NOTRE DAME, Ind. — The second-ranked Irish are set to open the 2021 campaign with a home contest against Vanderbilt on Saturday, February 13 at noon ET. The contest is set to be played indoors at Loftus Sports Center and will be streamed live via ACC Network Extra.
#2 NOTRE DAME vs. VANDERBILT
Date/Time: Saturday, February 13 — Noon ET
Location: Loftus Sports Center — Notre Dame, Ind.
Live Stream: ACC Network Extra
Live Stats: Click Here
Twitter Updates: @NDWomensLax
Game Notes (PDF)
FOR STARTERS
- The Irish will open the season with three of four contests at home, including Vanderbilt (Feb. 13), Central Michigan (Feb. 19) and Oregon (Feb. 26).
- Notre Dame opens the 2021 season ranked No. 2 in the IWLCA, Inside Lacrosse and U.S. Lacrosse Magazine Preseason Polls.
- Notre Dame is coming off of a 2020 campaign in which it finished 7-0 and ranked #2 in the nation.
- The #2 ranking the Irish earned in 2020 is the best ranking to close a season in program history.
OPENING DAY
- Notre Dame owns a 7-2 mark in season openers under head coach Christine Halfpenny and is 20-4 all-time in its first game of the season.
- In season openers at home, the Irish hold a 5-2 record.
- This is the second consecutive year Notre Dame is opening the season at home after they opened the 2020 campaign with an 18-3 triumph over Marquette.
THE NOTRE DAME-VANDERBILT SERIES
- The Irish and Commodores will be meeting for the 21st time on Saturday at Notre Dame.
- Vanderbilt holds a slight 11-9 advantage in the series but the Irish have won four consecutive meetings against the Commodores dating back to April 18, 2012.
- The two sides met last season in what turned out to be the season finale for both teams on March 11, 2020.
- In that contest in Nashville, the Irish jumped out to an 11-0 lead en route to a 16-6 victory.
- Kasey Choma netted a game-high four goals in that contest while Hannah Dorney (3G, 1A) and Madison Ahern (2G, 2A) also collected four points.
- Notre Dame last hosted Vanderbilt on March 20, 2019 and earned an 18-6 victory inside Loftus Sports Center.
- Andie Aldave scored five goals in that Irish win while Maddie Howe and Savannah Buchanan each had two-goal, one-assist performances.
PRESEASON HONORS
- A nations-best seven Irish were named Inside Lacrosse Preseason All-Americans (Feb. 1), including Andie Aldave (First Team), Bridget Deehan (First Team), Madison Ahern (Second Team), Emma Schettig (Second Team), Kasey Choma (Third Team), Savannah Buchanan (HM) and Kathleen Roe (HM).
- Aldave and Deehan were also named Preseason All-Americans by U.S. Lacrosse Magazine.
- Deehan was also named the magazine’s Preseason Goaltender of the Year.
- Aldave, Buchanan, Deehan, Maddie Howe and Roe were each named to the Preseason All-ACC Team (Feb. 9) while Notre Dame was tabbed second in the Preseason ACC Coaches Poll.
POWER IN NUMBERS
- Notre Dame returns 97.5% of its total offense a year ago, including its top-eight point getters a season agoin Madison Ahern, Kasey Choma, Andie Aldave, Maddie Howe, Jessi Masinko, Samantha Lynch, Erin McBride and Savannah Buchanan.
- That group helped power the Irish to 10th in the nation in 2020 in total offense with a mark of 16.71 goals per game.
- The Irish also return over 97% of its draw controls from a season ago, including Andie Aldave, Savannah Buchanan and Kathleen Roe.
- Defensively, Notre Dame returns 86% of its caused turnovers from a unit that ranked second in the nation last season with a mark of 7.29 goals allowed per game.
- In net, Bridget Deehan looks to build off of a 2020 campaign in which she ranked fifth in the country and led the ACC with a .547 save percentage en route to being named Inside Lacrosse’s Breakthrough Player of the Year.
—ND—