Nov. 11, 2010
Full Notes Package in PDF Format 
2010 Notre Dame Women’s Soccer — Match 20
NCAA Championship — First Round
#7/10 [#4 seed] Notre Dame Fighting Irish (15-2-2 / 9-0-2 BIG EAST) vs. New Mexico Lobos (12-2-5 / 5-0-2 Mountain West)
DATE: November 12, 2010
TIME: 7:30 p.m. ET
AT: Notre Dame, Ind. – Alumni Stadium (2,500)
SERIES: First meeting
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Storylines
- For the third consecutive season, Notre Dame opens NCAA Championship play at home against a first-time opponent, having defeated Toledo (5-2) and IUPUI (5-0) the past two years.
- The Fighting Irish have won nine consecutive NCAA first-round matches since the tournament expanded to 64 teams in 2001.
No. 7/10 Irish Host New Mexico In NCAA Championship Opener Friday Night
Still smarting from an upset loss in the quarterfinals of the BIG EAST Conference Championship, No. 7/10 Notre Dame will look to rebound when it kicks off its 18th consecutive NCAA Championship appearance at 7:30 p.m. (ET) Friday against Mountain West Conference regular season champion New Mexico at Alumni Stadium.
The Fighting Irish (15-2-2) earned a No. 4 seed in this year’s NCAA bracket following a tough 2-0 loss to Connecticut on Oct. 31 in the BIG EAST quarterfinals at Alumni Stadium. The loss snapped two historic Notre Dame streaks — NCAA Division I-record 77-match unbeaten run against conference foes and 99-match home unbeaten streak against the BIG EAST.
Since that loss, six Notre Dame players earned all-BIG EAST honors, led by junior forward Melissa Henderson, who became the seventh consecutive Fighting Irish player to be named BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year.
Rankings
- Notre Dame is No. 8 in the latest NSCAA poll and No. 10 in the final Soccer America poll.
- New Mexico is receiving votes in the current NSCAA poll.
A Quick Look At The Fighting Irish
Notre Dame (15-2-2) finds itself in an unusual position heading into the NCAA Championship, as the Fighting Irish are coming off a stinging 2-0 loss in the BIG EAST Championship quarterfinals. It marks the first time since 2004 that Notre Dame went into the NCAA tournament following a loss — that year, the Fighting Irish lost at Connecticut, 2-1 in the BIG EAST final, but bounced back quite well, reeling off six consecutive wins to claim their second national championship.
If Notre Dame is to duplicate that feat from six years ago, it will aim to rediscover its offensive punch. The Fighting Irish scored at least two goals in nine of 10 matches from Sept. 17-Oct. 17, but they have only scored twice in their last three matches combined.
Leading Notre Dame’s resurgent offense will be junior forward and BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year Melissa Henderson (14G-7A), and first-team all-BIG EAST senior forward/midfielder Rose Augustin, who is having a career year with nine goals (plus a team-high eight assists) and 26 points, having become the 26th member of Notre Dame’s 20G-20A club (she now has 27G-21A in her career).
On defense, the Fighting Irish shut out 10 of their first 12 opponents, but have only one clean sheet since then. Still, Notre Dame ranks 15th in the nation with a 0.62 goals-against average (GAA), led by co-captains/center backs/second-team all-BIG EAST picks Lauren Fowlkes and Jessica Schuveiller.
Scouting New Mexico
New Mexico (12-2-5) is set to make its first-ever NCAA Championship appearance after winning the Mountain West Conference regular season title with a 5-0-2 league record.
The Lobos hang their hats on a stout defense that ranks second in the nation with a 0.39 goals-against average (GAA) and .913 save percentage, having allowed just eight goals all season. Sophomore goalkeeper Kelli Cornell has backstopped this defensive unit, starting all 19 matches with a 0.40 GAA, .908 save percentage and 10 shutouts (all among the national leaders).
Not to be overlooked, UNM has a solid offense, led by speedy junior forward Jennifer Williams (8G-7A) and veteran senior midfielder Rachel Fields (6G-2A).
Head coach Kit Vela, the 2010 MWC Coach of the Year, is in her 10th season at New Mexico with a 69-73-29 (.488) record in Albuquerque.
The Notre Dame-New Mexico Series
Friday’s match will be the first-ever meeting between the Fighting Irish and Lobos on the soccer pitch.
Notre Dame vs. The Mountain West
The Fighting Irish have played just three matches against the current Mountain West Conference alignment with a 2-1 record against that league.
Notre Dame has won twice at TCU, defeating the Horned Frogs, 4-0, on Oct. 20, 1992, and then 2-0 on Sept. 8, 2006 (the last time the Fighting Irish faced an MWC opponent).
Notre Dame also dropped a 3-2 decision to BYU on Oct. 19, 2002, at old Alumni Field. That is the lone home match the Fighting Irish have played against a current Mountain West school.
First Time Visitors
New Mexico will be making its first-ever appearance in the Notre Dame campus on Friday night.
Since 1993, the Fighting Irish own a 54-4-1 (.924) record against new visitors, including a 2-0 win over Texas Tech back on Sept. 5 to close out the 18th annual Inn at Saint Mary’s Classic.
Last season, Notre Dame faced new opponents in each of its first three NCAA Championship matches, defeating IUPUI (5-0), Central Michigan (6-1) and Oregon State (1-0) in succession at Alumni Stadium.
NCAA Championship Quick Kicks
- Notre Dame is competing in the NCAA Championship for the 18th consecutive year, the second-longest active streak of consecutive berths, trailing only North Carolina (29) in that category.
- Notre Dame has a 53-15-1 all-time record (.775) in NCAA tournament play, including 42-3-0 (.933) in NCAA games played at home.
- Notre Dame and UNC remain the only teams to have reached the final-32 or further in every NCAA Championship since 1993, and remain 1-2 in virtually all tournament appearance records during that time — round-of-16 trips (UNC-17, ND-15, Portland-15), quarterfinals since 1994 (UNC-14, ND-13, Portland-13), College Cup berths since 1994 (UNC-13, ND-11) and title game appearances since 1994 (UNC-11, ND-7; no one else with more than three).
- The Fighting Irish claimed NCAA titles in 1995 and 2004, joining UNC and Portland as the only repeat winners in the history of the tournament. Notre Dame also has finished as the NCAA runner-up five times (1994, 1996, 1999, 2006 and 2008) as part of its 11 NCAA College Cup berths (also semifinalist in 1997, 2000, 2007 and 2009), all since 1994.
Match #19 Recap: Connecticut (BIG EAST Quarterfinal)
As the saying goes, “all good things must come to an end,” and for the No. 3/5 Notre Dame women’s soccer team, it was two historic streaks that finally were stopped at the hands of Connecticut, which shocked the Fighting Irish, 2-0, in a BIG EAST Conference quarterfinal match on Oct. 31 at Alumni Stadium.
The loss snapped Notre Dame’s NCAA Division I-record 77-match unbeaten streak (72-0-5) against conference opponents, as the Huskies handed the Fighting Irish their first setback to a league foe since Sept. 30, 2005, when Marquette earned a 4-1 win over Notre Dame in Milwaukee. In addition, the loss to Connecticut was the first by the Fighting Irish against a BIG EAST opponent at home in 100 consecutive matches, dating back to the Huskies’ 5-4 overtime win over Notre Dame on Oct. 6, 1995, at old Alumni Field.
Elise Fugowski scored both goals for Connecticut, breaking through in the 59th minute and then adding an insurance goal off a Fighting Irish defensive miscue with exactly 17 minutes to play. Erin Clark and Linda Ruutu were credited with assists on Fugowski’s tallies.
The Huskies (10-8-3) ended up outshooting Notre Dame, 14-12 in the match, including a 6-3 edge in shots on goal. The Fighting Irish had the advantage in corner kicks, 5-3, and were flagged for all three offsides calls on the afternoon, while UConn was tapped for 11 of the 17 fouls (and the lone caution).
Senior goalkeeper Nikki Weiss made four saves in the Fighting Irish net, while Jessica Dulski saved three shots for the Huskies.
Six Irish Nab All-BIG EAST Honors
For the seventh consecutive season, Notre Dame fielded the BIG EAST Conference Offensive Player of the Year, with junior forward Melissa Henderson earning this year’s award as part of the BIG EAST’s annual awards banquet that was held Nov. 4 in Somerset, N.J.
Henderson also was one of six Fighting Irish players who received individual conference accolades this season, joining senior forward/midfielder Rose Augustin as Notre Dame’s first-team all-BIG EAST selections in 2010. The two Fighting Irish center backs and co-captains, senior Lauren Fowlkes and junior Jessica Schuveiller, garnered second-team all-conference citations, while freshman midfielder Elizabeth Tucker was a third-team all-BIG EAST honoree. In addition, Tucker and midfielder Mandy Laddish were chosen for this year’s BIG EAST All-Rookie Team.
Trio Of Irish Earn Academic All-District Honors
Three Notre Dame women’s soccer players — senior defender/co-captain Lauren Fowlkes, senior forward/midfielder Erica Iantorno and junior midfielder Molly Campbell — were named ESPN Academic All-District V selections, it was announced Nov. 2 by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
Fowlkes was chosen as a first-team academic all-district honoree for the second consecutive year, and she advanced to the national ballot for Academic All-America consideration. Both Iantorno and Campbell were second-team academic all-district selections, with Campbell earning her second citation in as many years (she was a first-team choice in 2009) and Iantorno making the squad for the first time.
The trio was chosen for district honors through voting by CoSIDA members in their district, which encompasses Indiana, Illinois, Minnesota, Wisconsin and the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario. To be nominated, a student-athlete must be a starter or important reserve with at least a 3.30 cumulative grade point average (on a 4.0 scale) at his/her current institution. In addition, nominated student-athletes must have participated in at least 50 percent of the team’s matches at their respective positions.
Fowlkes currently is enrolled in Notre Dame’s College of Science, where she has compiled a 3.657 cumulative GPA as a science-business major, was named to the dean’s list in the fall of 2007 (3.804 semester GPA) and is a three-time BIG EAST All-Academic Team selection.
Iantorno presently is enrolled in Notre Dame’s College of Arts and Letters, where she has registered a 3.677 cumulative GPA as an English major. What’s more, she was named to the dean’s list in the spring of 2009 after amassing a 3.867 semester GPA.
Campbell also is studying in the College of Arts and Letters, where she has recorded a 3.642 cumulative GPA as a political science major.
Mel-Rose Place
No signs of Billy, Jane, Michael or Sydney, but this season, Notre Dame has taken on the look of Mel-Rose Place. Specifically, the offensive duo of junior forward Melissa Henderson and senior forward Rose Augustin have combined for more than half (23) of the 40 Fighting Irish goals and 61 of 112 points through 19 matches.
Henderson A Trend Setter
If you’re looking to spot a trend in Notre Dame’s success during the past three seasons, look no further than junior forward Melissa Henderson. Since the Garland, Texas, native arrived in South Bend, she has scored 49 goals (third-most among active Division I players, and 11th in school history) and added 14 assists, good for 112 career points (tied for 16th in school history).
This season, Henderson is once again among the national offensive leaders, ranking eighth nationally in points (35) and 11th in goals (14). She also has distributed a career-high seven assists in 2010, matching her combined total from her first two seasons at Notre Dame.
These markers have been particularly valuable to Fighting Irish fortunes. In fact, during Henderson’s career, Notre Dame is 32-0-2 when she scores a goal, something she’s done in 11 matches this year, including seven of the past 10 outings. The Fighting Irish also are 39-0-2 all-time when Henderson tallies a point, which she has done in 14 matches this year and 21 of the past 29 contests, dating back to last season.
Quickstrike Offense, Part I
Junior forward Melissa Henderson and senior forward Rose Augustin scored 47 seconds apart (at 23:51 and 24:38) midway through the first half of the Sept. 5 win over Texas Tech at Alumni Stadium. It was the fastest two-goal flurry for Notre Dame since Sept. 28, 2008, at Cincinnati, when Henderson scored 33 seconds after Courtney Rosen found the back of the net.
Quickstrike Offense, Part II
Junior forward Melissa Henderson’s goal just 1:11 in Notre Dame’s win at Loyola Marymount on Sept. 12 was the fastest opening tally by the Fighting Irish since Dec. 7, 2008, when Kerri Hanks scored only 16 seconds into the NCAA national championship match against North Carolina in Cary, N.C. (setting an NCAA College Cup record in the process).
Henderson’s goal against LMU also was the sixth-fastest opening score in the 12-year Randy Waldrum era (1999-present).
Getting The Jump On The Opposition
In nine matches this season, Notre Dame has scored the opening goal inside the first 15 minutes of play.
In addition, the Fighting Irish have scored within the opening 30 minutes in 13 of their last 17 matches, after waiting until the second half to find the back of the net in their first two contests of the year.
Lead, Follow Or Get Out Of The Way
With the potency of the Notre Dame offensive attack, most opponents have chosen the third option. In fact, the Fighting Irish have led or been tied for 1,696:59 of 1,754:02 minutes this season (96.8% of the elapsed game time). The only times Notre Dame has trailed this season were for 25:06 (19:09-44:15) at No. 13 UCLA on Sept. 10, and for 31:56 (58:04-90:00) against Connecticut on Oct. 31.
Department of Defense
Notre Dame opened this season with four consecutive shutouts, marking the second time in three years (but just the third time in school history) that the Fighting Irish have started with four clean sheets. The other instances occurred in 1995 (eight in a row) and 2008 (four in a row).
This season, Notre Dame has allowed just 12 goals (two of which were own-goals) and ranks 15th in the nation in goals-against average (0.62) and 22nd in shutout percentage (0.53/match).
In fact, the Fighting Irish actually have taken nearly as many shots on goal (153) through 19 matches than their opponents have total shots (174).
Looking at the larger picture, Notre Dame has allowed 0-1 goals in 31 of its last 34 matches, dating back to Oct. 4, 2009, at Pittsburgh. Prior to a 2-1 overtime loss at 13th-ranked UCLA on Sept. 10, the Fighting Irish had a 19-match streak of allowing one goal or fewer, the fifth-longest streak in school history and their longest since Oct. 25, 2002-Oct. 26, 2003, when the Fighting Irish yielded a goal or fewer in 24 consecutive matches.
During this current 34-match defensive run (which coincided with the installation of senior Nikki Weiss as Notre Dame’s full-time starting goalkeeper), the Fighting Irish are 28-3-3 with 20 shutouts (14 solo and six shared by Weiss), a 78-19 scoring margin and a 0.55 goals-against average (GAA).
In the program’s 23-year history, Notre Dame is 404-10-17 (.957) when holding the opposition to 0-1 goals.
ND Seniors Among Nation’s Best
The 2010 Notre Dame senior class currently is second only to its North Carolina counterpart as the most successful group in the country on the basis of total victories, with a four-year record to date of 81-12-5 (.852) that includes three consecutive trips to the NCAA College Cup and an appearance in the 2008 national title match.
The .852 winning percentage compiled by the Fighting Irish seniors is fourth-best on the national scene.
And Juniors Aren’t Half Bad Either
Like their senior teammates, the Fighting Irish juniors are among the national leaders in total wins by the Class of 2011, trailing only Stanford and North Carolina with a three-year record to date of 62-7-3 (.882), including two trips to the NCAA College Cup and a berth in the 2008 title match. The Notre Dame junior class also currently ranks fourth in the nation with an .882 winning percentage.
That record could be even more impressive when one considers that three of those seven losses occurred in a nine-day span (Sept. 4-13) last season. The only other losses were late-game one-goal setbacks to North Carolina in the past two College Cups (2-1 in the ’08 final, 1-0 in the ’09 semifinals) and earlier this season at 13th-ranked UCLA (2-1 in OT on Sept. 10) and against Connecticut (2-0 on Oct. 31 in the BIG EAST Championship quarterfinals), along with a 0-0 draw at Pittsburgh last year (a match in which Notre Dame outshot the Panthers, 25-7) and 1-1 draws this season at Connecticut and Georgetown.
Fresh-Faced Contributors
Part of Notre Dame’s success this season can be traced to the poised and rapidly maturing play of its freshmen, four of whom are now among the starting XI for the Fighting Irish.
Midfielders Mandy Laddish and Elizabeth Tucker both collected BIG EAST Conference All-Rookie Team honors this season, having earned starting nods in virtually every match this season (Laddish all 19, Tucker 17). Laddish ranks fourth on the team in total minutes (1,634) by a field player, while Tucker (who also was a third-team all-conference pick and a two-time BIG EAST Rookie of the Week selection) is third on the team — and tops among all conference freshmen — with seven goals, three assists and 17 points, while standing second on the team with four game-winning goals (all of those marks are among the top 10 in the BIG EAST).
On Sept. 12 at Loyola Marymount, defender Kecia Morway became the third rookie in the starting lineup (she has gotten the call 13 times this season), while forward Adriana Leon got her first starting nod on Oct. 1 vs. Syracuse. Leon, who has started six times to date, potted her first career goal on Sept. 24 against Cincinnati and added the game-winning score on Oct. 22 at Villanova.
One other Notre Dame freshman note: during the final 10 minutes of the first half at Northwestern on Sept. 19, the Fighting Irish had five freshmen on the pitch at the same time, as starters Laddish, Tucker and Morway were joined by Leon and midfielder Rebecca Twining, the latter of whom was making her college debut.
Sunday School
Notre Dame is unbeaten in 17 of its last 18 matches on Sunday (15-1-2), having its 17-match unbeaten streak snapped with the Oct. 31 loss to Connecticut in the BIG EAST Championship quarterfinals. Still, the Fighting Irish own a 34-3-3 (.888) record in the past 40 contests when closing out the weekend, dating back to September 2007 (when Notre Dame lost three consecutive Sunday matches to nationally-ranked Stanford, Oklahoma State and Penn State, all by 2-1 scores and the first two in overtime).
Irish Were Thinking Pink In October
Following the success of this past spring’s jersey auction at the Mexico exhibition match to benefit Camp Whatcha-Wanna-Do (which raised nearly $3,000 for the Fort Wayne camp for children with cancer), the Notre Dame women’s soccer team once again gave fans the shirts off their backs.
During its home matches against Seton Hall and Rutgers on the weekend of Oct. 8-10, the Fighting Irish wore special white/pink uniforms to support Kicks Against Breast Cancer, a national soccer initiative to raise funds for breast cancer research. From Sept. 24-Oct. 11, fans had the opportunity to bid on these autographed, game-worn jerseys by going to the official Notre Dame athletics auction web site at www.UND.com/auctions.
Proceeds from this auction (which topped $5,000) will go directly to Kicks Against Breast Cancer. For more information on this worthwhile cause, visit www.kicksagainstbreastcancer.org.
We Love The New Digs
Alumni Stadium is quickly earning a reputation as not only one of the nation’s finest college facilities, but also a truly intimidating place for visiting teams. In fact, following Notre Dame’s loss to top-ranked North Carolina in its first match at the new stadium (Sept. 4, 2009), the Fighting Irish reeled off 23 consecutive victories, outscoring their opponents, 62-6 in that span while recording 18 shutouts before having that streak snapped on Oct. 31 with a 2-0 loss to Connecticut in the BIG EAST Championship quarterfinals.
Streaks For The Ages
All good things must come to an end, and with a 2-0 loss to Connecticut on Oct. 31 in the BIG EAST Championship quarterfinals, Notre Dame saw its NCAA Division I-record 77-match unbeaten streak (72-0-5) against BIG EAST opposition stopped.
This incredible run dated back to a 4-1 loss at No. 15 Marquette on Sept. 30, 2005. In that time, the ties were scoreless draws at Connecticut (Oct. 13, 2006) and Pittsburgh (Oct. 4, 2009), and 1-1 deadlocks at No. 12 West Virginia in the 2007 BIG EAST final (won by the Mountaineers on penalties, 5-3, but the result is recorded as a tie), as well as this season at Connecticut (Oct. 15) and Georgetown (Oct. 24).
Not only was Notre Dame’s conference unbeaten streak an NCAA Division I record, but it was the fourth-longest in NCAA history across all divisions.
Division III Hardin-Simmons University (Texas), is the current all-division record holder with a 114-match unbeaten streak against conference opponents, dating back to 2003 (the Cowgirls also have an active 131-match unbeaten run in regular season league play).
Since joining the BIG EAST 15 years ago, the Fighting Irish are 143-8-7 (.927) all-time in regular-season conference matches, 35-3-1 (.910) in the BIG EAST Championship, and hold a 742-94 scoring edge dating back to that first league season in 1995.
The loss to Connecticut on Oct. 31 also ended another mammoth streak for Notre Dame, as its 15-year, 99-match home unbeaten run (98-0-1) against BIG EAST teams was stopped. UConn is still the lone conference team ever to defeat the Fighting Irish at home, having also earned a 5-4 overtime win on Oct. 6, 1995, at old Alumni Field.
During this BIG EAST home unbeaten streak (which stretched through three American presidencies and four Summer Olympics), the only result separating Notre Dame from a 99-match conference home winning streak was a 0-0 draw with Rutgers on Oct. 22, 2004, also at old Alumni Field.
Our Fearless Leader
Now in his 12th season at Notre Dame, head coach Randy Waldrum ranks fourth on the NCAA Division I all-time winning percentage list with a .789 (354-86-23) mark in his 21 years in the women’s game. He also is third among active coaches for career winning percentage, while his 354 career wins rank fifth on the all-time NCAA Division I charts — Waldrum earned his 350th career victory on Oct. 3 vs. St. John’s at Alumni Stadium.
A two-time National Coach of the Year (2008 by the NSCAA, 2009 by Soccer America), Waldrum has led Notre Dame to seven NCAA College Cups, four NCAA finals and the 2004 national championship. He is second in NCAA Division I history with seven College Cup appearances and four title-game berths in his storied career.
The 2-0 Guarantee
Notre Dame is 324-0-1 all-time when claiming a 2-0 lead and is unbeaten in its past 301 contests when going ahead 2-0 (dating back to a 3-3 tie with Vanderbilt on Sept. 15, 1991, in Cincinnati).
In fact, just two of the past 213 Fighting Irish opponents to face a 2-0 deficit have forced a tie, something achieved by four opponents in Notre Dame history: Duke on Oct. 17, 1993, in Houston (Irish won 3-2), Connecticut on Nov. 10, 1996, in the BIG EAST final at old Alumni Field (ND led 2-0, later tied 2-2 and 3-3, ND won 4-3), Duke on Nov. 30, 2007, in the NCAA quarterfinals at old Alumni Field (Irish won 3-2), and most recently, Villanova on Oct. 12, 2008 in Villanova, Pa. (ND won 3-2 in OT).
Three … Is The Magic Number
Scoring three goals has meant virtually an automatic win in Notre Dame women’s soccer history, with a 293-3-1 (.988) record in those games, including a 195-1-0 (.995) mark since Oct. 6, 1995.
Golden Domers Golden In OT
Overtime has usually been the right time for Notre Dame, as the Fighting Irish are 20-4-11 (.729) all-time in the Randy Waldrum era (since 1999) when going to an extra period or two, with the Sept. 10 loss at 13th-ranked UCLA snapping a seven-game unbeaten streak (5-0-2) in added time, dating back to the 2007 season.
Since the UCLA loss, Notre Dame has drawn twice in overtime (at Connecticut on Oct. 15 and at Georgetown on Oct. 24, both 1-1 finals), making the Fighting Irish unbeaten in nine of their last 10 extra-time contests.
Three current Notre Dame players have scored “golden goals” in their college careers — senior forward/midfielder Rose Augustin (Oct. 12, 2008 at Villanova), junior forward Melissa Henderson (Nov. 9, 2008 vs. Connecticut in BIG EAST final) and junior defender Jessica Schuveiller (Nov. 6, 2009 vs. St. John’s in BIG EAST semifinal).
Captains’ Choice
Senior defender/midfielder Lauren Fowlkes and junior defender Jessica Schuveiller have been selected to serve as Notre Dame’s captains this year, according to a preseason vote of their teammates. Fowlkes is in her first season as a team captain, while Schuveiller is a second-year captain after becoming the first non-senior to wear the armband for the Fighting Irish since Amy Warner in 2002.
New Ways To Follow The Fighting Irish
The Notre Dame women’s soccer program has expanded its reach this season through a number of media outlets. Most notably, the Fighting Irish have created three Twitter accounts for fans to follow the team on a daily basis — one is operated by head coach Randy Waldrum (@NDCoachWaldrum), a second by assistant coach Ken Nuber (@NDSoccer) and a third by associate media relations director Chris Masters (@NDsoccernews).
In addition, the official Notre Dame athletics web site (www.UND.com) is featuring live in-game blogs for all Fighting Irish home matches this season, allowing fans to ask questions, make comments and share in the excitement of Notre Dame women’s soccer right from their own computers.
These blogs, along with live in-game stats (courtesy of the CBSSports.com College Gametracker) and other special features, are available through the UND.com Women’s Soccer Gameday Central page, which is posted on-line within 24 hours of each home contest.
ND Supporters Group Debuts In 2010
Fans are encouraged to be a part of the new Notre Dame soccer supporters’ group, The Rakes of Mallow. This student-based organization is attending all Fighting Irish home games this year and aims to create a special home pitch atmosphere unlike any in college soccer. To learn more, visit The Rakes of Mallow web site (www.rakesofmallow.net).
Next Up: NCAA Second Round
Should Notre Dame defeat New Mexico on Friday, the Fighting Irish would advance to the second round of the NCAA Championship on Sunday, where they would be play host to either No. 13/18 Illinois or No. 22 USC at 1 p.m. (ET) inside Alumni Stadium.
Notre Dame has played Illinois just once before, and ironically it also was in the second round of the NCAA tournament back in 2007 (when most of the current Fighting Irish senior class were freshmen). Notre Dame scored a pair of first-half goals (one was an own-goal) and held a 13-10 shot advantage to claim the 2-0 victory at old Alumni Field.
The Fighting Irish also have played USC only one time, that coming on Sept. 1, 2006, when Notre Dame posted a 2-0 win over the 19th-ranked Women of Troy at old Alumni Field in the Inn at Saint Mary’s Classic. A pair of Amandas — Clark and Cinalli — scored the goals for the Fighting Irish, who outshot USC, 23-2 in the victory.
— ND —