s Jed Prossner — a 2004 first-team All-American and one of five finalists for the Tewaaraton Trophy — to just one goal, one assist, and four turnovers in ND’s 9-7 win over Carolina on March 12. He is joined down low by sophomore D Joey Rallo (Cockeysville, Md./Boys’ Latin H.S.) — who was the top Irish reserve defenseman in 2004 — and freshman D Ross Zimmerman (Utica, Mich./Brother Rice H.S.), who has started five of the first seven games of his career. Sophomore J.R. Stahl (Sparks, Md./Boys’ Latin H.S.) started against North Carolina and Butler, but missed two games due to injury before returning in a reserve role against Dartmouth. Senior co-captain LSM Chris Richez (Freeport, N.Y./Freeport H.S.) is back for his second year as Notre Dame’s top longstick midfielder after switching from shortstick middie midway through his career. He is backed up by freshman D Sean Dougherty (Malvern, Pa./Malvern Prep School), who started the season as a defenseman.
The final line of defense figures to be a strength for the Irish, who boast two capable players at the position. Freshman G Joey Kemp (Potomac, Md./Georgetown Prep School), who is expected to be a future star, made his first collegiate start against North Carolina and notched 13 saves and was named the game’s MVP, becoming the first Irish goalie ever to beat a top-10 team in his starting debut. He barely missed becoming the first ND goaltender ever to begin his career with five straight victories, losing by a goal at #19 Dartmouth on Saturday. He is 4-1 this season with a 7.41 goals-against average (12th in the nation) and .664 save percentage (2nd). Fifth-year senior G Stewart Crosland (Bethesda, Md./Landon School) had started 30 consecutive games in goal prior to that, and he is the backup (1-1, 8.47, .674).
LAST TIME ON THE FIELD: Dartmouth, ranked 19th, broke an 8-8 deadlock with a pair of goals in the final three minutes, keying a 10-9 victory over #9 Notre Dame (5-2) Saturday afternoon at Scully-Fahey Field in Hanover, N.H. Dartmouth held an 8-7 advantage heading into the fourth quarter, but junior All-American A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) tied the game with an unassisted goal with 7:11 remaining. Big Green senior M Ben Grinnell – an honorable-mention All-America selection last year – then put his team ahead by scoring an unassisted tally with just 2:54 to go. Notre Dame won the ensuing faceoff, but Dartmouth forced a quick turnover and, after a timeout, got a goal from junior M Alec Hufnagle, off an assist from sophomore A Nick Bonacci. That made it 10-8 with only 1:27 remaining in the game. The Big Green won the next faceoff and controlled the ball for nearly the remainder of the game, but a late turnover gave Notre Dame a chance. The Irish pulled within one when freshman M Michael Podgajny (Ridley Park, Pa./Ridley H.S.) took a pass from junior M Drew Peters (Babylon, N.Y./Babylon H.S.) and scored with only 19 seconds remaining. Irish freshman M Taylor Clagett (Chesapeake Beach, Md./DeMatha Catholic H.S.) outdueled Grinnell on the game’s final faceoff, but the Irish gave away their coveted opportunity on a turnover, as Grinnell picked up a ground ball that allowed Dartmouth to run out the clock on its second top-10 upset in 12 days. Notre Dame’s offense matched its season-low output and not only did not score on three EMOs, but allowed a pair of man-down goals. The Irish were led by Walsh — who had four points (2 G, 2 A) — and junior M Matt Ryan (Ridley Park, Pa./Ridley H.S.), who finished with two goals and an assist. Senior co-captain A Jim Morrison (Fulton, Md./Mount St. Joseph H.S.) added a pair of goals, while Podgajny and seniors LSM Chris Richez (Freeport, N.Y./Freeport H.S.) and M Colin Fatti (Skaneateles, N.Y./Skaneateles H.S.) had one apiece. In addition to Peters, senior co-captain M Brian Giordano (Princeton, N.J./Hun School) and junior M Matt Karweck (Penn Yan, N.Y./Penn Yan Academy) both added assists. Clagett continued to be strong at the X, winning 11 of 19 faceoffs. In all, Notre Dame was victorious on 11 of 22. Freshman G Joey Kemp (Potomac, Md./Georgetown Prep School) was foiled in his bid to become the first Notre Dame goalie ever to win his first five decisions. He faced 51 shots and stopped nearly 70% of those on goal, finishing with a collegiate-high 23 saves, the highest-total by an Irish goalie since 1994. He also surrendered a season-high 10 goals. Kemp led the Irish with three ground balls. Dartmouth dominated statistically, holding a 51-32 edge in shots and a 26-16 ground-ball advantage. Notre Dame led by two goals twice early (2-0 and 4-2), while Dartmouth was not able to get ahead by multiple scores until the final two minutes.
HEAD COACH Kevin Corrigan: Irish head coach Kevin Corrigan is in his 17th season at the helm of the Notre Dame program. He has led the Irish to a 144-81 (.640) mark, while holding a 154-96 (.616) overall record in 18+ seasons. Corrigan’s Notre Dame teams have earned 10 NCAA tournament berths since 1990, highlighted by quarterfinal appearances in 1995 and 2000 and a Final Four trip in 2001. Only six other Division I schools have as many postseason appearances in that span, while Corrigan and Princeton’s Bill Tierney are the only two mentors in the country to have led their current teams to 10 NCAA tournaments since `90. Corrigan’s teams have had 13 winning seasons, including 10 with nine or more victories. He has had at least one player earn All-America honors in each of the last 12 seasons for a total of 23 honorees since 1994. In addition, 85 players have garnered all-conference mention under Corrigan. The Irish also have claimed at least a share of 12 league titles (9 Great Western Lacrosse League, 3 Midwest Lacrosse Association Great Lakes Conference). In a three-year playing career as a midfielder at Virginia, Corrigan helped the Cavaliers to the NCAA final in 1979. He previously was an assistant at Notre Dame in 1983 and served as head coach of Randolph-Macon College for two years (1985-86).
IRISH DROP TO 9th IN INSIDE LACROSSE MEDIA POLL, 11th IN USILA LISTING: After beating Villanova, but losing to #19 Dartmouth last week, Notre Dame dropped three spots to ninth in the latest Inside Lacrosse media poll, while falling two positions to 11th in the Geico/STX Coaches Poll, presented by the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA). Georgetown, Army, and Syracuse passed the Irish in the media poll, while Cornell and Massachusetts slid ahead of Notre Dame in the USILA rankings. Notre Dame was 14th in the first USILA poll of the year (released March 7) after being 12th in the final listing of the 2004 campaign, released prior ot the NCAA Championship. The Irish were then ninth in each of the next three USILA polls. Of Notre Dame’s 11 opponents, seven of them — #10 Cornell, #13 Dartmouth, #19 Denver, #20 Hofstra, Fairfield (listed 24th), Villanova (listed 25th), and North Carolina (listed 27th) — are in either in or or receiving votes in the Inside Lacrosse poll.
NOTRE DAME THIRD IN LAXPOWER.COM COMPUTER RATINGS: After losing to Dartmouth last weekend, Notre Dame fell from #1 to #3 in the latest edition of computer ratings on www.laxpower.com. The Irish have a score of 98.25, while Virginia leads the way with a 99.90, and Duke is second at 98.35. For the full listing of all 57 Division I teams, as well as an explanation of the ratings, see http://laxpower.com/update05/binmen/rating01.php.
GWLL UPDATE: There have been only two (of 15 scheduled) games between Great Western Lacrosse League teams played thus far this season, but the upcoming weekend will provide three more. At this point, Notre Dame and Fairfield are tied atop the standings with 1-0 records, while Denver and Ohio State have yet to open conference action, and Butler and Air Force stand 0-1. The Irish will play host to Denver on Thursday and Air Force on Sunday this weekend, while Ohio State will be at Butler on Saturday. The GWLL champion earns an automatic bid to the NCAA Championship. The Buckeyes have garnered that invitation in each of the last two years, though they were tri-champions with both Notre Dame and Denver in 2003.
IRISH-PIONEERS SERIES NOTES: Notre Dame and Denver will meet for the eighth year in a row and ninth time overall. The Irish have won all eight previous contests with an average margin of victory of 7.25 goals, but the last two games have been decided by just three total goals. The schools first met in Denver in 1992, when Notre Dame prevailed 25-4. The most-recent incarnation of the series began in 1998, with a neutral-site (Colorado Springs) meeting in the year before the Pioneers joined the Great Western Lacrosse League. Since being conference foes, they have played six times, with the Irish winning by an average of 5.33 goals. Denver’s last visit to Moose Krause Stadium saw it fall 9-8 to #13 Notre Dame in 2003. A year ago, #18 ND upset 17th-ranked Denver 14-12 in Denver. This will be the sixth time in the last eight years that the Irish are the higher-ranked squad. Only two schools — Lake Forest (ND leads series 11-0) and Kenyon (10-0) — have played Notre Dame more times without registering a victory. Denver is the only team currently competing on the Division I level to have played the Irish more than four times and remain winless. Canisius is 0-4 all-time against Notre Dame.
LAST YEAR’S ND-DU GAME: After trailing 9-6 with five minutes remaining in the third quarter, 18th-ranked Notre Dame rallied for a 14-12 victory over #17 Denver on April 11, 2004, at Pioneer Lacrosse Field. Sophomore A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) notched seven points (four goals, three assists) – including four in the final 20 minutes – in leading the Irish to an important Great Western Lacrosse League victory. After junior A Erik Swanson’s unassisted goal with 7:38 to go in the third period, Denver held its largest advantage of the game, 9-6. Notre Dame responded with four goals in the final 4:04 of the quarter to take a 10-9 lead. Inciting the comeback was senior A Dan Berger, who took a feed from Walsh and found the net. Twenty-nine seconds later, Walsh found junior M Brian Giordano (Princeton, N.J./Hun School) for another score. With 1:30 left in the third, Walsh took a pass from sophomore M Matt Karweck (Penn Yan, N.Y./Penn Yan Academy) and netted his third score of the contest to tie the game, 9-9. Karweck then notched his only goal of the day with 30 seconds remaining in the period to put the Irish ahead. Sophomore M Geoff Snider tied the game at 10-10 with 10:46 remaining in the final quarter, but three Notre Dame goals over the next 2:30 would put the Irish ahead for good. Junior M Frank Matarazzo (Franklin Lakes, N.J./Bergen Catholic H.S.) started the run five seconds after Snider’s tally, winning the faceoff and then scoring on his only shot of the day to give Notre Dame the lead on his second career goal. Giordano netted his third of the game 1:28 later on a pass from sophomore M Matt Ryan (Ridley Park, Pa./Ridley H.S.). Ryan then found Walsh, who scored his fourth with 8:18 left to put the Irish up 13-10. Denver junior A Matt Brown scored an unassisted goal with 3:25 to go in the contest – his fifth score of the game on just seven shots – but Ryan iced the victory with a goal of his own with 2:27 left, tallying on his only shot of the day. The Pioneers again pulled within two when sophomore M Adam Goodwin took a pass from junior M Darren Sasaki-Scanlon and scored with 1:50 remaining, but Denver was called for a pair of penalties in the final 80 seconds, limiting its offensive chances. Walsh’s seven points were a season high and marked his second consecutive seven-point output against Denver. The 14 goals by Notre Dame marked the most for a team against the Pioneers this season, as no Denver opponent had managed more than 11 prior to Sunday. Senior G Stewart Crosland (Bethesda, Md./Landon School) continued his hot play, stopping 20 of 32 shots (.625) he faced. Denver held a 46-34 advantage in ground balls. Junior M Scott Davidson had a game-high seven, while winning 13 of 17 faceoffs. Crosland paced the Irish with a career-high six ground balls. The Pioneers won 19 of 30 faceoffs, but junior M Craig Bishko (West Islip, N.Y./West Islip H.S.) was victorious on eight of the 15 draws he took.
THE LAST TIME DU VISITED ND: No. 13 Notre Dame withstood a tough challenge by the Denver Pioneers, as the Irish won their Great Western Lacrosse League opener with a 9-8 victory at Moose Krause Stadium on March 30, 2003. Notre Dame was led by junior Dan Berger’s three goals and freshman Pat Walsh’s (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) two goals and five assists. Notre Dame jumped out to an ealy 4-1 advantage as Berger scored twice for the Irish in the first quarter, while Walsh and Matt Ryan (Ridley, Pa./Ridley H.S.) each added a score. The Pioneers shut down the Irish offensive attack in the second quarter as they held Note Dame scoreless and went into halftime tied at 4-4, the first of four deadlocks in the contest. Notre Dame wasted little time getting on the scoreboard at the start of the second half as Brian Giordano (Princeton, N.J./Hun School) netted his third goal of the season off an assist from Kyle Frigon to break the 4-4 deadlock. Denver came right back to tie the game 13 seconds later on Davidson’s third goal of the contest. The Irish regained the lead 6-5 at the 7:51 mark on Walsh’s unassisted goal before Jeff Snider tied the contest for the third time with his unassisted score with 3:37 remaining in the second quarter. Matt Karweck (Penn Yan, N.Y./Penn Yan Academy) put the Irish up 7-6 on his man-up goal at the 10:43 mark of the fourth quarter which was assisted by Walsh. The Notre Dame lead was short lived when the Pioneers when Darren Sasaki-Scanlon scored his only goal of the game off an assist from Scott Davidson six seconds after Karweck’s score. The 7-7 tie would be the fourth and last deadlock of the game. Notre Dame opened up two-goal advantage on fourth-quarter scores by Steve Clagett and Berger at the 10:06 and 5:27 marks. Andrew Huelskoetter tallied the game’s final score for the Pioneers with 3:16 remaining in the contest. Stewart Crosland (Bethesda, Md.) played 38 minutes for the Irish in goal and made two saves while allowing five goals. Nick Antol played the final 22 of the contest and finished with three saves, while allowing three goals. Jeff Nunziato went the distance for the Pioneers and made 13 saves.
NOTRE DAME-DENVER CONNECTIONS: Notre Dame has had four Corado natives play on its men’s lacrosse team, including one Denver native: D Lance Scott, an East Manual High School gradaute who saw action in five games in 1989, the first year under current Irish head coach Kevin Corrigan. The other Colorado natives to suit up for the Irish were M Dan Gutrich (1992, Englewood, Kent H.S., 3 GP), M John Krueger (1985, Vail, Battle Mountain H.S., 3 GP), and M Doug Murray (1989-92, Colorado Springs, Rampart H.S., 41 GP, 117 GB). Murray is the lone Colorado native to earn a monogram, which he did twice.
IRISH-FALCONS SERIES NOTES: Notre Dame and Air Force will meet for the 18th consecutive year, with the Irish holding a 16-1 advantage in the all-time series, including an average margin of victory of 6.18 goals. The Falcons, whose varsity program pre-dates Notre Dame’s by nearly 20 years, won the first matchup after the Irish gained varsity status, a 14-8 decision in 1988 in Colorado Springs. Since then, the Irish have won every game, including all eight at home and all 16 under current head coach Kevin Corrigan. The closest games between the teams at Notre Dame were three-goal decisions in 1989 (10-7) and `93 (12-9). Air Force is the second-most-common opponent in Irish history, behind only Ohio State (ND leads series 18-9). The Buckeyes also are the only team that Notre Dame has registered more victories against than Air Force. Both schools were charter members of the Great Western Lacrosse League, when it was founded in 1994. The Irish have won every GWLL contest by at least four goals and by an average of 8.45. The closest in that span was a 10-6 decision in 2000 in Colorado Springs. The closest game during the current winning streak was a 12-11 decision in San Diego in 1990. This will be the 12th time in the last 13 years that the Irish are the higher-ranked squad.
LAST YEAR’S ND-AFA GAME: The Irish battled through freezing temperatures and snowy conditions for a 12-2 road victory over Air Force on April 9, 2004, at Cadet Lacrosse Stadium. Senior G Stewart Crosland (Bethesda, Md./Landon School) was dominant for the second game in a row, making eight saves on 10 shots, including a stretch of more than 48 minutes without a Falcon score, during which the Irish netted 10 goals. After senior M Steve Clagett (Chesapeake Beach, Md./DeMatha Catholic H.S.) scored the first goal of the game, Air Force freshman M Justin Kuchta tied the game with 9:01 left in the opening period. The Irish defense then took over, denying the Falcon attack another score for the next 48:14, when Kuchta broke the dry spell with AFA’s second and final goal, coming with 5:47 remaining in the fourth quarter. It was the third consecutive game that the Irish defense put together a scoreless streak of more than 25 minutes in the middle of the game. Notre Dame’s defense allowed Air Force to get off just 17 shots (10 on goal) after no previous Irish opponent had managed fewer than 31. Notre Dame fired 40 shots. Offensively, the Irish had three players finish with four points: senior A Matt Howell, junior M Brian Giordano, and sophomore M Brian Hubschmann. Giordano registered his third hat trick of the season, while adding an assist. He answered Kuchta’s first goal 67 seconds later to put the Irish ahead for good and incite the string of 10 consecutive goales. Howell and Hubschmann each had a goal and three assists. Senior A Dan Berger scored two goals for the fourth consecutive game. Clagett and sophomore A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) both had a goal and an assist, while three other players also netted goals. The 12 goals scored by the Irish were the most given up by Air Force up to that point in 2004. Notre Dame held a 17-11 advantage in ground balls in the first quarter, but Air Force dominated the rest of the game to finish up 51-44 in loose balls. Senior D Brennan Creaney led the Irish with six. Falcon senior M Ray Wilson had a game-high nine ground balls, while senior M Gregory Kantz took all 18 faceoffs, winning 11 of them.
THE LAST TIME THE AFA VISITED ND: Sophomore Brian Giordano (Princeton, N.J./Hun School) scored a career-high five goals to lead the No. 20 Notre Dame men’s lacrosse team to its second consecutive win, as the Irish posted a 13-4 victory over Air Force on April 12, 2003, at Moose Krause Stadium. Notre Dame’s defense proved dominant for the second straight as the Irish held an opponent to under five goals for the second consecutive outing. In addition to Giordano’s five goals, junior Dan Berger added three goals and senior Travis Wells tallied twice in the contest. Freshman Pat Walsh (Wantagh. N.Y./Wantagh H.S.)) added a goal and three assists. Notre Dame was slow getting its offensive in gear, but a 9-1 advantage in the second half proved to be decisive after the Irish led just 4-3 at halftime. Air Force was up 2-1 after one quarter (which still stands as the last time ND rallied from a first-quarter deficit to win) on goals by Aam Gaudinski 49 seconds into the contest and by Michael Colisimo. Notre Dame scored three times in the second quarter to jump out to a 4-2 advantage, but the Falcons closed the gap to 4-3 on Eric Lederer’s unassisted man-down score with 32 seconds remaining in the first half. The Irish then scored eight consecutive goals, culminating with Giordano’s fourth of the day that put ND up 12-3 with 6:27 left in the game. Junior Stewart Crosland (Bethedsa, Md./Landon School) played just under 51 minutes of the game and finished with 10 saves while allowing three goals. Senior Nick Antol played the final nine minutes and had one save and allowed one goal. William Arnold played the entire game in goal for the Falcons and finished with 17 saves.
NOTRE DAME-AIR FORCE CONNECTIONS: Notre Dame has had four Corado natives play on its men’s lacrosse team, including one Colorado Springs native: M Doug Murray, a Rampart High School graduate who earned two monograms while playing in 41 games ofr the Irish from 1989-92, collecting 117 ground balls. He is the lone Colorado native to earn a monogram. The other Colorado natives to suit up for the Irish were M Dan Gutrich (1992, Englewood, Kent H.S., 3 GP), M John Krueger (1985, Vail, Battle Mountain H.S., 3 GP), and D Lance Scott (1989, Denver, East Manual H.S.).
FINALLY A FAMILIAR PLACE: After playing their first seven games of the season in seven different cities, the Irish will finally play their second game this season in a location, Notre Dame. However, if Thursday’s game is played at Moose Krause Stadium, as expected, it will be the eighth different venue in eight games for the Irish, who played thier first home game (March 19 vs. Butler) in the Loftus Sports Center. Notre Dame has visited five different states, as well, playing games in University Park, Pa.; Ithaca, N.Y.; Carson, Calif.; Notre Dame, Ind.; Hempstead, N.Y.; Villanova, Pa; and Hanover, N.H.
KEMP POSTS MOST SAVES FOR ND GOALIE SINCE 1994: Freshman G Joey Kemp (Potomac, Md./Georgetown Prep School) made 23 saves (.697) in a 10-9 loss at #19 Dartmouth on April 2. It was the most saves by an Irish goaltender since Ryan Jewell had 23 in a 12-8 victory at Hobart on April 2, 1994. The Big Green outshot Notre Dame 51-32, but Kemp’s strong goaltending gave the Irish a chance to win.
IRISH OFFENSE TOPS IN DIVISION I IN MAN-UP EFFICIENCY, FOURTH IN SCORING: THE Notre Dame offense is currently tied for tops in Division I in man-up efficiency, having converted half of their EMOs this season. UMBC also has scored on half of its man-up chances. The Irish, who were first nationally in scoring in each of the last two weeks, slipped to a fourth-place tie (along with GWLL rival and Thursday opponent Denver) with an average of 12.00.
WALSH THIRD IN NATION IN BOTH SCORING AND ASSISTS: Junior All-American A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) currently ranks second among Division I players in both points per game (5.00) and assists per game (2.71). Bucknell’s Chris Cara leads the way in scoring with 5.38 per game, while UMBC’s Brendan Mundorf is at 5.18. In assists, Cara is first (2.88), while Joe Birsner of Navy is right behind at 2.86.
IRISH DOMINATE GWLL STATS: Notre Dame is dominating the most-recent set of Great Western Lacrosse League statistics, as the Irish rank first in 13 of 17 team categories, as well as boasting the top player in six of 12 individual categories. For a full recap of where the Irish rank, see chart on sidebar.
BOTH OF IRISH LOSSES CAME BY ONE GOAL IN ROAD GAMES vs. RANKED TEAMS: Notre Dame’s two defeats this season have both come by just a single goal on the road against a nationally-ranked team. In both instances, the Irish had the ball in the final minute with a chance to send the game to overtime, but they could not convert. Cornell (ranked 10th at the time, 10th currently) handed ND its first defeat of the season in an 11-10 decision on March 5 in Ithaca, N.Y. In that contest — which saw the Irish hold a 6-3 first-half lead before giving up seven straight Big Red goals — senior A Jim Morrison (Fulton, Md./Mount St. Joseph H.S.) cut the Cornell lead to one with 44 seconds remaining. Notre Dame senior M Frank Matarazzo (Franklin Lakes, N.J./Bergen Catholic H.S.) won the ensuing faceoff, and Morrison had a shot to tie the score, but his effort sailed wide, and the Big Red picked up the ground ball and ran out the clock. Another Ivy League school, Dartmouth (ranked 19th at the time, 12th currently), scored twice in the final three minutes to break an 8-8 deadlock en route to a 10-9 win against Notre Dame on April 2 in Hanover, N.H. The Irish pulled within one when freshman M Michael Podgajny (Ridley Park, Pa./Ridley H.S.) scored with only 19 seconds remaining. Another rookie, M Taylor Clagett (Chesapeake Beach, Md./DeMatha Catholic H.S.) outdueled Grinnell on the game’s final faceoff, but the Irish gave away their coveted opportunity on a turnover, as Grinnell picked up a ground ball that allowed Dartmouth to run out the clock.
ALL OF LAST FOUR ND LOSSES WERE BY A SINGLE GOAL: Notre Dame has not been beaten by more than a single goal in more than a year, since a 13-7 defeat at #16 Loyola on March 20, 2004. All of the last four Irish losses have come by just one goal, and all have been vs. nationally-ranked teams. Last season, Notre Dame lost 9-8 to #17 Ohio State at home on March 31, then fell by the same score at #3 Maryland in double overtime on May 1. In 2005, #10 Cornell prevailed 11-10 at home against ND on March 5, and #19 Dartmouth was victorious 10-9 in Hanover, N.H., on April 2.
GWLL DOMINANCE: For the 12th year in a row, the Irish will compete in the Great Western Lacrosse League, along with Air Force, Butler, Denver, Fairfield, and Ohio State. Notre Dame has won nine GWLL titles and holds a 42-5 (.893) all-time record in league play, including 23-2 (.920) at home. Last year, the Irish lost 9-8 to the Buckeyes and finished 4-1 in conference action, second in the standings behind OSU.
IRISH LOOK TO EXTEND 11-GAME WINNING STREAK vs. UNRANKED TEAMS: Notre Dame will look to extend an 11-game winning streak against teams not ranked by the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) this week, as neither Denver or Air Force are in the top 20 of this week’s poll (though the Pioneers are the second team receiving votes). The last Irish loss against an unranked team was a 7-6 overtime decision at Harvard on April 27, 2002. Since 1993, Notre Dame is 73-9 (.890) against unranked squads.
CORRIGAN NOTCHES 250th GAME AS A HEAD COACH: Saturday’s 10-9 defeat at #19 Dartmouth marked the 250th game in which Notre Dame’s Kevin Corrigan has participated as a head coach. He holds a 154-96 (.616) record in 18+ seasons. Corrigan was 10-15 in two years (1985-86) at Randolph-Macon, and has compiled a 144-81 (.640) mark in the last 17 seasons with the Irish.
KEMP MATCHES BEST-EVER START FOR AN ND GOALIE: Freshman goaltender Joey Kemp (Potomac, Md./Georgetown Prep School), who took over the starting job in the season’s third game (March 12 vs. #10 North Carolina), matched the best start ever by a Notre Dame goaltender, earning victories in each of his first four collegiate decisions. After beating the Tar Heels, Kemp was victorious against Butler (22-6), #13 Hofstra (9-8, 2OT), and Villanova (11-7), before losing at #19 Dartmouth (10-9). Two other Irish players began their collegiate careers 4-0, but they were both also defeated in their next appearances. In 1989, freshman Tom Duane notched wins against Wooster (8-7), Kenyon (14-7), Lake Forest (14-1), and Denison (8-5) before falling to Ohio Wesleyan (18-5) in his fifth game as the top Irish goalie. Sophomore Ryan Jewell registered wins against Canisius (21-5), Hobart (15-14, OT), Butler (22-11), and #15 Georgetown (13-10) in 1993 before losing 13-7 at #9 Duke.
IRISH OPEN GWLL SEASON IN STYLE … AGAIN: By beating Butler 22-6 on March 19, Notre Dame opened Great Western Lacrosse League play with a victory for the 11th time in 12 years since the conference was formed in 1994. The Irish have begun 2-0 in league play nine times in 11 years, while they have been 3-0 on eight previous occasions. The Irish, who have won nine conference championships, hold an all-time 43-5 (.897) record in GWLL action, including a 24-2 (.922) mark at home. Notre Dame, which finished second to Ohio State in 2004, were picked by Inside Lacrosse as the favorites to win the league title this season.
GETTING ON THEM EARLY: Notre Dame has made a habit of jumping out to early leads, as it has outscored its opponents 28-11 in the first quarter in six games this season (4.00-1.57). The Irish have held a first-quarter advantage in every game but one this season (tied 2-2 vs. Dartmouth in 10-9 loss) and have not trailed after 15 minutes of play in more than a year, since being down 5-1 at #16 Loyola on March 20, 2004, en route to a 13-7 defeat. Since then, Notre Dame has led after one period in 13 games and was tied twice (also 1-1 at #3 Maryland in 9-8, 2OT loss on May 1, 2004).
WALSH FIRST ND PLAYER EVER TO SCORE SIX GOALS AGAINST A RANKED TEAM: Junior All-American A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) scored six goals (to go with one assist), including the game-winning tally 2:05 into the second overtime to lead Notre Dame to a 9-8 double-overtime triumph at #13 Hofstra on March 26. It was the first time in the 25-year history of the Irish program that any player found the net six times against a nationally-ranked Division I squad. Walsh was the first Irish player to score six in a game against any team since Jon Harvey did so vs. Villanova in 2000. Walsh tied the Notre Dame record for goals in a road game, as it was the eighth time in program history that an Irish player scored six goals in an opponent’s stadium. It was last done by Chris Dusseau against Massachusetts in 1999.
IRISH END VILLANOVA’S 14-GAME HOME WINNING STREAK: Notre Dame’s 11-7 victory against Villanova on Monday ended the Wildcats 14-game home winning streak. It was the first home defeat for VU since a 13-10 loss to Towson on April 12, 2003. The Wildcats finished that year with two victories, then went 9-0 at home last year, and started 2005 with three consecutive home victories.
A MULTITUDE OF WEAPONS: Notre Dame’s offense, which came into the week ranking first in the nation in both goals per game (12.80) and man-up efficiency (.560), saw a player score five or more goals in three consecutive games last month, with different Irish attackmen doing it on each occasion. Junior A Matt Karweck (Penn Yan, N.Y./Penn Yan Academy) had five goals (plus three assists) against Butler on March 19, and his classmate, All-American A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.), notched six goals and an assist against Hofstra on March 26, before senior co-captain A Jim Morrison (Fulton, Md./Mount St. Joseph H.S.) scored five times vs. Villanova two days later.
IRISH END EIGHT-YEAR OVERTIME DROUGHT: When the sixth goal of the game by junior All-American A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) handed the Irish a 9-8 double-overtime win at #13 Hofstra on March 26, Notre Dame snapped a six-game losing streak in overtime affairs and earned its first extra-session triumph since a 10-9 win against #12 Hobart on March 29, 1997. The Irish, now 9-8 all-time in overtime affairs, had previously also been defeated in their only other double-OT games, having lost 7-6 to #3 Loyola in 2002 and 9-8 against #3 Maryland last year.
WALSH, KARWECK, DRISCOLL, CROSLAND ALREADY NAMED GWLL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: Through five weeks of the 2005 season, Notre Dame has boasted the Great Western Lacrosse League’s top player four times already this spring. Fifth-year senior G Stewart Crosland (Bethesda, Md./Landon School) was named the Great Western Lacrosse League Player of the Week after helping Notre Dame to a season-opening 14-6 win at #21 Penn State on Feb. 27. The Landon School product stopped 73.9% of the shots he faced, making 17 saves to help the Irish to their largest-ever margin of victory in a road game against a nationally-ranked opponent. Crosland anchored an outstanding defensive performance that held the Nittany Lions scoreless in the final 25:17 of the contest, opening the door for Notre Dame’s offense to put the game out of reach with six unanswered goals. This week, it was junior D D.J. Driscoll (Downingtown, Pa./Malvern Preparatory School) who earned conference accolades after he was a major factor in Notre Dame’s 9-7 upset of #10 North Carolina on March 12 at The First 4 invitational in Carson, Calif. Driscoll had the task of guarding UNC attackman Jed Prossner, a first-team All-American and one of five Tewaaraton Trophy finalists in 2004 (when he had 6 goals and 2 assists against ND), and he held the Carolina star to just one goal and one assist on seven shots. Prossner also committed a game-high four turnovers, while Driscoll led all players with six ground balls. It was just the third time in the last three years that North Carolina was held to fewer than eight goals in a game. Junior A Matt Karweck (Penn Yan, N.Y./Penn Yan Academy) then notched five goals and three assists in Notre Dame’s 22-6 victory over Butler on March 19, which was good enough to earn him league player-of-the-week accolades. He notched a career high in goals, matched his personal-best in assists, and doubled his previous collegiate-high total in points, ending up just one shy of the Irish record for points in a game. Karweck scored on all but one of his shots in helping Notre Dame to its highest scoring output since 1993. Junior A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) was the most-recent honoree, after he had six goals — including the game-winner in double overtime — and an assist in helping the Irish to a 9-8 road win against #13 Hofstra on March 26. He scored on all but two of his shots and registered a career high in goals in his return to Long Island.
PIONEER KILLER: Junior All-American A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) has been particularly effective against Denver in his career, registering 14 points — six goals, eight assists — in two prior contests against the Pioneers. He has taken 12 shots, scoring on half of them, while also picking up seven ground balls vs. DU. As a rookie, Walsh registered two goals and five assists and picked up five ground balls in helping Notre Dame to a 9-8 victory. In 2004, he had four goals and three assists — with two goals and two assists coming in the final 20 minutes, after ND trailed 9-6 — on just seven shots (five on goal) and picked up two ground balls.
RYAN DEADLY vs. DENVER: Junior M Matt Ryan (Ridley Park, Pa./Ridley H.S.) has been effective on the offensive end of the field against Denver, posting two goals and three assists in two prior games against the Pioneers. In fact, Ryan has scored on both of his shots vs. DU, one in 2003 and one a year ago.
CROSLAND STINGY vs. FALCONS: Fifth-year senior G Stewart Crosland (Bethesda, Md./Landon School) has been particularly effective in three previous meetings with Air Force, posting a 2-0 record, a 3.11 goals-against average and .806 save percentage. In 115:55, he has allowed just six Falcon goals, while making 25 saves.
DRISCOLL GROUND BALL KING AGAINST AIR FORCE: Junior D D.J. Driscoll (Downingtown, Pa./Malvern Prep School) has been particularly effective in gathering ground balls in two previous meetings with Air Force. He corralled eight against the Falcons in 2003 and picked up four a year ago.
GIORDANO THE FALCON HUNTER: Senior co-captain M Brian Giordano (Princeton, N.J./Hun School) has been outstanding in three previous games against Air Force, scoring nine goals and assisting on two others for a total of 11 points. He has scored on half of his 18 shots and has six ground balls. Giordano scored five goals against Air Force in 2003, which still stands tied for his career high.
KARWECK JUST MISSES ND RECORD FOR POINTS IN A GAME: Junior A Matt Karweck (Penn Yan, N.Y./Penn Yan Academy) had five goals and three assists in Notre Dame’s 22-6 victory over Butler on Saturday, falling just one shy of the school record for points in a game. He notched a career high in goals, matched his personal-best in assists, and doubled his previous collegiate-high total in points. He was one off the record of nine points in a game, which has been done eight times, but not since 1995. John Olmstead accomplished the feat twice in 1988, while Mike Sullivan did it in ’90 and ’91, and all-time scoring leader Randy Colley turned in four nine-point games from ’93-95. Karweck also was one off the record for most goals in a home game. Three players – Joe Franklin in 1986, Mike Quigley in 1990, and Jon Harvey in 2000 – have netted six in front of the home fans Karweck – who had just three goals and four points combined in the first three contests of 2005 – scored on all but one of his six shots and also picked up one ground ball. Heading into the game, his career high in points was four, which he had done on four occasions, including in the opening game of the season, at #21 Penn State (3 G, 1 A). His goal and point totals were the most by an Irish player since Matt Howell registered five goals and three assists against Fairfield last year. Karweck also tied the Loftus Center record for points in a game, done last by North Carolina’s Jed Prossner in 2004, when he had six goals and two assists.
MORRISON BECOMES FIRST ND PLAYER EVER TO OPEN SEASON WITH FOUR STRAIGHT HAT TRICKS: Senior co-captain A Jim Morrison (Fulton, Md./Mount St. Joseph H.S.) registered three goals and one assist against Butler on Saturday to become the first Notre Dame player ever to begin the season with four consecutive hat tricks. Morrison – who matched his career high in points (he also had 3 G, 1 A vs. Cornell this year) – also had hat tricks in each of the first three contests of the ’05 campaign, a feat which had been done just once previously in the 25-year history of the Irish program, by first-team All-American Tom Glatzel at the beginning of the 2001 campaign. The last Irish player to have four consecutive hat tricks – at any point in a season – was Jon Harvey in that same ’01 campaign. He did it five straight, against Ohio State (4), Denver (3), Air Force (3), Army (3), and Butler (3). The current Irish senior, who joined the team as a walk-on and had just one career goal in five games played prior to this season, has 18 goals on the season, which leads the teams.
IRISH PUT UP 22 AGAINST BUTLER: Notre Dame scored six times in the first 6:14 and led 12-0 midway through the second quarter en route to a 22-goal explosion against Butler on Saturday. The 22 goals stand as the most by any Division I school this season (Denver’s 20 against Lafayette on March 5 are next) and were the most by an Irish team in 12 years, since a 22-11 win over Butler on March 29, 1993, in the Bulldogs’ first season as a varsity program. It was the highest scoring output ever by any team in the Loftus Sports Center, as well as the largest margin of victory (16) for the Irish since a 21-5 win against Canisius on Feb. 27, 1993. The eight goals in both the first and third quarters are the most ever in a single period by any team in the facility. The 13 first-half tallies also are the most in a half in the Loftus Center.
BIG CROWD FOR BIG OFFENSIVE DAY vs. BUTLER: A crowd of 1,089 — the largest on record for an Irish home game — took in Notre Dame’s 22-6 victory over Butler on March 19 in the Loftus Sports Center. The previous high was 927 on March 14, 2004, when #9 North Carolina topped the fifth-ranked Irish 14-11 in Loftus.
RYAN RAISING HIS OFFENSIVE GAME: After starting all 11 games in which he appeared and finishing with 17 points (7 G, 10 A) in 2004, junior Matt Ryan (Ridley Park, Pa./Ridley H.S.) has become more of an offensive threat early this season, as he is third on the team in scoring and has already matched his point production from a year ago. Ryan has scored 10 goals (after having 11 in his career prior to this year) and added seven assists this season, registering at least a point in every game (and goals in all but one). After having just one multiple-goal game in his first two collegiate seasons (25 games played), Ryan scored twice in both of Notre Dame’s first two contests in 2004 and also against both Villanova and Dartmouth. He also had a pair of assists against #21 Penn State and then added another at #10 Cornell before matching his career high with three more vs. #10 North Carolina. Ryan’s scores against the Big Red came in a 2:10 span in the fourth quarter, igniting an Irish rally.
CLAGETT GETTING FACEOFF WINS: Freshman M Taylor Clagett (Chesapeake Beach, Md./DeMatha Catholic H.S.) has established himself as Notre Dame’s top faceoff man and turned the area into a strength for the Irish, reversing a recent trend. The rookie — the brother of four-year regular in the Irish midfield and 2004 graduate Steve Clagett — has won 63.6% (82-129) of the faceoffs he has taken — including a majority in every game — to rank eighth in Division I in the category. He has Notre Dame — which has not won more than half of the faceoffs in a season since 2001 and won just .440 in `04 — seventh nationally with a .599 (97-162) team success rate. The Irish have won more than half of the faceoffs in all seven games this season, after doing that just twice in all of 2004. Clagett also leads the team in ground balls (37) and ranks 13th in Division I (5.29 per game).
WALSH’S SIX POINTS IN OPENER MAKE HIM SECOND-FASTEST TO 100 CAREER POINTS: Junior A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) opened up the second half of his career with six points (3 G, 3 A) against #21 Penn State on Feb. 27. That brought his career point total to 105, making him the second-fastest Irish player ever to reach 100 career points, doing it in his 27th game. The quickest was all-time leading scorer Randy Colley (1991-95), who did it in 21 games en route to finishingwith 273 points (173 G, 100 A). The previous second-fastest to 100 was John Olmstead, who did it in 34 games and finished his career in 1989 with 146 points.
SHUTOUT STREAKS: Notre Dame has already put together three streaks of holding opponents scoreless for stretches of greater than 20:00. The first covered the final 25:17 of the season opener at #21 Penn State, allowing the Irish to score the game’s final six goals. Against Butler on March 19, Notre Dame held the Bulldogs without a goal in the initial 24:51 of the game, jumping out to a 12-0 lead. The Irish later pieced together another streak of 20:59 without giving up a goal against Butler from the latter part of the second quarter to early in the fourth. A year ago, Notre Dame had four shutout streaks of longer than 25 minutes.
GOOD D: Dating back to last year, Notre Dame’s defense has held its opponents to nine goals or fewer in 11 of the last 14 games, allowing just 7.29 goals per game over that span, while posting a 10-4 record. The lone exceptions were on April 11, 2004, when the Irish won 14-12 at #17 Denver and earlier this season in defeats at #10 Cornell (11-10) and at #19 Dartmouth (10-9). Notre Dame’s other losses during that stretch both came by 9-8 scores, against #17 Ohio State and at #3 Maryland (double overtime) in 2004.
IRISH REGISTER LARGEST-EVER VICTORY MARGIN IN ROAD GAME AGAINST RANKED FOE: Notre Dame’s eight-goal (14-6) win at #21 Penn State in the season opener marked the largest-ever margin of victory for the Irish in a road contest against a nationally-ranked opponent. Previously, the largest margin for Notre Dame in that situation was five, done against #17 Army in 2000 (10-5) and #18 Rutgers in 2001 (9-4). The Irish also notched a five-goal victory (12-7) in a neutral-site game against #10 Bucknell in the opening round of the 2001 NCAA tournament.
ALL THREE IRISH ATTACKMEN NOTCH HAT TRICKS vs. PENN STATE: Notre Dame’s starting attack unit, which lost two starters to graduation after last season, began the 2005 season in a big way, as all three attackmen — senior Jim Morrison (Fulton, Md./Mount St. Joseph H.S.) and juniors Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) and Matt Karweck (Penn Yan, N.Y./Penn Yan Academy) — registered hat tricks in Notre Dame’s 14-6 victory at #21 Penn State. Walsh tallied a game-high six points, also adding three assists, while Karweck had four points in his first collegiate game at the position (he moved there less than two weeks before the season following two seasons in the midfield). Morrison, who missed all of the 2004 campaign and had seen action in just five career games beforehand (1 goal), scored each of Notre Dame’s first three goals of the contest.
STREAKS: The following streaks are active heading into this weekend:
– ND has won 11 consecutive games against unranked teams (last loss: 7-6 in OT at Harvard, 4/27/02)
– ND has won four consecutive road games in Great Western Lacrosse League play (last loss: 11-5 at #19 Ohio State, 4/6/03)
– ND has won the majority of faceoffs in seven consecutive games (last time didn’t win majority: 5/1/04 at #3 Maryland, 8-21)
– ND has been outshot in three consecutive games (last time outshot opponent: 3/19/05 vs. Butler, 68-24)
– ND has had fewer ground balls than its opponent in three consecutive games (last time with ground-ball advantage: 3/19/05 vs. Butler, 46-22)
– ND has given up 11 goals or fewer in 15 consecutive games (last time allowing 12+ goals: 3/20/04 at #16 Loyola, lost 13-7)
– ND has scored eight goals or more in 15 consecutive games (last time with fewer than 8 goals: 3/20/04 at #16 Loyola, lost 13-7)
– ND has been leading or tied after the first quarter in 15 consecutive games (last time trailing: 5-1 in 13-7 loss at #16 Loyola, 3/20/04)
– All of ND’s last four losses have come by one goal against ranked teams (last multiple-goal loss: 13-7 at #16 Loyola, 3/20/04)
– ND has lost six consecutive games when being tied or behind after the first quarter (last win: 13-4 vs. Air Force, 4/12/03, after trailing 2-1)
– ND has lost 21 consecutive games when trailing after three quarters (last win: 9-8 vs. Harvard, 5/1/99, after trailing 8-6)
– ND has lost seven consecutive games against top-five opponents (last win: 13-9 vs. #3 Johns Hopkins, 5/20/01, NCAA quarterfinals)
– Junior A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) has at least one point in 19 consecutive games (last pointless: 5/3/03 vs. #4 Maryland)
– Junior A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) has had seven points in two consecutive games against Denver
– Senior A Jim Morrison (Fulton, Md./Mount St. Joseph H.S.) has at least one goal in seven consecutive games in which he has played (last goalless: 4/26/03 vs. Harvard)
– Junior M Matt Ryan (Ridley Park, Pa./Ridley H.S.) has at least one point in seven consecutive games (last pointless: 5/1/04 at #3 Maryland)
– Junior M Matt Ryan (Ridley Park, Pa./Ridley H.S.) has at least one goal in four consecutive games (last goalless: 3/12/05 vs. #10 North Carolina, 3 assists)
– Freshman M Taylor Clagett (Chesapeake Beach, Md./DeMatha Catholic H.S.) has won the majority of faceoffs he has taken in all seven of his collegiate games
– Freshman G Joey Kemp (Potomac, Md./Georgetown Preparatory School) has stopped 60% or more of the shots he has faced in all seven of his collegiate games
– Junior A Matt Karweck (Penn Yan, N.Y./Penn Yan Academy) has at least one point in four consecutive games (last pointless: 3/12/05 vs. #10 North Carolina)
IRISH LOSE PRESEASON HONORABLE-MENTION ALL-AMERICAN HUBSCHMANN FOR SEASON: Junior A Brian Hubschmann (Short Hills, N.J./Delbarton H.S.), tabbed preseason honorable-mention All-America by Inside Lacrosse, will miss the entire 2005 campaign after suffering a season-ending knee injury in practice on Feb. 16, just nine days prior to the opening game. He was slated to be a starter at attack — where he played while helping Delbarton High School win the 2002 New Jersey state championship — after being a regular in the Irish midfield in his first two collegiate seasons. Hubschmann started all 11 games in which he played in 2004, finishing third on the team in scoring wiith 29 points (18 G, 11 A). Hubschmann, a second-team all-conference pick, led Notre Dame in both shots (88) and shots on goal (48) and ranked fifth in the Great Western Lacrosse League (T-48th nationally) in points per game (2.64) and seventh in assists per game (1.00; 50th in Division I). In response to the injury, the Irish moved junior Matt Karweck (Penn Yan, N.Y./Penn Yan Academy) from midfield to attack and inserted freshman M Michael Podgajny (Ridley Park, Pa./Ridley H.S.) into the first midfield.
WALSH ON TEWAARATON TROPHY WATCH LIST: Junior A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) was one of 37 players named to the watch list for the 2005 Tewaaraton Trophy, awarded to the nation’s top player at the conclusion of the season. The award will be presented at a banquet in Washington, D.C. on June 3. Walsh, who was one of 15 nominees for the award last year, is the only Irish player ever named the to watch list for the Tewaaraton Trophy, which is in just its fifth year, though A Tom Glatzel and A David Ulrich were nominees for the award in 2001.
FOUR EARN PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA MENTION: Four Irish players were mentioned on the Inside Lacrosse preseason All-America lists. Junior A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) led the way as a second-team selection, while junior D D.J. Driscoll (Downingtown, Pa./Malvern Prep School) was on the third team, and senior M Brian Giordano (Princeton, N.J./Hun School) and junior A Brian Hubschmann (Short Hills, N.J./Delbarton H.S.) were honorable-mention selections.
TOUGH SLATE: Notre Dame will face a difficult road to the 2005 NCAA Championship. This year’s Irish schedule features 11 games, with eight of those opponents listed in the Inside Lacrosse preseason coaches’ top 25, while the other three were receiving votes. Additionally, Notre Dame will have just three home games in 2005.
TV STARS: The 2005 season figures to be one of the most-televised ever for the Notre Dame men’s lacrosse team. The Irish were shown live by College Sports Television to a national audience, as they knocked off #10 North Carolina 9-7 in The First 4 invitational at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. on March 12. Additionally, Notre Dame’s final two home games, April 7 vs. Denver and April 10 vs. Air Force, will be televised by Comcast Sports Local on a tape-delayed basis in Michigan and the South Bend area. The Butler game also was slated to be televised, but the move indoors precluded that from becoming a reality.
ROAD WARRIORS: Notre Dame will play eight of its 11 games away from home this season. The Irish will have just three home dates (March 19 vs. Butler, April 7 vs. Denver, April 10 vs. Air Force), in matching the 1987 season for the fewest home tilts in a campaign since the varsity program was established in 1981. Notre Dame began the year with away contests against Penn State and Cornell and then will take on North Carolina in Carson, Calif., in The First 4. The last time the Irish opened the season with four straight games away from home was 1989, when they lost at Stony Brook and against Georgetown in Hempstead, N.Y., before falling at Penn State and then beating Lehigh in University Park, Pa. The home opener that season was a 17-4 win over Hartford on March 25.
IRISH WELL REPRESENTED IN INSIDE LACROSSE SEASON PREVIEW ISSUE: Notre Dame was mentioned on numerous occasions in the season preview issue (Dec. 15, 2004) of Inside Lacrosse. The Irish were picked ninth in its Division I listing of the top 16 squads, as well as listed as one of four “Dark Horses” to reach the NCAA semifinals (along with Duke, UMass, and Army). Notre Dame’s game at GWLL rival Ohio State on April 29 also tabbed one of the six “Prime Time” games of the 2005 season. In addition to the Irish midfield being ranked #7 among Division I teams, junior A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) was one of four listed in the “Next in Line” category of IL’s Tewaaraton Trophy preview, which listed five favorites, meaning Walsh is among the magazine’s top nine candidates for the award given to the top player in the country. Walsh also was on the magazine’s list of both “Wheels” and “Anklebreakers”.
WALSH ON PACE TO BREAK IRISH RECORD FOR CAREER ASSISTS PER GAME: Though he still has nearly half of his career left, junior A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) has an excellent chance to break the Notre Dame record for assists per game. Thus far, he has notched 76 assists in 33 career games, an average of 2.30 per game. The top mark in Irish history is 1.96, done by all-time assist leader Dave Ulrich (1998-2001), who had 110 in 56 contests.
CROSLAND IN THE IRISH RECORD BOOK: Fifth-year senior Stewart Crosland (Bethesda, Md./Landon School) places high on a number of Irish career statistical lists. See chart in pdf for a summary of his positions:
WALSH CLIMBING IRISH CAREER CHARTS: Even though he is just into the second half of his career, junior A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) already is climbing Notre Dame’s career offensive charts. See chart in pdf for a summary of his positions:
IRISH IN OVERTIME: Should the game be tied at the end of regulation, Notre Dame will try to win its second overtime game of the season. On March 26, the Irish snapped a six-game losing streak in overtime affairs with a 9-8 double-OT win at #13 Hofstra. The previous Irish overtime win was a 10-9 result at home against #12 Hobart on March 29, 1997. Notre Dame has a 9-8 all-time record in overtime games in the 25-year varsity history of the program. The Irish have played just three double-overtime games, losing in 2002 to Loyola and in `04 to Maryland before beating the Pride. Notre Dame has played overtime games against three teams on the 2005 schedule. The Irish lost to Penn State 10-9 at home in the 2002 season opener, beat Ohio State 11-10 in 1983 in Columbus, and had previously lost a pair at Hofstra (10-9, 1999; 11-10, 2001).
IRISH ADD SEVEN FOR NEXT SEASON: Notre Dame head coach Kevin Corrigan recently announced that seven players have signed national letters of intent to join his squad for the 2006 season. Below are the newest members of the Irish. For more information, see www.und.com. Name Pos. Hometown High School Peter Christman A Simsbury, CT Westminster H.S. Dan Gibson A/M Germantown, TN Memphis University School Ryan Hoff A Baldwin, MD Dulaney H.S. Regis McDermott D Amityville, NY Chaminade H.S. Davey Melera M Lutherville, MD Boys’ Latin H.S. Scott Rodgers G Wantagh, NY MacArthur H.S. Duncan Swezey A Ambler, PA Hatboro Horsham H.S.
KEVIN WHITE RADIO SHOW: A weekly radio show featuring Notre Dame athletics director Kevin White airs at 7 p.m. (Central time) each Thursday on ESPN Radio 1000 in Chicago (1000 AM in Chicago, www.espnradio1000.com). Now in its fifth season, “The Kevin White Show” can be heard in 35 states. White welcomes to the show a series of guests and prominent figures associated with college athletics, including administrators, coaches and media members.
KEEPING UP WITH ND MEN’S LACROSSE: For the fastest results of Notre Dame men’s lacrosse games, call the Notre Dame Sports Hotline at (574) 631-3000 and choose #5 and #1. The hotline provides schedules and result information for all 26 varsity sports and serves as a supplement to the match recaps and weekly releases provided on the official athletic website, www.und.com. The hotline is the first medium updated with results of each Notre Dame men’s lacrosse game. In addition, media members and fans may be added to the sports information e-mail release list by contacting assistant sports information director Bo Rottenborn at Rottenborn.2@nd.edu. All requests for story ideas, interview access, match credentials, and further information on Irish men’s lacrosse should similarly be directed to Rottenborn. Credential and interview requests should be made at least 24 hours in advance.