NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Notre Dame hosts North Carolina at Alumni Stadium at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday evening for a pivotal ACC showdown. The game will air on ACCNX.
NOTRE DAME vs. UNC
Location: Notre Dame, Indiana | Alumni Stadium
Live Stream: ACCNX
Live Stats: Click Here
Twitter Updates: @NDMenSoccer
Game Notes: vs. North Carolina
THE NORTH CAROLINA SERIES
• The Irish and Tar Heels will meet on the pitch for the 10th time on Saturday evening.
• The Irish trail in the series with a mark of 3-4-2.
• Notre Dame is 1-1-2 against UNC when playing the Tar Heels at home.
• The two sides met earlier this season in the ACC Tournament in Chapel Hill and the Irish came away with 1-0 overtime victory in the quarterfinals. Aiden McFadden’s free kick was the match winner to send the Irish into the semifinal round.
LAST TIME OUT
• The Irish dropped a hard-fought 3-2 decision to No. 5 Wake Forest on Saturday, March 27 at Alumni Stadium.
• The Irish goals were scored by Dawson McCartney and Aiden McFadden.
• Notre Dame was undone by two late Wake Forest goals in the final 15 minutes of regulation.
McCartney Makes An Impact
• Dawson McCartney joined the Irish this spring after transfering from Dartmouth and has already made major contributions to the Irish squad.
• The senior has recorded three points off a goal and an assist over his two starts.
• McCartney scored his first goal in an Irish uniform against No. 5 Wake Forest and provided the assist on the game-winning goal against Calvin in a midweek matchup.
LYNN LEADS THE LINE
• Junior forward Jack Lynn enters the week tied for third in the country in goals scored on the year (8), fifth in the ACC in goals per game (0.62) and seventh in points per game (1.45) despite missing time early in the fall season with an injury.
• Lynn paces all active Irish players in career goals with 21 over his three years at Notre Dame.
• In the final match of the fall regular season, Lynn recorded the first hat trick of his career, scoring three times in the first half in the 4-1 win over Louisville.
• The forward enjoyed a breakout 2019 campaign, scoring a career-high 10 goals to lead the Irish attack.
KEEP IT CLEAN
• The Irish have six shutouts on the season and three in their first five games of the spring.
• Notre Dame hasn’t allowed a single goal in regulation in four of its five spring matches, only allowing an overtime score against Virginia and recording clean sheets in wins over Butler, Duke and Calvin.
• Senior goalkeeper Keagan McLaughlin has recorded eight clean sheets in his 16 career starts in goal for the Irish.
• McLaughlin has helped Notre Dame record four shutout wins this season, coming in wins over Kentucky, Syracuse, UNC, Butler and Duke
• The senior shot stopper recorded a career-high five saves in the victory over the Tar Heels to send the Irish to the ACC semifinals.
• McLaughlin kept clean sheets in all three starts during the 2019 campaign, coming in wins over Denver, Michigan State and Purdue Fort Wayne.
STRONG STARTS
• The Irish have been tough to beat when scoring first this season, posting a 7-1 record when achieving the feat.
• Notre Dame has conceded a total of four goals in the seven games when it has struck first.
• Six of the eight games when the Irish have scored first have come in the first half.
AIDEN’S ASSISTS
• Senior forward Aiden McFadden is living up to his No. 10 jersey this season, totaling four assists.
• McFadden’s four assists rank tied for fourth in the ACC.
• All four of McFadden’s assists have come off crosses, including two from service on corners.
• Despite not getting credited with an assist, McFadden provided the final touch from a Notre Dame player in the double overtime own goal to help the Irish defeat the Cavaliers on Oct. 24.
• McFadden has scored two goals this season, including the game winner over UNC in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament in OT in the fall. He also scored in the seventh minute in the win over Duke.
• The senior was selected as the 59th overall pick (third round) by Atlanta United FC in the 2021 MLS SuperDraft.
FALL REWIND
• The Irish finished the fall portion of the schedule with a record of 5-4, including a mark of 4-3 in the regular season.
• Notre Dame recorded regular season wins over Kentucky (1-0), Syracuse (2-1), Virginia (2-1, 2OT) and Louisville (4-1) to earn the No. 3 seed from the North Region in the ACC Tournament.
• The Irish pulled out a thrilling 1-0 overtime win over UNC in the ACC quarterfinals before falling to No. 1 Pitt in the semifinal round.