March 30, 2006
Notre Dame, Ind. –
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• The Game: #10/#10 Notre Dame (8-1/1-0) at Connecticut (2-4/0-1)
• Date/Site/Time: Fri., March 31, 2006 – 1:00 p.m – Morrone Stadium – Storrs, Conn.
IRISH RETURN TO BIG EAST ACTION AT CONNECTICUT: The Notre Dame women’s lacrosse team opens a streak of five consecutive road games on Friday, March 31 when the Irish travel to Storrs, Conn., to meet the Connecticut Huskies. The return to BIG EAST action will be at Morrone Stadium with the opening draw set for 1:00 p.m. Notre Dame brings an 8-1 overall record into the game and is 1-0 in BIG EAST play with a 13-9 win over Loyola (Md.) on March 16 to their credit. In their lone game last week, the Irish defeated Canisius by an 18-2 score at Moose Krause Stadium in South Bend as Notre Dame bounced back from its only loss of the season to No. 1 Northwestern on March 19. For Connecticut, the Notre Dame contest is the Huskies home opener as they’ve played six games on the road, going 2-4 overall and 0-1 in conference play. Connecticut last played on March 26, dropping a 13-7 decision at Syracuse in the Huskies’ BIG EAST opener. For the second week in a row, Notre Dame is ranked No. 10 in both the IWLCA and Inside Lacrosse polls. Following the Connecticut game, the Irish next play on Wed., April 5 when they travel to Ohio State for a 4:00 p.m. game.
NOTRE DAME VERSUS CONNECTICUT: The Irish and the Huskies have met seven times in the all-time series with Notre Dame holding a 5-2 edge in the first seven meetings. At Storrs, Conn., the Irish are 2-1 all-time. The lone Irish loss at Connecticut came on April, 8, 2000, a 17-7 Huskies’ win. Notre Dame took a 12-9 win in 2002 and a 14-8 win in 2004 in Storrs. Last season, Connecticut won for the first time at Notre Dame, delivering a 13-10 win over the Irish on April 1 at Moose Krause Stadium. All-time, the Irish are 3-1 versus Connecticut in South Bend, Ind.
HEAD COACH Tracy Coyne: Notre Dame head coach Tracy Coyne is in her 10th season as the head coach of the Irish and is the only coach in the program’s Division I history. Coyne owns a 80-61 (.567) record at Notre Dame and is 194-87 (.690) in her 19-year coaching career. Her 2006 Irish squad started the season with a 7-0 record and is currently, 8-1 overall, quite a turnaround from last year’s 3-12 overall mark and 1-4 record in the BIG EAST. The Irish lost seven games by three goals or less, including four, one-goal decisions. The year before, 2004, Coyne led the Irish to a 12-5 overall record and second place in the BIG EAST with a 4-2 record. She was selected the 2004 BIG EAST coach of the year. Notre Dame advanced to the NCAA tournament for the second time in the program’s history, dropping a 10-8 decision at Northwestern. The Pittsburgh, Pa., native led Denison (1988) and Roanoke (1990, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1996) to the NCAA Division III tournament during stops at those schools. A 1983 graduate of Ohio University, Coyne has coached on the international level as the head coach for the Canadian women’s lacrosse national team since 1999. Last year, she led Team Canada to a fourth-place finish at the 2005 World Cup, her second fourth-place finish (2001) as Canada’s field boss. Coyne is 5-2 all-time versus Connecticut.
TEWAARATON WATCH LIST: Senior midfield/attack standout Crysti Foote (Suffern, N.Y.) has been named to the Tewaaraton Trophy watch list for the 2006 season. In nine games this year, Foote has career highs in goals (36), assists (16) and points (52). She becomes the third Irish player named to the watch list, joining Danielle Shearer `03 and Meredith Simon `04. Simon went on to be Notre Dame’s first-ever nominee for the honor. The Tewaaraton Trophy is awarded each season to the top male and female collegiate lacrosse players.
GETTING BACK ON TRACK: Notre Dame bounced back from its first loss of the season at No. 1 Northwestern with an 18-2 win over Canisius at Moose Krause Stadium on March 25. Ten different players scored for the Irish as they equaled a school mark with the fewest goals allowed in a game (2). The Irish jumped out to an 11-2 lead at halftime and then blanked the Golden Griffins, 7-0, in the second half. Kaki Orr (Jr., Darien, Conn.) paced the Notre Dame attack with a career-high four-goal and five-point game. Caitlin McKinney (So., Lafayette Hill, Pa.) also had five points in the game (3g, 2a). Meghan Murphy (Jr., Centennial, Colo.) added three goals for the Irish in the win. Sophomore Heather Ferguson (Newtown Square, Pa.) turned in a career-best four-point game with a goal and a career-high three assists. Jane Stoeckert (Fr., Mendham, N.J.) and Mary Carpenter (So., Rochester, N.Y.) had three-point games (a goal and two assists) while Jillian Byers (Fr., Northport, N.Y.) added two goals and Alica Billings (Fr., Potomac, Md.), Crysti Foote and Brittany Fox (Sr., Annapolis, Md.) each scored once. The Irish out shot Canisius 38-7 in the game. Carol Dixon (Sr., Pennsauken, N.J.) played 47:42 minutes, giving up both goals while making two saves. Erin Goodman (Fr., Cortlandt Park, N.Y.) saw 12:18 minutes of action and did not give up a goal or record a save.
GOAL-SCORING RAMPAGE: Notre Dame’s 18-goal outburst versus Canisius gives the Irish five games this season with 17 or more goals. Through nine games, they have already equaled the total-goal output (145) of last season (9.67 per game). As of March 27, the Irish are second in the nation in goals scored (145), just two behind Maryland, but the Terrapins have 147 goals in 11 games. In the NCAA statistics, Notre Dame ranks third in the nation in goals- per-game with 16.11 per game, trailing Northwestern (17.38 per game) and Drexel (16.43 per game). The Notre Dame record for goals-per-game in a season is 13.56 (nine games) and was set in the program’s first season, 1997. The school record in a 15-game season is 13.33 and was set in 1999.
FRESHMAN PHENOM: Freshman attack standout Jillian Byers tied the Notre Dame rookie point mark with a pair of goals in the win over Canisius on March 25. Through her first nine games at Notre Dame, Byers now has 30 goals and 11 assists for 41 points. That ties her with Courtney Calabrese `98 (38g, 3a) and Lael O’Shaughnessy `01 (27g, 14a) for the rookie scoring mark. Prior to setting that mark, Byers already set a Notre Dame freshman record for points in a game with nine points (5g, 4a) versus Lehigh. Byers had five goals and an assist in the first half and then set up three goals in the second half of the game. Byers nine-point game also tied an Irish record for points in a home game, matching the nine points recorded by Kerry Callahan `99 (6g, 3a) on March 24, 1997 versus Stanford and Lael O’Shaughnessy `01 (6g, 3a) on March 28, 1999 vs. Connecticut. Byers needs just one more point to become the all-time freshman scoring leader, four assists to set the assist mark and nine more goals to set the goal-scoring mark.
Freshman Scoring Leaders:1. Courtney Calabrese (1998) 38- 3-41 Jillian Byers (2006) 30-11-41 Lael O'Shaughnessy (1998) 27-14-414. Caitlin McKinney (2005) 28-12-405. Crysti Foote (2003) 27-11-38
STINGY DEFENSE: The two goals given up by the Irish in the win against Canisius tied the Notre Dame mark for the fewest goals in a game. On March 25, 2001, the Irish gave up two goals to Denver and on April 9, 1999, they surrendered two goals to Davidson. The game also marked the third time that Notre Dame had held a team scoreless in a half as the Irish blanked Canisius in the second half. In the game against Denver, Notre Dame shut the Pioneers out in the second half and in the Davidson game, the Irish held the Wildcats scoreless in the first half.
FOOTE LOOSE: Senior Crysti Foote, Notre Dame’s all-BIG EAST and all-American candidate is on her way to a record-shattering season for the Irish. Through the first nine games this season, Foote has already recorded career highs in goals (36) and points (52) while equaling her career best with 16 assists. As of March 27, she led the nation in goals and points while tying for fifth in assists. Her 5.78 points per game was second in the NCAA rankings. In the Irish record books, here’s where she ranks:
Career Goals: 1. Danielle Shearer `03 130 2. Crysti Foote `06 123 3. Lael O'Shaughnessy `01 122
Career Points: 1. Danielle Shearer `03 196 2. Lael O'Shaughnessy `01 190 3. Crysti Foote `06 175
Career Assists: 1. Lael O'Shaughnessy `01 68 2. Danielle Shearer `03 66 3. Kerry Callahan `99 63 4. Crysti Foote `06 52
Draw Controls: 1. Alissa Moser `02 126 2. Tina Fedarcyk `02 96 3. Meredith Simon `04 91 4. Kathryn Lam `02 90 5. Crysti Foote `0 78
TERRIFIC TRIO: Notre Dame’s high-scoring trio of Crysti Foote, Jill Byers and Caitlin McKinney ranks second, 12th and 20th respectively in points-per-game nationally. Through the first nine games of the season, the trio has combined for 88 goals and 43 assists for 131 points. Foote leads the way with 36 goals and 16 assists. Byers is second with 30 tallies and 11 assists for 41 points while McKinney has 22 goals and 16 assists for 38 points. Byers has two game-winning goals while Foote and McKinney have one each.
FAST START: Notre Dame’s 8-1 start is tied for the second-best start after nine games in the program’s 10 seasons. The 2002 team was also 8-1 after nine games while the 2004 team was 8-0 on the way to a 10-0 start.
BIG EAST HONOR ROLL: Junior Kaki Orr was selected to the BIG EAST honor roll for the week ending March 26. In the lone Notre Dame game of the week, an 18-2 win over Canisius, Orr recorded a career-best four-goal game and five-point game in the win. She joins Crysti Foote as the Notre Dame honorees this season on the offensive side of the ball. Foote has been selected BIG EAST offensive player of the week twice and to the honor roll in the two other weeks this season.
IRISH STREAKS: Several Notre Dame players have scoring streaks going into the game with Connecticut. Some carry over from last season, the others just started in 2006:
Crysti Foote – 19-game streak (62-28-90)
Caitlin McKinney – 12-game streak (30-17-47)
Jill Byers – 9 games (30-11-41)
Brittany Fox – 4 games (6-2-8)
Jane Stoeckert – 4 games (3-5-8)
Heather Ferguson – 3 games (3-6-9)
Alicia Billings – 3 games (2-2-4)
Former Irish attack standout, Danielle Shearer `03 holds the Notre Dame record by scoring in 36 consecutive games between 4/25/01 and 5/1/03, getting 85 goals and 51 assists for 136 points in her streak. The streak was still active when her collegiate career ended.
THE ELUSIVE ONE: Sophomore Caitlin McKinney recorded her fifth game of the season with five or more points (3g, 2a) in the win over Canisius on March 25. The speedster goes into the game with Connecticut with 22 goals and 16 assists for 38 points in the first nine games of the season. She needs just three more points to surpass her point total (40) of her freshman season. As a freshman, McKinney missed the Irish freshman scoring record (41 points) as she had 28 goals and 12 assists. She finished the year by being named second team all-BIG EAST, the lone freshman on that team, and was a second-team all-Mid-Atlantic region choice. Following the season, she was also named to the U.S. National Developmental Team.
BEST IN THE NATION: Notre Dame’s freshman class was rated No. 1 in the nation by Inside Lacrosse magazine in its November, 2005 issue. The story had this to say about the 10-player class: “Coming off a disappointing 3-12 season, the Fighting Irish have high hopes for 2006 with Jill Byers leading a powerful class that includes immediate contributors Jane Stoeckert (Mendham, N.J.), Mary Veith (Silver Springs, Md.) and Alicia Billings (Potomac, Md.). Goalie Erin Goodman (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y.) adds strength for the future.” As part of the story, the magazine’s list of “Blue Chip” recruits listed Jill Byers and Jane Stoeckert among its top 10 incoming freshmen.
THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT: Notre Dame’s freshman class has lived up to its top billing in 2006. Jillian Byers has led the way with 30 goals and 11 assists for 41 points in nine games, including a sudden-death overtime game winner versus Stanford and the game winner against Lehigh. Jane Stoeckert has become a consistent scorer with points in eight of her first nine games and is tied for seventh in scoring with six goals and seven assists for 13 points. She scored the game-winning goal against Cornell and then set up the game winner versus James Madison. Alicia Billings (Potomac, Md.) has five goals and three assists on the year and has been a force in the midfield. Shannon Burke (Baltimore, Md.) has seen action on defense in five games, grabbing seven ground balls and causing seven turnovers. Kelly Gaudreau (Annapolis, Md.) has played in four games while Annemarie McGrath (Wayne, Pa.) has played in three games with Beth Koloup (Phoenix, Md.) and Lauren deMello (Manlius, N.Y.) playing twice. Freshamn goalkeeper Erin Goodman has played n parts of two games in relief of Carol Dixon.
VERSUS NO. 1: When Notre Dame faced No. 1 Northwestern on March 19, it marked just the second time in the program’s history that the Irish faced the No. 1 team in the country. On May 12, 2002, the Irish faced No. 1 ranked Princeton in the NCAA Quarterfinals at Princeton where they dropped an 11-5 decision to the eventual national champions. Notre Dame is now 0-2 all-time versus No. 1 ranked teams.
UNLUCKY 21: The 21 goals scored by Northwestern equaled the most goals ever given up by a Notre Dame women’s lacrosse team. On April 13, 1997, the Irish gave up 21 goals in a 21-10 loss at St. Joseph’s. Notre Dame has surrendered 20 or more goals in a game just three times in the program’s history.
LARGE MARGIN: Notre Dame’s 20-4 win over Lehigh was the third-largest margin of victory in the program’s 10-year history. The Irish own a 19-goal win over Ohio (22-3 in 2000) and an 18-goal win against Denver (20-2 in 2001).
THREE FOR STOECKERT: Freshman Jane Stoeckert turned in a career-high three-point game (2g, 1a) in Notre Dame’s 13-9 win over Loyola on March 16. That came one game after setting up the game-winning goal in the 12-11 win over James Madison on March 12. Stoeckert picked up her second three-point game of the season with a goal and two assists in the win over Canisius. She now has six goals and seven assists for 13 points in her first nine games.
Career YearsThrough nine games this season, several Notre Dame players have already turned in career-best seasons:
2006 Previous Best YearCrysti Foote 36-16-52 2005 (34-16-50)Meghan Murphy 12-5-17 2004 (11-3-14)Heather Ferguson 8-8-16 2005 (4-5-9)Kaki Orr 11-4-15 2005 (11-1-12)Mary Carpenter 7-6-13 2005 (6-3-9)Becky Ranck 13 GB, 13 DC, 17 CT 2005 (2 GB, 0 DC, 3 CT)Katie Killeen 6 GB, 2 DC, 7 CT ----