Irish Begin 2016 Men’s Lacrosse Journey Against Georgetown

Feb. 18, 2016

By John Heisler

Maybe no men’s lacrosse program has been banging at the door harder, longer or more loudly than the University of Notre Dame.

The Irish now have appeared in 10 consecutive NCAA Championships (only Notre Dame and Maryland have done that). Notre Dame ranks as the lone team in the country to advance at least as far as the quarterfinals in six straight seasons.

Kevin Corrigan’s squad has been to NCAA Championship Weekend four times in the last six years, including appearances in the NCAA title game in 2010 and 2014.

The Irish have been ranked number one in three different seasons, including for four weeks in 2015.

Notre Dame in 2015 for the first time claimed the number-one seed in the NCAA Championship bracket.

Now, heading into 2016, the Irish for the first time ranked number one on a preseason basis (in both the Inside Lacrosse poll of media and the Lacrosse magazine polls). And, Notre Dame for the first time has a returning All-American on its roster–actually three of them in attack Matt Kavanagh, midfielder Sergio Perkovic and defenseman Matt Landis.

None of that counts for much right now, according to Corrigan–not with a brutal schedule looming that includes six teams in the USILA preseason top 10, as well as Notre Dame’s four Atlantic Coast Conference opponents, all of them in the preseason top eight.

“There’s a difference between expectations and standards,” says Corrigan. “We’re not worried about other people’s expectations. We are worried about playing to our standards every day–that’s what we control.”

Notre Dame takes that lofty rating into its 2016 season opener Saturday against 13th-ranked Georgetown in the opener of the Cobb County Classic at Fifth Third Bank Stadium on the campus of Kennesaw State University in Kennesaw, Georgia (second-ranked Denver and third-rated Duke play in the second half of the doubleheader).

The Irish begin 2016 equipped with a returning all-star at each level–Kavanagh, Perkovic and Landis, all first-team USILA All-Americans in 2015 (and with Landis rated the top defenseman in the country).

Notre Dame returns three of its top four scorers from 2015 (including Kavanagh, Perkovic and sophomore attackman Mikey Wynne) and all three starting defensemen (senior Eddy Glazener and junior Garrett Epple, in addition to Landis).

Junior Shane Doss, who played most of the minutes in goal in 2015, is also back–while graduate student Conor Kelly and sophomore Owen Molloy are also in the mix at that spot.

The 2016 Irish roster also features a trio of freshmen–attack Ryder Garnsey, midfielder Timmy Phillips and defenseman Hugh Crance–who were named Under Armour All-Americans.

Will this be the year the Irish break down that door?

Notre Dame starts its work toward that goal Saturday in suburban Atlanta against a Hoya team that was tied with the Irish a year ago in the fourth period (in a similarly-timed season opener) until Corrigan’s squad pulled away late to win by a pair of goals.

“Right now, we’re almost entirely focused on ourselves and what we do,” says Corrigan. “We need to play smart, disciplined lacrosse and go out and compete.

“In a first game you’re going to get some surprises, so it comes down to fundamentals and execution.”

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Top-Rated Irish Open in Cobb County Classic vs. #13 Georgetown

#14/#13/#10 GEORGETOWN (10-6 in 2015) vs. #1/#1/#1 NOTRE DAME (12-3 in 2015)
Saturday, February 20, 2016 – 11:30 a.m. (EST)
Cobb County Classic (on campus of Kennesaw State University)
Fifth Third Bank Stadium (8,318 capacity) – Kennesaw, Georgia

Rankings are Inside Lacrosse (media)/USILA (coaches)/Lacrosse magazine

TV/INTERNET
The game will be streamed live on lb3live.com, the online site for LB3/College Lacrosse Productions streams.

LIVE STATS
UND.com (Gametracker)

TICKETS
Tickets are available for purchase online at http://order.ticketalternative.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce3/SEGetEventList?groupCode=SE&linkID=ta-usa10&shopperContext=&caller=&appCode or by calling the Fifth Third Bank Stadium box office at 470-578-4849. Tickets are $25 (general admission), $40 (elite seating), $100 (sideline seating), $1,500 (box including 16 tickets and four parking passes) and $3,000 (super suite with 32 tickets and eight parking passes).

COBB COUNTY CLASSIC SCHEDULE
Here’s the complete schedule for the Cobb County Classic:
— 11:30 a.m. ET — #1 Notre Dame vs. #13 Georgetown
— 2 p.m. ET — #2 Denver vs. #3 Duke
— 5 p.m. ET — Kennesaw State women vs. Davidson women (no admission charge)
— 7 p.m. ET — Hobart vs. Siena (no admission)

2016 NOTRE DAME SCHEDULE AND SCORES (0-0)
Sat. 2/20: #13 Georgetown in Cobb County Classic (11:30 a.m. ET)
— (Fifth Third Bank Stadium @Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, Georgia)
Wed. 2/24: BELLARMINE (5 p.m. ET)
Sat. 2/27: DETROIT (2 p.m. ET)
Sat. 3/5: #4 Maryland in Pacific Coast Shootout (5 p.m. PT)
— (LeBard Stadium @Orange Coast College, Costa Mesa, California)
Sun. 3/13: #2 DENVER (5:30 p.m. ET on ESPNU)
Sat. 3/19: #14 VIRGINIA (6 p.m. ET on ESPNU)
Sat. 3/26: @#11 Ohio State (1 p.m. ET)
Sat. 4/2: @#6 Syracuse (5 p.m. ET on ESPNU)
Sun. 4/10: #3 DUKE (noon ET on ESPNU)
Wed. 4/13: MARQUETTE (4 p.m. ET on ESPN3)
Sat. 4/23: @#5 North Carolina (noon ET on ESPNU)
Fri. 4/29: Atlantic Coast Conference Championship semifinals
— (6 and 8:30 p.m. ET @Kennesaw State, Kennesaw, Georgia, on ESPNU)
Sun. 5/1: ACC Championship title game (noon ET on ESPNU)
Sun. 5/8: ARMY (noon ET on ESPN3)
Rankings based on Feb. 15 USILA poll
Bold indicates home games at Arlotta Stadium
Italics indicate Atlantic Coast Conference games

2016 RANKINGS
Notre Dame began the 2016 season rated first in both the Nike/Lacrosse Magazine and Cascade/Maverik/Inside Lacrosse media preseason polls, while the Irish were second (behind 2015 NCAA champion Denver) in the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association preseason poll of coaches (the Irish moved to the top spot in the Feb. 15 poll). Georgetown rated 11th (Lacrosse Magazine), 13th (USILA) and 14th (Inside Lacrosse) in those three polls on a preseason. The Hoyas finished 16th in the final regular-season USILA poll for 2015. Here are the Feb. 15 polls (italics indicate 2016 Notre Dame opponent):

— USILA (coaches): 1.Notre Dame, 2.Denver, 3.Duke, 4.Maryland, 5.North Carolina, 6.Syracuse, 7.Johns Hopkins, 8.Loyola, 9.Yale, 10.Brown, 11.Ohio State, 12.Albany, 13.Georgetown, 14.Virginia, 15.Towson, 16.Navy, 17.Harvard, 18.Cornell, 19. Stony Brook. 20.Penn State.

— Cascade/Maverik/Inside Lacrosse (media): 1.Notre Dame, 2.Denver, 3.Duke, 4.Maryland, 5.Syracuse, 6.Johns Hopkins, 7.North Carolina, 8.Loyola, 9.Yale, 10.Brown, 11.Ohio State, 12.Albany, 13.Virginia, 14.Georgetown, 15.Cornell, 16.Navy, 17.Towson, 18.Harvard, 19.Penn State, 20.Villanova.

— Nike/Lacrosse Magazine: 1.Notre Dame, 2.Denver, 3.Duke, 4.Maryland, 5.Syracuse, 6.Johns Hopkins, 7.North Carolina, 8.Yale, 9.Brown, 10.Georgetown, 11.Loyola, 12.Ohio State, 13.Virginia, 14.Cornell, 15.Towson, 16.Navy, 17.Albany, 18.Marquette, 19.Stony Brook, 20.Harvard.

Here’s where the Irish ranked week by week in 2016 in the three polls:
Date USILA Inside Lacrosse Lacrosse Magazine
Preseason 2 1 1
Feb. 15 1 1 1

IRISH SUPER IN SEASON OPENERS
Notre Dame is 28-7 in season openers, including a 22-5 record in the Kevin Corrigan era.
— The Irish have won a program-record 13 straight season openers.
— Notre Dame opened the 2015 season with a 14-12 home win over Georgetown in a game played indoors at the Loftus Center on the Notre Dame campus.
— The Irish last dropped a season opener in 2002, a 10-9 overtime setback at home against Penn State.

FANTASTIC FEBRUARYS FOR FIGHTING IRISH
Notre Dame is 21-2 in its last 23 games played in February. Irish coach Kevin Corrigan is 26-5 in the month of February during his Notre Dame tenure.
— The last Irish defeat in February came Feb. 22, 2014, in an 8-7 home loss to #12 Penn State.

THE GEORGETOWN SERIES
This will be the 15th meeting between Notre Dame and Georgetown. The series is tied 7-7, though the Irish have won the last four showdowns (the first of those four by a goal, the last three by two goals each). The Irish are 4-1 versus the Hoyas at home, have gone 3-4 on the road and 0-2 at neutral sites.
— The two programs last met in 2015 and the Irish came away with a 14-12 victory at Notre Dame’s Loftus Center.
— Notre Dame and Georgetown competed together in the BIG EAST Conference from 2010-13. The Irish were 3-1 against the Hoyas during their time in that league, with those four meetings decided by a combined eight goals.

Date Location Result
3-15-82 Washington, DC W 17-8
3-25-84 Washington, DC W 11-5
3-11-89 Hempstead, NY L 7-9
3-14-92 Washington, DC L 6-10
4-3-93 Notre Dame, IN W 13-10
3-12-94 Washington, DC L 8-18
4-11-98 Washington, DC L 7-13
4-10-99 Notre Dame, IN L 8-12
5-16-99 Towson, MD* L 10-14
4-11-10 Washington, DC L 8-11
4-10-11 Notre Dame, IN W 7-6
4-15-12 Washington, DC W 9-7
4-14-13 Notre Dame, IN W 10-8
2-14-15 Notre Dame, IN W 14-12
* NCAA Championship first round

IRISH-HOYAS: THE LAST TIME
These same two teams opened the 2015 season in South Bend–and the game became an eye-opening debut for Notre Dame freshman Mike Wynne. The Irish rookie attackman notched Notre Dame’s first three goals and the last two for the Irish as Kevin Corrigan’s squad held on for a 14-12 triumph.
— Notre Dame broke to a 4-1 advantage, then led 8-6 at halftime and 11-10 after three periods.
— After the Hoyas tied the game at 11 just 37 seconds into the final period, Notre Dame responded with a Sergio Perkovic goal at 12:28, one by Wynne at 12:20 and a final one by Wynne at :29.
— Perkovic contributed three goals and two assists, Conor Doyle a goal and two assists and Matt Kavanagh a goal and two assists. Bo Stafford led Georgetown with four goals.
— Conor Kelly (eight goals against, five saves) started in goal for the Irish, then gave way to Shane Doss (four goals against, three saves) about six minutes into the third period.

Georgetown 12 #2 Notre Dame 14 — February 14, 2015 — Loftus Sports Center — Notre Dame, Indiana
Team 1 2 3 4 Total
Georgetown (0-1) 2 4 4 2 12
Notre Dame (1-0) 4 4 3 3 14

For full game notes, visit the men’s lacrosse PDF — Scoring Summary

First Quarter

GU 1: Bo Stafford (unassisted), 13:06 (UP) ND 1: Mikey Wynne (Sergio Perkovic), 9:07 ND 2: Mikey Wynne (Matt Kavanagh), 5:00 (UP) ND 3: Mikey Wynne (Matt Kavanagh), 2:43 ND 4: Sergio Perkovic (Jack Near) 2:23 GU 2: Stephen Quinzi (unassisted), 0:48

Second Quarter

GU 3: Peter Conley (unassisted), 14:16 ND 5: Sergio Perkovic (unassisted), 10:44 GU 4: Bo Stafford (Corey Parke), 10:27 GU 5: Devon Lewis (unassisted), 8:27 ND 6: Will Corrigan (Conor Doyle), 7:38 GU 6: Bo Stafford (Devon Lewis), 4:40 ND 7: Mikey Wynne (Eddy Lubowicki), 1:54 (UP) ND 8: Matt Kavanagh (unassisted), 0:04

Third Quarter

GU 7: Bo Stafford (unassisted), 13:53 ND 9: Conor Doyle (unassisted), 12:55 ND 10: Jack Near (unassisted), 10:01 GU 8: Devon Lewis (unassisted), 8:49 ND 11: Nick Ossello (unassisted), 7:13 GU 9: Stephen Quinzi (Bo Stafford), 4:09 GU 10: William Flatley (unassisted), 1:00

Fourth Quarter

GU 11: Matthew Behrens (Craig Berge), 14:23 (UP) ND 12: Sergio Perkovic (unassisted), 12:28 ND 13: Mikey Wynne (Conor Doyle), 12:20 GU 12: Reilly O’Connor (Stephen Quinzi), 9:40 ND 14: Mikey Wynne (Sergio Perkovic), 0:29 (30sec)

— Individual Scoring (goals-assists)

Georgetown: Bo Stafford 4-1, Stephen Quinzi 2-1, Devon Lewis 2-1, Reilly O’Connor 1-0, Peter Conley 1-0, William Flatley 1-0, Matthew Behrens 1-0, Craig Berge 0-1, Corey Parke 0-1

Notre Dame: Mikey Wynne 6-0, Sergio Perkovic 3-2, Conor Doyle 1-2, Matt Kavanagh 1-2, Jack Near 1-1, Will Corrigan 1-0, Nick Ossello 1-0, Eddy Lubowicki 0-1

— Goalies

Georgetown: Nick Marrocco (L, 60:00, 14 GA, 12 SVS)

Notre Dame: Conor Kelly (W, 36:11, 8 GA, 5 SVS); Shane Doss (23:49, 4 GA, 3 SVS)

— Ground Balls

Georgetown: Gabriel Mendola 8, Devon Lewis 4, Reilly O’Connor 3, Peter Conley 3, Joe Bucci 3, Bo Stafford 2, Craig Berge 2, Bryson Greene 2, Nick Marrocco 2, Charlie Ford 2, Stephen Quinzi 1, Chris Pauzer 1, Michael Mayer 1, Curt Brooks 1, Ryan Hursey 1

Notre Dame: P.J. Finley 4, Garrett Epple 3, Cole Riccardi 3, Jack Near 3, Mikey Wynne 2, Sergio Perkovic 2, Edwin Glazener 2, Matt Landis 2, Henry Williams 2, John Sexton 2, Robert Collins 2, Conor Doyle 1, Matt Kavanagh 1, Will Corrigan 1, Nick Ossello 1, Jim Marlatt 1

— Faceoffs

Georgetown: Gabriel Mendola 15-29

Notre Dame: Nick Ossello 3-14, P.J. Finley 10-13, John Travisano, Jr. 1-1, Matt Landis 0-1

— Team Stats

GU ND

Shots 35 43

Ground Balls 36 32

Faceoffs 15-29 14-29

Clears 15-20 11-14

EMO 1-2 2-3

Saves 12 8

Penalties 3/2:00 2/2:00

PROBABLE IRISH STARTERS

Attack Cl. 2015 Stats

*24 Mikey Wynne So. 33g/4a/26gb

*50 Matt Kavanagh Sr. 27g/25a/39gb

18 Eddy Lubowicki Sr. 3g/6a/4gb

Midfield

*16 Sergio Perkovic Jr. 34g/7a/22gb

34 Trevor Brosco Sr. 4g/0a/3gb

51 Brendan Collins So. 3g/3a/15gb

Defense

*30 Edwin Glazener Sr. 0g/0a/18gb

*43 Matt Landis Sr. 0g/0a/29gb

*52 Garrett Epple Jr. 0g/0a/51gb

Goalie

*41 Shane Doss Jr. 11-3/9.06 gaa/.546 sv%

or 9 Conor Kelly Gr. 1-0/10.92 gaa/.469 sv%

or 54 Owen Molloy So. DNP in 2015

Key Reserves

M 15 Cole Riccardi Sr. 5g/2a/6gb

M 38 Nick Koshansky Jr. 1g/0a/15gb

M 55 Robert Collins Jr. 0g/0a/5gb

D 10 Jack Sheridan Sr. 0g/0a/4gb

LSM 46 John Sexton So. 0g/1a/41gb

Faceoff

13 John Travisano Jr. So. 16-32 (.500)

*31 P.J. Finley Jr. 121-232 (.522)

* indicates returning starter from 2015

IRISH HAVE SIX PRESEASON ALL-AMERICANS FOR 2016 Six Notre Dame players garnered preseason Division I All-America honors from Inside Lacrosse in its 2016 Face-off Yearbook. Senior attackman Matt Kavanagh, junior midfielder Sergio Perkovic and senior defenseman Matt Landis all merited first-team honors, while junior defenseman Garrett Epple made the second team. Honorable mention picks included sophomore attackman Mikey Wynne and sophomore midfielder Brendan Collins. Virginia was the only other program to have six players recognized.

2016 ACC PRESEASON ACCOLADES Reigning Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season champion Notre Dame was selected as the preseason favorite in the 2016 ACC Men’s Lacrosse Preseason Poll. — The Fighting Irish received 25 points in balloting among the ACC’s five head coaches. Duke followed with 15 points. Syracuse and Virginia (13 points each) tied for third, while North Carolina received nine points. — All five ACC teams are ranked in the top eight in Inside Lacrosse’s Face-Off Yearbook Top 20 poll. Notre Dame led the way at No. 1 followed by Duke (No. 3), North Carolina (No. 5), Virginia (No. 7) and Syracuse (No. 8). — The Preseason All-ACC Team included Notre Dame senior attackman Matt Kavanagh, senior defenseman Matt Landis and junior midfielder Sergio Perkovic (all three first-team USILA All-Americans in 2015).

INSIDE LACROSSE 2016 PRESEASON UNIT RATINGS

Inside Lacrosse recently listed its preseason rankings for the top attack, midfield and defense units for 2016–with Notre Dame ranking second in the attack and defense categories and fifth in the midfield standings.

— In the attack ratings, the Irish took second behind Denver.

— In the midfield ratings, Notre Dame listed fifth behind Duke, Virginia, Maryland and Denver.

— In the defense rankings, Notre Dame rated second behind Maryland.

IRISH ON TV IN 2016

The Notre Dame men’s lacrosse program could have seven of its games televised live on ESPNU in 2016. — Five regular-season games are slated for ESPNU, and one or two more could be added if the Irish qualify for the 2016 Atlantic Coast Conference Championship April 29 and May 1 at Kennesaw State in Kennesaw, Georgia. In addition, two other nonconference contests will be available on ESPN3.

— Here’s the complete Notre Dame television schedule for the 2016 season:

Date Opponent Time Network

Sunday, March 13 DENVER 5:30 p.m. ET ESPNU

Saturday, March 19 *VIRGINIA 6 p.m. ET ESPNU

Saturday, April 2 *@Syracuse 5 p.m. ET ESPNU

Sunday, April 10 *DUKE noon ET ESPNU

Wednesday, April 13 MARQUETTE 4 p.m. ET ESPN3

Saturday, April 23 *@North Carolina noon ET ESPNU

Friday, April 29 #ACC Championship 6/8:30 p.m. ET ESPNU

Semifinals

Sunday, May 1 #ACC Championship noon ET ESPNU

Title Game

Sunday, May 8 ARMY noon ET ESPN3

Bold indicates home games at Arlotta Stadium

* indicates Atlantic Coast Conference games

# games played at Fifth Third Bank Stadium, Kennesaw, Georgia

MLL TABS LANDIS, KAVANAGH IN 2016 DRAFT

Notre Dame men’s lacrosse senior standouts Matt Landis and Matt Kavanagh, both first-team All-Americans in 2015, were selected among the top five players in the Major League Lacrosse Collegiate Draft held in January in Baltimore.

— The Florida Launch made Landis, a defenseman, the third overall pick and the first defenseman selected. The Denver Outlaws followed by making Kavanagh, an attack, the fifth overall selection.

— The Atlanta Blaze selected Duke midfielder Myles Jones first, while the Charlotte Hounds selected Syracuse attack Dylan Donahue second and Johns Hopkins attack Ryan Brown fourth.

— Landis represents the highest selection for a Notre Dame player in the MLL Draft, and Landis and Kavanagh are easily the highest-drafted combination of Irish players. Previous Irish first-round picks were Mike Podgajny (seventh overall) in 2008, Zach Brenneman (fifth overall) in 2011 (he was the previous high pick from Notre Dame) and Jack Near (seventh overall) in 2015.

VETERAN QUARTET TO CAPTAIN IRISH IN 2016 Seniors Eddy Glazener (defense/La Jolla, California), Matt Kavanagh (attack/Rockville Centre, New York), Conor Kelly (goalie/St. Davids, Pennsylvania) and Matt Landis (defense/Pelham, New York) have been named team captains for the 2016 campaign.

ACC AWARDS LANDIS HONORARY SCHOLARSHIP

Notre Dame senior Matt Landis, named the top defensive player in the country in 2015, has received the Weaver-James-Corrigan Award representing an honorary postgraduate scholarship from the Atlantic Coast Conference. The 6-2, 195-pound defenseman from Pelham, New York (Pelham Memorial High School), is a finance major in the Mendoza College of Business. He also was a 2015 ACC All-Academic Men’s Lacrosse Team selection.

— Landis received the William C. Schmeisser Award from the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association as the outstanding defensive player in Division I as a junior in 2015. He was a 2015 USILA first-team All-American, the 2015 ACC Defensive Player of the Year and a 2015 first-team All-ACC selection.

— The ACC announced a list of 43 student-athletes who have been selected for the 2016 Weaver-James-Corrigan Award. Landis is one of an additional nine student-athletes who do not expect to begn graduate school immediately and who plan to pursue professional careers in their chosen sports and were named honorary recipients.

— The student-athletes will be honored at the annual Cone Health ACC Postgraduate Luncheon hosted by the Nat Greene Kiwanis Club and presented by ESPN April 13 at the Sheraton Four Seasons Hotel Imperial Ballroom in Greensboro, North Carolina.

— The Weaver-James-Corrigan Award is named in honor of the late Jim Weaver and Bob James, as well as Gene Corrigan, the first three ACC commissioners. Eugene F. Corrigan (father of current Notre Dame men’s lacrosse coach Kevin Corrigan) assumed his role as the third full-time commissioner on Sept. 1, 1987, and served until August 1997. During Corrigan’s tenure, ACC schools captured 30 NCAA championships and two national football titles.

IRISH OFFENSE RETURNS FOR 2016 Notre Dame returns 59.7 percent of its goal production (119 of 199) from last season’s team that finished eighth nationally in scoring (13.27 goals per game). — The Fighting Irish bring back 50 percent of their assists (49 of 98) and 56.5 percent of their points (168 of 297). — Three of Notre Dame’s top four goal scorers from 2015 are back this season–in Sergio Perkovic (34), Mikey Wynne (33) and Matt Kavanagh (27).

— Top scoring losses from 2015 are attackman Conor Doyle (31 goals/20 assists/51 points) and midfielders Nick Ossello (23/6/29), Jim Marlatt (11/9/20), Will Corrigan (8/6/14) and Jack Near (7/6/13).

— Doyle finished his Irish career tied with Kavanagh for the lead in points (30) and goals scored (20) in NCAA Championship play.

THREE IRISH FRESHMEN NAMED UNDER ARMOUR ALL-AMERICANS Three Notre Dame freshmen played in the 10th annual Under Armour All-America Lacrosse Classic in July 2015 at Towson University’s Johnny Unitas Stadium in Towson, Maryland.

— Hugh Crance (Newport Beach, California/Corona Del Mar), Ryder Garnsey (Wolfeboro, New Hampshire/Brewster Academy) and Timmy Phillips (Alexandria, Virginia/Episcopal) were tabbed as Under Armour All-Americans.

— Under Armour All-Americans are selected by a panel of lacrosse experts from Inside Lacrosse. The year-long selection process includes input from college and high school coaches from across the country as well as nominations from the public. Notre Dame’s three selections in 2015 tied the 2009 Irish recruiting class for the second-most participants in school history. Notre Dame had five signees participate in the 2014 game.

EIGHT IRISH JOIN ACC ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM Eight members of the 2015 Notre Dame squad were named to the Atlantic Coast Conference All-Academic Men’s Lacrosse Team. The team was comprised of 33 student-athletes representing all five of the league’s men’s lacrosse programs. Notre Dame’s eight honorees were second only to Duke’s nine selections. Jim Marlatt and Sergio Perkovic were among 10 players named to the team for the second consecutive year. The six other Fighting Irish student-athletes honored included Will Corrigan, Eddy Glazener, Matt Landis, Eddy Lubowicki, Jack Near and John Sexton. — Three of those individuals–Perkovic, Landis and Near–also earned United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association All-America honors. — To be eligible for consideration for the All-ACC Academic Team, a student-athlete must have earned a 3.00 grade-point average for the previous semester and maintained a 3.00 cumulative average during his academic career.

FINAL IRISH RANKINGS IN 2015 NCAA STATS

Here’s where Notre Dame as a team and Irish individuals finished in the final NCAA stats for 2015 (top 20 rankings):

Team

— 4th in man-up offense (.524)

— 4th in winning percentage (.800)

— 6th in scoring margin (+3.93)

— 7th in shot percentage (.333)

— 8th in scoring offense (13.27)

— 9th in points per game (19.8)

— 9th in ground balls per game (33.07)

— 12th in caused turnovers (7.8)

— 19th in scoring defense (9.33)

Individual

— Conor Doyle 8th in shot percentage (.456)

— Mikey Wynne 11th in shot percentage (.452)

— Shane Doss 19th in save percentage (.546)

— Shane Doss 20th in goals-against average (9.06)

Doss led the Atlantic Coast Conference in both save percentage and goals-against average, and Doyle led the ACC in shot percentage.

IRISH IN 2015 FINAL ACC STATS

Notre Dame led the ACC in 2015 (all games) in these team categories: man-up scoring percentage (.524), fewest penalties/game (2.8), goals-against average (9.25), fewest penalty minutes/game (2.0) and caused turnovers/game (7.8). Matt Kavanagh and Conor Doyle both set an ACC high for assists in a game in 2015 with five (Kavanagh vs. Dartmouth, Doyle vs. Army), with four other conference players also accomplishing that feat. In conference competition, Doyle and three other ACC players set the standard with seven points in a league game (Doyle did it in the Irish regular-season victory at Duke with three goals and four assists).

KAVANAGH A 2015 TEWAARATON FINALIST

Irish junior attack Matt Kavanagh attended the presentation of the 2015 Tewaaraton Award at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C., as one of the five finalists for the honor. Albany’s Lyle Thompson won the award for the second straight year. Kavanagh was joined by his parents and Irish coach Kevin Corrigan. Also in attendance was Notre Dame women’s finalist Barbara Sullivan and Irish women’s head coach Christine Halfpenny. Notre Dame was the only institution to have both a men’s and a women’s Tewaaraton finalist in 2015.

NOTRE DAME IN THE NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP

Notre Dame in 2015 played in the NCAA Championship for the 10th straight year and 20th time in school history. Every NCAA appearance Notre Dame has made has occurred under current head coach Kevin Corrigan.

— The Irish own an all-time record of 17-20 in their 20 trips to the tournament. Notre Dame finished as the NCAA runner-up in 2010 and 2014 and also advanced to the NCAA Championship semifinals in 2001, 2012 and 2015.

— The Irish earned a spot in the 2015 semifinals following a first-round victory over Towson (12-10) and a quarterfinal win over Albany (14-10).

HISTORIC TOP SEED IN 2015

Notre Dame earned the #1 seed in the 2015 NCAA Championship for the first time in school history. In 2013, the Irish garnered the tournament’s #2 seed before falling to Duke 12-11 in the quarterfinals.

— So 2015 marked the eighth time overall–and seventh time in the last eight campaigns–the Irish earned one of the eight national seeds for the NCAA Championship. The Irish also were seeded for the 2001 (5th), 2008 (6th), 2009 (7th), 2011 (4th), 2013 (2nd) and 2014 (6th) championships.

— All five teams from the ACC in 2015 were seeded–Notre Dame (#1), Syracuse (#2), North Carolina (#3), Duke (#5) and Virginia (#7).

IRISH CLAIMED 2015 ACC REGULAR-SEASON CROWN

Notre Dame won the Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season title in 2015 in just its second season as a conference member. The Irish finished with a 4-0 record.

— Coach Kevin Corrigan’s squad clinched the title with a come-from-behind 15-14 win over #2 North Carolina on April 18 in South Bend. Both teams entered the matchup with 3-0 league records.

MULTIPLE #1 VS. #2 AFFAIRS AT ARLOTTA IN 2015

Top-rated Notre Dame’s win against #2 North Carolina on April 18, 2015, marked the second #1-vs.-#2 showdown at Arlotta Stadium in 2015.

— Second-rated Notre Dame knocked off #1 Syracuse 13-12 in double overtime on March 28, 2015.

LANDIS TABBED AS TOP ACC DEFENSIVE PLAYER

Matt Landis was selected as the Atlantic Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year as a junior in 2015.

— He started all 15 games for the Irish and anchored a defensive unit that yielded just 9.25 goals per game in 2015. Landis also collected 29 ground balls.

FOUR IRISH PLAYERS EARN ALL-ACC HONORS IN 2015

Notre Dame had four players garner All-Atlantic Coast Conference honors in 2015. Junior attackman Matt Kavanagh earned all-conference honors for the second consecutive season, while senior attackman Conor Doyle, junior defender Matt Landis and sophomore midfielder Sergio Perkovic were first-time honorees. North Carolina and Syracuse each placed five players on the 18-member all-conference team, while Duke placed three and Virginia one.

HOME SWEET HOME

Notre Dame finished 7-0 at home in 2015 for the 10th perfect campaign in school history and first since the 2011 season (6-0). The seven wins matched a program best at home. The 1992 Irish squad finished with a 7-1 home record.

— Since 2006 (spanning nine seasons), Notre Dame has finished undefeated at home on five occasions. The Irish ended a perfect 6-0 at home during three consecutive seasons from 2006-08.

NOTRE DAME AND THE NUMBER-ONE SPOT

Notre Dame spent four weeks holding down the number-one spot in 2015, losing that ranking by virtue of a 13-8 loss to Duke in an ACC Championship semifinal match.

— After beating #1 Syracuse on March 28, 2015, Notre Dame moved to the top of the USILA (coaches) and Cascade/Maverik (media) polls.

— Since the program’s inception in 1981, Notre Dame has been ranked #1 in both polls for eight weeks. Here are Notre Dame’s appearances at #1: * April 18/May 2, 2011 (USILA and media polls — 2 weeks) * March 25/April 1, 2013 (USILA and media polls — 1 week) * April 22/April 29, 2013 (USILA and media polls — 1 week) * March 30/April 20, 2015 (USILA and media polls — 4 weeks)

DOSS GETS IT DONE

Irish senior goalie Shane Doss made a career-high 17 saves in the 2015 Irish regular-season win at seventh-ranked Duke. He made 10 or more saves in nine of his 14 starts last season.

— He was named the USILA Division I Defensive Player of the Week and the ACC Defensive Player of the Week after the Irish shut out Ohio State 9-0 in 2015. He earned the ACC honor once again along with being the NCAA.com Defensive Player of the Week for his career-high 17-save effort in the 15-10 win at Duke.

— Doss had an 11-3 record last season and boasts a 16-6 career mark.

KAVANAGH PRODUCES POINTS

Irish senior Matt Kavanagh compiled three or more points in 10 of his 15 games as a junior in 2015.

— The senior attackman notched six or more points in three games in 2015 and in 11 games during his career.

— Kavanagh had his career-best 17-game goal streak snapped against Marquette, but he did have three assists versus the Golden Eagles in 2015.

— With his four-goal effort against Army in 2015, he became the sixth 100-plus goal scorer in school history. In addition to Kavanagh, the five others players to reach the 100-goal plateau have been Randy Colley (173), Ryan Hoff (134), Joe Franklin (119), Chris Dusseau (115) and Tom Glatzel (106).

— Kavanagh did not score a goal or have an assist against Towson in Notre Dame’s NCAA first-round win over the Tigers. It marked the first time since a 15-7 loss to Duke at Arlotta Stadium on April 5, 2014, that he failed to register a point.

— Kavanagh’s 175 career points (101 goals, 74 assists) rank fifth in the Notre Dame record book.

— Kavanagh’s 101 goals are the sixth most in school history and the 74 assists are the fifth most.

— Kavanagh produced Irish single-season records for points (75) and assists (33) in 2014.

— Kavanagh’s 42 goals in 2014 were the most for a Notre Dame player since Randy Colley netted a school-record 49 goals in 1995.

— Kavanagh is the only player in Notre Dame history to register 30 goals and 30 assists in the same season (42 goals, 33 assists in 2014).

— He has 30 multiple-goal games during his career (17 with three-plus goals).

— Kavanagh matched a school record with seven goals in the win at Ohio State in 2014.

— Kavanagh has three overtime game-winning goals during his career. He netted the deciding goal in the 2014 triumph over Albany in the NCAA quarterfinals.

— During his freshman campaign in 2013, he scored in overtime to win games against Penn State and North Carolina (a three-overtime affair).

FIGHTING IRISH SPURTS IN 2015

Notre Dame produced significant scoring runs in each of its last 13 games in 2015:

— Behind 9-5 with 5:29 to go in the NCAA Championship semifinal versus Denver, Notre Dame scored five times in a 5:20 span (first four were goals by Sergio Perkovic, then one by Nick Ossello to tie the game at the :09 mark).

— Trailing 9-8 following the third quarter against Albany, the Irish scored the first five goals of the final stanza to break open the NCAA Championship quarterfinal.

— After falling behind Towson 6-2 with 2:50 to play in the second quarter of an NCAA Championship first-round game, Notre Dame scored six unanswered goals to take an 8-6 advantage with 10:01 to play in the third quarter. The Tigers tied the game with 4:31 to play in the third period on back-to-back scores before the Irish rattled off a 4-0 burst to take a 12-8 lead. In all, Notre Dame would score 10 of 12 goals in a run that covered 22:12.

— Against Army, the Irish led 6-0 after the fourth quarter and scored eight of the contest’s first nine goals.

— After trailing Duke 12-2 in a semifinal of the ACC Championship with 12:04 remaining, Notre Dame rattled off six straight goals to pull the Irish to within four (12-8) with 4:14 to play.

— The Irish tallied the final three goals of the game in a span of 1:15 to secure a 15-14 come-from-behind victory over North Carolina.

— Marquette claimed a 2-0 lead over Notre Dame before the Irish scored seven straight goals en route to the 14-7 win.

–The Irish netted seven of the game’s first nine goals in the 15-10 victory at Duke.

— The Irish extended their 5-3 halftime lead against Syracuse with four straight second-half scores to claim a six-goal advantage (9-3) before going on to win 13-12 in double overtime.

— Notre Dame scored every goal in the 9-0 win over Ohio State.

— The Irish scored the first seven goals in the 11-9 victory at Virginia.

— Notre Dame surrendered the first goal to Denver in the regular season before scoring five straight times, but the Irish would suffer an 11-10 overtime setback.

— After Dartmouth tied Notre Dame 2-2, the Irish rattled off 14 consecutive tallies in the 20-5 victory.

— The Irish overturned a 1-0 deficit at Michigan with nine straight goals en route to the 17-8 victory.

SPREADING THE WEALTH A YEAR AGO

Notre Dame had at least six different goal scorers in 11 of 15 games last season.

— Notre Dame had a season-high 10 goal scorers in wins over Dartmouth and Michigan in 2015.

— The Irish had a season-low four goal scorers in the win at Virginia.

SOLID START FOR WYNNE IN 2015

Rookie attackman Mikey Wynne had 33 goals in 2015, breaking Matt Kavanagh’s single-season mark for a freshman that he set during the 2013 campaign.

— Wynne posted two or more goals in eight of 15 games in 2015. He scored six goals versus Georgetown in his collegiate debut.

PERKOVIC A PLAYMAKER

Junior Sergio Perkovic ranks as Notre Dame’s leading returning midfield scorer for 2016 and leading returning goal-scorer overall after 34 goals and seven assists in 2015.

— Perkovic has 20 multiple-goal games during his career (11 in 2015), including six games of three-plus tallies.

— His top career goal-scoring day produced five in the 2015 NCAA Championship semifinal versus Denver. He previously tied a career-high mark of five points with three goals and two assists versus Marquette in 2015. He had a hand in four straight Fighting Irish goals (two goals, two assists) during the second quarter of that contest.

— Perkovic netted 28 goals in 2014 as a freshman, including five in the NCAA title game versus Duke. The 28 goals marked the most for a freshman midfielder at Notre Dame.

PERKOVIC PERFORMANCE LATE IN 2015 NCAA MEN’S LAX SEMIFINAL ONE FOR AGES

It lasted maybe 10 minutes in real time, yet it likely goes down as the one of the most stunning individual performances in the history of college men’s lacrosse. The official score sheet said Irish sophomore midfielder Sergio Perkovic scored five goals in Notre Dame’s 2015 NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Championship national semifinal game against Denver in Philadelphia. A close look at the scoring summary showed that all five goals came in the final period. An even closer inspection indicated that the five goals came over a span of 5:57 in clock time. That would be an amazing accomplishment by a team (especially at the NCAA national semifinal level, against a team that ultimately won the title), much less for an individual.

— The NCAA has no individual scoring-by-period records to prove it, but it’s likely Perkovic did something never before accomplished in NCAA men’s lacrosse history while depositing those five goals into the net. His scores came at 8:00, 4:40, 3:38, 3:01 and 2:03, so the last four came in a 2:37 span. ESPN analyst Quint Kessenich called Perkovic’s performance versus Denver the top moment of the 2015 season.

— The NCAA record for most goals in the fourth period of a national semifinal game by an entire team is nine (accomplished twice). The NCAA Championship record for most individual goals in a single game is nine (also done twice), while the regular-season mark for individual goals in a game is 11.

— Those five Perkovic goals tied the Notre Dame NCAA single-game mark for goals set in 2014 by Perkovic in the title game against Duke (also established by Matt Kavanagh in 2014 in the semifinals versus Maryland–as well as by David Earl in 2010 and Randy Colley in 1995). In fact, Perkovic’s late-game show against Denver brought back distinct memories of his 2014 title effort versus Duke when the then-freshman notched his five goals in a 24-minute span during the third and fourth periods.

— Perkovic’s five goals against the Pioneers in 2015 tied for the seventh most productive output in a national semifinal game, while his five in the 2014 title game tied for the sixth most in a championship game. His five tallies against Denver marked a season high as well as his sixth game in 2015 with three or more goals.

IRISH NCAA VICTORIES

The 2015 Notre Dame NCAA Championship wins over Towson and Albany pushed the Irish NCAA victory total to 17. The only teams with more are Cornell, Duke, Johns Hopkins, Maryland, North Carolina, Princeton, Syracuse and Virginia.

— The Irish are 12-6 over the last six NCAA events combined (2010-2015), including national semifinal appearances in 2012 and 2015 and title game appearances in 2010 and 2014.

LOTS OF CLOSE CALLS

Notre Dame’s last six NCAA losses (2010-2015) have come by a combined nine goals, including three two-goal losses and three one-goal defeats (two of those in overtime).

— Notre Dame played four one-goal games in 2015 (three overtime affairs), winning two of those (Syracuse in OT and North Carolina). The Irish played three other two-goal games (defeating Georgetown, Virginia and Towson). Both Notre Dame OT losses came against eventual national champion Denver.

AGAINST RANKED OPPONENTS IN 2015

Each of Notre Dame’s final 12 games in 2015 came against ranked opponents, including teams rated #1 (Syracuse), #2 (North Carolina), #3 (Denver in NCAA semifinal), #4 (at Denver in regular season), #6 (Albany in NCAA quarterfinal and Duke in ACC Tournament semifinal) and #7 (at Duke and at Virginia, both in regular season).

— The 12 straight games against ranked opponents qualified as a Notre Dame record, topping the previous record of eight straight to end the 2014 season.

IRISH A STAPLE IN NCAA QUARTERFINALS

No other team in the country has advanced to (at least) the NCAA Championship quarterfinals each of the last six seasons other than Notre Dame. Duke had been tied with the Irish in that category until the Blue Devils fell in the first round in 2015. Notre Dame is 12-6 over that six-year span. (Only Duke at 16-3 has more wins over those six seasons.)

— Only two teams have played in each of the last 10 NCAA Championships–Notre Dame and Maryland. The Irish are 13-10 over that decade in NCAA play.

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