Kerri Hanks scored in overtime at Rutgers for her 17th goal of the season.

Hanks Scores In Overtime At Rutgers (1-0), As 7th-Ranked Irish Continue To Dominate The Run Of Play

Oct. 7, 2005

Final Stats

PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Kerri Hanks scored her 17th goal of the season in the 96th minute of play, as the 7th-ranked Notre Dame women’s soccer team extended its seven-year unbeaten streak in overtime to 19 games (14-0-5) with Friday night’s 1-0 win over Rutgers at Yurcak Field.

Notre Dame (11-2-0, 5-1-0 BIG EAST) – which has not lost an overtime game since the 1999 season opener – continued its season-long statistical domination, with an 11-1 edge in shots on goal (14-6 in total shots) and an 11-2 margin in corner kicks. The Irish also were called for being offside 10 times (one for RU) and had several near-goals during regulation, including three chances that were cleared by Rutgers field players.

In 13 games this season, the Irish now have scored 54 goals while allowing just 31 shots on goal (60 total shots) and 21 corner kicks.

Senior forward Katie Thorlakson set up the goal sequence with a service from the left flank. Freshman midfielder Brittany Bock one-timed the cross from the center of the field, tapping the ball into the top left corner of the box. Hanks slipped behind a pair of Rutgers defenders and made a quick touch on the ball before burying her shot inside the far-right post at the 95:33 mark.

Hanks entered the week as the nation’s third-leading goalscorer and now is six goals shy of tying the Notre Dame record for goals by a freshman (23), set by Anne Makinen in 1997.

Thorlakson has scored (15) or assisted (16) on 31 game-winning goals during her Notre Dame career, second-best in the program’s history behind 2000 graduate Jenny Streiffer (who had a hand in 36 career gamewinners, with 15 GWGs and 21 GWAs). Friday’s assist extended Thorlakson’s nation-leading total to 15 for the season and gives her 53 assists for her career, tying Jen Grubb for seventh in Notre Dame history. Thorlakson is one point shy of becoming the ninth Irish player ever to reach the 150-point career milestone (48G-53A).

Friday’s game marked Notre Dame’s eighth shutout of the season and sixth in the past seven games (the Irish have held the opponent to 0-1 goals in 11 of 13 games during the ’05 season).

Notre Dame’s past 39 regular-season games have featured just two overtime games – with both coming vs. Rutgers. RU had played Notre Dame to a scoreless tie at Alumni Field in 2004 (the only non-win for the Irish in the ’04 regular season) and Friday’s game took on a similar tone, as the Knights opted for a defensive-oriented posture while hoping to cash in one of a handful of counterattack chances. Rutgers (4-8-1, 1-5-0 BIG EAST) – playing this season minus graduated four-year standout and All-America midfielder Carli Lloyd – entered the game needing to make up ground in the BIG EAST divisional standings but now will need a strong push in the final weeks to qualify for the postseason.

Notre Dame put the pressure on early in Friday’s game, forcing four corner kicks in the game’s first seven minutes. Bock’s shot in the 6th minute glanced off RU ‘keeper Nora Crawford before Nina Montero cleared the ball off the line. Two minutes later, junior defender Christie Shaner had a similar chance but another field player (Ashley Lunemann) was in position for the team save.

Rutgers put a shot on goal in the 19th minute but sophomore goalkeeper Lauren Karas did not have to make a save the rest of the way, as the hosts failed to manage a shot on goal in the final 77 minutes of play. Moments after the lone RU shot on goal, Notre Dame had yet another chance stopped by a backtracking field player. Crawford was well off her line in an attempt to stop a breakaway and senior midfielder Annie Schefter sent a leftside shot back across the box – but Meghan Ryan came racing back to knock the ball away.

Rutgers had a counterattack chance midway through the second half, after Lunemann sent the ball up the left side to Montero for a cross to the center of the box. Alicia Hall ran onto the ball and fired a shot that nicked the top of the crossbar as it sailed over the goal. Lunemann came up big for Rutgers again in the final three minutes of regulation, turning away freshman defender Carrie Dew’s shot following a set-piece play near the right endline.

NOTES – ND lost the first game of the Randy Waldrum era (3-2 vs. #1 North Carolina, in 2 OT) but the Irish are 14-0-5 in overtime since that game … junior defensive midfielder and 2004 al-BIG EAST performer Jill Krivacek logged 32 minutes off the bench, after missing the previous seven games due to a knee injury (senior ‘keeper Erika Bohn has missed eight straight games, the last seven due to an ankle injury) … Thorlakson has played in 83 straight games (all of her ND career), now ranking 26th on the ND career games played list (14th-most among Waldrum-era players) … 5th-year D/F Candace Chapman logged her 80th career game with the Irish, becoming the 36th ND player (17th in Waldrum era) to reach 80 GP … Thorlakson’s 46 career gamewinning points rank 3rd in ND history behind former teammate Amanda Guertin (47) and Streiffer (51) … ND has totaled 23 more goals this season (54) than its opponents’ combined shots on goal (31) … the ND players have combined to log 995 career games (614 starts) … ND is 48-3-2 in its past 53 regular-season games … the Irish improved to 91-8-3 in regular-season games vs. BIG EAST teams (since ’95) … ND now leads the series vs. RU 11-1-2 (41-4 scoring edge) … Hanks needs three goals in her next 2 GP to tie the ND record for quickest players to 20 goals in a season (15 GP) … her 17 goals this season rank 17th in the ND record book … Hanks has scored goals in 9-of-13 games this season and has points in 11 of those games (5 straight) … Thorlakson has points in 10-of-13 games this season … Hanks is the 8th different ND player in the Waldrum era to score an overtime goal, joining Guertin (4), Amy Warner (2), Thorlakson, Makinen, Kelly Tulisiak, Meotis Erikson and Mia Sarkesian.

#7 Notre Dame (11-2-0, 5-1-0 BIG EAST) 0 0 1 – 1
Rutgers (4-8-1, 1-5-0 BIG EAST) 0 0 0 – 0

ND 1. Kerri Hanks 17 (Brittany Bock, Katie Thorlakson)

Shots: ND 7-5-2 – 14, RU 4-2 – 6
Saves: ND 1 (Lauren Karas 1), RU 10 (Nora Crawford 7, Team 3)
Fouls: ND 7, RU 8
Corner Kicks: ND 6-5-0 – 11, RU 0-2-0 – 2
Offside: ND 10, RU 1