| 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 |
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The Notre Dame women’s soccer team (3-0-1) will look to extend its unbeaten streak when the Purdue Boilermakers (2-0-2) come to town for a Thursday night clash under the lights. Kick-off inside Alumni Stadium will commence at 7 p.m. ET and will stream live on ACCNX.
Reminder to all fans that admission is free all season.
OUT OF THE GATES RUNNING
Through four games, the Irish have started hot out of the gates with a 3-0-1 record – with the only blip being a 0-0 draw with Indiana. For the 2019 season, the Irish went unbeaten through its first six games with a perfect 6-0-0 record. Thus, Coach Norman is looking to match that mark and then some heading into this week’s play.
1ST TIME SCORERS COME UP BIG ON ROAD SWING
A couple of freshmen came up big for the Irish on the 2-0 road swing that saw wins at Wisconsin and Marquette.
First was Korbin Albert at Wisconsin – in the eighth minute, Sammi Fisher connected on a back-heel pass to Olivia Wingate, who took the ball to the goal-line down the left-hand side before finding Albert in the middle of the box. Irish went on to win 2-1 in overtime.
Then came Sophia Fisher a few days later at Marquette. Fisher who worked the ball up the middle of the field, dished to Maddie Mercado, who then dumped the ball back to Fisher in the middle of the box for the put away and score. Irish later won 1-0.
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 98-26-6, good for a .777 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 12-3-2 at home.
DEFENSE STARTS STRONG
Sophomore Eva Gaetino has anchored the Irish back-line (as center-back) to a solid start, allowing just two goals through four games. Furthermore, the two goals were both off of free plays – one being a free kick taken just outside the 18-yard box and the second being a penalty kick.
The Irish defense allowed just four shots on goal against Bowling Green, zero against Indiana, five at Wisconsin, and six at Marquette – for a grand total of 15.
Interian has started the first four games in net but was injured late in the Marquette game. She was averaging 3.25 saves per game. Sophomore Kaylin Slattery filled in for the final 6:36 of the contest.
GAME-WINNERS
Game-winning goals – well Sammi Fisher has two already, which currently ranks her at No. 2 in the country in the early portion of the season.
Fisher’s first came in the season opener against Bowling Green after a 2.5 hour weather delay. She then converted the game-winning penalty in overtime at Wisconsin – on her birthday no less.
DYNAMIC DUO
Notre Dame’s two forwards plan on wreaking plenty of havoc on opposing defenses this season and their unique skillsets complement each other very well.
First, there’s Fisher, who is a two-time All-ACC selection. She enters the Purdue game with 18 career goals and nine career assists. The graduate student is looking to top her 2019 season total of six goals and she’s off to a great start with two.
Then there’s Wingate, with the freedom to explore space and use her speed up top. “She’s one of the fastest kids in the country in my opinion,” said Coach Norman.
In the season opener, Wingate got the offense rolling in the eighth minute. A nice give-and-go with Mercado at the top of the 18-yard box, led to a rocket in the upper left corner. It marked Wingate’s sixth career goal. Wingate then used her speed in the eighth minute at Wisconsin, darting down the left side to dish the assist to Korbin Albert.
LENDING A FOOT
Junior midfielder Maddie Mercado has assisted two goals this season, which leads the Irish. Mercado had just two career assists to her name prior to this season starting.
WEATHERING THE STORM
Two weather delays – two immediate goals within minutes. See below:
The box score may show a 3-1 season-opening victory over Bowling Green on Aug. 19, but what it doesn’t say was how the weather impacted the flow of the game. After Olivia Wingate delivered a goal in the eighth minute to give the Irish an early 1-0 lead, lightning struck in the 27th minute. The weather delay ultimately lasted 2.5 hours as play was stopped from 7:33-9:58 p.m.
Yet, that didn’t stop the Irish momentum as Sammi Fisher scored just two minutes into the restart.
Ironically enough, the Irish encountered another first half weather delay at Marquette, and within two minutes of the restart, they scored yet again – this time in the form of Sophia Fisher.
ABOUT PURDUE
Purdue enters the matchup with a 2-0-2 record. After starting the season with consecutive 1-1 ties to both Kentucky and No. 18 Vanderbilt, the Boilermakers then defeated Gonzaga (W, 1-0) and Ball State (W, 5-1).
The Boilermakers, led by seventh-year head coach Drew Roff, open the season after a 4-6-2 Big Ten-only 2020 season, played in the spring of 2021. Ten of Purdue’s 11 starters from the 2020 campaign, and 22 total players, are back. That includes senior forward Sarah Griffith and senior midfielder Grace Walsh, who earned All-Big Ten Team accolades last spring. The 30-player roster features 10 seniors and eight newcomers.
Three seniors, Bova, Griffith and Walsh, were named to the Big Ten Players to Watch List on Monday. The trio are recognized for the second consecutive year on the preseason list.
ABOUT MIZZOU
Missouri checks in with a 1-2-0 record and will square off against Miami on Thursday.
The Tigers return three super seniors from last year’s 6-5-3 squad that finished fifth in SEC play. Momola Adesanmi, Cassidy Nurnberger, and Macy Trujillo have combined for 119 starts in their careers. The trio will add experience to the Mizzou side.
Senior Julissa Cisneros has moved into the top ten in program history with 20 goals over her career at Mizzou. Cisneros is the leading returning scorer. She added four goals with three assists in the 2020-21 season.
Cisneros and Nurnberger were joined by a pair of freshmen on the SEC Preseason Watchlist in Ashlyn Mills and Milena Fischer. Fischer is a member of the German U19 National Team and Mills was a highly touted prospect out of Frisco, Texas.
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