| 3-seed Notre Dame (12-3-4) | NCAA Tournament 2nd & 3rd Rounds |
|---|---|
| Where: | Fayetteville, AR | Razorback Stadium |
| Watch: | ESPN+ |
| 2nd Rd Opponent: | 6-seed Memphis (19-1) |
| When: | Friday, Nov. 16 | 4 p.m. ET |
| 3rd Rd Opponent: | Pitt or Arkansas |
| When: | Sunday, Nov. 18 | 7 p.m. ET |
| Social: | NDWSOC Twitter NDWSOC Instagram |
SOUTH BEND, Ind – The No. 16 ranked Notre Dame women’s soccer squad returns to the pitch when they kick off the 2022 season on Thursday, Aug. 18. Better yet, the Fighting Irish will get to do it in front of the home crowd inside Alumni Stadium, hosting Marquette at 7 pm ET. All home games will once again be free admission this season. For those fans who can’t make it, the match will be streamed on ACCNX.
IRISH IN SEASON OPENERS
The Irish program is now in its 35th year, dating back to the 1988 season. ND has achieved much success in its season openers, going 28-4-2.
When looking at specifically home season openers, the Irish haven’t lost an opener at Alumni Stadium since a 3-2 double overtime defeat to North Carolina on Sept. 3, 1999. Since, the Irish have gone 14-0-2 in that span.
FRESH BLOOD
A talented freshmen foursome join the Irish for the 2022 season: Leah Klenke, Berkley Mensik, Laney Matriano and Kiki Turner.
In the final preseason tune-up vs Ball State, both Klenke and Matriano received starts in the midfield.
Coach Norman described Klenke as one of the best incoming freshmen he’s had here in terms of being ready to go for game one. He also said he can play her in any position, so expect to see Klenke in both the midfield and defense.
Speaking of the Ball State exhibition, Mensik proved she has speed that might rival Olivia Wingate. In a counter attack, Mensik dribbled past three defenders before setting up a Mercado goal.
RED, WHITE AND ALBERT
Unfortunately for the first few games of the season, the Irish won’t have Korbin Albert patrolling the midfield, but it’s for a good reason. Albert is currently in Costa Rica with the US women’s national youth team competing in the U20 World Cup. Team USA needs to beat Japan by two goals to advance out of the group stage on Wednesday night so by the time the Irish kick off the season on Thursday, we’ll know if Albert’s stay in Costa Rica will be extended or not. Albert started in the first game against Ghana and nearly scored as one of her shots ricocheted off the crossbar.
Korbin Albert was a game-changer for the Irish. In fact, Top Drawer Soccer listed Albert as one of the 10 best freshmen in Division I soccer in 2021. Albert finished with the second most goals on the team with 12, which tied for the 13th most all-time in program history for a freshman. Albert also played her best soccer down the stretch, scoring eight of her goals over the last 11 games.
Furthermore, Albert wasn’t the only Irish to don the red, white and blue this past summer, for Bri Martinez competed with the U23 squad in the Three Nations Tournament in Sweden.
LOCAL PENN STANDOUTS RETURN
Two grad student transfers into the program return home to their roots for their final season. Mackenzie Wood and Kristina Lynch, both from Granger, attended Penn High and won a state title in soccer together.
Wood, a 5-9 goalkeeper from Northwestern, will be battling Ashley Naylor for the starting spot. Expect to see both starting games early on in the season.
Lynch, a 5-7 forward from Florida State, won NCAA titles with the Seminoles in both 2018 and 2021. She is currently recovering from an ankle injury and will miss the first few weeks.
VAN ZANTEN SENDS JAMAICA TO WORLD CUP
It was a moment you dream about as a little kid, but on July 18, Kiki Van Zanten lived it. Competing with Team Jamaica during Concacaf Women’s Qualifying, Van Zanten was subbed in in overtime against Costa Rica and delivered the game-winning goal. As a result, Jamaica earned Concacaf bronze and a spot in the 2023 Women’s World Cup. You can watch the goal by clicking here.
RETURNING BACKLINE
The Irish return all but two starters from last year’s starting eleven, losing just its two central midfielders in Camryn Dyke and Brook VanDyck. Thus, it’s entire backline defense of Wirtz, Gaetino and Hudson is back and looking to dominate even moreso than last season.
The three defenders helped post a 0.963 goals against average.
All-in-all, the Irish defense allowed 22 goals with 97 shots on net. Total shots wise, they only allowed 9.6 shots per game.
The 22 goals were the fewest allowed in Coach Norman’s tenure (not counting the shortened 2020 season due to Covid-19), and the fewest since 2016.
A LOOK BACK
The Irish finished ranked No. 16 in the nation with an end of year RPI of No. 20. Notre Dame went 7-3-0 in the No. 1 rated RPI league of the ACC, finishing fourth in the standings. The Fighting Irish went 6-5-2 against the RPI top-50, including two wins against the RPI top-25.
For the 27th time over the last 29 years, Notre Dame women’s soccer went dancing in the NCAA Tournament. Not only did the Irish earn a berth, but drew a national seed (No. 3) as well. The Irish defeated SIUE, 4-0, in the first round, then advanced past Purdue in the second round after drawing 1-1 in regulation, edging the Boilermakers 4-3 in PK’s. The Irish then gave No. 7 nationally ranked Arkansas a battle on their home turf, rallying twice to tie the match, but ultimately fell 3-2.
Notre Dame scored 52 goals on the year which ranked third in the ACC and 16th in the nation. The 52 goals were the most in a season since 2010, when they put away 55 goals. Notre Dame’s scoring offense of 2.36 ranked 20th in the nation and fourth in the ACC.
COACH NORMAN – BEST YEAR AT THE HELM
The Irish won 14 games, marking Coach Norman’s best year at the helm, surpassing his 11 wins in 2019. In fact, the 14 were the most since 2015 (see below).
2020: 6-7-0
2019: 11-8-1
2018: 8-10-0
2017: 10-7-5
2016:13-3-5
2015: 14-5-1
2014: 14-6-2
2013: 13-8-1
2012: 16-6-2
2011: 10-8-3
HOME SWEET HOME
The Irish have made Alumni Stadium a difficult venue for opposing programs to succeed in. Since its creation in 2009, Notre Dame has gone 108-27-6, good for a .787 winning percentage. In fact, they have only surrendered one loss or better on six separate seasons.
Looking at just the past three years, the Irish are 22-4-2 at home.
Notre Dame went 10-1-1 during the 2021 campaign – its lone loss a 3-2 decision to Clemson in the ACC Tournament.
— ND —