NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Notre Dame gets the 2020 season underway at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday, Sept. 17, as the Irish open the season at Alumni Stadium against the Kentucky Wildcats. The match will be available to stream live on ACCNX.
NOTRE DAME vs. KENTUCKY
Location: Notre Dame, Indiana | Alumni Stadium
Live Stream: ACCNX
Live Stats: Click Here
Twitter Updates: @NDMenSoccer
Game Notes: vs. Kentucky
2020 ATTENDANCE POLICY FOR HOME MATCHES
• Until further notice, while the University is in session during the fall semester, spectators will not be allowed at home sporting events unless otherwise specified.
• The University will monitor the health and safety of the campus and local community throughout the fall semester – working closely with health officials in formulating policies and procedures.
• All home games for men’s soccer will air on ACCN or ACCNX.
THE KENTUCKY SERIES
• The Irish and Wildcats will meet on the pitch for the sixth time on Thursday evening.
• The Irish lead the Widlcats in the all-time series at 4-1-0.
• Notre Dame and Kentucky played twice in the 1980s, twice in the 1990s and once in the 2010s.
• The Irish are 2-1-0 against Kentucky when playing at home, however, Notre Dame dropped a 1-0 decision in the most recent matchup on Sept. 8, 2014 at Alumni Stadium.
OWNING THE OPENERS
• Notre Dame has historically gotten off to a good start to its season, posting a record of 26-9-8.
• The Irish are unbeaten in their last nine openers to a season, going 5-0-4. Notre Dame has outscored the opposition by a combined score of 14-5 over that stretch.
• Notre Dame has been even better in home openers, recording a mark of 31-8-4.
• Last season the Irish won the season-opener on the road, posting a 3-2 victory over Saint Louis before returning home to defeat Seattle by a 4-2 margin.
LYNN LEADING THE LINE
• Junior striker Jack Lynn enjoyed a breakout season in 2019, scoring a team-high 10 goals to lead the Irish attack.
• Lynn finished his sophomore campaign strong,, scoring six goals in the last nine games.
• After scoring goals in wins over Seattle and Denver the sophomore was named the Mike Berticelli Memorial Tournament MVP.
• The striker recorded the first brace of his career with two goals in the win over Purdue Fort Wayne.
• Lynn scored the match winners to beat No. 21 Duke in the 65th minute on Oct. 11 and to defeat Pitt in the 17th minute on Nov. 1.
• The sophomore ranked 12th nationally in game-winning goals on the season with five.
• Lynn has 13 goals over his first two seasons with the Irish.
CHALLENGING SLATE AHEAD
• The Irish have never shied away from playing a challenging slate of opponents and the 2020 schedule looks to be no different.
• Notre Dame is set to play eight regular-season matches in the fall, six counting as ACC play.
• All eight matches will feature teams that played in last season’s NCAA Tournament.
• The only team the Irish are set to face from outside the ACC is Kentucky in the season-opener.
• The Irish also technically play another non-conference match against Pitt on Saturday, Sept. 26.
RILEY ENTERS YEAR THREE AT NOTRE DAME
• Head Coach Chad Riley enters his third season at the helm of his alma mater.
• Riley has led the Irish to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances since taking the reins of the program.
• The Irish have a record of 21-15-4 during Riley’s tenure.
• Riley became the first head coach in program history to reach the NCAA quarterfinals in his debut season after earning the No. 7 overall seed in the tournament.