Right back Bilal Duckett netted the golden goal in last season's 2-1 overtime win at Georgetown.

Irish To Meet Hoyas On Sunday In Regular-Season Finale

Oct. 29, 2010

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#21 GEORGETOWN (11-4-1, 7-1-0) at
NOTRE DAME (8-4-4, 5-2-1)

Sunday, Oct. 31 – 6:00 p.m. (ET)
Alumni Stadium – Notre Dame, Ind.
Notre Dame Leads Series 11-7-2

Streaming Video Broadcast: UND.com
Live Stats: Gametracker on UND.com
In-Game Blog: UND.com

SETTING THE STAGE … The Notre Dame men’s soccer team will conclude the regular season on Sunday with a BIG EAST Blue Division clash against Georgetown. Kickoff against the Hoyas is slated for 6:00 p.m. (ET). The Fighting Irish are 8-4-4 overall and 5-2-1 in league play. Georgetown is 11-4-1 and 7-1-0 in the conference. There is no admission required for the game.

NOTE THE CHANGE … The Notre Dame-Georgetown match originally was scheduled for 11:00 a.m. (ET) on Saturday … the change was made because Georgetown’s game against Connecticut was moved from Wednesday to Thursday of this week due to inclement weather in the Washington, D.C. area.

HOW TO FOLLOW … A live streaming broadcast of Sunday’s match can be seen on UND.com … live stats are available via GameTracker on UND.com … fans can sign up for `Irish Alert’ on UND.com to receive text message score updates … updates and results can also be found on Twitter at UND_com.

IRISH AT A GLANCE … Notre Dame (8-4-4, 5-2-1) is coming off a 3-2 victory over Pittsburgh on Wednesday … senior forward Steven Perry leads the Irish in goals (10) and points (23) … freshman forward Harrison Shipp has a team-best six assists … the Irish are averaging 1.50 goals per game, while allowing 0.94 per contest … fifth-year senior goalkeeper Philip Tuttle, who is returning from a knee injury suffered in the summer, has started the past nine matches … Tuttle has a 5-2-2 record with a 1.16 goals-against average and a .738 save percentage … junior Will Walsh has made seven starts in goal and boasts a 3-2-2 record with four shutouts … Walsh has a 0.54 goals-against and a .875 save percentage … head coach Bobby Clark is in his 10th season with the Irish … he has a 125-57-30 (.660) record during his Notre Dame tenure, which has included a trip to the NCAA tournament each season … this is Clark’s 24th season as a college head coach … he has a combined record of 278-120-55 (.674) during his career, which included stops at Dartmouth (1985-93) and Stanford (1996-2000).

THE GEORGETOWN SERIES … Sunday will mark the 21st meeting all-time between Notre Dame and Georgetown … the Fighting Irish own an 11-7-2 edge in the series … the Irish downed the Hoyas 2-1 in overtime during last season’s encounter in Washington, D.C. … Georgetown is 3-7-0 all-time at Notre Dame … the Irish won 2-1 during the last meeting at Notre Dame, which occurred during the 2008 campaign … the Fighting Irish have a four-game unbeaten streak against the Hoyas … Georgetown’s last win in the series was a 1-0 decision at Georgetown in 2005 … the first meeting between the two schools occurred in 1982, a 0-0 tie in Rochester, N.Y. … both teams have met every season since 1995, Notre Dame’s first in the BIG EAST Conference … Notre Dame holds a 35-26 scoring edge in the series.

SCOUTING THE HOYAS … Georgetown (11-4-1, 7-1-0) is riding a nine-game winning streak … the Hoyas wrapped up the BIG EAST Blue Division crown with a 1-0 victory over Connecticut on Thursday … Georgetown is 3-3-1 on the road this season … the lone loss in BIG EAST play was a 2-0 setback at Cincinnati … Georgetown is averaging 2.12 goals per game, while allowing 1.12 per contest … freshman midfielder Steve Neumann leads the team in goals (10) and points (27) … senior midfielder Seth C’deBaca has a team-best eight assists … senior Matthew Brutto has an 11-3-1 record in goal with six shutouts … Brutto carries a 1.01 goals-against average and a .783 save percentage … Georgetown posted a 9-8-2 overall record last season and a 6-5-0 mark in the league to finish fourth in the Blue Division … the Hoyas returned eight starters and 19 letter winners from last season’s squad … head coach Brian Wiese is in his fifth season at the helm of the Georgetown program.

COACHING CONNECTION … Georgetown head coach Brian Wiese spent five seasons (2001-05) at Notre Dame as an assistant for Bobby Clark before moving on to head the Hoya program … prior to that, Clark and Wiese were together for five years at Stanford.

THE LAST TIME … Notre Dame right back Bilal Duckett netted the golden goal in the 98th minute in last season’s 2-1 victory at Georgetown … Michael Thomas put the Irish on top in the 31st minute … Georgetown’s Scott Larrabee deposited the equalizer in the 51st minute … the Hoyas held edges in shots (16-12) and corner kicks (7-4).

BLUE DIVISION RACE … Georgetown clinched the BIG EAST Blue Division title on Thursday with a 1-0 victory over Connecticut … the Hoyas have a 7-1-0 league record (21 points) … Notre Dame currently is second at 5-2-1 (16 points) … Connecticut and West Virginia are tied for third with 15 points each … the Huskies are 4-0-3 and the Mountaineers are 5-3-0 … West Virginia wraps up its regular season on Saturday at Providence (1:00 p.m. ET) … Connecticut’s final regular-season match is on Sunday at Pittsburgh (1:00 p.m. ET) … all four teams already have clinched a berth to the BIG EAST tournament … the top two teams in both the Blue and Red Divisions earn a first-round bye and a spot in the quarterfinals … Louisville has locked up the Red Division … the Cardinals are 8-0 in league play.

GOOD PERFORMANCE AGAINST THE PANTHERS … The Fighting Irish used three different goal scorers in Wednesday’s 3-2 triumph of Pittsburgh … Steven Perry evened the game (1-1) just 19 seconds after the Panthers grabbed a 1-0 lead … in the 27th minute, Perry was taken down inside the 18-yard box and Jeb Brovsky converted the ensuing penalty kick … Pittsburgh tied the match on an own goal just 33 seconds before halftime … Brendan King scored the game winner with one minute left in regulation … Notre Dame out shot Pittsburgh 27-11 along with holding a decisive 12-4 advantage in corner kicks.

KING CAPS IRISH VICTORY … Brendan King headed home the game winner in the final minute of play in Wednesday’s 3-2 victory over Pittsburgh … it was King’s third tally of the season … that is a single-season career-high goal total for the junior midfielder.

IRISH ON SUNDAY’S … Notre Dame is 2-1-1 this season when playing on Sunday.

HOME SWEET HOME … Notre Dame is 6-1-1 at home this season … the Irish have out scored their opponents 17-6 in games played at Alumni Stadium this season.

PERRY PERFORMING … Senior forward Steven Perry leads the Irish in goals (10) and points (23) … both of those figures are single-season career-high totals for Perry … he has scored a goal in seven of the past 10 matches … Perry has notched 19 points on eight goals and three assists over the course of the past 10 games … he ranks in a tie for first among all BIG EAST players in goals and is tied for second in points … Perry’s four game-winning goals this season rank him in a tie for first among all BIG EAST players in that category.

HARRISON GIVING A HELPING HAND … Freshman forward Harrison Shipp leads Notre Dame in assists with six … that ranks him in a tie for sixth among all BIG EAST players in that category … in his first career start, he assisted on Notre Dame’s first three goals of the game in a 4-1 win over Marquette (Oct. 13) … Shipp dished out two assists in a 3-1 triumph of Seton Hall on Oct. 19.

NOTRE DAME IN BIG EAST PLAY … Notre Dame owns an overall record of 96-55-18 (.621) in BIG EAST regular-season play since joining the conference in 1995 … the Irish have posted 10 straight winning seasons within the league, including this season … the Irish went 8-3 in league play last season … the eight wins in BIG EAST play in 2009 tied for the most ever for the Fighting Irish … Notre Dame also won eight BIG EAST matches in 2004 (8-1-1) and 2006 (8-3) … the Irish have three regular-season BIG EAST titles … Notre Dame won the championship outright in 2004 and 2008 (Blue Division) and shared the Blue Division trophy with Connecticut in 2007 … the Fighting Irish captured BIG EAST tournament crowns in 1996 and 2003.

CLARK IN THE CONFERENCE … Head coach Bobby Clark has steered the Irish to a winning record within BIG EAST Conference play during all 10 of his seasons, including this year, at Notre Dame … Clark has a 68-24-11 (.714) BIG EAST mark during his Notre Dame tenure, which began in 2001 … his Irish teams have captured three regular-season BIG EAST titles (2004, 2007, 2008) and one BIG EAST tournament championship (2003).

IN THE CLUTCH … Steven Perry has netted some crucial goals for the Irish this season … the senior forward scored the lone tally (70th minute) in a 1-0 win over St. John’s (Sept. 25) … Perry then deposited the equalizer in the 79th minute in a 1-1 draw with Northwestern (Sept. 29) … Perry put home the game winner in the 85th minute in a 2-1 triumph of Providence (Oct. 3) … Perry tallied a career-high two goals in a 2-0 victory over Drake (Sept. 10) … he matched that total with two tallies in a 4-1 win over Marquette (Oct. 13) … after Pittsburgh grabbed a 1-0 lead in Wednesday’s game, Perry produced the equalizer 19 seconds later … Perry has four game-winning goals this season.

SECOND HALF SUCCESS … Notre Dame has out-scored its opponents 15-7 in the second half this season … the Fighting Irish are 5-1-4 this season when tied at halftime.

HALTING THE HUSKIES … The Fighting Irish held Connecticut scoreless in a 0-0 draw on Oct. 20 … the Huskies entered the match averaging 2.43 goals per game, which ranked sixth nationally … senior goalkeeper Philip Tuttle made a season-high five saves versus UConn.

TUTTLE RETURNS … Fifth-year senior goalkeeper Philip Tuttle returned to the Fighting Irish lineup on Sept. 29 against Northwestern after missing the first seven games of the campaign with a knee injury he suffered while training during the summer … in addition to missing the first seven matches of this season, Tuttle did not play in Notre Dame’s final three contests last year after breaking his thumb against Louisville in the semifinals of the BIG EAST Championship … Tuttle remained in that match despite the injury and helped the Irish advance in a penalty kick shootout … this season, Tuttle has a 5-2-2 record with a 1.16 goals-against average, a .738 save percentage and one shutout … he was named to the BIG EAST weekly honor roll on Oct. 25 for notching a shutout against Connecticut … Tuttle made a season-high five saves against the Huskies … for his career, Tuttle is 14-8-4 with eight shutouts to go along with a 0.98 goals-against average and a .738 save percentage.

CORNERING THE MARKET … Notre Dame has gained 22 more corner kicks (116-94) than its opponents this season … Notre Dame’s high-water mark for corner kicks in a game this season was 13 versus California … the Irish are tied with Pittsburgh for the most corner kicks among BIG EAST teams.

SHOOTING DOWN THE COMPETITION … The Fighting Irish have out shot their competition 299-222 this season, including a 115-76 advantage in shots on goal … Notre Dame leads all BIG EAST teams in shots and shots per game (18.7).

BROVSKY BURRIES ANOTHER … Senior midfielder Jeb Brovsky gave Notre Dame a 2-1 lead in Wednesday’s win over Pittsburgh as he converted on a penalty kick attempt … Brovsky leads all current Notre Dame players with 14 career goals and 12 career assists.

MAUND MAKING A DIFFERENCE … Junior central defender Aaron Maund is the only Notre Dame player to have played every minute on the pitch so far this season … he has anchored the backline and has helped the Irish produce a 0.89 goals-against average and limit opponents to 4.8 shots on goal per game … in addition, he has scored one goal this season … Maund was named the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 27 and was selected to the league’s weekly honor roll on Sept. 13 … Maund has started all 55 matches in which he has played during his Irish career.

HOLDING THE LEAD … The Fighting Irish are 7-0 this season when they score first … Notre Dame is 1-4-1 when its opponent nets the first goal.

TOPDRAWER RANKINGS … Four Notre Dame players are ranked among the National Top 100 upperclassmen according to TopDrawerSoccer.com … Aaron Maund (Jr./D) is ranked 19th, while Dillon Powers (So./M) is 32nd … Jeb Brovsky (Sr./F) is 46th and Steven Perry (Sr./F) is 93rd … Notre Dame forward/midfielder Harrison Shipp is 37th in the TopDrawerSoccer freshman rankings … both rankings are updated weekly.

LOSE THE SHOES … At halftime of the Notre Dame-Providence match on Oct. 3, the championship game of Notre Dame’s `Lose the Shoes’ tournament was held … the proceeds from the 3-on-3 barefoot soccer tournament benefited Grassroot Soccer, a South Africa-based non-governmental organization that integrates the cross-cultural appeal of soccer with evidence-based HIV prevention and life skills programs that arm African youth with the knowledge, skills, and support to live HIV free … Tommy Clark, the eldest son of Notre Dame head coach Bobby Clark, is a cofounder of Grassroot Soccer … in the fall of 2006, Dartmouth College held the first ever `Lose the Shoes’ tournament and since then, over 80 `Lose the Shoes’ tournaments have raised almost $150,000 … Notre Dame held its first `Lose the Shoes’ tournament last year … the semifinals of this year’s tournament were held at halftime of the Notre Dame-St. John’s women’s game on Oct. 3 … the preliminary games of the tournament took place on Oct. 2 on Notre Dame’s South Quad.

CLEAN SHEETS … Junior goalkeeper Will Walsh has posted four shutouts in his seven starts this season … Walsh saw a career-best scoreless streak of 357 minutes come to an end when Cal Poly scored with six seconds remaining in the 5-1 Irish victory on Sept. 12 … Walsh had not seen game action prior to this season.

TOUGH SLATE … The Irish have another challenging schedule this season … Notre Dame has six teams on its 2010 slate that are ranked in the latest NSCAA top-25 poll … Louisville (2), Connecticut (6), California (10), UCLA (15), Michigan State (23) and Indiana (25) are the Irish opponents that appear in the poll … Notre Dame is 1-3-2 against those squads so far this season … the Fighting Irish defeated Indiana (2-1) … Notre Dame tied California (0-0) and Connecticut (0-0) … the Irish fell to UCLA (1-0), Michigan State (2-0) and Louisville (2-0).

EARLY SEASON OFFENSE … The five goals scored in the 5-1 win over Cal Poly (Sept. 12) marked the fourth time in the past five seasons that Notre Dame has tallied five goals in one of its first four matches of the season … last year, the Irish bested Michigan 5-0 in the season opener … in 2008, Notre Dame topped USF 5-0 in the fourth game of the campaign … in the fourth contest of the 2006 season, the Fighting Irish bested Indiana 5-4 in overtime.

IRISH EXPLOSION … The five goals scored in the second half against Cal Poly on Sept. 12 were the most goals scored in a single period by the Fighting Irish since they netted five in the first half during a 5-0 win over Villanova on Oct. 23, 2002 … it marked the most goals scored in a second half since depositing seven in a 7-1 triumph of Western Michigan on Oct. 14, 1997.

ALL OVER THE MAP … Notre Dame’s 29-man roster boasts student-athletes from 18 different states … the state represented the most on the Irish roster is Illinois, which is home to six Notre Dame players … Brendan King (Naperville), Greg Klazura (Rockford), Craig Krzyskowski (Western Springs), Bob Novak (Homer Glen), Danny O’Leary (Naperville) and Harrison Shipp (Lake Forest) all hail from the Prairie State … next in line is Texas, which has supplied the Irish with four players on this year’s squad.

BROVSKY A SENIOR CLASS AWARD FINALIST … Forward/midfielder Jeb Brovsky has been named one of 10 finalists for the 2010 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award in the men’s soccer division … to be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – classroom, character, community and competition … the finalists were chosen by a media committee from the list of 30 candidates … nationwide fan voting is underway to determine the winner … fans are encouraged to vote via the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award website (seniorclassaward.com) through November 14 … fan votes will be combined with media and coaches votes to determine the winner … the award will be announced during the 2010 NCAA Men’s College Cup championships in early December.

PRESEASON ACCOLADES … Aaron Maund (Jr./D) and Dillon Powers (So./M) were named Soccer America Preseason All-Americans … Notre Dame was one of five schools with multiple representatives on the 25-man Soccer America Preseason All-America Team … Akron had four players on the squad, while Virginia, North Carolina and Tulsa joined the Irish with two apiece.

MORE HONORS FOR MAUND AND POWERS … Fighting Irish junior Aaron Maund, a central defender, was named the 2010 BIG EAST Preseason Defensive Player of the Year in a vote by the league’s head coaches … Irish sophomore Dillon Powers, a midfielder, joined Maund on the All-BIG EAST Preseason Team.

IRISH PICKED TO FINISH SECOND IN DIVISION … Notre Dame was picked to finish second in the BIG EAST Blue Division, while Connecticut was tabbed to win the division … the Huskies received 12 first-place votes among the eight Blue Division squads, while the Irish garnered four … St. John’s was picked to win the Red Division … the league’s 16 head coaches were not permitted to vote for their own teams.

CAPTAIN KEEPER … Fifth-year senior goalkeeper Philip Tuttle is Notre Dame’s lone captain for the 2010 campaign … this is Tuttle’s first season as a captain.

POWERS PACES TEAM USA … Sophomore Dillon Powers helped the United States Under-20 national team capture the Milk Cup Tournament in early August … Powers was named the MVP of the Milk Cup, which is an international youth soccer tournament held annually in Northern Ireland … the midfielder earned a start in two of the three matches as the U.S. posted a 3-0 record.

ROOKIE RANKINGS … Notre Dame’s freshman class was ranked ninth according to College Soccer News … Leon Brown (F), Kyle Craft (M), Adam LaPlaca (GK), Luke Mishu (D), Andrew O’Malley (D), Alex Priede (F), Harrison Shipp (M/F) and Patrick Wall (GK) make up the stellar class.

A GREAT NIGHT FOR GRASSROOT … Notre Dame held its annual exhibition game to benefit Grassroot Soccer on Aug. 23 against UIC … over 2,000 fans packed into Alumni Stadium to watch the Irish defeat the Flames, 3-2 … a grand total of $3,000 was raised for Grassroot Soccer, an international AIDS awareness and education organization that reaches youth in Africa through soccer clinics … $1,000 worth of donations were received at the gate and during the match … head coach Bobby Clark, whose son Tommy is the founder and CEO of the organization, and the Notre Dame men’s soccer camp donated $2,000.

LOOKING BACK … Last season, Notre Dame posted an 11-8-4 record … the Irish were runners-up in the BIG EAST Blue Division with an 8-3 mark … the Fighting Irish were finalists at the BIG EAST Championship as they fell to St. John’s in a penalty kick shootout (5-3) following a scoreless draw … Notre Dame defeated Green Bay 2-1 in the first round of the NCAA tournament before falling at Northwestern, 3-1, in the second round … that marked Notre Dame’s ninth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament.

PURCHASE YOUR IRISH SOCCER TICKETS … To purchase a season pass or single-game tickets, call the Notre Dame ticket office at (574) 631-7356, visit und.com/tickets or stop by the Notre Dame ticket office inside Purcell Pavilion … tickets can also be purchased at Alumni Stadium on gamedays.

THE ROAD TO RED BULL … The BIG EAST and Red Bull New York have joined forces with a three-year partnership for the Conference’s men’s soccer championship to be held at the new state-of-the-art Red Bull Arena through the 2012 tournament … the soccer-specific facility in Harrison, N.J., is the new home of the New York Red Bulls of Major League Soccer (MLS) … the stadium opened in the spring of 2010 … the BIG EAST will hold its semifinal and championship games at the venue, along with team practices before each day of competition, beginning this season … the dates of the championships over the next three years are: 2010 – Nov. 12 & 14; 2011 – Nov. 11 & 13 and 2012 – Nov. 9 & 10 … for more information, including how to buy tickets, go to bigeastsoccer.com.