Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Official Athletics Website

14th-Ranked Women's Lacrosse Downs Delaware 9-7

March 26, 2002

Notre Dame, Ind. – The 14th-ranked Notre Dame women’s lacrosse team held off a stubborn University of Delaware squad taking a 9-7 win Tuesday afternoon at Meyo Field in the Loftus Sports Center.

Junior Danielle Shearer (Hampstead, Md.) and sophomore Lauren Fischer (Pittsburgh, Pa.) paced the Notre Dame attack with three goals each. Senior midfielder Natalie Loftus (Baltimore, Md.) added a pair and junior Eleanor Weille (Garden City, N.Y.) got the game-winning goal with 3:40 left in the game.

The victory improves the Irish to 5-1 overall while Delaware falls to 2-5 on the season.

Notre Dame wasted little time scoring just 31 seconds into the game on a free position goal by Fischer.

Delaware, playing its second game in as many days, answered back with two goals to take its only lead of the game at 2-1. Lindsey Greer scored of a feed from Brooke Mulligan with 28:00 left in the half and Morgan Clute added a free position goal with 22:07 left for the lead.

Loftus notched her first goal of the game on a free position shot with 17:42 left and Shearer got her first of three with 14:33 left as she was set up from behind the goal by Kate Scarola (Sr., Windsor, Conn.).

With Blue Hen goalkeeper Laurie Tortorelli making big clamping down the Irish offense, Delaware was able to tie the game at 10:55 of the first half on Ashley Moderacki’s first of three goals in the game.

Shearer put the Irish ahead 4-3 at 8:46 and that’s the way it remained going into the first intermission.

The teams would trade goals throughout the first 26 minutes of the second half. Corinne Shuck tied the game for the Blue Hens at 27:37 only to be answered back by Shearer for the Irish at 26:23.

Moderacki tied the game at 5-5 at the 23:31 mark, but Loftus got her second goal of the game 11 seconds later to put the Irish back on top 6-5.

Shuck got her second goal of the game for Delaware at 20:00 to even things at 6-6. Fischer put the Irish back in the lead at 16:37.

The Irish remained ahead 7-6 for over eight minutes, but Moderacki, the Blue Hens’ top scorer, knotted the game at 7-7 when she beat Notre Dame goalkeeper Jen White (Jr., Annapolis, Md.) with 8:17 left in the game.

The teams traded scoring chances until Weille took a feed from Loftus in close and beat Tortorelli for her second goal of the season with 3:40 left in the game to put the Irish ahead to stay at 8-7.

Fischer capped her three-goal afternoon when she scored with 25 seconds left for a 9-7 Irish win.

Notre Dame outshot Delaware in the game 29-20. Tortorelli made 15 saves for the Blue Hens while White had 10 stops for the Irish.

Notre Dame returns to action on Saturday, March 30th when they play host to BIG EAST opponent Virginia Tech. The opening draw for that game is 1:00 p.m. The game’s site will be determined by the weather and field conditions at Moose Krause Stadium.

Game Summary

First-Half Scoring

Team Time Score Goal Assist

ND 29:29 * 1-0 Lauren Fischer

UD 28:00 1-1 Lindsay Greer Brooke Mulligan

UD 22:07 * 1-2 Morgan Clute

ND 17:43 * 2-2 Natalie Loftus

ND 14:33 3-2 Danielle Shearer Kate Scarola

UD 10:55 3-3 Ashley Moderacki

ND 8:46 4-3 Danielle Shearer

Second-Half Scoring

Team Time Score Goal Assist

UD 27:27 4-4 Corinne Shuck

ND 26:23 5-4 Danielle Shearer Alissa Moser

UD 23:31 5-5 Ashley Moderacki

ND 23:20 6-5 Natalie Loftus

UD 20:00 6-6 Corinne Shuck

ND 16:37 7-6 Lauren Fischer Eleanor Weille

UD 8:17 7-7 Ashley Moderacki

ND 3:40 8-7 Eleanor Weille Natalie Loftus

ND 0:25 9-7 Lauren Fischer Danielle Shearer

* indicates free position goal

Scoring: 1st 2nd Final

Delaware (2-5) 3 4 7

Notre Dame (5-1) 4 5 9

Shots on Goal

UD 9 – 11 – 20

ND 11 – 18 – 29

Goalkeepers

UD: Laurie Tortorelli (60:00 min, 9 goals, 15 saves)

ND: Jen White, (60:00 min., 7 goals, 10 saves)