Aug. 13, 2010

MAPLE CITY, Mich. – Freshman midfielder Mandy Laddish (Lee’s Summit, Mo./Lee’s Summit) scored a second-half goal off an assist from junior forward Melissa Henderson (Garland, Texas/Berkner), but it was not enough to beat back a determined opponent as fourth-ranked Notre Dame fell to No. 17 Virginia, 4-1 in an exhibition match on Friday afternoon at Myles Kimmerly Park in Maple City, Mich.

The Fighting Irish fell to 9-3-2 in exhibition matches (8-3-2 against college opponents) under 12th-year head coach Randy Waldrum, with this marking the fourth time in five years Notre Dame and Virginia had tangled in preseason play near the Cavaliers’ training home outside Traverse City, Mich.

“Exhibition games are a good way to get a feel for the things your team needs to work on before the start of the season,” Waldrum said. “Today’s game served that purpose well. It showed us that we still have some areas that need improvement, but that’s what we’ll use the next week for, as we get back to work and prepare for a very good Minnesota team.”

Friday’s exhibition was played in four 30-minute periods, with teams featuring largely mixed lineups and formations in an effort to test certain combinations. Notre Dame also played both of its goalkeepers in the contest, with senior Nikki Weiss (Redding, Conn./Immaculate) working the first and third periods, and sophomore Maddie Fox (San Jose, Calif./Leigh) tending goal in the other two frames.

Virginia got goals from Meghan Lenczyk (8′) and Lauren Alwine (23′) in the first period, and a score from Emily Perrin (65′) in the third stanza. Laddish got the Fighting Irish on the board in the final period (117′), working a pretty give-and-go with Henderson in the left channel and driving a left-footed shot from the top of the box high to the upper right corner of the net past a diving UVA goalkeeper Chantel Jones.

The Cavaliers capped the scoring in the 118th minute, as Colleen Flanagan drove a ball from distance that started off frame but curled back inside the right post.

Notre Dame will kick off its 2010 regular season at 5:30 p.m. (ET) Aug. 20 against Minnesota at Alumni Stadium. The Fighting Irish also will team with the Notre Dame men to host their annual “Meet The Teams” free barbecue and fan appreciation event from 4-6 p.m (ET) on Aug. 21 at the practice field north of old Alumni Field before entertaining Wisconsin-Milwaukee to close out opening weekend, taking on the Panthers at 2:30 p.m. (ET) Aug. 22 at Alumni Stadium.

Season and single-game tickets for the 2010 Notre Dame soccer campaign are available by contacting the Murnane Family Ticket Office by phone (574-631-7356) or in person (Gate 9 in the Rosenthal Atrium at Purcell Pavilion) weekdays from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. (ET). Fans also can purchase tickets on-line through the tickets page of the official Notre Dame athletics web site (www.UND.com/tickets) or by visiting the ticket windows at Alumni Stadium on game night.

For more information on the Notre Dame women’s soccer program, join the Fighting Irish women’s soccer news Twitter page (www.twitter.com/NDsoccernews) or sign up for the Irish ALERT text-messaging system through the sidebar on the women’s soccer page at UND.com.

— ND —