April 1, 2013
MARQUETTE (2-4)
vs.
#4 NOTRE DAME (6-2)
Tuesday, April 2 – 4 p.m. (CT)
Loyola Academy
Wilmette, Illinois
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SETTING THE STAGE
– No. 4 Notre Dame (6-2) will face Marquette (2-4) Tuesday at Loyola Academy in Wilmette, Ill. Faceoff is slated for 4 p.m. (CT). This will be the first-ever meeting between the two programs.
– Live stats via Gametracker will be available on UND.com.
FIGHTING IRISH IN ILLINOIS
– Tuesday will be Notre Dame’s third game in the Chicagoland area. The Fighting Irish played Cornell in 2006 at Benedictine University in Lisle. Notre Dame faced Denver in 2008 at Toyota Park in Bridgeview.
IRISH ITEMS
– The Notre Dame offense is averaging 9.88 goals per game and the Irish defense is surrendering 8.12 goals per contest.
– Senior attackman Sean Rogers scored a team-high three goals in Saturday’s 12-10 setback to St. John’s. It was the second hat trick of the season for Rogers.
– Senior midfielder Tyler Kimball had career-high totals in goals (2) and points (3) versus St. John’s.
– Freshman attackman Matt Kavanagh had two goals and two assists against the Red Storm. He leads the Irish in goals (16) and assists (8).
– Senior John Kemp has played every minute in goal and carries a 7.93 goals-against average and a .532 save percentage.
– Junior Liam O’Connor is 80-of-150 (.533) in faceoff attempts.
– Junior midfielder Jim Marlatt has team-best streaks for goals (9 games) and points (11 games).
A LOOK AT THE GOLDEN EAGLES
– Marquette is 2-4 in its first season of varsity lacrosse. The Golden Eagles are averaging 9.33 goals per game, while allowing 12.83 per game.
– Junior attackman Bryan Badolato has a team-high 12 goals, while freshman attackman Conor Gately leads Marquette in assists (14) and points (21). Freshman JJ Sagl is 2-3 in goal and has a 13.2 goals-against average and a .444 save percentage.
– Head coach Joe Amplo is in his first season at Marquette.
COMMON OPPONENTS
– Notre Dame and Marquette have one common opponent so far this season (Ohio State). The Fighting Irish topped the Buckeyes 9-4, while the Marquette fell to Ohio State, 18-8.
COACHING CONNECTION
– Marquette volunteer assistant coach Scott Rodgers was a two-time All-America honoree at Notre Dame. He was on the Irish roster from 2006-10. Rodgers earned third-team All-America honors in 2009 and was an honorable mention pick in 2010. He also was named the Most Outstanding Player of the 2010 NCAA Championship.
FINISHING STRONG
– Notre Dame has outscored its opponents 29-19 in the fourth quarter and overtime this season.
TAKING DOWN TOP-10 TEAMS
– Five of Notre Dame’s six wins this season have come against a team ranked in the top 10 of the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) poll at the time of the contest.
– The Irish have defeated (in chronological order) #6 Duke (13-5), #8 Penn State (10-9 OT), #9 North Carolina (10-9 3OT), #5 Denver (13-12 OT) and #8 Ohio State (9-4).
– This is the first time ever the Irish have five wins over top-10 teams during the same regular season. Notre Dame downed five top-10 opponents during the 2010 campaign (including postseason).
SCORELESS STREAKS
– The Irish defense had two impressive scoreless streaks in consecutive wins over Ohio State and Rutgers. Notre Dame held Ohio State scoreless from the 12:14 mark of the first quarter until there was 10:47 left in the game, a span of 46:27. The Fighting Irish held the Scarlet Knights without a goal from the 11:07 mark of the second quarter until there was 13:45 left in the contest, a stretch of 27:32.
IRISH NOTCH 300TH VICTORY
– Last Sunday’s win at Rutgers was the 300th victory in the history of the Notre Dame program. The Irish are 300-153 (.662) since gaining varsity status prior to the 1981 season.
BIG EAST BEASTS
– Notre Dame has a 14-6 (.700) record all-time in BIG EAST regular-season play. The 2010 campaign marked the first season of BIG EAST men’s lacrosse and the Irish posted a 2-4 record. Notre Dame finished second in the league in 2011 with a 5-1 mark. The Fighting Irish won the league’s 2012 regular-season title with a perfect 6-0 record.
CAPTURING THE CLOSE ONES
– Notre Dame has played five one-goal games, including three overtime affairs, this season. The Irish are 4-1 in those contests and have won all three overtime games.
– Over the last two seasons, the Fighting Irish have played in 11 games that have been decided by a single goal. The Irish are 8-3 in those games.
– Notre Dame has won its last five overtime contests.
KAVANAGH IN THE CLUTCH
– Freshman attackman Matt Kavanagh has scored an overtime game winner twice this season. He scored 15 seconds into the third overtime period in a 10-9 victory over North Carolina (March 2). Kavanagh scored with 1:34 remaining in the first extra period in the 10-9 win at Penn State (Feb. 24).
– Kavanagh assisted on Sean Rogers’ goal that tied the Denver game (12-12) with 47 seconds left in regulation to force overtime.
– He has tallied four or more points in four games this season.
– The rookie notched four goals and one assist in his debut at Duke. He had four goals, including the overtime game winner, and two assists versus North Carolina.
– He had two goals and two assists against both Ohio State and St. John’s.
HOME SWEET HOME
– Notre Dame is 42-6 (.875) at home since the beginning of the 2006 season.
FACEOFF FIREPOWER
– Junior Liam O’Connor is 40-of-68 (.588) in faceoff attempts in the last four games. Here is a rundown of some of his top efforts this season …
– He was 17-for-28 (.607) in faceoff attempts in the 13-12 overtime victory at Denver (March 16). O’Connor was 6-for-9 in the fourth quarter and overtime. He also scored a goal against the Pioneers.
– O’Connor was 17-for-25 (.680) in faceoff attempts in the 10-9 triple-overtime victory against North Carolina (March 2). O’Connor was 6-for-8 in the fourth quarter and overtime. He also had an assist and a career-high nine ground balls versus the Tar Heels.
– O’Connor scored two goals immediately after faceoff wins in the 10-9 overtime victory at Penn State (Feb. 24). Both goals occurred in the fourth quarter after an Irish goal. The first tally evened the contest (7-7) with 9:28 remaining in regulation. The second score put the Irish up 9-8 with 18 seconds left in the period.
– O’Connor has three goals and one assist this season. He has six goals and three assists during his career.
PLAYING ON THE BIG STAGE
– The game at Denver on March 16 was Notre Dame’s ninth game in an NFL stadium in the last five seasons. The Irish are 6-3 all-time in NFL venues.
– Notre Dame is 2-0 at Sports Authority Field at Mile High (Broncos). The Irish have posted a 2-1 record at Baltimore (Ravens), while going 1-0 at both Jacksonville (Jaguars) and East Rutherford, N.J. (Giants & Jets). Notre Dame is 0-2 in Foxborough, Mass. (Patriots).
IRISH PLACE FOUR ON TEWAARATON WATCH LIST
– John Kemp (Sr./G), Jim Marlatt (Jr./M) and Sean Rogers (Sr./A) were named to the initial 92-man Tewaaraton Award watch list. The award is presented annually to the nation’s top player. Freshman attackman Matt Kavanagh recently was added to the list.
– The watch list will be narrowed to 25 nominees in late April. Five finalists will be announced in mid-May. Kemp was a Tewaaraton Award nominee last season.
Matt Miller A SENIOR CLASS AWARD CANDIDATE
– Defenseman Matt Miller has been named one of 20 candidates for the 2013 Senior CLASS Award in the men’s lacrosse division.
– An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
– The candidate class will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those names will be placed on the official ballot.
– Miller has started every contest over the past two seasons on Notre Dame’s stellar defensive unit. He earned honorable mention All-America honors last season in addition to being named to the All-BIG EAST Second Team.
A PERFORMER BETWEEN THE PIPES
– Senior goalie John Kemp boasts a 31-10 (.756) career record to go along with a 6.80 goals-against average and a .599 save percentage.
– Last season, Kemp led the nation in goals-against average (6.27) and save percentage (.637) and was named to the USILA All-America First Team.
– He finished the 2011 campaign ranked second nationally in goals-against average (6.61) and fourth in save percentage (.602) and received honorable mention All-America accolades.
CONSISTENCY IN THE CAGE
– John Kemp is the third straight Notre Dame goalie to receive All-America honors. Kemp was named to the USILA All-America First Team last season after earning an honorable mention citation in 2011.
– Scott Rodgers earned third-team All-America honors in 2009 and was an honorable mention pick in 2010. He also was named the Most Outstanding Player of the 2010 NCAA Championship.
– Joey Kemp, John’s older brother, was a three-time All-America honoree at Notre Dame. He copped first-team honors in 2008 in addition to honorable mention accolades in 2006 and 2007.
A SUCCESSFUL STRETCH
– Notre Dame is 69-19 (.784) since the beginning of the 2008 season. That percentage is the second-best nationally during that time.
– The Fighting Irish have been to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Championship four times in the last five seasons. Notre Dame made the program’s first-ever NCAA title game appearance in 2010 and the Irish were a semifinalist in 2012.
– Since the beginning of the 2010 NCAA Championship, Notre Dame has gone 33-9 (.786), with three of those losses coming in overtime.
NOTRE DAME TO PLAY IN TWO INSIDE LACROSSE EVENTS
– Notre Dame faced Denver on March 16 in the second annual Whitman’s Samper Mile High Classic at Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver, Colo. It was Notre Dame’s first appearance in the event.
– The Fighting Irish will play BIG EAST rival Syracuse April 27 at the Konica Minolta Big City Classic at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. Princeton and Cornell will meet in the day’s first game.
– Notre Dame topped St. John’s, 13-6, in last season’s Big City Classic.
THREE IRISH PLAYERS EARN PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA ACCOLADES
– Notre Dame’s John Kemp (Sr./G), Jim Marlatt (Jr./M) and Matt Miller (Sr./D) were selected as preseason All-Americans by Inside Lacrosse. Kemp was named to the first team, while Marlatt and Miller were selected to the second and third teams, respectively.
FOUR CAPTAINS NAMED FOR 2013 CAMPAIGN
– Seniors Quinn Cully (M), Ryan Foley (M), Matt Miller (D) and Sean Rogers (A) have been named Notre Dame team captains for the 2013 season. All four student-athletes are first-time captains for the Fighting Irish.
FOUR PLAYERS PICKED IN MLL DRAFT
– Four Fighting Irish players were selected in the 2013 Major League Lacrosse (MLL) Collegiate Draft. Seniors John Kemp (G), Matt Miller (D), Steve Murphy (M) and Quinn Cully (M) were picked in the draft, which was held Jan. 11 in Philadelphia.
– The Rochester Rattlers picked Kemp with the first selection of the fourth round (25th overall). Kemp was the first goalie nabbed in the draft. Rochester later selected Miller in the sixth round (44th overall). The New York Lizards picked Murphy in the seventh round (53rd overall), while Cully went to the Boston Cannons in the eighth round (62nd overall).