NOTRE DAME, Ind. — The Irish pulled out a 1-0 victory over DePaul on Tuesday evening at Alumni Stadium, courtesy of heroics from captain Felicien Dumas. The graduate student scored a well-struck free kick from just outside the box with just five seconds left on the clock to deliver Notre Dame the victory.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Irish did everything but score a goal in the first 45 minutes of play, as Notre Dame dominated possession and completely controlled the tempo of the match. The Irish outshot the Blue Demons 7-0 and earned seven corner kicks.
The Irish had two great chances in the first half but were unable to convert into a goal. The first came in the 16th minute, as Tyler Shea was fouled just outside the top of the box. Dumas lined up the free kick and unleashed a strike towards the bottom corner but the DePaul goalkeeper made a great diving save to keep the Irish off the board.
Notre Dame saw the ball hit the back of the net just three minutes later after Aiden McFadden redirected a shot from Mohamed Omar past the keeper but the linesman raised his flag for offside.
The Irish continued to be on the front foot for the majority of the second half, as the Notre Dame attack put the DePaul backline under siege. However, the visitors stood tall and managed to keep the Irish off the board until giving up a free kick on the edge of the box in the waning seconds.
Dumas, who nearly scored twice from free kicks earlier in the match, stood over the set piece and put his lethal left foot through the ball, placing it in the top corner far post to give Notre Dame the victory at the death.
IRISH STAT OF THE MATCH
All three of Dumas’s goals this season have come from free kicks.
HEAD COACH CHAD RILEY’S TAKE
On the team’s performance…
“I am proud of the way the group stuck with it. For the most part we played some good soccer tonight but I think we could be a bit sharper. I think we were a bit unlucky to have a goal called back in the first half which would have forced DePaul to come out a little bit more, but credit DePaul, they did a great job and were very organized which made it difficult for us. I was very proud with how the group hung in there and then obviously Felicien hit a great free kick to win it for us.
On Dumas’s free kick ability…
“I think it is great. It is such a weapon because it makes people scared to foul you around the box which creates more space. In close games, you have to be able to win games in the run of play, on set pieces or however you can get it. It’s a mentality thing and you just have to keep pushing until the end.
NOTRE DAME NOTES
- The Irish improve to 20-1-0 against DePaul in the all-time series.
- Notre Dame remains unbeaten against the Blue Demons when playing at home, going 13-0-0 in the series.
- The Irish are unbeaten when scoring first, moving to 5-0-1.
- Notre Dame has not allowed a shot on target from the run of play in each of its last two matches.
- The Irish outshot DePaul 18-2 over the 90 minutes and held a 12-1 advantage in corner kicks.
- Tuesday’s shutout marks the third clean sheet of the season.
- The goal is the third of the season for Dumas and the seventh of his career.
- The clean sheet is the first of the season for Notre Dame goalkeeper Duncan Turnbull and the seventh of his career.
UP NEXT
The Irish hit the road for an away ACC clash against NC State at 7 p.m. ET on Friday, Oct. 4 in Raleigh, North Carolina. The match will air live on ACC Network and will be available to stream through the WatchESPN app.
FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA
For a behind the scenes look at the Notre Dame men’s soccer program follow the Irish on Twitter (@NDMenSoccer), Instagram (@ndmensoccer) and Facebook (/NDMenSoccer).