Oct. 15, 2015
DATE: Oct. 16, 2015
TIME: 5:30 p.m. (ET)
LOCATION: Blacksburg, Va. (Thompson Field — cap. 2,028)
LAST MEETING: ND, 3-1 (10/25/14 at ND)
BROADCAST: RSN/WatchESPN
LIVE STATS: Hokiesports.com
TWITTER: @NDMenSoccer
In a flashback to the prime of the BIG EAST Conference, the University of Notre Dame men’s soccer team makes its second trip to Blacksburg, Virginia as an Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) member on Friday to face Virginia Tech. The 5:30 p.m. (ET) match will be carried live on the Regional Sports Network (RSN) with additional coverage available via ESPN3.
The No. 7/4 Irish (8-2-3, 3-1-1 ACC) are in search of their seventh straight result overall, and fourth in ACC play, against the Hokies (5-5-2, 0-3-2 ACC). Notre Dame is a perfect 5-0-0 all-time against the Hokies, winning in both of its previous trips to Thompson Field in Blacksburg. The Irish won all three meetings with Virginia Tech when both programs were members of the BIG EAST from 2001-03, taking a pair of contests against the Hokies since joining the ACC in 2013.
Scouting Virginia Tech
Virginia Tech enters Friday’s match with a 5-5-2 record after losing to High Point 2-1 in nonconference play on Tuesday. The Hokies remain in search of their first ACC win of the season at 0-3-2, most recently battling Pittsburgh to a 0-0 draw on Oct. 9.
Head coach Mike Brizendine is 37-69-17 (.370) in his seventh season at Virginia Tech, assuming the top job in Blacksburg after serving as an assistant coach on the Hokies staff from 2004-08.
Never Giving Up In Extra Time
The 3-2 Notre Dame overtime victory against Duke on Saturday was the 17th straight result earned by the Irish in a match that went to extra time since an NCAA Round of 16 match against Indiana in 2012.
Notre Dame’s win over Duke was the team’s first triumph in the first overtime period in exactly one year, outlasting Louisville 3-2 on Oct. 10, 2014.
Hodan Makes His Mark
A slow start to the 2015 season is a thing of the past for senior midfielder/tri-captain Patrick Hodan. The reigning ACC Offensive Player of the Year has emerged as a force on the Notre Dame front line during the heart of conference play.
Hodan registered a team-high five points in last Saturday’s overtime win against Duke, tallying the first two Notre Dame goals of the match before serving a game-winning assist on Jeffrey Farina’s goal in the 97th minute.
Hodan ranks second on the Irish roster with 10 total points (three goals, four assists) in 2015, with all 10 points scored in his last seven starts.
Farina Equals ’14 ND Goal Mark
Sophomore Jeffrey Farina became the 11th different Notre Dame player this season to open his 2015 goal account on Saturday against Duke.
A total of 11 players also notched at least one goal during the 2014 campaign, matching totals from the 2009, 2011 and 2012 seasons.
Consecutive Draws A Rare ND Feat
Notre Dame head coach Bobby Clark has been on the sideline for 48 matches that ended in a draw during his 15-year tenure at the helm of the Irish, but tie scores in consecutive games have been rare.
Since 2001, Notre Dame has recorded consecutive draws on four occasions; against Providence (2-2) and Georgetown (0-0) in 2007, versus South Florida (2-2), Louisville (0-0) and St. John’s (0-0) in 2009, against Northwestern (1-1) and Connecticut (0-0) in 2011, and in two of the last three matches with North Carolina State (Oct. 4) and Michigan (Oct. 7).
Last Saturday’s overtime win over Duke marked just the second time under Clark that Notre Dame had played in three straight overtime matches, joining the postseason draws against South Florida, Louisville and St. John’s during the 2009 BIG EAST Conference tournament.
This season’s draws with both NC State and Michigan are the only back-to-back ties in the Clark era where Notre Dame found the scoresheet in both games, with each match finishing 1-1.
Irish Against The ACC
Notre Dame enters Friday’s contest against Virginia Tech with a 63-28-13 (.668) record all-time against the current ACC membership, including a 16-3-5 (.771) regular season mark in league play since joining the conference in 2013. The Irish were the outright regular season champions of the ACC that year before claiming the ACC Coastal Division title in the first season of the conference’s two-division structure in 2014.
Notre Dame previously defeated No. 9 Clemson (1-0 on Sept. 12), No. 4 Virginia (3-1 on Sept. 25) and Duke (3-2 in OT on Oct. 10) in ACC matchups earlier this season, while also playing to a 1-1 draw at North Carolina State on Oct. 4.
–ND–
— Tony Jones, Athletics Communications Assistant