#5 Irish Down Hokies, 15-10

NOTRE DAME, Ind. — Kasey Choma matched her career-high six goals and Diana Kelly and Savannah Buchanan each caused four turnovers as #5 Notre Dame earned a 15-10 victory over Virginia Tech on Wednesday afternoon at Arlotta Stadium.

Jackie Wolak collected a career-high five points (3G, 2A) while Madison Ahern added three points (G, 2A). Katie Enrietto and Madison Mote each earned two-goal outings while Maddie Howe added a goal and Andie Aldave earned a pair of assists.

Defensively, Buchanan and Kelly each earned a team-high four caused turnovers while Kelly Donnelly caused a pair of Hokies turnovers. Kelly also earned a team-high four ground balls.

Bridget Deehan made 12 saves to earn the victory in goal for Notre Dame. 

The Irish earned a 16-11 advantage in draw controls on Wednesday, with Aldave leading the way with five and Kathleen Roe earning four.

The Irish also went a perfect 18-for-18 on clears.

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Irish scored the game’s first three goals, scored by Choma, Enrietto and Mote, and kept the Hokies off the board for the opening 13:39 of play. 

After Virginia Tech made it a 3-1 game, Notre Dame went on another 3-0 run, this time with two markers from Wolak and a goal by Choma, to earn a 6-1 advantage.

The Hokies converted again with 25 seconds left in the half to make it 6-2 at the break.

Deehan stopped six shots in the first half and Kelly caused a pair of turnovers before halftime to anchor the Irish defense in the opening 30 minutes.

After Virginia Tech opened the second-half scoring, the Irish scored six unanswered goals over a span of 8:11 to take a 12-3 lead with 20:09 to play. Five different players netted goals in the 6-0 run, including two by Choma and one each from Ahern, Enrietto, Howe and Wolak.

The Hokies answered with a 5-0 run to make it 12-8 with 11:06 remaining, but two more goals by Choma put the Irish up 14-8 at the 9:08 mark.

Mote closed the scoring for the Irish with 1:40 to go to account for the 15-10 final.

NOTABLE NUMBERS

  • Kasey Choma matched her career-high with six goals on Wednesday (Feb. 23, 2020)
  • Jackie Wolak collected a career-high five points (3G, 2A) in the victory.
  • With four caused turnovers on Wednesday, Savannah Buchanan has matched her career-high with 24 caused turnovers this season. 
  • Diana Kelly’s four caused turnovers on Wednesday was a career-high.
  • Wednesday marked Bridget Deehan’s sixth game this season with double-digit saves.

UP NEXT

  • Notre Dame (7-5, 4-5 ACC) closes the regular season with Senior Day on Saturday (April 24) against #19 Louisville.
  • Opening draw between the Irish and Cardinals is set for 1 p.m. ET and the contest will be streamed live via ACC Network Extra.

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