Team captains Annie Schefter (left) and Candace Chapman and their Notre Dame teammates will be looking to win a third straight 2005 tournament, as the Irish face Santa Clara and Gonzaga at the SCU Classic.

Irish Head West For More Challenges At Santa Clara Classic

Sept. 8, 2005

Complete Release in PDF Format
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NOTRE DAME WOMEN’S SOCCER – Santa Clara Adidas Classic (Sept. 9. and 16, 2005; Buck Shaw Stadium)

Friday, Sept. 9 – #1 Notre Dame at #5 Santa Claraa (7:00 p.m. PDT)

Sunday, Sept. 11 – #1 Notre Dame vs. Gonzaga (11:00 a.m. PDT)

The top-ranked 2005 Notre Dame women’s soccer team (4-0-0) returns to the west coast this week to play in the Santa Clara Adidas Classic, with games vs. a pair of teams currently 2-0-1: 5th-ranked Santa Clara (Sept. 9; 7:00 p.m. PDT) and Gonzaga (Sept. 11; 11:00 a.m. EDT) … the marquee matchup will pit the Irish vs. a SCU team that Notre Dame beat early in the 2004 regular season (5-2) and again in the NCAA semifinals (1-0) … the ND-SCU game will be telecast live and tape-delayed by various Comcast affiliates (see info. below) … senior F Katie Thorlakson has scored or assisted on each ND goal in the previous three games vs. SCU (4G-4A) … 5th-year D/F Candace Chapman scored the 73rtrd-minute goal vs. SCU in the ’04 College Cup, completing a tremendous individual effort that started with a deep run from the middle-third and ended on a give-and-go sequence with Thorlakson … Notre Dame leads the nation in scoring with 27 goals and 6.75 goals per game, after a big opening week at the Vermont Classic (11-1 vs. UNH, 6-0 vs. UVm) and wins last week at the ND Classic over a pair of teams ranked in the national polls (4-1 vs. #11 Florida, 6-0 vs. #25 Maryland).

COMCAST TO TELECAST ND-SCU MATCHUP – Comcast Sports Net West (now available on Direct TV channel 656, in addition to other availability) will telecast the Notre Dame-Santa Clara game live on Friday, Sept. 9, at 7:00 PDT (9:00 EST/in South Bend) … the game also will air live on Comcast Sports Net Detroit (10:00 p.m. EDT), will be shown on Comcast Sports Net Chicago (Direct TV 640, among others) on Sept. 10 at noon EST and will be rebroadcast later that day on CSNW (Sept. 10, 4:00 PDT/6:00 EST in South Bend) … Comcast Local in South Bend (channel 3) will show the ND-SCU game on Wed., Sept. 14 at 7:00 p.m. EST.

INFORMATION HIGHWAY – GameTracker livestats from the SCU Classic can be accessed via www.santaclarabroncos.com (links for ND games also available at www.und.com) while internet audio for the ND-SCU game is available to CSTV All-Access subscribers (see multimedia link on und.com) … audio will be the SCU broadcast but ND subscribers to All-Access can listen free-of-charge … All-Access subscribers can view video/audio of the ND weekly all-sports show while listening to game audio of several sports from ND and other schools … recaps are available on the ND Sports Hotline (574-631-3000, press “4,” then “2”).

NCAA STAT LEADERS – Notre Dame heads to Santa Clara as the national leader in scoring (6.75 goals per game; 27 overall), with other top scoring teams including Rice, Georgia and Oklahoma State (each with 19 goals), plus UNC (18) … freshman F Kerri Hanks currently leads the nation in goals (10G-1A) and points (21) while senior F Katie Thorlakson again is the nation’s assists leader (5G-7A) … Hanks and Thorlakson entered the week as the only teammates among 300–plus Division I women’s soccer teams with 12-plus points (Thorlakson is 5th, with 17 pts) … Thorlakson (2G-4A, vs. New Hampshire) and Hanks (4G, vs. UNH) join Portland’s Christine Sinclair as the only players to post 8-plus points in a game this season…. Sinclair and Hanks are the only players to score more than three goals in a game while Thorlakson is the only player with more than three assists in a game during 2005 … sophomore forward Amanda Cinalli already has matched her 2004 assist total (5), ranking behind only Thorlakson and UNC’s Kacey White (6) among the current NCAA assist leaders.

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Katie Thorlakson – shown accepting the ND Classic offensive MVP award from assistant AD Tony Yelovich – again is leading the nation in assists.

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PERFECT RECORDS BEGIN TO FADE – Just two weeks into the season, Notre Dame already is part of a shrinking list of teams (now 25) that are unbeaten and untied … those teams include four with 5-0-0 records (Georgia, Florida State, BYU and UTEP) while Notre Dame joins nine others with 4-0-0 marks: UNC, Portland, UCLA, Penn State, Pepperdine, Mississippi, N.C. State, Colorado College, Utah. Five others own 3-0-0 records (Boston College, Southern Miss., Alabama, Harvard and Lehigh), followed by 2-0-0 teams Cornell, Dartmouth, UNC-Asheville and Oakland (Penn and South Alabama are 1-0-0).

ND QUICK NOTES – ND’s current players have combined for 847 career games played (511 starts) … since handing Seton Hall an early lead in the final regular-season game of ’04, the Irish are riding a 56-5 scoring edge over the past 14-plus games … ND is 52-12-3 (.799) in the Randy Waldrum era when facing an NSCAA top-25/postseason opponent … the Irish have held 26 of their past 27 opponents to 0-1 goals … ND’s ’04 national-title team (25-1-1) finished 4th in the nation with a 0.51 GAA and 19th in scoring (2.59 goals/gm), joining UNC, Virginia, Princeton and UCF as teams in the top-20 for both … the ’04 team allowed just 73 shots on goal, nearly matching ND’s goal total (70), and yielded just 48 corner kicks all season (27 GP) … ND has been 1st or 2nd in the NSCAA poll 9 of 12 seasons since ’94 (all but ’99, ’01, ’02; #1 in ’94, ’95, ’96, ’00, ’04, ’05) … Waldrum is 123-20-5/.848 at ND (’99-’05).

ND WOMEN’S SOCCER – BY THE NUMBERS
967:02 – Erika Bohn’s ’03 shutout streak (5th NCAA his.)
847 – Career games played by ’05 ND players (511 GS)
.744 (30-10-1) – Notre Dame’s all-time NCAA Tournament winning pct. (2nd in women’s soccer history)
303-9-12 (.954) – Notre Dame’s all-time record when holding opponent to 0-1 goals (108-3-5 since 9/9/99)
217-3-1 (.984) – Notre Dame’s all-time record when scoring 3-plus goals (119-1-0 since Oct. 6, 1995)
210 -Win streak when taking 2-0 lead (232-0-1 all-time)
123-20-5 (.848) – Randy Waldrum’s record at Notre Dame
58-0-1 – Home unbeaten streak vs. BIG EAST tms (’95- )
41-1-2 – ND’s record in its past 44 reg.-season games
39 (ended vs. UConn in ’04 BET title game; now 48-1-0 last 49) – consecutive wins when scoring first
35-11-3 – ND record vs. NSCAA top-25 teams, since ’99
31 – All-Americans (since 1994)
27 – Thorlakson’s ’04 postseason pts (ND record; 9G-9A)
24 – ND-record streak without allowing 2+ gls (’00 and ’03)
23 – Players who posted GPA of 3.0-plus in 2005 spring semester (11 with 3.4-plus)
21-2-0 – All-time record in BIG EAST Tournament
21-3-2 – All-time record in home tournaments
19 – Players who started in ’04 (17 w/ 5+ GS)
18 – Notre Dame’s current unbeaten OT streak (13-0-5)
16 – Notre Dame record for consec. gms w/out deficit (’03)
16 – Shutouts posted by 2004 team (led nation)
15 – Number of home states and provinces (plus Finland) on 2005 Notre Dame roster
15 – Academic All-Americans (since 1995)
12 – Notre Dame alums in the WUSA (’01-’03)
9 – Starters returning from 2004 national champs
8 – Katie Thorlakson’s points (3G-2A) vs. Santa Clara (most at ND vs. top-10 opp.)
7 – NCAA College Cup semifinal appearances
5 – National ranking for Notre Dame’s 2003 freshman class
4.00 – Semester GPAs posted in ’04-’05 by Ashley Jones (fall) and Jannica Tjeder (spring)
3.31 – Team’s cumulative GPA (as of ’05 spring semester)
3 – PK saves made by Erika Bohn in ’04 NCAA title game
2 – Teams with multiple NCAA titles (UNC and ND)
2 – USYSA Golden Boots won by Kerri Hanks (’03, ’05)
2 – National ranking for 2004 freshman class
1 – Preseason ranking in 2005 NSCAA coaches poll
0.41 – Erika Bohn’s 2004 NCAA-best goals-against avg.

YEARS OF DOMINATION (see PDF for statistical comparison of ND’s 2003, ’04 and ’05 seasons)

DEPTH CHARGES – The ’04 season was a unique one in many ways for Randy Waldrum’s squad, as the veteran coach and his players embraced a system of deeper substitution and rotating lineups (something that likely will be a trademark of the ’05 team) … 19 players started for the Irish in ’04, including 17 who logged at least five starts … ND recently has elected to not start several top players on the second game of a weekend, instead bringing them off the bench for a “shock troops” effect made popular by legendary ND football coach Knute Rockne (he often would start his entire 2nd team, then bring in the top group later in the game).

BIG-GAME PLAYERS – ND has won 80% of its “big games” in the Randy Waldrum era (’99-’05), posting a 52-12-3 record (.799) when facing an NSCAA top-25 or postseason opponent.

FAR & WIDE – ND’s 2005 roster includes players from 12 states (AZ, CA, CT, IL, IN, MD, NJ, OH, OR, PA, TX, WA), two Canadian provinces (B.C. and Ontario) and Finland … the program’s all-time roster canvasses 30 states and three foreign countries … ND’s student-athlete population in ’04-’05 included nearly 800 individuals from 44 states (all but Hawaii, Maine, Mississippi, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming) and 20 foreign countries.

1ST-STRIKE WEAPONS – Notre Dame owns a 48-1-0 record in its past 49 games when scoring first (2-1 loss to UConn in ’04 BIG EAST title game) … Amanda Cinalli and Jen Buczkowski each opened the scoring in five games games of the `04 season (Katie Thorlakson had three 1st-goals in ’04, senior F Candace Champan two) … Chapman also scored to open the scoring for ND twice in ’04 after the opponent scored first (Cinalli did so once) … Kerri Hanks has three of ND’s first goals in ’05 (Thorlakson one).

SCU CLASSIC – MATCHUP NOTES

TWO OF THE ALL-TIME BEST – Friday’s ND-SCU game will feature two of the top coaches in women’s soccer history … SCU’s Jerry Smith currently ranks 3rd in the NCAA record book for career win pct. as a Division I women’s soccer coach (min. 10 seasons) at .782 (296-74-24) while ND’s Randy Waldrum is 7th on that list at .752 (230-70-17).

THEY KNOW THE WAY TO SAN JOSE – The 2005 SCU Classic will mark the Notre Dame women’s soccer team’s 8th and 9th games in the Bay Area during the past seven seasons, with those games including the 1999 (runner-up) and 2000 NCAA College Cups (held at San Jose’s Spartan Stadium) … the Irish actually were slated to play a pair games in the San Jose area during the 2001 season (at Santa Clara and Stanford) but those games were cancelled after the Sept. 11 national tragedy … the 2003 NCAA third-round loss at top-ranked Stanford (1-0 loss) marked the 6th time that ND has played an NCAA game in the Bay Area, with the others including: at Santa Clara in the 1996 semifinals (3-2 vs. Portland) and the title game vs. UNC (0-1 vs. UNC, in OT), the 1999 final weekend at Spartan Stadium (1-0 vs. SCU, 0-2 vs. UNC), and the 2002 semifinals (1-2 vs. UNC).

ND ALL-TIME IN CALIFORNIA – Notre Dame owns a 5-7-1 all-time record in games played in the state of California (all in the Bay Area) … in addition to the NCAA games in the above note, the other five games include: the ’93 Stanford tournament (1-3 vs. Stanford, 4-0 vs. Santa Clara), the ’96 SCU tournament (4-0 vs. Stanford, 1-3 vs. SCU), a 4-2 loss at SCU in ’99 and the 2003 SCU Classic (0-0 vs. Stanford, 2-1 vs. Santa Clara) … ND became the first opposing team ever to win the SCU Classic, in ’03.

STADIUM TIES – Buck Shaw Stadium is named for the former SCU football coach who was one of the top players at Notre Dame in the Knute Rockne era … Shaw was one of several former ND great who went on to noteworthy coaching careers, including Slip Madigan (who coached at St. Mary’s College, also located in the Bay Area).

CYBER RAYS STARS – Two key former starters with the WUSA’s San Jose CyberRays – G LaKeysia Beene and D Kelly Lindsey (now an assistant coach at the University of Texas) – were teammates at Notre Dame in the late 1990s … both ended their college careers in the College Cup at Spartan Stadium (Beene in 1999, Lindsey in 2000).

CLASSIC RIVALRY – Notre Dame owns a 7-3-0 series record vs. Santa Clara (4-1 at home, 3-0 in NCAAs) … the teams played just twice in the first 11 seasons of the ND program (’88-’98) but Friday’s game will be the 9th ND-SCU game in the past seven seasons (’99-’04) and the 4th in the past 24 months … four of the games have seen one of the teams ranked 1st in the NSCAA poll (ND in ’95 and ’00, SCU in both ’99 games) … the home team is 6-2-0 in the series (5 at ND, 3 at SCU), with the Irish winning neutral-site games in the ’99 and ’04 NCAA semifinals … recent games have seen flurries of goals, as SCU scored four in a 20-minute span for a 4-2 win over the Irish in ’99, ND posted a 6-1 win over SCU at the 2000 Key Bank Classic, SCU scored four 2nd-half goals vs. the Irish in the ’02 ND Classic – and then ND broke open a 2-2 game with 3 goals in the final 10 minutes of the meeting earlier this season (5-2) … the series includes regular-season games in ’99 (4-2 SCU win) and ’00 (6-1 ND win, at Keybank Classic), with the Irish winning rematches in the NCAAs: 1-0 in ’99 semifinal (in San Jose) and 2-1 in OT of 2000 quarterfinal, thanks to Meotis Erikson’s clutch goal) … other meetings include ND’s 1-0 home win in ’95, SCU’s 3-1 home win in ’96, SCU’s 4-0 win at the ’02 ND Classic (scoreless 1st half), ND’s 2-1 win in ’03 (Broncos’ first-ever loss at SCU Classic), the 5-2 win for the Irish at the ’04 ND Classic and the 1-0 semifinal at the ’04 College Cup in Cary, N.C.

NCAA SUCCESS STORIES – Notre Dame and Santa Clara have become two of the most successful programs in women’s soccer history, particularly in the past 10 years … SCU’s 16 all-time NCAA trips rank 5th all-time while ND is 9th with 12 all-time NCAA appearances … ND and SCU also are two of five teams to appear in each of the past 12 NCAA Tournaments (plus UNC, UConn, William & Mary) … UNC leads in all-time NCAA semifinal trips (22), followed by SCU (10), ND, Portland and UConn (all with 7) … since ’94, only UNC (10) has made more semifinal appearances than ND or SCU (7) … since the ND program started in ’88, the semifinal list is led by UNC (16), SCU (9) and ND (7).

NOTRE DAME CAREER STATS VS. SANTA CLARA
Katie Thorlakson – 4G-4A (12 pts), 4 GP/3 GS, 2 GWG, 1 GWA, 9 Shots
Jen Buczkowski – 1G-1A, 3 GS, 3 Shots
Candace Chapman – 2G, 3 GS, GWG, 4 Shots
Christie Shaner – 3 GS, 1 Shot
Annie Schefter – 3 GP/2 GS, 1A, 5 Shots
Kim Lorenzen – 3 GP/2 GS, 1 Shot
Lizzie Reed – 3 GP/1 GS, 2 Shots
Jenny Walz – 2 GP/1 GS
Miranda Ford – 2 GP, 1 Shot
Maggie Manning – 3 GP, 1 Shot
Jill Krivacek – 3 GP/1 GS, 1 Shot
Kate Tulisiak – 2 GP/1 GS
Claire Gallerano – 1 GP
Amanda Cinalli – 2 GP/1 GS, 2 Shots
Ashley Jones – 2 GP
Erika Bohn – 3 GS, 3-0-0, 3 GA, 3 SV

FIRST-TIME OPPONENTS – Notre Dame will be facing Gonzaga for the first time … ND’s all-time record in series openers is 70-25-2 (.732), including 38-5-0 since ’93 and 48-8-0 in all series openers at home (22-3-0 since ’93) … the Irish opened the ’05 season by beating first-time opponents New Hampshire (11-1) and Vermont (7-0), followed by a 4-1 win over first-time foe Florida … ND also will face South Florida for the first time during the ’05 season.

OPPONENT INFO. – Consult www.santaclarabroncos.com and www.gozags.com for in-depth information on Notre Dame’s upcoming opponents at the Santa Clara Classic.

VETERAN CORE – Notre Dame’s 2005 roster includes 27 players who have combined to play 776 career games with the Irish, making 452 starts … the nine returning starters from the ’04 NCAA title team have combined for 531 career games played (with 442 starts): senior F Katie Thorlakson (74/67), senior G Erika Bohn (73/69), 5th-year D Candace Chapman (71/59), junior M Jen Buczkowski (55/52), senior M Annie Schefter (55/44), junior D Kim Lorenzen (54/45), junior D Christie Shaner (54/48), junior defensive M Jill Krivacek (54/31) and sophomore F Amanda Cinalli (31/27).

CALIFORNIA GIRLS – Notre Dame’s all-time playing roster includes 21 California natives (most from any state), led by All-Americans LaKeysia Beene, Cindy Daws, Jen Renola and Rosella Guerrero (plus current U.S. National Team standout Shannon Boxx) … the ’05 roster includes northern California native Miranda Ford (a D/M from Portola Valley and Palo Alto HS) and two players from southern California: sophomore M/D Ashley Jones (Westlake Village/Westlake HS) and freshman center back Carrie Dew (Encinitas/La Costa Canyon HS) … ND assistant coach Dawn Greathouse was a goalkeeper with the WUSA’s San Jose CyberRays in the ’02 and ’03 seasons (Beene and former ND defender Kelly Lindsey also played for the Cyber Rays) … here’s a look at some of ND’s top all-time players from California:

• G LaKeysia Beene (Gold River), played with San Jose CyberRays and U.S. National Team, All-American at ND
• M Shannon Boxx (Torrance), standout defensive midfielder with WUSA’s San Diego Spirit, N.Y. Power’s ’03 MVP, then named to all-tournament team at 2003 World Cup and won 2004 Olympic gold medal as top defensive midfielder with U.S.
• M Cindy Daws (Northridge), the 1996 national college player of the year
• F Monica Gerardo (Simi Valley), played two-plus seasons with WUSA’s Washington Freedom, now assistant at Univ. of Pittsburgh
• F Rosella Guerrero (Sacramento), clutch goalscorer and one of senior leaders of 1995 NCAA title team, an All-American at ND
• G Michelle Lodyga (Mission Viejo), one of early leaders of Irish program
• G Jen Renola (Los Gatos), shutouts in all four 1995 NCAA games, NSCAA

TOURNEY-TESTED – Notre Dame owns a 97-25-7 all-time record in tournament action, including 41-13-6 (.733) in regular-season tournaments (21-3-2 at home), 25-2-0 in conference tournaments and 31-11-1 in the NCAAs … since 1994, the Irish are 29-6-3 in regular-season tournaments (with 20 of those wins coming vs. NSCAA ranked teams) … the Irish own a 50-11-2 overall record in tournament play during the Randy Waldrum era (’99-’05), including 21-4-1 in regular-season tournament action … since losing to Santa Clara and Portland (the teams that went on the play in the ’02 NCAA title game) at the 2002 Notre Dame Classic, the Irish are unbeaten in their past 14 regular-season tournament games (13-0-1) … here’s a look at Notre Dame’s recent tournament play:

Notre Dame in Tournament Action (Waldrum era, 1999-2005)
1999 (8-3-1) – 1-1-0 at tournament in Klein, Texas … 1-1-0 at ND Classic … 3-0-0 at BIG EAST Tournament … 3-1-1 at NCAAs
2000 (10-1-0) – 2-0-0 at ND Classic … 2-0-0 at Portland Classic … 3-0-0 at BIG EAST Tournament … 3-1-0 at NCAAs
2001 (6-1-0) – 2-0-0 at ND Classic … 3-0-0 at BIG EAST Tournament … 1-1-0 at NCAAs
2002 (4-3-0) – 0-2-0 at ND Classic … 2-0-0 at Maryland Classic … 2-1-0 at NCAAs
2003 (7-2-1) – 2-0-0 at UConn Classic … 2-0-0 at ND Classic … 1-0-1 at SCU Classic … 1-0-1 at BE Tourn. … 1-1-0 at NCAAs
2004 (10-1-0) – 2-0-0 at ND Classic … 2-1 at BIG EAST Tournament … 6-0-0 at NCAAs
2005 (4-0-0) – 2-0-0 at UVm Classic … 2-0-0 at ND Classic

Totals: 21-4-1 in regular-season tournaments … 13-2-0 in BIG EAST Tournament … 16-5-1 in NCAAs (50-11-2 overall)

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2005 ND Classic All-Tournament Picks (from left): Katie Thorlakson, Kerri Hanks, Carrie Dew, Jen Buczkowski and Candace Chapman.

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FRIEND OR FOE? – Notre Dame’s geographically-diverse roster includes several players who are former teammates with members of this week’s opponents:

• ND’s four Chicago natives have played on various teams with SCU junior G Julie Ryder … ND junior M Jen Buczkowski played alongside Ryder on the U.S. Under-19 National Team, state and Region II ODP teams, the Eclipse Select club and the W-League’s Chicago Cobras … fellow junior M Jill Krivacek also played with Ryder on state ODP and the Eclipse (as did junior D Kim Lorenzen, in addition to playing with Ryder on Region II) … ND freshman M/F Brittany Bock has played on teams with Ryder at the state ODP and youth national-team level.

• ND newcomer Bock has past playing experience with several other SCU players, including: Brittany Klein (u-20 national team camp), Meagan Snell (u-19 national camp), Courtney Lewis (u-17 national team), Meagan McCray (u-16 and u-17 national teams), and Hayley Siegel and Amanda Poach (both with u-16/17/20 national teams).

• Sophomore M/D Ashley Jones could face several former teammates in the SCU game: Klein and Snell (both with Cal-South and Region IV ODP), Kira Sarkesian and Dani Potts (both Region IV) and Lewis (Cal-South) … Klein, Snell and Lewis were members of the Cal-South team that won the ’04 ODP nationals (Jones and current ND freshman D Carrie Dew were captains of that team).

• Dew’s other ties to SCU include: Klein, Snell, McCray and Potts on the U-17 National Team; Klein, Tina Estrada, Potts and Jordan Angeli on the U.S. U-19 regional team; and Angeli, Snell, Potts and Sarkesian on ODP Region IV.

• ND senior M Annie Schefter and SCU senior D Jessica Ballweg were ODP Region II teammates while Schefter played on the Washington state ODP team with Gonzaga’s Beth Drollinger and Megan Trammell.

• ND freshman M Beth Koloup played alongside Poach and Siegel with the Bethesda Excel club and Maryland state ODP.

• ND junior Molly Iarocci and SCU’s Tiffany Roberts were teammates on the Sereno (Ariz.) Golden Eagles.

WEEK-2 QUICK NOTES – ND has scored 4-plus goals in the first four games for the first time in the program’s history … Randy Waldrum’s first season (’99) was the previous time that an Irish team posted 4-plus goals in four straight games (at any time in a season), with the ’99 team ultimately scoring 4-plus in seven straight games ( 7-1 vs. Miami, 9-2 at Wisconsin, 4-1 at Indiana, 5-0 vs. Miami, 5-0 vs. Seton Hall, 4-2 vs. UConn and 5-1 vs. Dayton) … since a 3-2 loss to BYU on 10/19/02, ND has trailed in just 11 of the past 59 games for 283 of 5,390 minutes (5.3%), going 52-5-2 in that stretch … since ’94, the Irish are 29-6-3 in regular-season tournaments (20 wins vs. NSCAA ranked teams) … ND has allowed just 27 first-half goals in the ’01-’05 seasons (96 GP; 0.28/gm), including just five opponent 1st-half goals in the ’04 (4) and ’05 (1) seasons (31 GP) … senior G Erika Bohn has made 72 career starts, going 56-11-2 in official decisions with the Irish … junior M Jen Buczkowski and senior M Annie Schefter have played in all 55 games of the ’03-’05 seasons … three juniors – left back Christie Shaner (52), central D Kim Lorenzen (45), M/F Lizzie Reed (44) and defensive M Jill Krivacek (39) – also have noteworthy streaks of consecutive games played (each has played in 54 of 55 games in their careers) … the Irish own a 210-game winning streak when claiming a 2-0 lead (232-0-1 all-time), are 217-3-1 when scoring 3-plus goals (119-1-0 since 10/6/95) and 303-9-12 when holding the opponent to 0-1 goals (108-3-5 since 9/9/99) … the past 123 opponents to face a 2-0 deficit vs. the Irish have been unable to even tie the score (since ’96 BIG EAST title game) … ND is 168-14-3 all-time at Alumni Field (119-4-2 vs. teams not ranked in NSCAA poll), including 135-11-3 in the regular-season (.916).

RECAPPING THE PREVIOUS NOTRE DAME-SANTA CLARA GAMES

at #6 ND 1, #7 SCU 0 (10/8/95) – Monica Gerardo’s goal in the 52nd minute (assisted by Holly Manthei and Michelle McCarthy) provides the only scoring … SCU holds a 12-7 shot edge and 9-0 corner-kick margin … Gerardo scores after slipping behind the defense and taking a feed from McCarthy .. SCU’s Mikka Hansen clangs a 12-yard shot off the far post in the 27th minute.

at #9 SCU 3, #1 ND 1 (10/13/96) – ND’s team-record 24-game win streak ends, in front of a Buck Shaw Stadium record crowd (3,714) … SCU’s Mikka Hansen opens the scoring in the 28th minute before Irish D Kate Fisher knocks home a 25-yard shot shortly before halftime … Hansen’s cross sets up Jacqui Little’s header in the 58th minute and Samantha Obara’s breakaway (83rd minute) caps the scoring, 10 min. after ND freshman D Jen Grubb was red-carded (forcing ND to play with 10).

at #1 SCU 4, #6 ND 2 (10/17/99) – SCU scores 4 in an early 9-minute span, before another record crow (4,051) at Buck Shaw … Aly Wagner scores twice (first on PK) while Mandy Clemens and Devyn Hawkins (header) round out the scoring spree … 2nd-half goals by ND’s Anne Makinen and Jen Grubb cap the scoring … the Broncos finish with a 16-8 shot edge and a 6-3 corner-kick margin.

#5 ND 1, #1 SCU 0 (12/3/99, NCAA semifinal, San Jose) – SCU fails to cash in a 17-3 shot advantage (plus 7-1 on corner kicks) while Ali Lovelace scores in the 75th minute … fellow freshman Nancy Mikacenic sets up the goal with a mid-field header on a kick from SCU `keeper Crystal Gordon … Lovelace races down the left side and rolls a crossing shot past Gordon’s outstretched body for her fourth goal of ’99 (all in the postseason) … LaKeysia Beene makes seven saves for the Irish while stopping several other tough crosses and thru-balls … 14,006 fans at Spartan Stadium represent the largest crowd ever to see an NCAA women’s soccer semifinal or final.

at #4 ND 6, #2 SCU 1 (9/8/00) – Anne Makinen has a hand in half of the ND goals while drawing postgame praise from SCU coach Jerry Smith as “the best overall player in college soccer” … SCU plays without two top players (D Danielle Slayton/ Olympic team; M Aly Wagner/quad pull) … Meotis Erikson notches the first goal on a clever move in the 18th minute … after SCU senior F Kathleen Celio scores, a thru-ball from Makinen sets up another tricky goal (from speedy Amy Warner) … with SCU pressing for the equalizer midway through the 2nd half, Makinen’s outlet springs Amanda Guertin for the critical third Irish goal … the hosts tack on three more scores in the final 10 minutes, including a PK from Makinen and a pair of goals from junior reserve Kelly Tulisiak … Liz Wagner makes six timely saves for the biggest win of her first season as the Irish starter (until the next ND-SCU game) … the game marks the first time SCU is outshot in 19 games and is the most goals by a SCU opponent in 20 years (ND also becomes the first SCU opponent with 20-plus shots since ’94).

at #1 ND 2, #24 SCU 1, OT (11/24/00, NCAA quarterfinal) – Meotis Erikson scores in the 5th minute of OT, sending #1 ND to the NCAA semifinals for the 6th time in 7 seasons … SCU forces OT in dramatic fashion (Anna Kraus blast from outside the box, 88th minute) and dominates scoring chances (18-4 shots, 9-3 CKs) but Liz Wagner makes several fantastic stops as part of her 8 saves … the physical game features 19 fouls by each team … ND plays most of the game without ace def.-M Ashley Dryer (inj. 26th minute) … two freshmen set up the GWG, as Amanda Guertin chases down a loose ball in the left corner and threads a pass down the endline … Randi Scheller then keeps the ball moving through the penalty area and Erikson converts at the near left post … Erikson earlier set up the first goal with a pass to Ali Lovelace, who ripped a crossing shot from the top left corner (17th minute).

#13 SCU 4, at #6 ND 0 (9/6/02) – USC transfer Megan Kakadelas scores the first goal and had the primary assist on another score five minutes later as SCU breaks open a tight game … ND holds a 7-5 CK edge while SCU owns the shot edge (13-9) … ND ace defender Vanessa Pruzinsky returns from injury but plays only the first half … SCU then takes advantage of her departure by scoring four 2nd-half goals … Kristi Candau (2) and Micaela Esquivel also score (vs. Lauren Kent) .. the game ends ND’s scoring streak at 31 games and represents the program’s largest margin of defeat ever at home (first home shutout loss since ’92).

#2 ND 2, at #18 SCU 1 (9/21/03) – The Irish defense limits SCU to one shot on goal and one corner kick while Katie Thorlakson and Mary Boland assist each other’s goals to hand the Broncos their first-ever loss in the SCU Classic … Thorlakson, (offensive MVP) provides the leftside cross that Boland sweeps into the far side of the goal and later bangs home Boland’s deflected shot at the left post for the 76th-minute GWG … Marian Dalmy’s goal in the 63rd minute ultimately would be one of just two times all season that a team came back to tie the Irish … the game is played in intense heat, with clever substitution by ND allowing Amy Warner to rest before returning to initiate the GWG sequence … ND holds a 14-5 shot edge (6-1 in CKs).

#2 ND 5, #4 SCU 2 (9/5/04) – Katie Thorlakson factors into all five goals as ND uses a late flurry to defeat SCU in the Adidas Classic … ND starts slow but finishes with a bang, scoring three times in a 4-minute span after SCU had forged a 2-2 tie in the 81st minute … the Irish finish with a 13-8 edge in total shots (10-4 shots on goal) while the Broncos hold a 6-3 margin in CKs … SCU twice ties the game in the 2nd half, only to see the Irish quickly retake the lead … Thorlakson posts the first hat trick of her career and adds assists on the 1st and 4th ND goals (her 8 pts are most ever by an ND player vs. a top-25 team and she is the 3rd ND player to post a hat trick vs. a top-10 foe) … she duplicates her ND record from the previous week vs. Baylor by scoring or assisting on the team’s first five goals … her 8 points vs. SCU are most by an Irish player in 6 years and one shy of the then-ND record … 7 of her 8 eight points come in the 2nd half (3G-1A), tying another ND record she already shared with two others … the Irish finally break through when Thorlakson serves a free kick from the right corner and Jen Buczkowski is in position at the near post for a header into the right side (38:02) … SCU ties it when Jordan Angeli’s rightside cross skips through the box, ND fails to clear and Leslie Osborne pokes the loose ball into the far left side (63:39) … 90 seconds later, Thorlakson breaks free into the right side and is tackled hard to set up a PK (rising shot into the left side of the net, at 65:19) … SCU ties it again when Osborne sends a low, sharp cross from the left endline … Erika Bohn makes a play on the ball but it squirts through her hands, with Megan Kakadelas knocking home the deflection (80:59) … ND again answers, after just 2:03 had elapsed, as Buczkowski sends a thru-ball and Thorlakson drills a far-post shot into the left side for the 3-2 lead (83:02) … three minutes later, Thorlakson launches a cross from the right sideline, Annie Schefter makes a slight redirection of the ball in the center of the box and Candace Chapman is waiting at the far post to ram home the goal (85:33) … the final tally comes 68 seconds later, set up by a booming punt from Bohn … the ball bounces into the right side of the box and Thorlakson chips her shot over charging ‘keeper Julie Ryder to complete the three-goal flurry (86:41) and give Bohn a rare ‘keeper assist.

#2 ND 1, #4 SCU 0 (12/3/04; NCAA semifinal) – Two of the top programs in women’s soccer history meet at SAS Stadium in the College Cup semifinals, as ND faces SCU for the second time in 2004 … it marks the fourth time in the program’s history that the Irish have played three-plus rematch games in the same NCAA tournament … SCU is 4th in the coaches poll but somehow seeded 16th in the NCAA field, battling to another high-stakes showdown with Notre Dame … SCU is making its 10th appearance in the semi’s and ND its 7th, with only UNC owning more semifinal appearances than the Broncos and Irish … the game marks the 8th ND-SCU meeting in the span of six seasons and is the 3rd time the heavyweights have met in the late rounds of the NCAAs, with the Irish previously topping the Broncos in the ’99 semifinals and ’00 quarterfinals … this game proves to be just as tight as the previous NCAA meeting, with the wide-open and bruising game featuring a handful of prime scoring looks … the Broncos are unable to cash in a couple of early scoring chances while the Irish convert a textbook sequence in the 73rd minute … Candace Chapman and Katie Thorlakson produce the goal on a give-and-go play, minutes after coming out of the TV timeout … the big-game veterans are not shaken by the electric atmosphere and the sellout crowd of 8,300-plus, as Chapman initiates a rush down the center of the field before playing the ball off to Thorlakson on the right side of the box … Thorlakson – who had scored (4) or assisted (3) on ND’s previous seven goals vs. SCU – adds another assist, making a touch on the ball and drawing the defenders to her before quickly sending the ball back to her left … Chapman still is filling the middle and traps the ball off her chest before sending a low 12-yard shot inside the left post … the play gives Thorlakson a G/A on 23 of ND’s previous 27 scores … the Irish finish with an 11-3 shot edge but SCU posts a rare corner-kick edge (6-5) vs. an ND team that allowed just 37 corners in the 25 previous games … the win produces ND’s nation-leading 16th shutout … Notre Dame becomes the second Div. I women’s soccer program ever to reach 24 wins in multiple seasons and improves to 5-1 in it past six NCAA semifinal games.

DOUBLE-DIGIT DEBUT – No Notre Dame freshman had a double-digit goalscoring season from 2001-03 but Amanda Cinalli changed that trend with a 10-game season in 2004 … current freshman Kerri Hanks (10) already has become the program’s 18th freshman with a double-digit goal season and needs two more goals to reach the top-10 on the ND freshman goalscorers list (only five ND freshmen have scored more than 15 goals in their debut season).

Notre Dame Freshmen with Double-Digit Goals (see PDF for list)

FANTASTIC FRESHMENKerri Hanks (10) already is nearly halfway to the ND record for goals by a freshman (23, by Anne Makinen in ’97) and has fashioned an early pace that could see her post one of the top freshman goal totals in NCAA history … no Division I women’s soccer freshman has reached 30 goals since 1996, with the top freshman goalscoring seasons belonging to SMU’s Lisa Cole (37, in 1987), Baylor’s Molly Cameron (32, in 1996) and Washington State’s Kim Lynass (30, in 1990) … Cameron – who played for current ND head coach Randy Waldrum when he was the founding coach of the Baylor program – is the only freshman in the previous 14 seasons to reach 30 goals.

HANKS SETS RECORDS, EARNS NATIONAL HONORS – Second-semester freshman Kerri Hanks opened her college career with an impressive weekend, as Soccer America named her its national player of the week while Soccer Buzz included her on its 12-player “elite team of the week” … the Dallas native also was named BIG EAST player of the week, after totaling 7G-1A in the pair of games at the Vermont Classic (3G-1A in 11-1 win over UNH, 4G in 6-0 win over UVm) … she then was named BIG EAST rookie of the week after totaling 3G at ND’s Inn at Saint Mary’s Classic (1G in 4-1 win over Florida, 2G in 6-0 win over #25 Maryland.

NATIONAL LEADER – The first weekly NCAA statistics show ND’s Kerri Hanks as the national leader in goals (10G-1A) and points (21) … Hanks (4, vs. Vermont) and Portland’s Christine Sinclair are the only players to score more than three goals in a game so far in the 2005 season.

BACK-TO-BACK BOOST – Kerri Hanks’ performance at the Vermont Classic represented the most goals ever scored by an ND player in consecutive games (7) … Cindy Daws (as a senior in ’96) and Meotis Erikson (’97) had shared that record with hat tricks in back-to-back games … Hanks joined Erikson as the only ND freshmen to post 3-plus goals in consecutive games.

SPRINT TO 10 – Kerri Hanks’ furious scoring streak to start the season has included tying the ND record for goals in a season opener (3) while setting ND records for most goals after the first two games (7), at the three-game mark (8) and after four games (10) … Mary Boland held the previous ND record for most goals after three games (6, in 2003), a mark that Hanks already had surpassed after playing just two games … in ND’s Inn at Saint Mary’s Classic, Hanks opened the scoring vs. Florida (4-1) by knocking in an Amanda Cinalli cross for a far-post goal in the 12th minute … she also opened the scoring vs. Maryland for the eventual GWG (6-0), sending in a deflected Katie Thorlakson shot, and added a highly-skilled goal for a 3-0 halftime lead vs. Terps (elevating for a flick-header via a long serve from Candace Chapman) … Hanks hit the post twice vs. Maryland, coming just shy of her bid for a third hat trick in the young ’05 season.

THREE-GOAL OPENER – The 11-1 win over New Hampshire featured Kerri Hanks becoming the first Irish freshman in 13 years to register a hat trick in the opener … Rosella Guerrero is ND’s only other freshman ever to register a hat trick in an opener (4-3 loss to N.C. State, in ’92) … Hanks is one of 21 all-time ND players to score a hat trick (14 have done so as freshmen) but she joined Amy Warner (in ’00) as the only Irish freshmen with hat tricks since ’97 … Hanks helped quickly end an early tie vs. UNH by assisting on a Susan Pinnick goal, later registering her hat trick in a 13-minute stretch … her hat trick vs. UNH included scoring on a one-timer inside the far-left post (pass from Maggie Manning), cashing in a Katie Thorlakson thru-ball inside the left post and later knocking in Thorlakson’s endline cross.

SHE KEEPS GOING AND GOINGKerri Hanks joined Monica Gerardo as the only ND players ever to score in the first four games of a season … Gerardo also did so as a freshman, ultimately scoring in the first five games of the national-title 1995 season … Hanks will have the chance to match Gerardo’s mark in the Sept. 9 game at Santa Clara … seven other ND players have scored in the first three games of a season (three sophomores, one junior and three seniors), with Gerardo and Hanks the only freshmen to score in at least the first three games … the other ND players who have scored in the first three games of a season include: Jodi Hartwig as a junior in ’93, McCarthy as a senior in ’95, Shannon Boxx as a sophomore in ’96, Jenny Streiffer and Jenny Heft as sophomores in ’97, and ’03 teammates Boland (jr.) and Amy Warner (sr.).

FOUR-GOAL GREATNESS – The second game of ’05 saw Kerri Hanks tie the ND record for goals in a game (4, in 6-0 win over Vermont) … she scored the first 3G vs. UVm in a 20-minute stretch and later joined teammate Katie Thorlakson as one of four ND players ever to score 4G in a game (Thorlakson had her 4-goal game in ’04, vs. St. John’s) … Hanks joined Monica Gerardo as the program’s only freshmen ever to score 4G in a game … Gerardo scored 4G vs. Indiana in ’95 and also had a 4G-game vs. Seton Hall in ’96 (as did Jenny Streiffer in ’97 vs. Georgetown) … opened the scoring vs. UVm on a 20-yard direct kick to the upper-right corner, later scoring on a tricky leftfooted far-post shot and then putting back a deflected shot (the final two goals were assisted by Amanda Cinalli) … she broke free for her final goal, on a shot to the lower left.

DOUBLE HAT TRICKS – Just two games into her college career, Kerri Hanks had joined Susie Zilvitis (’88) and Erikson (’97) as the only ND freshmen with two hat tricks in a season … the Irish record for hat tricks in a season (3) is shared by Cindy Daws (’96) and Jenny Heft (’98) while eight now have posted two HTs in the same season … the program’s first 17 seasons saw just 10 players register hat tricks in a season opener (6) or the second game (4) but Hanks did so in both game-1 and game-2 … she joined Rosella Guerrero and her fellow ’96 graduate Michelle McCarthy as the only Irish players with two career hat tricks in an opener or game-2.

BIG-TIME SCORING CLIP ¬- When Kerri Hanks scored her second goal vs. Maryland, it gave her 10G in just 225 minutes of game action (4G every 90 minutes she was on the field).

EARLY-SEASON HONORS – Two ND women’s soccer forwards were recognized by the BIG EAST Conference for their leading roles in wins over nationally-ranked teams Florida (4-1) and Maryland (6-0), as senior F Katie Thorlakson was named BIG EAST offensive player of the week while Kerri Hanks has earned her second league honor of ’05, as the league’s rookie of the week (after opening the season as BIG EAST offensive player of the week) … junior M Jen Buczkowski – who filled several roles at ND’s Inn at Saint Mary’s Classic – also was named to the BIG EAST’s week-2 honor roll … three ND players have been named to the honor roll during each of the past two weeks, with Hanks previously collecting offensive player-of-the-week honors (for Aug. 22-28) while sophomore M/D Ashley Jones and freshman M/F Brittany Bock also were among the first-week honor roll selections … all-tournament selections at the Vermont Classic included Thorlakson (2G-4A), Hanks (7G-1A), Jones and sophomore F Amanda Cinalli (1G-4A) while ND’s all-tournament picks in week-2 were Thorlakson (offensive MVP; 3G-3A), Buczkowski (defensive MVP; 1A), 5th-year D Candace Chapman (1A), Hanks (3G) and freshman D Carrie Dew … ND is the only team out of more than 300 in Division I to have produced three different players named to 2005 national teams of the week (Portland and Wake Forest are the only teams with two different national honorees) … Hanks received the honor from Soccer America and Soccer Buzz after her big opening week (SA named her national player of the week) while Thorlakson was tabbed by SA and Buczkowski by SB for their week-2 national teams of the week.

STRONG STARTERS – Notre Dame has rolled up a 27-2 scoring edge in 2005, matching the 1996 team for the most goals by an Irish squad in the first four games of the season … the ’05 team is the first in the ND program’s storied history ever to score 4-plus goals in each of the first four games of the season … the ND for consecutive games with 4-plus goals in eight, from Oct. 20-Nov. 24 of the 1996 season … the Irish just completed an impressive weekend vs. a pair of ranked teams (#11 Florida and #25 Maryland) by outscoring the opposition 10-1, with a 46-8 edge in total shots, 27-4 in shots on goal and 12-5 in corners … the Irish season stats now include a 63-10 shot edge (including 50-5 in first-half shots), plus 42-6 in shots on goal and 24-5 in CKs. BIG WIN – The 4-1 win over #11 Florida marked the sixth time in the Randy Waldrum era (since ’99) that the Irish have defeated an NSCAA top-20 opponent by 3-plus goals, also doing so vs. #16 Michigan in ’99 (4-1), vs. #2 Santa Clara (6-1) and #15 Washington (5-0, at Portland) in 2000, at #25 Maryland in ’02 (5-2) and vs. #4 SCU in ’04 (5-2).

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Carrie Dew’s strong play earned her a spot on the Notre Dame Classic all-tournament team.

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DEW-JONES REPORT – Notre Dame’s biggest losses from the ’04 national championship team came in the defensive third, as the only departed starters were senior center backs Melissa Tancredi and Gudrun Gunnarsdottir while one of the top outside backs (Kate Tulisiak) also graduated … two former teammates on the Cal-South state ODP team – freshman Carrie Dew and sophomore Ashley Jones – have been among the solutions for the new-look back line (they previously were captains on the Cal-South team that won the 2004 ODP national title) … Dew has emerged as a top starter at a central defender spot while Jones has been a candidate at outside back, allowing juniors Christie Shaner and Kim Lorenzen to get some looks at the central role … Jones played as a midfielder and defender in the opening week of the ’05 season and her strong play earned a spot on the Vermont Classic all-tournament team (she played the full 90 minutes in the 6-0 win over Vermont) … Jones also played the first 60 minutes as the starting left back vs. Florida, as Shaner missed the start due to illness … Dew knocked in a corner kick vs. Maryland and earned all-tournament honors at ND’s Inn at Saint Mary’s Classic, after helping the Irish outscore the Gators 10-1, with a 46-8 edge in total shots, 27-4 in shots on goal and 12-5 in corner kicks … Dew and Jones have helped the Irish rack up a 27-2 season scoring edge, plus 63-10 in shots (50-5 in 1st-half shots), 42-6 in shots on goal and 24-5 in CKs … set up the game-winning goal vs. Maryland, playing pass to Katie Thorlakson that led to a Kerri Hanks rebound goal … in addition to helping Cal-South win the national ODP title, Dew and Jones have played for club teams that won USYSA national titles (Dew with the San Diego Surf girls-16 team in 2003 and Jones with the girls-18 SoCal United in ’04).

IT TAKES TWO – Notre Dame’s lone loss of the ’04 season saw the Irish claim a 1-0 lead at UConn in the BIG EAST title game … the Irish then had several cracks at the magical 2-0 cushion that has proven to be insurmountable in the 18-year history of ND women’s soccer (instead, UConn rallied for the 2-1 win) … the Irish now are 233-0-1 all-time when claiming a 2-0 lead and have won 210 straight games when stretching out to a 2-0 cushion, dating back to Sept. 15, 1991 (when Vanderbilt ultimately forced a 3-3 tie) … there have been only two other games in the program’s history when the Irish gave up a 2-0 lead (but still went on to win): a 4-3 win over UConn in the ’96 BIG EAST title game (the Irish led 3-0 but the Huskies scored three straight) and a 3-2 win over Duke at a ’93 tournament in Houston … the past 123 opponents to face a 2-0 deficit vs. the Irish have been unable to even tie the score (since ’96 BE title game).

INJURY UPDATE – Notre Dame has played this season without three injured players – senior D/M Jenny Walz (meniscus), freshman M/D Kerry Inglis (ankle) and sophomore M/F Jannica Tjeder (out for season due to knee surgery) – while freshman M Becca Mendoza recently joined the team after completing summer play with the Mexican National Team … Walz recently began practicing with the team and could see her first action of the ’05 season at the SCU Classic.

THE SET-UP – Current sophomore F/M Amanda Cinalli became the 16th Notre Dame freshman to score double-digit goals (10, in 2004) but she totaled just 5 assists in that 27-game season … Cinalli already has matched that assist total in ’05, with a pair of 2-assist games at the Vermont Classic (plus a goal in the 11-1 win over UNH), a header that ended up being the GWG vs. Florida (4-1) and the primary assist on the Kerri Hanks goal that opened the scoring vs. Maryland (6-0) … Cinalli’s versatile and strong all-around skills have allowed her to serve as both a forward and midfielder in ’05, thus opening up the attack to better utilize the team’s deep offensive talent.

POTENT TRIO – Senior Katie Thorlakson (5G-7A) and freshman Kerri Hanks (10G-1A) have combined with sophomore Amanda Cinalli (2G-5A) to form a potent forward trio that already has totaled 17 goals and 13 assists (47 points) in four games this season.

TRENDY – Here’s a look at some of the Notre Dame players’ scoring and games-played trends:

Katie Thorlakson – 74 consecutive GP (entire career)
Jen Buczkowski – 0G-2A in last 11 GP (8G-10A in previous 20 GP), 55 straight GP
Annie Schefter – 0G-5A in last 19 GP (4G-3A in previous 12 GP), 55 straight GP
Christie Shaner – 52 straight GP (54 of 55 GP in career)
Kim Lorenzen – 45 straight GP (54 of 55 GP in career)
Lizzie Reed – 44 straight GP (54 of 55 GP in career)
Jill Krivacek – 39 straight GP (54 of 55 GP in career)

NOTRE DAME VETERANS CAREER HIGHS
Katie Thorlakson – 4 goals (vs. St. John’s ’04) … 4 assists (vs. UNH ’05) … 10 points (4G-2A, vs. SJU ’04)
Candace Chapman – 2 goals (vs. Pitt ’01, BAY, SHU ’04) … 5 points (2G-1A, vs. SHU ’04)
Annie Schefter – 2 goals (vs. WKU ’03) … 2 assists (vs. Hartford ’03) … 5 points (2G-1A, vs. WKU ’03)
Jen Buczkowski – 2 goals (vs. OK, LOY ’03) … 2 assists (vs. BAY, SHU, SJU ’04) … 5 points (2G-1A vs. OK ’03)
Amanda Cinalli – 2 goals (vs. BAY, PORT ’04) … 2 assists (vs. MICH ’04; vs. UNH, UVm ’05) … 5 points (2G-1A vs. BAY ’04)
Kim Lorenzen – 3 points (1G-1A vs. SJU ’04)
Lizzie Reed – 3 points (1G-1A vs. SJU ’04)

Erika Bohn’s most saves in a game – 7 vs. Villanova (’02; 1-2), 6 vs. Rutgers (’02; 1-0) and Georgetown (’04; 2-1)

PUNCHING THE CLOCK – Current senior F Katie Thorlakson missed the first two games of her ND career due to the 2002 Under-19 World Championship but has not missed a game since joining the Irish (75 straight) … senior M Annie Schefter (missed ’02 due to injury) and junior M Jen Buczkowski each have appeared in all 55 games over the past two seasons while four juniors have played in 54 of the 55: D Christie Shaner (52 straight, dnp vs. ASU in ’03), D Kim Lorenzen (45, dnp vs. Indiana State in ’03), F/M Lizzie Reed (44, dnp vs. West Virginia in ’02) and DM Jill Krivacek (39, dnp vs. UConn in ’03).

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Jen Buczkowski completed the rare career double of earning offensive MVP (’03) and defensive MVP (’05) at Notre Dame’s annual home tournament.

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FIRST-HALF FORTRESS – The Notre Dame defense has been particularly stingy in the 1st half the past five seasons (’01-’05), allowing just 27 goals in the 1st half of those 95 games (0.28/gm) … the 1st half in ’02 saw little scoring (12-10 ND edge), compared to a 40-7 first-half edge in ’03 (30-4 in ’04, while allowing just 64 first-half shots and 15 corner kicks) … the Irish have been equally dominant in the first (81-12) and second half (83-16) over the past three seasons (’03-’05), including 11-1 in the first half and 16-1 in the second half during the ’05 season.

WEEK-1 NOTES – Notre Dame opened play at the Vermont Classic with wins over New Hampshire (11-1) and the host Catamounts (6-0) … senior Katie Thorlakson set the ND record for points in an opener (8; 2G-4A vs. UNH) while freshman Kerri Hanks set the ND record for goals in back-to-back games (7; 3G-1A vs. UNH, 4G vs. UVm) … the 17 goals are 2nd-most ever by the Irish in the first two games of a season (behind the 20 scored by the ’96 team, which won 14-0 at Providence and 6-0 at Boston College) … the 17 goals rank as 6th-most ever by the Irish in consecutive games (any time in a season) and are the most since the ’97 team posted big wins over Georgetown (9-0) and Wisconsin (10-0) … the 11 goals vs. UNH marked the 3rd time in the program’s 18-year history that the Irish have registered double-digit goals in the season opener and are most in an opener since the 14-0 win at PC in ’96 … just five previous games in the program’s history (spanning nearly 400 games) have seen the Irish score more goals – with the UNH game representing the most goals by ND in 205 games (since an 11-0 win over West Virginia, on Oct. 25, 1996) … ND has won six straight openers and 11 of its past 12 season-opening games, with the lone loss coming in double-OT vs. North Carolina during the first game under current head coach Randy Waldrum (in ’99) … the Irish have won their past three season openers by a combined score of 27-4 … since the 11-0 win over West Virginia in the middle of the ’96 season, the Irish had reached double-digit goals just once (10-0 vs. Georgetown, on 10/1/99) prior to the UNH game … it was the 16th double-digit scoring game in the program’s history … the only ND openers with more goals have been the ’96 game at PC (14-0) and a 12-0 win at LaSalle to open the ’93 season … ND now is 16-2 all-time in season openers (the other loss was the ’92 game vs. N.C. State) … the only times ND has scored more goals in a game: 17-0 vs. Tri-State (’89), 14-0 vs. PC (’96), 12-0 at Loyola and at LaSalle (both in ’93) and 12-1 vs. Valparaiso (’90) … the seven different goalscorers vs. UNH – Kerri Hanks (3), Katie Thorlakson (2), Brittany Bock (2), Susan Pinnick, Maggie Manning and Jill Krivacek – equaled the most in a Waldrum-era game at ND (also in ’01 vs. SJU and ’03 vs. North Texas).

BIG-TIME HELPER – Current sophomore M/D Ashley Jones had four assists in 2004 and each held up as the primary assist on gamewinning goals … two of those big passes came in the postseason: on Jen Buczkowski’s goal vs. #19 Boston College in the BIG EAST semifinals and the leftside cross on Candace Chapman’s header vs. #15 UConn in the NCAA third round … Jones earlier had set up Buczkowski’s goal vs. #20 BC in the regular season (1-0) and also assisted on Maggie Manning’s early goal in the 3-0 win at Texas Tech … Katie Thorlakson led the ’04 team with 6 GWAs, followed by Jones (4) and Buczkowski (3).

HOME IS WHERE THE WINS ARE – The 2004 NCAA quarterfinal win over Portland gave ND its 7th unbeaten season at home (14-0-1) and first since the ’00 team went 15-0-0 at home … others are ’91 (10-0-0), ’93 (8-0-0), ’94 (8-0-0), ’96 (14-0-0) and ’97 (11-0-1).

IRISH UNMATCHED IN THE CLASSROOM – Notre Dame’s 2004 national championship team actually was overflowing with players who owned strong Academic All-America credentials (the CoSIDA team recognizes “starters or top reserves” who have a GPA of at least 3.20), with current senior G Erika Bohn receiving 2004 first team Academic All-America honors (she now owns a 3.67 cumulative GPA, as an art studio major) while current senior M Annie Schefter (3.76, psychology and pre-professional science) was a 2nd-team selection … other top scholars on the 2004 team included ’05 graduate and central back Gudrun Gunnarsdottir (3.31 prior to ’04 season, as finance major) and current junior D/M Kim Lorenzen (3.24, finance) … as a group, the ND women’s soccer team followed up the nation title by posting a 3.38 team GPA in the 2004 fall semester and then a 3.35 in the spring of ’05 that ranked 2nd-best among ND’s 26 varsity sports … ’05 graduated F Mary Boland (spring ’05) joined current sophomore M/D Ashley Jones and sophomore F/M Jannica Tjeder in posting 4.0 semester GPAs during 2004-05.

BLAME IT ON RIO? (actually … Campinas) – Notre Dame’s 2000 team had a preseason training trip to Brazil and went on to claim the No. 1 ranking before advancing to the NCAA semifinals (as the top seed) … the ’04 team (10 days in Brazil, 6 weeks at #1) then duplicated that pattern and advanced all the way to claiming the NCAA title (as the #4 seed) … the Aug. 10-19 trip in 2004 (based in Campinas, Brazil) featured a 5-0-1 record and 16-3 scoring edge vs. top semi-pro women’s teams from the Sao Paulo area … the games attracted local spectators and included traditional exchange of gifts, plus group photos … the Irish enjoyed great camaraderie at the five-star Vitoria Hotel and soaked in the atmosphere at first-division men’s games at Ponta Preta and Guarani … meals included many exotic and tasty forms of pizza and the unique Brazilian steakhouses with table-top carvings of a variety of entrees … top scorers on the trip included Candace Chapman (4G), Katie Thorlakson (6A), Jannica Tjeder (3G-2A) and Ashley Jones (2G-3A).

ND RECORD BOOK (see PDF for updated charts)

THORLAKSON NAMED TO NATIONAL TEAM OF THE WEEK – Senior F Katie Thorlakson (Langley, B.C.) repeated as offensive MVP of ND’s annual home tournament and then was named to Soccer America’s national team of the week, after totaling 3G-3A in the wins over #11 Florida (2G-1A; 4-1) and #25 Maryland (1G-2A; 6-0) … she assisted on goals that held up as the gamewinners vs. the Gators and Terps while became 35th player in Div. I women’s soccer history (6th from ND) to reach 40G-40A in her career … she had corner-kick assists in both games (giving her 3 CK assists for the season, after 8 in ’04), providing CK service on Amanda Cinalli’s header for 2-0 lead on Florida … later volleyed in a Christie Shaner cross and converted a PK … was inches away from scoring earlier goal that would have helped produce her third career hat trick, drilling 25-yard shot off left post … her strong shot produced a Kerri Hanks rebound goal to open scoring vs. Maryland … added CK assist on Carrie Dew’s goal and later ripped 25-yard shot into sidenetting for 4-0 lead.

FOUR-TIME HONOREE – Katie Thorlakson has been named BIG EAST offensive player of the week four times in her career (Sept. 5, 2005, plus Aug. 30, Sept. 6 and Oct. 4 of 2004), tied for 3rd-most in the 11-year history of the BIG EAST awards … former Seton Hall standout and English national teamer Kelly Smith holds the BIG EAST record with six career offensive player-of-the-week honors (from ’97-’99), followed by former West Virginia forward Chrissie Abbott (5; from ’01-’03) and six others with four career honors (including Thorlakson) … 16 all-time ND players have combined for BIG EAST offensive player of the week 36 times, led by Thorlakson and three other four-time honorees: Monica Gerardo (95-96-98-98), Jenny Streiffer (96-97-97-99) and Jenny Heft (97-98-98-99) … two others – Anne Makinen (97-99-00) and Amy Warner (01-02-03) – have been two-time honorees while four have received the weekly offensive award twice: Michelle McCarthy (95), Amy Van Laecke (95-96), Meotis Erikson (97-00) and Mia Sarkesian (00-01) … others to receive the award include Holly Manthei and Cindy Daws in ’96, Amanda Guertin in ’01, Mary Boland in ’03, Amanda Cinalli in ’04 and Kerri Hanks in ’05 … ND’s 36 offensive player-of-the-week honors are well ahead of the second team on that list (UConn, with 27), followed distantly by WVU (12), SHU (8) and Villanova (8).

GETTING ON A ROLL – Katie Thorlakson’s 2G-1A vs. Florida represented the seventh time in the past two seasons (31 GP) that she has posted 5-plus points in a game (it was her ninth career mutli-goal game) … her only career road games with 5-plus points came at Michigan in 2004 (2G-2A) and in the ’05 opener vs. New Hampshire (2G-4A, at Vermont) … ND players have posted 8-plus points in a game 12 times, led by three from Katie Thorlakson (most by any player) … Monica Gerardo and Jenny Streiffer are the only other players ever to register 8-plus points in multiple games during their Irish career (each did so twice) … after the UNH game, Thorlakson had scored or assisted on 30 of Notre Dame’s previous 39 official fall-season goals … here are the top single-game point totals in Thorlakson’s career:

• 10 points vs. St. John’s (4G-2A) on Oct. 31, 2004 (8-0; BIG EAST quarterfinal, Alumni Field)
• 8 points vs. New Hampshire (2G-4A) on Aug. 26, 2005 (11-1; at Univ. of Vermont)
• 8 points vs. #4 Santa Clara (3G-2A) on Sept. 5, 2004 (5-2; at Alumni Field)
• 7 points vs. Baylor (2G-3A) on Aug. 7, 2004 (7-2; at Alumni Field)
• 6 points at Michigan (2G-2A) on Oct. 28, 2005 (4-0; at UM)
• 5 points vs. #11 Florida (2G-1A) on Sept. 2, 2005 (4-1; at Alumni Field)
• 5 points vs. Wisconsin-Green Bay (2G-1A) on Sept. 26, 2004 (4-0; at Alumni Field)

RECORD-SETTING OPENER ¬- Katie Thorlakson’s 2G-4A vs. New Hampshire represent the most points (8) ever by an ND player in a season opener … Thorlakson scored the opening goal vs. UNH and assisted on a Susan Pinnick score, later assisting on the final two Kerri Hanks goals and adding the corner-kick assist on Amanda Cinalli’s goal before scoring her own second goal of the game … that four-goal stretch, featuring 1G-3A from Thorlakson, covered just 5:13 on a scoreboard that saw the Irish lead jump from 3-1 to 7-1 … the 4-assist game marked the first of Thorlakson’s ND career … Thorlakson also had a big opener in ’04, with 2G-3A in the 7-2 win over Baylor … her points streak ended last weekend vs. Vermont, playing just 29 minutes as the Irish utilized their bench in that 6-0 win.

EVEN DOZEN – Katie Thorlakson’s points in the ’05 opener helped her tie an ND record by registering a point in 12 straight official fall games with the Irish … Anne Makinen had points in 12 consecutive games during the 1999 season but (like Thorlakson) did so in only 11 straight team games, as she missed four games that year while playing with the Finland National Team (she had a point in the game before departing for national-team duty and then recorded points in the 11 games after returning to action with the Irish).

IN THE RECORD BOOKS – Katie Thorlakson’s 129 points rank 11th in ND history (six shy of tying Shannon Boxx for 10th) … she also ranks 9th on the ND career assists list (45), just one behind Meotis Erikson and remains 12th on the goals list (42), just behind Susie Zilvitis (44) and Lester (45) … her 14 career game-winning assists are tied with Anne Makinen for 4th.

THE 40-40 CLUB – Notre Dame senior F Katie Thorlakson (42G-45A) recently became the 6th ND player and 35th in Div. I history to reach 40 goals and 40 assists in her career (she now has reached 42G-42A) … only 25 players in NCAA history have reached 43-43 while 22 have reached 44-44 and 21 have been 45G-45A players (20 have been 46-46, 19 have been 47-47 and 18 have been 48-48) … by totaling 7 more goals and 4 more assists, Thorlakson would become the 16th to reach 49G-49A.The NCAA 50-50 club includes 16 players, with three from ND players: Jenny Streiffer (70-71), Cindy Daws (61-67) and Anne Makinen (65-56) … Streiffer and Daws are two of five ever to reach 60-60 (listed below) while Streiffer and former UNC player Mia Hamm are the only 70-70 players … UNC (8) and ND (6) are the only teams to produce more than three players in the 40-40 club … the other ND players to reach 40-40 are Monica Gerardo (73-44) and Meotis Erikson (59-46) … Thorlakson needs 3G to become ND’s fifth player with 45-45 and is 5G-2A shy of becoming the program’s fourth to reach 47G-47A … Thorlakson needed just 11 games to go from 30G-30A to 40G-40A. Here’s a look at the 40-40 Club (see PDF):

Katie Thorlakson QUICK NOTES – Has averaged nearly 3.0 points per game in the past two seasons (28G-30A, 86 points in 31 GP), has points in 14 of ND’s past 15 games (17G-19A/53 pts; no pts vs. Vermont, after playing just 29 minutes) and has scored/assisted on 36 of ND’s past 55 goals (66%) … averaging 1.74 pts/gm in her career, 8th in ND record book and close to the Michelle McCarthy (1.75) and Holly Manthei (1.77) career averages … has played in 74 consecutive games with the Irish (her entire career) … now has totaled 60 points (20G-20A, 7 GWG) at Alumni Field during the ’04 and ’05 seasons, in 17 GP (3.53 ppg) … has 33 points in her past 8 home games (11G-11A) and has racked up 78 points at Alumni Field during the ’03-’05 seasons (27G-24A, 9 GWG in 33 GP).

NATIONAL LEADER – Katie Thorlakson again ranks 1st in the nation in assists (5), also 5th in and points (17) and one of three players with 8-plus points in a game (2G-4A vs. UNH)

SIX-PACK – Thorlakson in ’04 became the first ND player ever to score/ assist on team’s first five goals in game (vs. Baylor, again vs. #4 SCU) … she went one better by having a hand in first six scores vs. St. John’s, yielding even more impressive streak of 12 straight Irish goals in which she scored or assisted (she ended with a G/A on 24 of ND’s final 28 goals in ’04, dating back to the 2nd goal in the 3-1 win over SHU)

THORLAKSON HITS RARE 20-20 MILESTONE – Katie Thorlakson in 2004 joined an elite list of 10 all-time Division I players to reach 20 goals and 20 assists in a season but she then became part of an even more exclusive group, as one of five to reach 22G and 22A – before reaching 23G-23A when the dust had settled on the ’04 season (23G-24A) … former UNC great Mia Hamm (32G-33A, ’92) is the only Division I player ever to total more goals and more assists in a season than Thorlakson … six of the 20-20 players – former ND great Cindy Daws (26G-20A, ’96), the UNC trio of Hamm (32-33, ’92), Robin Confer (20-22, ’97) and Lindsay Tarpley (23-27, ’03), UConn’s Sarah Whalen (21-22, ’97) and Santa Clara’s Mandy Clemens (24-23, ’99) – each received some type of national player-of-the-year recognition during their 20-20 seasons … others on that short list include another former Irish player, Jenny Streiffer (22G-22A, ’96), four-time All-American and UC Santa Barbara legend Carin Jennings (20G-26A, ’86) and UNC Greensboro’s Kati Kantanen (24G-20A) … Thorlakson and Tarpley are the only 20-20 players in the past five seasons … Thorlakson joined Hamm, Tarpley, Clemens and Streiffer as the 5th player ever to reach 22G-22A … she ultimately joined Hamm, Tarpley and Clemens as the only “23-23” players.

THOR BRINGS THUNDER AND LIGHTNING – Katie Thorlakson led the nation in 2004 in assists (24) and points (70) while ranking 3rd in goals (23) … her 10 points vs. St. John’s (4G-2A) were 5th-most by a Div. I player in `04 (among players from 306 schools) while her 8 points vs. #4 Santa Clara tied for 8th and were most by any player vs. a top-25 opponent … she was the only player from a 2004 top-25 team who posted 8-plus points in a game (doing so twice) and was one of two players to post 8-plus points in multiple games during the ’04 season … she also was one of just two players in ’04 who posted 4- plus goals and 3-plus assists in games during the ’04 season … see PDF for 2004 final state leaders.

WHAT THEY SAID ABOUT Katie Thorlakson IN 2004

Santa Clara Head Coach Jerry Smith – “(Thorlakson) is a player with international experience and she can raise her level to whatever level it needs to be. Good forwards can be quiet for periods of a game and then turn it up. … I’m a coach that doesn’t emphasize the physical stature of a player. So I think Katie is an example of why you don’t have to be the biggest or the fastest. She has a nice combination of determination, grit and skillfulness. She has a great feel for the game. She reminds me of a player I used to watch in the ’70s, he played for Germany – Gurd Muller. He was a very small forward but was very crafty and sneaky. If you research Gurd Muller, you will know that’s a huge compliment to Katie. She is a terrific player and we have a lot of respect for her.”

Wisconsin Head Coach Dean Duerst (asked to compare Thorlakson and Tiffany Weimer of Penn State) – “They are very comparable and outstanding goalscorers. Weimer has some people around her that play her through a little bit more forward. She scores a lot more goals on just breakaways and she kind of just hides out there whereas Katie is very involved in every aspect of Notre Dame’s game. … They are two of the premier players that I’ve seen in the past few years in the country.”

Eastern Illinois Head Coach Stave Ballard – “Thorlakson is dynamic and does so many things. She knows the game well, she’s technical, she’s quick and she can do it 1-v-1 but she also shares the ball and that’s so nice to see. She is a complete player and I just love watching her play. It’s fortunate in soccer that you don’t have to be 6-foor-10 to be a dominant player, even on the men’s side you see players who are 5-5 who are dominant players. And (Thorlakson) is great in the air. She is 5-3 but she can get up with the best of them. She reads the flight of the ball. There are so many things she adds to that team and it’s a pleasure to watch that on the field.”

ND Head Coach Randy Waldrum – “Candace Chapman is readjusting to forward and Amanda Cinalli is still a young kid. Sometimes they aren’t in sync with Katie and we have to try different things. That all shows what Katie does because there have been several games where she’s had to carry the load. She is a tremendous model for the other kids to see, to play with her and see how she handles different situations. It amazes me how much she fights people off. She has been double- and triple-teamed the past month. That all makes her stats even more incredible. Most scoring players up front just score goals and don’t do anything else but Katie is in the game 90 minutes and she brings others in. You rarely find a player with those kind of stats on both sides, with goals and assists.”

BIG EAST 2004 AWARD RECAP

• Randy Waldrum received an unprecedented fourth BIG EAST coach-of-the-year award (also ’99, ’00, ’03; no other coach has more than two) … he also was ’98 Big 12 coach of the year (at Baylor) and twice was named Missouri Valley Conference men’s soccer coach of the year at Tulsa (’91, ’93) … Waldrum’s 23 coaching seasons (prior to ’05) include six NSCAA regional coach-of-the-year honors … he was the only Division I women’s soccer coach to repeat as an NSCAA region coach of the year (Great Lakes Region, in ’03 and ’04).

• Notre Dame’s seven all-BIG EAST selections were nearly double any other team (four schools each had four honorees).

• G Erika Bohn – despite ultimately leading the nation with a 0.41 goals-against average – again was overlooked for the BIG EAST awards (she was an NSCAA 2nd team all-region pick in ’03 but was not named all-BIG EAST).

• Melissa Tancredi became the third player to repeat as BIG EAST defensive player of the year, joining former Notre Dame great Jen Grubb (’98, ’99) and UConn’s Sara Whalen (’95, ’96)

• Katie Thorlakson amazingly was the first ND player ever named BIG EAST offensive player of the year, despite the fact that former M Cindy Daws (’96) and Anne Makinen (’00) earned the Hermann Trophy while others such as four-time All-American Holly Manthei (the NCAA all-time assists leader) and forward Jenny Streiffer (who joined Mia Hamm as the only women’s soccer players ever to reach 70 career goals and 70 assists) likewise could have preceded Thorlakson as BIG EAST offensive player-of-the-year recipients.

• Notre Dame became the first team since ’95 to sweep the top three BIG EAST awards – offensive (Thorlakson) and defensive (Tancredi) player and coach (Randy Waldrum) of the year … Thorlakson followed Tancredi’s ’03 lead as the only players ever to receive a major BIG EAST women’s soccer award after not being all-BIG EAST previously in their careers.

• Candace Chapman holds the unique distinction of earning all-BIG EAST honors at multiple positions, after being a 1st-team selection as a freshman and sophomore at right back (also ’02 BIG EAST defensive player of the year) and a 3rd-teamer as a forward in ’04.

• Jen Buczkowski followed in the footsteps of three all-time greats – Daws (`95, ’96), Makinen (`97-’00) and Manthei (`95-’97) – as the fourth Notre Dame midfielder to earn 1st team all-BIG EAST

• Thorlakson, Amanda Cinalli and Chapman became the fourth trio of forwards from the same team to earn all-BIG EAST, including Streiffer, Monica Gerardo (both 1st team) and Amy Van Laecke (2nd team) in 1996 followed by Jenny Heft, Gerardo (both 1st team) and Streiffer (2nd team) in ’98 … UConn produced three 1st-team forwards in ’95 (Jana Carabino, Kerry Connors, Christy Rowe).

• Thorlakson and Tancredi pulled off the offensive/defensive double, achieved just twice previously in the 10-year history of the BIG EAST women’s soccer awards (by Connors and Whalen with the ’95 and ’96 UConn teams) … Len Tsintaris also was the 1995 coach of the year, the only previous time that a BIG EAST team produced the offensive, defensive and coach awards in the same season.

• Christe Shaner, in the words of Waldrum, was ND’s “most consistent defender” in ’04 but she failed to improve on her 2nd team all-BIG EAST from ’03, slipping to 3rd team … the ’04 first team all-BIG EAST selections included just one defender (Tancredi).

• Irish players now have combined to win six of the past eight BIG EAST defensive player-of-the-year awards … ND’s previous recipients include former greats Kate Sobrero (’97) and Grubb (’98, ’99), plus Chapman in ’01 and Tancredi in ’03.

• Cinalli became ND’s eighth freshman ever to be a 1st-team all-BIG EAST selection, with others including Gerardo (’95), Streiffer (’96), Grubb (’96), Makinen (’97), Fs Meotis Erikson (’97) and Amy Warner (’00), and Chapman (’01) … two others – M Shannon Boxx (’95) and Shaner – were 2nd team all-BIG EAST picks as freshmen … ND produced a pair of 1st-team forwards for the second consecutive season (Warner and Mary Boland in ’03), with no other BIG EAST team including two 1st-team forwards since ’99 (Streiffer and Heft).

• 22 Notre Dame players now have combined for 1st team all-BIG EAST honors 38 times since ’95, with that group including 7 defenders combining 13 first-team awards, 4 midfielders (10 awards), 8 forwards (12 awards) and 3 goalkeepers.

NOTRE DAME PLAYER QUICK-FACT SHEET (see PDF for updated stats and bullet notes on ND staters and top reserves)

WALDRUM SURPASSES 300-WIN TOTAL – Seventh-year Notre Dame head coach Randy Waldrum posted his 200th career win as a Div. I women’s head coach in the 2-1 game vs. Miami on Nov. 2, 2003, and registered his 100th win at Notre Dame in the 3-0 game at Texas Tech on Sept. 12, 2005 … Waldrum served eight seasons as college men’s soccer head coach and now owns 306 combined wins as a men’s and women’s college head coach (306-125-24/.699, in 23-plus seasons) … Waldrum owns a 230-70-17 mark (.752) in 15-plus combined seasons as the women’s head coach at Tulsa, Baylor and ND (good for the 7th-best win pct. in the NCAA record book) … the Irish are 123-20-5 (.848) in the Waldrum era, including 49-4-2 over the past three seasons (.909) … Waldrum repeated as BIG EAST coach of the year in 2000 and became the first three-time BIG EAST women’s soccer coach of the year (in ’03), winning the award again in ’04 … he was the only repeat selection for NSCAA region coach-of-the-year honors in ’04 (Great Lakes Region) … in ’99, he became the only coach in the history of the NCAA women’s soccer championship to lead a team to the title game in his first season as that team’s head coach … he was the fourth 1st-year coach to take his team to the NCAA semifinals, beating #1 and unbeaten Santa Clara in San Jose … his women’s soccer record includes 61-36-9 at Tulsa (6 yrs), 46-14-3 at Baylor (3 yrs).

PRIMETIME POINTS – Junior defensive M Jill Krivacek has totaled 2G-1A (5 points) in six career NCAA Tournament games (3 GS), compared to 2G-4A (8 points) in the rest of her ND career (48 GP/28 GS) … the biggest of her postseason points came on the goal in the ’04 NCAA 2nd round vs. Wisconsin (1-0), when she headed in a Katie Thorlakson corner kick with just 53 seconds left in regulation.

HOME SWEET HOME – Notre Dame owns a 168-14-3 all-time record (.916) at Alumni Field, including 49-10-1 vs. NSCAA top-25 teams … 8 of ND’s last 10 home losses have been by a single goal … ND went unbeaten at home in the 2004 regular season (9-0-1), marking the 9th time in the program’s first 15 years at Alumni Field that ND did not lost a regular-season home game (all but ’90, ’92, ’95, ’02, ’03) … the Irish have won nearly 92% of their all-time regular-season home games at Alumni Field (135-11-3, .915), including four seasons with one loss … in 10 of the previous 11 seasons (all but ’03), the Irish have suffered 0-1 regular-season losses at home (99-7-3, .922 in that 11-year stretch) … ND added five postseason home wins in 2004 for a 14-0-1 home record that included a 47-7 scoring edge (avg. 3.1-0.4), plus 357-61 in shots (24-4), 178-30 in shots on goal (12-2) and 99-21 in corner kicks (7-1).

HOME GIRLS – Top scorers at Alumni Field in 2004 included junior F Katie Thorlakson (17G-17A, 51 pts, 3.4 ppg, 7 GWG), senior F Candace Chapman (9G-4A, 22 pts), sophomore M Jen Buczkowski (4G-8A, 16 pts, GWG) and junior M Annie Schefter (4G-6A, 14 pts, 2 GWG) … Thorlakson has totaled 33 points in her past eight home games (11G-11A) and has racked up 78 points at Alumni Field in the past three seasons (’03-’05; 27G-24A, 9 GWG in 33 GP) … Schefter has scored all 8 of her career goals (4 GWG) at home while Buczkowski has registered 8 of her 10 career goals and 31 of her 40 career points (78%) with the Irish in the confines of Alumni Field.

FRONTRUNNERS – Since a 3-2 loss to BYU on Oct. 19, 2002, ND has trailed in just 11 of 59 games for 283:06 (5.3% of 5,389:29), going 52-5-2 in that 59-game stretch … 5 of ND’s 10 deficits in that span have been 11 minutes or shorter while only three teams have led the Irish more than 40 minutes over that 51-game stretch (Michigan for 60, Boston College for 83, Pittsburgh for 41) … that Pittsburgh deficit represents the only time in the past 22 games that the Irish have trailed for more than 40 minutes (no team has led ND for more than 45 minutes since the 2003 BIG EAST semifinal vs. BC, a span of 33 games).

20-SOMETHING – Notre Dame in 2004 reached the 20-win plateau for the ninth time in a span of 11 seasons, going on to set the ND record for wins in a season (25-1-1) … the 1996 team held the previous record of 24 wins, with the Irish also posting 23 victories in 1994, ’97 and ’00, 21 wins in ’95, ’98 and ’99, and 20 Ws in ’03.

GOING THE DISTANCE – Notre Dame is unbeaten in its past 18 overtime games (13-0-5), since the 3-2, double-OT loss to UNC in the ’99 opener … prior to the 0-0 game vs. Rutgers in ’04, the Irish played 18 straight non-OT games (longest since the ’97 and ’98 teams combined for 31 straight non-OT games) … after the opening ’99 loss to UNC, that Irish team went on to post a 2-1, double-OT win at UConn and played to a 1-1 tie at Nebraska in the NCAA quarterfinals (adv. on PKs) … the 2000 team had OT wins over Stanford, at West Virginia and vs. Santa Clara in the NCAA quarterfinals (all 2-1) plus a 0-0 tie at UConn … ’01 featured an unprecedented five OT games (2-1 vs. Indiana, Villanova, WVU and Michigan; 2-2 vs. Wisconsin) while the ’02 team added 1-0 OT wins over Rutgers and BC … the ’03 team had a 0-0 tie with Stanford (at SCU) and OT wins over Villanova (1-0) and Miami (2-1, BE quarter’s) … the ’04 team played to a 1-1 tie with UCLA in the NCAA title (the Irish won, 4-3 on PKs).

BAM! … BUCZKOWSKI DOES IT AGAIN – Midfielder Jen Buczkowski did not register a gamewinning goal in the first 37 games of her ND career before delivering a pair of GWGs in the late moments of back-to-back 2004 wins at Georgetown (89:16; 2-1) and vs. #20 Boston College (79:06; 1-0) … three games later, she added her 3rd GWG in the 4-0 win at Michigan and then had the GWG in the BIG EAST semifinal vs. BC (2-0; giving her 4 GWGs in span of 5 wins) … Buczkowski also surged to 2nd among 2004 BIG EAST players with 11 assists, trailing only her teammate Katie Thorlakson’s 24 (tops in the nation in `04).

SHARING THE WEALTH IN OT – Notre Dame’s 13 overtime wins in the Waldrum era include goals from seven players (own goal vs. Stanford in ’00; PK win vs. UCLA in ’04 NCAA title game): Anne Makinen (vs. UConn, ’99), Amanda Guertin (ND record 4; vs. West Virginia in ’00, Michigan in ’01, Boston College in ’02, Miami in ’03 BIG EAST quarter’s), Meotis Erikson (vs. SCU in ’00 NCAA quarter’s), Kelly Tulisiak (vs. Indiana, ’01), Amy Warner (2; vs. Villanova in ’01, Rutgers in ’02), Mia Sarkesian (vs. WVU, ’01) and Katie Thorlakson (vs. Villanova, ’03) … Thorlakson is the only current player who has scored an OT goal with the Irish (she also was the only player on the ’04 team with an OT goal already to her credit) but three of her current teammates did convert PKs in the 2004 NCAA title-game shootout vs. UCLA: Jen Buczkowski, Annie Schefter and Jill Krivacek.

GOALS-A-PLENTY – Stretching from ’92-’05, the Irish have scored in 94.9% of their games (298 of 314) … since ’94, the Irish have scored in 260 of 273 (.952; three shutouts in NCAA title games) – with goals in 194 of 202 regular-season games (.960) over that 12-year stretch … ND saw its 31-game scoring streak (3rd-best in Irish history) end in ’02.

OT-TESTED … BUT RUSTY – ND is unbeaten in its past 18 overtime games and is 13-1-5 in OT in the Randy Waldrum era but the Irish have played to OT just twice in their past 34 games (0-0 vs. Rutgers, on Oct. 22, 2004; 1-1 NCAA title game vs. UCLA/4-3 in PKs).

MAGIC NUMBERS ¬- The 3-goal mark has been virtually an automatic win for ND, with the Irish 215-3-1 all-time (.984) when scoring 3-plus, losing to N.C. State in ’92 (4-3), UConn in ’95 (5-4, OT) and at Georgetown in ’02 (4-3), plus a 3-3 tie vs. Vanderbilt in ’91… the Irish had won 88 straight when scoring 3-plus, before the GU loss (now 120-1-0 since 10/6/95) … ND is 303-9-12 (.954) all-time when holding the opponent to 0-1 goals (108-3-5 since 9/9/99), including 1-0 losses in ’02 (vs. eventual NCAA champ Portland) and ’03 (at #1 Stanford) … prior to the UP loss, the Irish had been 56-0-3 in the previous 59 games when allowing 0-1 GA (dating back to 1-0 loss to SMU in ’99, playing minus All-American Anne Makinen) … the program’s 18-year history includes just 304 goals allowed in 397 games (0.77 GA/gm) … the Irish have allowed more than one goal in onl7y 73 all-time games (18%) and have yielded 3-plus goals in just 33 all-time games (8%; including two 6-goal games by the opponent, four 5-goal and six 4-goal) … 92% of ND’s all-time games have seen the Irish hold the opponent to 0-2 goals with a 323-26-15/.908 record in those games (ND is just 4-28-1 all-time when allowing 3-plus).

CORNERING THE MARKET – Dating back to the 2004 regular-season game vs. Rutgers (Oct. 22), Notre Dame has owned the corner-kick edge in 13 of its past 15 official fall games, finishing tied in CKs for one of those games (5-5 vs. UCLA in the NCAA title game) … Florida (4-3 CKs) and Santa Clara are the only recent opponents with more CKs than the Irish (SCU held a narrow 6-5 margin, in the ’04 NCAA semifinals) … the Irish have racked up a 100-23 CK margin (4:1) in the past 16 games … that 16-game stretch has included 7 games with no CKs allowed by ND (also 4 GP with 1 CK allowed and 2 CKs by Portland in the ’04 NCAA quarterfinal) … Notre Dame attempted all 14 corner kicks in its pair of games at the ’05 season-opening Vermont Classic (12 vs. UNH, 2 vs. UVm) … excluding the pair of games at the 2004 College Cup weekend, the Irish have racked up a 91-13 CK edge (7-to-1) in the other 14 games since Boston College held a 4-2 CK edge on Oct. 18, 2004.

GOAL PATROL – Notre Dame players have combined for 27 multiple-goal games over 55 games in the past three seasons (compared to just five in all of ’02), by 12 different players … the 2005 opener vs. New Hampshire saw freshman F Kerri Hanks, senior F Katie Thorlakson (2) and freshman M/F Brittany Bock each register multi-goal games and Hanks added a 4-goal game two days later vs. Vermont … Thorlakson then had 2G vs. Florida, as did Hanks vs. Maryland … three different players – Amanda Cinalli, Thorlakson and Candace Chapman – had two goals in the 2004 opener vs. Baylor, with Thorlakson adding 3G vs. Santa Clara, 2G vs. both UWGB and Michigan and then 4G vs. St. John’s while Maggie Manning had 2G at Texas Tech and Chapman added 2G vs. Seton Hall while Cinalli had 2G vs. Portland … current players who posted multiple-goal games in ’03 included: Manning vs. Hartford (2), Jen Buczkowski vs. Oklahoma, Thorlakson and Annie Schefter vs. Western Kentucky and Thorlakson at Rutgers … Thorlakson has totaled nine multiple-goal games in her ND career (including one 3-goal game and the 4G game) … Chapman, Manning and Hanks each own two multi-goal games with the Irish.

WINDY-CITY TRIO NOW A QUARTET – Notre Dame’s geographically-diverse 2005 roster includes four players who grew up playing close to one another in the Chicago area … those Windy City natives are led by three juniors – M Jen Buczkowski (Elk Grove HS), D/M Kim Lorenzen (Naperville North HS) and defensive M Jill Krivacek (Geneva; Rosary HS) – who now have been joined by freshman M/F Brittany Bock (Naperville/Neuqua Valley HS) … the foursome helped lead the Illinois team to the 2003 Olympic Development national title in the summer of ’03, with Bock earning the Golden Boot Award while playing up an age group … each of the Chicago veterans played key, but subtle, roles on the 2004 national-title squad, with Lorenzen’s great versatility allowing her to play anywhere on the field (she scored the gamewinning goal in the 74th minute at #20 West Virginia and had the primary assist on Buczkowski’s GWG vs. #20 Boston College) … the 5-foot-11 Krivacek has fortified the defensive midfield spot while Buczkowski is the classic field general and ranked 3rd on the ’04 team with 27 points (8G-11A).

BIG & BRIGHT – The lone star state has deep connections to ND women’s soccer (all three coaches and four players are Texas natives):

• Seventh-year ND head coach Randy Waldrum is a native of Irvin, Texas, played at Midwestern State (Wichita Falls, Texas) from ’77-’80, coached the men’s teams at Austin College (’82) and Texas Wesleyan (’88) and coached the Baylor women from ’96-’98 (he was the Texas Longhorns club’s director of coaching from ’87-’89).

• 3rd-year assistant Dawn Greathouse is a native of Allen, Texas, and played for Waldrum as the starting ‘keeper at Baylor … she also starred for the Texas Longhorns and the Region III and North Texas ODP squads.

• Junior M Claire Gallerano (Dallas/Ursuline HS) helped lead the Dallas Texans to the ’03 USYSA national club title (girls-18 division) … freshman F Kerri Hanks (Allen) – a ’04 signee who did not enroll at ND until the spring of ’05, due to U-19 World Championship training with the U.S. – earned the USYSA’s Golden Boot Award as the tournament’s top scorer with the ’03 Dallas Texans … she won the Golden Boot again in ’05 as the Texans lost the girls-19 title game in PKs … Hanks totaled 47 goals in two seasons at Allen HS before her U-19 duty.

• Sophomore G Lauren Karas (Flower Mound HS) also has starred for the Dallas Sting and Texans club teams, plus the Region III and North Texas ODP teams (she earned the Golden Glove Award with North Texas at the 2004 ODP nationals).

• Freshman M Rebecca Mendoza (Garland) was a standout at North Garland HS (77G-58A in first three seasons) and helped lead the Dallas Sting to a 3rd-place finish at 2005 USYSA Nationals (girls-18) while also playing for North Texas ODP in ’03 and ’04 (dnp in ’05 due to duties with Mexican National Team, as she holds dual citizenship).

• ND’s all-time roster includes 17 Texas natives, most notably: early scoring leader Stephanie Porter (’90-’93; Spring/Klein HS); steady M Tiffany Thompson (’91-’94; Houston/Cypress Creek HS); clutch ‘keeper Liz Wagner (’98-’01; Spring/Klein HS); All-America D Monica Gonzalez (’97-’01; Richardson/Plano East HS); and high-scoring F Amanda Guertin (’00-’03; Grapevine HS).

GREAT STARTS – The ’03 season saw ND go unbeaten after 19 games for the 4th time while the ’04 team surpassed that feat with a 19-0-1 start … the ’04 season marked the 2nd time an ND team has won its first 15 games (then 0-0 vs. Rutgers), one shy of the record-setting 16-0-0 start in ’00 … the ’05 team is the 10th in ND history to open 4-0-0 (eight have gone 5-0-0) … here’s a look at ND’s top season-opening streaks (see PDF):