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Brian Giordano Named Great Western Lacrosse League Player of the Week

March 29, 2004

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Junior M Brian Giordano (Princeton, N.J./Hun School) was named the Great Western Lacrosse League (GWLL) Player of the Week on Monday after matching his career high by scoring five goals in helping the then-15th-ranked University of Notre Dame men’s lacrosse team to a 19-11 home victory over #13 Hofstra last Wednesday. The Irish, 13th in this week’s rankings, will open GWLL play at Moose Krause Stadium this Wednesday in a battle of two of the conference tri-champions from last season, playing host to #17 Ohio State at 4 p.m. (EST) in a “Gold Game.”

Having scored just five total goals in the first four contests of the season, Giordano came out firing against the Pride, taking the first two Irish shots of the game. He would score on each of his next three attempts. His first two goals, both from the top of the circle, put Notre Dame up 4-0 in the first quarter, as he scored 4:30 into the game off a pass from sophomore A Pat Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh H.S.) before taking a feed from sophomore M Matt Ryan (Ridley Park, Pa./Ridley H.S.) for a goal with 6:20 remaining.

After being an integral part of the Irish first-quarter effort that outscored Hofstra 7-0 and outshot the Pride 17-0, Giordano gave Notre Dame its biggest lead up to that point with a man-up goal from the far left wing off an assist from senior A Dan Berger (Phoenix, Md./Boys’ Latin H.S.). It put the Irish up 10-2 with 6:40 remaining in the opening half.

Giordano then added two more goals in a 41-second span in the fourth period. With 6:20 left, he grabbed a pass from senior A Matt Howell (Huntington, N.Y./Huntington H.S.) in front of the net and converted to give the Irish a 17-9 advantage. On Notre Dame’s next offensive possession, Giordano found the back of the net from the far right wing off a feed from Ryan.

The Irish junior scored on five of his nine shots and had only one of his attempts saved by Hofstra goalie Matthew Southard.

The performance, which was the most goals for a Notre Dame player in a game this season, matched Giordano’s career highs for both goals and points, while setting a new personal best for shots. His top previous game was last year’s affair vs. Air Force, when he had five goals on eight shots to lead the Irish to a 13-4 home victory.

Three times this season — and on eight occasions during his career — has Giordano netted multiple goals in a game. He netted a hat trick in the first 17 minutes of the game on March 11 at #3 Syracuse. Giordano also has 11 career multiple-point performances.

His 10 goals in 2004 are tied for second on the Irish, while he is fourth with 14 points. Three of his scores (tied for team lead) came on Notre Dame’s EMO unit, which was ranked first in Division I heading into last week. Giordano is second on the Irish in shooting percentage, having converted on 40 percent of his 25 shots, while putting 68 percent of them on-goal (third on team).

Giordano, in his third season as a starter, has been Notre Dame’s top offensive midfielder over the last two-plus campaigns, being named first-team all-GWLL in ’03.

It was the first time a Notre Dame player was named GWLL Player of the Week this season and the first time Giordano has ever copped the honor. In 2003, Irish players were recognized twice, as Howell and G Stewart Crosland (Bethesda, Md./Landon School) each garnered the accolade.

The Irish, 2-3 on the season, will face their sixth ranked opponent in as many games on Wednesday. Notre Dame, the Buckeyes, and Denver tied for first place in the GWLL in 2003 with 4-1 conference records, but Ohio State gained its first-ever NCAA Championship berth via tiebreaker policy. The Buckeyes beat the Irish 11-5 last season in Columbus.

Wednesday’s game is the men’s lacrosse “Gold Game” for this season. That distinction was created by the Student-Athlete Advisory Council to encourage the entire Notre Dame community to attend designated contests, each determined to be the most significant home event of the season for the respective team.

The contest will be shown on a tape-delayed basis by College Sports Television (CSTV). The game will air on Saturday, April 3 at 5 p.m. (EST) and be replayed on Sunday, April 4 at 5 a.m.