Oct. 10, 2006
Wednesday, Oct. 11
Michigan State at No. 8/10 Notre Dame
7:00 p.m. • Notre Dame, Ind.
Saturday, Oct. 14
Providence at No. 8/10 Notre Dame
7:00 p.m. • Notre Dame, Ind.
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Notre Dame wraps up the home portion of its 2006 regular season schedule this week. The Irish host Michigan State in a non-conference affair on Wednesday (Oct. 11) at 7:00 p.m. Providence then comes to town for a critical BIG EAST clash on Saturday (Oct. 14) at 7:00 p.m. The Fighting Irish carry a 9-3-2 record (6-2-0 BIG EAST) and are ranked 8th in the NSCAA/adidas poll and 10th in the Soccer America rankings.
ABOUT THE IRISH: Notre Dame was a perfect 2-0-0 last week … the Irish captured a 2-0 non-conference win at Michigan on Wednesday (Oct. 4) before returning home to start a three-game homestand with a 4-1 league victory over Georgetown on Saturday (Oct. 7) … Notre Dame is riding a five-game win streak and a six-game unbeaten streak … that is the longest such stretch for the program since the Fighting Irish won six in a row during the 2004 campaign … junior forward Joseph Lapira continued his spectacular season with two goals in both matches … he also added an assist versus the Hoyas … he has now registered five straight two-goal games and has seven multiple-goal games this season … Lapira leads the nation with 17 goals and 36 points on the year … senior forward Justin McGeeney is second on the team with 11 points on five goals and one assist … senior goalkeeper Chris Cahill collected his third straight shutout, a career-best mark, against the Wolverines … he had his personal-best scoreless streak snapped at 342:27 against Georgetown … sophomore midfielder Cory Rellas has recorded an assist in three straight games … the Irish were picked by the BIG EAST coaches to place second in the Blue Division behind Connecticut … Notre Dame is currently tied for second with Providence, behind Connecticut and West Virginia … Bobby Clark is in his sixth season at the helm of the Fighting Irish program … he has a 74-30-15 (.685) mark overall at Notre Dame and has guided the Irish to five straight NCAA Tournament appearances, including two trips to the round of 16 … the Irish made the tournament’s Sweet 16 last season.
LAPIRA LEADING THE WAY: Junior forward Joseph Lapira is registering one of the finest seasons in program history and one of the the top campaigns in the nation this year … he has recorded five straight two-goal performances and has a total of seven multiple-goal games this season … his 17 goals and 36 points are the most among Division I men’s soccer players … he copped National Player of the Week honors from College Soccer News each of the past two weeks, becoming the first player to achieve that feat from CSN … he also earned National Player of the Week accolades from Top Drawer Soccer for his efforts from last week … earlier this season, he was named the Soccer America, Top Drawer Soccer and Soccer Times National Player of the Week following a four-goal effort, including the game-winner, in a 5-4 overtime win at No. 8 Indiana … he was selected to the Soccer Times National Honor Roll last week, becoming the first player named the the list twice this season … he has also been selected as the BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week three times this season.
STATISTICAL EDGE: Notre Dame owns a decided advantage in most statistical categories … the Irish have out-shot their opponents 245-153 and have gained 33 more corner kicks (91-58) … Notre Dame has out-scored its opposition 30-12, including a 16-6 edge in the second half.
IRISH IN THE BIG EAST: Notre Dame leads the BIG EAST with 30 goals and 80 points … West Virginia is second in both categories with 28 goals and 79 points … the Irish are also first in shots (245) and tied for first in corner kicks (91) with Rutgers … the seven team shutouts ranks Notre Dame in a tie for first along with St. John’s and West Virginia.
THE NATIONAL CHARTS: Junior forward Joseph Lapira’s 17 goals and 36 points are the most among Division I men’s soccer players … his 1.21 goals per game average is also tops in the country … Lapira is third with 2.57 points per game … his four-goal, eight-point effort against Indiana ties him for second nationally for goals scored and points totaled in a single match this season.
LAPIRA MULTI-GOAL GAMES: Joseph Lapira has notched five straight two-goal games and has posted seven multiple-goal games this season … his season-high performance was a four-goal effort against No. 8 Indiana, while he has netted two against Louisville, Pittsburgh, Marquette, Seton Hall, Michigan and Georgetown.
BIG EAST RECORD BOOKS: Joseph Lapira (eight games) and West Virginia’s Jarrod Smith (seven games) have both scored 10 goals in league play to date … both are one goal short of tying the league single-season record of 11 goals set by Seton Hall’s Michael Magarinos in 11 games during the 1995 season … in addition, Georgetown’s Eric Kvello tallied 24 points in 11 games in 1997 … Smith currently has 23 points on 10 goals and three assists, while Lapira has 10 goals and two assists for 22 points in conference play.
IN THE IRISH RECORD BOOKS: Joseph Lapira’s 17 goals this season ranks third all-time on Notre Dame’s single-season list … Kevin Lovejoy’s totals of 29 goals in 1978 and 22 in 1979 rank first and second on the all-time list … Lapira’s 36 points are the most for an Irish player in a single season since Bill Lanza collected 40 in 1993 … the Irish’s all-time record for points in a season is 63 from Lovejoy in 1979 … Lapira is the first player in program history to win BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week honors three times in the same season … he is also the only Irish player to win any award from the league four times in a career … Lapira was selected as the Offensive Player of the Week once as a freshman.
SERIES HISTORY VERSUS MICHIGAN STATE: The Fighting Irish and Spartans will be meeting for the 16th time when they square off this Wednesday … Notre Dame holds an 8-2-5 advantage in the series … both teams played to a scoreless draw last year in East Lansing, Mich. … Notre Dame had won the previous two encounters … Notre Dame’s last loss in the series came in 1990, a 1-0 setback at Michigan State … the Irish are unbeaten in their last five games against the Spartans … Michigan State is 0-7-1 all-time at Notre Dame … prior to last year’s meeting and a match in 2003, both schools had not met since the 1993 campaign … the first meeting occurred in 1978, a 2-2 tie in East Lansing … the last meeting at Notre Dame came in 1993, a 2-0 Irish victory … Notre Dame has out-scored Michigan State 29-12 in the series … five of the contests have gone to overtime, all of them resulting in a tie.
SCOUTING THE SPARTANS: Michigan State is 6-4-2 (0-2-2 Big Ten) this season and coming off a 1-1 tie against Michigan on Sunday (Oct. 8) … Kenzo Webster leads the Spartans in goals with six and points with 12 … Louis Stephens and Matt Kreikemeier have both tallied two goals on the season … Kreikemeier notched the lone Spartan goal against the Wolverines … Jason Tillman has played every minute in goal for Michigan State … he has allowed 10 goals, while making 32 saves … the Spartans returned seven starters and 15 letterwinners from last year’s squad that went 8-6-5, including a 2-3-1 mark in the Big Ten, which placed them fourth in the league … head coach Joe Baum is in his 30th season at Michigan State … Baum has a 292-214-48 career mark at his alma mater.
ND AGAINST THE BIG TEN: The match with Michigan State will mark Notre Dame’s third encounter with a team from the Big Ten Conference this season … the Irish have already claimed wins against Indiana (5-4, OT) and Michigan (2-0).
SERIES HISTORY VERSUS PROVIDENCE: Notre Dame and Providence will tangle for the 12th time on Saturday … the Fighting Irish hold a 9-2-0 lead in the series, including a 2-1 double-overtime win at Providence last season … Justin McGeeney tallied the first Irish goal in last year’s contest, while Kurt Martin netted the game-winner … Notre Dame has won the last five meetings between the two schools … the last Friar win was a 3-1 decision in 2000 at Providence … the Friars are 0-4-0 all-time at Notre Dame … the last meeting at Notre Dame was a 5-1 Irish win in 2002 … the first encounter came during the 1995 season, which was Notre Dame’s inaugural campaign in the BIG EAST Conference … the Irish prevailed 1-0 at home … the Fighting Irish have out-scored the Friars 23-7 in the series.
SCOUTING THE FRIARS: Providence carries a 9-3-0 mark (6-2-0 BIG EAST) into its match-up against Brown on Tuesday (Oct. 10) … the Friars are off to their best start since the 1984 campaign when they began the season with a 9-1-0 record … Providence has won eight of its last 10 games … the nine wins this season are the most since 1998 … in addition, Providence won its sixth BIG EAST match, which ties the school record for most conference wins … the Friars defeated Pittsburgh 2-1 in overtime on Oct. 7 … it was their first overtime game of the season, after going into extra time in 12 games last year … freshman forward Jonathan Medcalf leads the team with six goals and 12 points, while freshman midfielder Justin Kahle has a team-best five assists … the Friars returned five starters and 14 letterwinners from a squad that went 7-4-9 last season, including a 3-3-4 mark in the league to place sixth in the Blue Division … head coach Chaka Daley is in his seventh season at Providence … he has a 34-71-15 record at his alma mater.
A BIG STRETCH: Notre Dame’s final three BIG EAST regular season games will have significant implications on where the Irish finish in the conference’s Blue Division … all three matches are against teams in the upper-half of the Blue Division standings … Notre Dame and Providence are tied for second in the division, with 18 points apiece, and those two schools will face each other on Saturday (Oct. 14) at Notre Dame … Connecticut and West Virginia are tied for the Blue Division lead with 19 points each … the Irish will hit the road next week to take on the Mountaineers on Wednesday (Oct. 18) and then face the Huskies on Saturday (Oct. 21).
SENIORS LEAVE MARK: Notre Dame will honor its seniors prior to the Providence match on Saturday (Oct. 14) … the seven student-athletes (Chris Cahill, Greg Dalby, Ian Etherington, Justin McGeeney, Ryan Miller, Nate Norman and Dale Rellas) have been a vital part of the Notre Dame program, helping the Irish to three straight NCAA Tournament appearances, including two berths into the Round of 16 … they also helped the Irish claim the program’s first-ever BIG EAST Tournament title in 2003, which was followed by a regular season championship in 2004.
IRISH THOUGHTS: Notre Dame head coach Bobby Clark discusses Michigan State and his team’s recent play …
On Michigan State …
“This will be another very hard regional game for us. They are one of the powers in the Midwest. They’ve played a lot of good teams very tough this season. We are very aware that this will be a hard game for us and we have to stay focused.”
On his team playing so well at this point of the season …
“We have just been taking it one game at a time. Every team on our schedule is good and if we don’t keep the proper focus, any team can beat us. If we keep our focus then we are more than capable of beating any team on our schedule.”
NEXT UP: Notre Dame will take to the road during the University’s fall break for the final two matches of its 2006 regular season slate … the Irish will battle No. 5/8 West Virginia on Wednesday, Oct. 18 (7:00 p.m.) before traveling to No. 23 Connecticut for a showdown on Saturday, Oct. 21 (7:00 p.m.), which will be aired by College Sports Television (CSTV).
CAHILL BLANKINGS: Chris Cahill’s three straight shutouts against Marquette, Seton Hall and Michigan was a career-best stretch for the senior keeper … he had his personal-best scoreless streak of 342:27 snapped against Georgetown … Cahill has six shutouts this season and 15 in his career.
IRISH FIRSTS: Sophomore defender Matt Besler netted the first goal of his collegiate career in the 3-1 win over Pittsburgh on Sept. 23 … sophomore midfielder Cory Rellas and freshman midfielder Michael Thomas notched the first points of their Notre Dame careers with assists against Seton Hall on Sept. 30.
RECAPPING MICHIGAN: Joseph Lapira registered his fourth straight two-goal match to lead the Notre Dame men’s soccer team to a 2-0 win over Michigan on Wednesday, Oct. 4 at a cold and windy UM Soccer Field … Chris Cahill collected his third consecutive shutout in the win … in the 16th minute, Cory Rellas sent a ball across the field to the left flank and Lapira gathered it and sent it in to put the Irish on top … Perica Marosevic had Michigan’s two best opportunities in the first half … the freshman sent a low-shot just wide of the goal in the 27th minute … he nearly struck again with 13:04 remaining in the half as he sent another low-blast on goal, yet Cahill made a diving save to his right … Cahill made three saves on the night to post his sixth shutout of the season … the Fighting Irish continued to attack late into the first half and Lapira had a couple near-misses in the final 10 minutes … a Dale Rellas cross was put on goal from 10-yards out with a sideways, mid-air kick from Lapira, however Michigan’s Patrick Sperry made one of his three stops on the night … with just under four minutes remaining, Lapira sent a low-blast just wide from the top of the 18-yard box … Notre Dame would lead 1-0 at the end of the first half … the Irish nearly grabbed a two-goal edge with 36:23 left in the contest as freshman midfielder Michael Thomas sent his shot wide left from inside the 18-yard box … four minutes later, senior forward Justin McGeeney directed a header towards the post, yet Sperry made the save … Lapira, who had just reentered into the match, would put Notre Dame on top 2-0 with a tally in the 63rd minute … Kurt Martin sent a long ball from midfield that Sperry came out to get, yet he misplayed it and Lapira put a foot on it and sent it into the back of the net.
RECAPPING GEORGETOWN: A five-point match from Joseph Lapira led the way as Notre Dame captured a 4-1 win over Georgetown on Saturday, Oct. 7 at Alumni Field … Lapira notched two goals and one assist as the Irish upped their unbeaten streak to six games … also tallying goals for Notre Dame was Justin McGeeney and Greg Dalby … the Irish jumped on top in the 13th minute as sophomore midfielder Cory Rellas chipped the ball to McGeeney, a senior forward, and he sent it in from 12 yards out for his fifth goal of the season … Georgetown responded in the 30th minute with a goal from Ricky Schramm on an assist from Daniel Grasso … Grasso played the ball to Schramm and he made a move to get by Irish goalkeeper Chris Cahill and then slid the ball into the low right side … the goal snapped Cahill’s personal-best scoreless streak, which reached 342:27 … Cahill made four saves on the afternoon to up his season record to 8-2-1 … Notre Dame regained the lead for good less than five minutes later … Justin Morrow sent a cross to Lapira and he placed it in the net from 10 yards out … the Irish would lead 2-1 at the half … in the 60th minute, Irish defender Jack Traynor sent a long ball into the Hoya end and goalkeeper Joe Devine came out to play it, yet his clear hit off of Lapira and the junior forward gathered the ball and deposited it for his second goal of the match, which gave Notre Dame a 3-1 advantage … Devine made two saves on the day … the final tally of the match came in the 79th minute as Lapira sent a corner kick into the 18-yard box and Dalby, a senior midfielder, put a head on it and placed it into the left side of the netting.
A CLASSIC PERFORMANCE: Joseph Lapira tallied a career-high four goals against No. 8 Indiana in the adidas/IU Credit Union Classic on Sunday, Sept. 3 … the four scores established an Indiana Classic record and it was one shy of the Notre Dame record of five, achieved by Kevin Lovejoy in 1993 … by scoring three goals, Lapira became the first Irish player to register a hat trick since Devon Prescod did so versus Cleveland State in 2003.
AN IMPRESSIVE DISPLAY: Notre Dame’s five goal output against Indiana on Sept. 3 was the most goals scored by an Irish team since a 6-0 victory over Cleveland State in 2003 … the five tallies were the most ever against a ranked foe in program history … it marked the first time the Hoosiers had ever allowed five tallies in a single game … the nine combined goals were the most in a Notre Dame match since a 9-2 victory against Valparaiso in 1989.
TAKING DOWN A TOP-10: Notre Dame has downed two top-10 teams this season … the Irish topped No. 8 Creighton, 4-1, on Aug. 27 and then defeated No. 8 Indiana, 5-4, on Sept. 3 … the Irish have claimed a victory against a top-10 opponent in seven straight seasons … last season, the Irish took down No. 7 SMU (4-1) and No. 5 Indiana (2-0) … the victory against the Hoosiers came in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
IN THE POLLS: Notre Dame is 8th in this week’s NSCAA/adidas poll and 10th in the current Soccer America rankings … the Irish are 12th according to Soccer Times and 18th in the College Soccer News poll … five of the Irish’s 2006 opponents appear in the latest Soccer America rankings, West Virginia (8), Indiana (9), Cincinnati (14), Connecticut (23) and Creighton (25) … Notre Dame defeated Indiana 5-4 in overtime and Creighton 4-1, while dropping a 2-1 decision to Cincinnati … the Irish will play West Virginia on Oct. 18 and Connecticut on Oct. 21.
NOTRE DAME PICKED SECOND IN BLUE DIVISION: Notre Dame was selected to finish second in the BIG EAST’s Blue Division behind Connecticut, while South Florida was tabbed to be the league’s Red Division champion … the Irish collected five first-place votes compared to the Huskies’ 11 … Notre Dame was tabbed to finish second in the conference’s Blue Division last year and wound up placing in a tie for third with West Virginia … the Irish did garner the division’s No. 3 seed in the BIG EAST Tournament as a result of a tie-breaker.
DALBY AND ETHERINGTON NAMED TO PRESEASON ALL-BIG EAST TEAM: Senior midfielders Greg Dalby and Ian Etherington were named to the 2006 Preseason All-BIG EAST Team as voted on by the league’s 16 head coaches … both Dalby and Etherington were first-team all-BIG EAST selections last season.
DALBY NAMED TO M.A.C. HERMANN TROPHY WATCH LIST: Greg Dalby was named to the 2006 Missouri Athletic Club (M.A.C.) Hermann Trophy Watch List … the trophy is presented annually to the top male and female Division I soccer player in the United States … the 25-man watch list was compiled by a panel of coaches from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA).
COLLEGE SOCCER NEWS WATCH LIST: Greg Dalby was selected to the College Soccer News Pre-Season All-America first team … the senior co-captain was not the only Irish student-athlete honored by the publication, as two incoming freshmen were named to the `100 Freshmen to Watch’ list for the 2006 season … (M/F) Justin Morrow and (M/D) Michael Thomas were selected to the list and are all part of a very talented seven-man freshman class for the Irish.
FRESHMAN CLASS NATIONALLY RANKED: Notre Dame’s seven-man freshman class was ranked 16th nationally by College Soccer News … (M) John Baumgardner, (M) Dave Donohue, (M/F) Justin Morrow, (F) Tamba Samba, (D) John Schaefer, (M/D) Michael Thomas and (GK) Philip Tuttle make up the talented crop of Fighting Irish rookies.
NUMBER CHANGES: Seven members of the Fighting Irish team will be sporting new numbers for the 2006 season …
Name New Number Old NumberLuke Seibolt 1 24Kyle Dulworth 4 21Joseph Lapira 10 4Kurt Martin 11 8Bright Dike 14 18Nate Norman 19 20Alex Yoshinaga 20 19
NEW COACHES: The Fighting Irish are welcoming three new assistant coaches to the sidelines for the 2006 season … assistant coaches Jamie Clark and Chad Riley joined the program in March … Clark, the youngest son of head coach Bobby Clark, spent the last four seasons at New Mexico, where he helped guide the Lobos to the finals of the 2005 College Cup … Clark was a two-time All-American at Stanford, where he played from 1996-98 … Riley returns to Notre Dame, where he played from 2000-03 … he was a two-time all-BIG EAST performer at midfield … he was an assistant coach last season at St. John’s as the Red Storm compiled a record of 11-6-5 and made it to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament … Rick King is the Irish’s new volunteer assistant coach … King, a 1995 graduate of East Stroudsburg, also coaches the Indiana Invaders club soccer team.
STAY UP-TO-DATE ON NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS: To stay updated on all 26 varsity sports at Notre Dame you can log on to the official Notre Dame athletics web site at und.com or you can call the official Notre Dame athletics hotline at (574) 631-3000 … to access men’s soccer information on the hotline all you need to do is dial 4 from the main menu and then dial 1.
FOLLOW ALL ND HOME GAMES ONLINE: All Notre Dame home games will feature livestats available through und.com, the official web site of all 26 varsity athletic programs at the University … simply go to the men’s soccer page and click on `Schedule’ at the top of the page and find the game that is being played that day and click on `Gametracker’ to follow the game for free … live audio is also available for certain home matches.
NOTRE DAME ANNOUNCES IRISH ALERT TEXT MESSAGE SERVICE: The University of Notre Dame athletic department, in cooperation with Notre Dame Sports Properties and Centennial Wireless has brought back Irish ALERT for the 2006 fall sports season … continuing Notre Dame’s commitment to its alumni and fans, Irish ALERT will be free of charge (check with your wireless provider for any additional fees that may be charged due to receiving text messages) … starting the weekend of Sept. 15 all of the fall sports will start sending text alerts to Irish fans across the country on their wireless communication devices … log onto und.com for more details and to sign up.