April 14, 2014
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Notre Dame and Maryland have only met twice in the last nine seasons but the two programs will equal that total in a seven-day span beginning Saturday at Arlotta Stadium.
The eighth-ranked Fighting Irish (6-4, 2-2 ACC) will play host to the fifth-ranked Terrapins (9-2, 3-1 ACC) Saturday (noon ET on ESPNU) in the final Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season contest and no matter the outcome both teams will square off the following Friday in the semifinals of the ACC Championship at PPL Park in Chester, Pa.
Here are the two scenarios for the final ACC Championship seeding depending on the outcome of Saturday’s Maryland – Notre Dame game:
If Notre Dame wins:
1. Duke
2. Notre Dame
3. Maryland
4. Syracuse
If Maryland wins:
1. Maryland
2. Duke
3. Syracuse
4. Notre Dame
Notre Dame and Maryland last met in the quarterfinals of the 2010 NCAA Championship and the Fighting Irish captured a 7-5 victory in Princeton, N.J. Saturday will be the Terrapins’ first visit to Notre Dame since the opening round of the 2009 NCAA Championship. Maryland won that encounter, 7-3.
Saturday will be the first regular-season clash between the two squads since 2004 when Maryland edged Notre Dame 9-8 in double-overtime in College Park.
“Maryland is a big game for us; we want to win the ACC and we want to win the national championship and Maryland is one of the teams you have to go through to do that,” Notre Dame head coach Kevin Corrigan said following Saturday’s 15-5 win over Robert Morris. “We’re excited about that challenge and we’re excited about having them here.”
ACC TOURNAMENT TICKETS ON SALE
Single day tickets for the 2014 ACC Men’s Lacrosse Championship to be held April 25 and 27 at PPL Park located in Chester, Pa., right outside of Philadelphia, are on sale now.
The 2014 ACC Men’s Lacrosse Championship will be the first under the new-look ACC with six teams (Duke, Maryland, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Syracuse and Virginia) in the league.
The four-team tournament will commence with semifinal action on Friday, April 25, with games at 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. The championship game will be played on Sunday, April 27, at 1 p.m. The four teams that clinched a spot in the ACC Tournament include: Duke, Maryland, Notre Dame and Syracuse. Seeds, matchups and game times will be announced following the final regular season game between Maryland and Notre Dame on Saturday.
North Carolina and Virginia will play in the ACC Showcase on Saturday, April 26, at 7:30 p.m.
All four games will be played at PPL Park, an 18,500-seat stadium, which serves as the home of Major League Soccer’s Philadelphia Union. 2014 will mark the fourth time in the 26-year history of the tournament that the event has been held at a neutral site. Orlando, Fla., played host in 2001, followed by Baltimore, Md., in 2005 and 2006.
Single day tickets to the ACC Men’s Lacrosse Championship are: $40 – Premium (Single Day): The best seats in in the house with prime midfield seating locations. Patrons with Premium seats will also have access to food and beverage options in the Stadium Club lounge.
$25 – Sideline (Single Day): One day admission to the action on the day of your choice. Perfect for the fan who needs the flexibility to attend the action on a day that best fits their schedule.
$20 – Groups 10+ (Single Day): An affordable option for one-day admission that works for families, teams and community groups. Groups should e-mail groups@yscsports.com or call 484-580-6711.
All Session tickets are still available for the ACC Men’s Lacrosse Championship at $55 for sideline seats and $85 for premium midfield seats. All Session tickets provide access to food and beverage options in the Stadium Club or Entrance Plaza hospitality.
Fans can purchase Single Day or All Session tickets by calling Comcast Tix at 800-298-4200 or log on to ComcastTix.com. Parking at PPL Park is included in the ticket price.
PERKOVIC CONTINUES TO PERFORM
Freshman midfielder Sergio Perkovic has been a valuable component of Notre Dame’s offense all season long and Saturday was his best offensive day yet as he tallied a career-high four goals and one assist in the 15-5 victory over Robert Morris.
Perkovic assisted his fellow first-line mate Jim Marlatt on the game’s first goal before erupting for four goals in Notre Dame’s 9-0 run that spanned most of the first and second quarters. Perkovic started the surge when he put the Irish up 2-1 and then netted the final three scores of the deluge in just 2:29 to make it a 10-1 affair.
The four-goal performance made Perkovic the seventh Notre Dame player to score at least three goals in a game this season. His 14 goals rank third on the team and he is one of four Fighting Irish players with a double-digit goal total this season. Perkovic has scored a goal in eight of 10 games during his freshman campaign. His six man-up goals are tied with John Scioscia for the team lead.
“Sergio is really finding his way,” Corrigan said. “As the year’s gone on, he’s gone from being a man-up shooter to a guy you better account for on every possession. That’s a combination of him learning and getting smarter. He’s a real savvy kid and he learns really quickly; you don’t have to tell Sergio many things twice.
“His midfield group is getting better. They’re playing smarter and more efficiently every game and when they do that he’s going to get opportunities.”
NATIONAL RANKINGS ROUNDUP
USILA Poll
Warrior Poll
Lacrosse Magazine Poll
NCAA National Statistical Rankings
Last week’s wins over Marquette (12-7) and Robert Morris (15-5) moved Notre Dame up to No. 8 in all three major national polls (USILA, Warrior, Lacrosse Magazine). The Fighting Irish are 13th in the latest RPI.
All six ACC schools appear in the top nine of the USILA rankings. Duke is No. 2, while Syracuse is No. 4 and Maryland is No. 5. North Carolina, Notre Dame and Virginia occupy spots seven through nine, respectively. The Fighting Irish will conclude the regular season May 3 against No. 16 Army at Arlotta Stadium.
Notre Dame went 19-of-25 in the faceoff X in Saturday’s win over Robert Morris and that effort was spearheaded by Liam O’Connor’s 17-of-20 performance. That showing moved Notre Dame to second nationally in faceoff winning percentage (.641) and O’Connor has the country’s third-best individual percentage (.644). The Fighting Irish have won the faceoff battle in nine of this season’s 10 contests.
The Irish currently boast the nation’s third-best man-up offense percentage (.564). Notre Dame went 1-of-2 versus Robert Morris after going 3-of-4 earlier in the week in the victory at Marquette.
— Sean Carroll, Assistant Athletic Media Relations Director
—–
The University of Notre Dame men’s lacrosse team pursues excellence on and off the field through the three pillars in which the program is built: Character, Culture & Community. These three foundational values guide the promise of the program, which is to provide its student-athletes with the most compelling and enriching experience in all of college athletics. Through academics, competition, service and travel, the program aims to immerse its players in situations that enhance their student-athlete experience to help them become the people, students and teammates they aspire to be.
Follow the Notre Dame men’s lacrosse team on social media and the Internet …
Click here to follow ND Lacrosse on Twitter
Click here to follow ND Lacrosse Coaching Tips on Twitter
Click here to learn more about the ND Lacrosse Experience on Twitter
Click here to like ND Lacrosse on Facebook
Click here to subscribe to NDLaxTV YouTube Channel
Click here to read the latest news on ND Lacrosse
Click here to learn more about ND Lacrosse Camps
Click here to learn about ND Lacrosse community service on Twitter
— ND —