April 14, 2011
Game 9 – Saturday, April 16 – 7:00 p.m. (ET)
Arlotta Stadium – Notre Dame, Ind.
ST. JOHN’S (4-6, 2-1 BIG EAST)
vs.
#2 NOTRE DAME (8-0, 3-0 BIG EAST)
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SETTING THE STAGE
– No. 2 Notre Dame (8-0, 3-0) will conclude its 2011 regular-season home schedule on Saturday night against St. John’s (4-6, 2-1). The BIG EAST showdown is slated to begin at 7:00 p.m. (ET) at Arlotta Stadium. – This will be the third meeting all-time between Notre Dame and St. John’s. The Irish have won the two previous encounters. The Fighting Irish claimed a 12-2 home victory over the Red Storm in 2009 and the Irish captured a 13-6 win at St. John’s last season. – The Irish are off to an 8-0 start for the third time in program history (31 seasons). The other 8-0 starts came in 1993 and 2009. Notre Dame is the only undefeated team in all of NCAA Division I men’s lacrosse this season. – The Irish are coming off a 7-6 victory over Georgetown on Sunday. – Notre Dame’s defense ranks second nationally by allowing just 6.13 goals per game, which is on pace to break the school-record mark of 6.19 from the 2009 season.
A LOOK AT ST. JOHN’S
– St. John’s will bring a 4-6 record into Saturday’s game. The Red Storm is 2-1 in league play. St. John’s has won its last three games. The Red Storm wins have come against Holy Cross (16-7), Sacred Heart (15-7), Rutgers (9-8) and Providence (9-6). They have lost to Yale (10-8), Georgetown (13-9), Siena (10-4), Stony Brook (9-4), Vermont (14-9) and Hofstra (8-5). – St. John’s is averaging 8.80 goals per game on offense, while allowing 9.20 per game defensively. – Freshman attackman Kevin Cernuto leads St. John’s in goals (20) and points (30). Fellow freshman attackman Kieran McArdle has a team-high 12 assists. Sophomore Jeff Lowman has started all 10 games in goal. He carries a 9.34 goals-against average and a .579 save percentage. – St. John’s went 5-9 last season, which included a 2-4 mark in BIG EAST play. – Head coach Jason Miller is in his fifth season at the helm of the Red Storm program.
IRISH UNDER THE LIGHTS
– Saturday will be Notre Dame’s second night game of the season. The Irish captured a 10-9 night win at Denver on March 12. Saturday will be the second night game ever at Arlotta Stadium. Notre Dame played host to Syracuse last season under the lights.
UP NEXT
– Notre Dame will conclude the regular season with three straight games away from home. The Irish travel to Providence on April 23 and will conclude BIG EAST play on April 30 at Syracuse. Notre Dame will wrap up regular-season play on May 6 at North Carolina.
HOLDING OFF THE HOYAS
– Notre Dame claimed a 7-6 win over Georgetown on Sunday. Neither team led by more than one goal during the entire game. The contest was tied at the end of the first three quarters. – The Fighting Irish defense stymied the Hoya offense, which entered the afternoon averaging nearly 12 goals per game. Two-goal efforts from junior attackman Sean Rogers and senior midfielder David Earl, who also chipped in an assist, spearheaded the Irish offense. Sophomore goalie John Kemp made 12 saves for the Fighting Irish.
KEMP AND EARL EARN BIG EAST HONORS
– Sophomore goalie John Kemp on Monday was named the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week, while senior midfielder David Earl was selected to the conference’s weekly honor roll. The duo helped the Fighting Irish to a 7-6 win over Georgetown on Sunday. Kemp made 12 saves, while Earl tallied two goals and an assist.
HONORS ALL AROUND
– Notre Dame has garnered four BIG EAST player-of-the-week honors this season. Senior midfielder Zach Brenneman (Feb. 21) and junior attackman Sean Rogers (Mar. 28) have been named the league’s offensive player of the week, while senior defenseman Kevin Ridgway (Feb. 28) and sophomore goalie John Kemp (Apr. 11) have been selected as the defensive player of the week. – The Fighting Irish have totaled six BIG EAST weekly honor roll citations. Kemp and senior midfielder David Earl are two-time honorees, while Brenneman and sophomore attackman Ryan Foley have garnered the honor once each.
SCORELESS STRETCHES
– Notre Dame has held an opponent scoreless for an entire quarter eight times this season. The Irish defense has put together a scoreless stretch of 20 minutes or longer seven times this season. The longest such stretch was 32:30 against Drexel. The Dragons did not score from the 9:27 mark of the first quarter until the 6:57 mark of the third quarter. Notre Dame out scored Drexel 5-0 during that time en route to the 11-7 victory. – The Fighting Irish held both Penn State and Rutgers scoreless during two quarters. The Nittany Lions and Scarlet Knight both were held without a goal during the second on fourth quarters. – Rutgers, who entered the March 27 game against the Irish averaging 10.14 goals per game this season, scored just one goal in the final 45:02 of the contest. Notre Dame kept Rutgers off the scoreboard for the final 23:50 of the game.
STINGY DEFENSE
– Since the beginning of the 2007 season (a span of 73 games), Notre Dame has surrendered 10 goals or more in a game just nine times and the Irish defense has limited opponents to seven goals or fewer 50 times during that stretch. The Fighting Irish have not allowed a double-digit goal total in its last 12 games dating back to last season. – Notre Dame has limited foes to four goals or fewer 12 times since the beginning of the 2007 campaign.
IRISH DEFENSE ANNUALLY AMONG THE NATION’S BEST
– The Fighting Irish boast the nation’s second-best defense by allowing just 6.13 goals per game. – Notre Dame had the nation’s second-best defense in 2010 by producing a 7.53 goals-against average. The Irish produced the nation’s sixth-best man-down defense (.750) in 2010. – Goalie Scott Rodgers in 2010 led all NCAA Division I goalies with a .605 save percentage and ranked third in goals-against with a 7.56 average. – Notre Dame had the nation’s top defense in 2009 by producing a school-record 6.19 goals-against average. – The Irish had the nation’s fifth-best scoring defense in 2008 by allowing 7.04 goals per game. In 2007, Notre Dame ranked fourth nationally with a then school record 6.66 mark.
PERFORMING BETWEEN THE PIPES
– Sophomore goalie John Kemp has played every minute in goal this season for the Irish. He ranks second nationally in save percentage (.626) and third in goals-against average (6.13).
SPREADING THE WEALTH
– Notre Dame has had at least five different goal scorers in every game this season. The Irish used a season-high eight different goal scorers in the 11-7 win over Drexel (March 6). – The Fighting Irish have had 13 players tally a goal this season.
HAT TRICKS
– Five Notre Dame players have registered a hat trick this season. Zach Brenneman, Ryan Foley, Westy Hopkins, Colin Igoe and Sean Rogers all have one hat trick this season.
OFFENSIVE OUTPUT
– Notre Dame’s 12 goals against Villanova (Apr. 2) matched its largest offensive output of the season. The Fighting Irish also had 12 tallies against Duke in the season opener – Notre Dame had eight assists on its eight goals in the victory at Rutgers (March 27). The eight assists matched a season-high total that the Irish also achieved in an 11-7 win over Drexel (March 6).
ATTACKING THE COMPETITION
– Irish attackmen have accounted for 44 of Notre Dame’s 74 goals (59.5%) this season. Junior attackman Sean Rogers has a team-high 13 goals, while freshman attackman Westy Hopkins is second with 10. Senior Colin Igoe has nine tallies, while sophomore Ryan Foley has six. Junior attackman Nicholas Beattie has four goals and senior Edison Parzanese has two.
ROGERS RACKING UP THE POINTS
– Junior attackman Sean Rogers leads the Fighting Irish in goals (13) and assists (6) this season. He has tallied 16 points on 11 goals and five assists over the past six games. – Rogers matched a career-high total with three goals against Ohio State (March 23) and followed that performance up with a career-high three assists versus Rutgers (March 27). His six assists this season are a career-high total. He is one goal away from tying is career-high goal total of 14 from last season. – Rogers has a team-best 10-game point streak dating back to last season. Rogers also owns a team-best six-game goal streak.
ROOKIE ON A ROLL
– Freshman attackman Westy Hopkins’ 10 goals rank second among all Fighting Irish players. – Hopkins notched the first hat trick of his career in the 12-8 win over Villanova on April 2. – Hopkins netted two goals in his collegiate debut, a 12-7 season-opening win over Duke. He also scored twice in his home debut versus Drexel, an 11-7 victory.
BEATING THE BEST
– Five of Notre Dame’s eight wins have come against opponents that were ranked at the time of the meetings. The Irish bested #5 Duke 12-7 in the season opener. Notre Dame also topped #16 Drexel (11-7), #14 Denver (10-9), #20 Ohio State (8-7) and #8 Villanova (12-8).
IT’S NOT HOW YOU START, IT’S HOW YOU FINISH
– Notre Dame has surrendered the first goal in five of its eight games this season yet the Irish have gone on to win each contest. – The Irish have led at halftime during seven of their eight games this season. The only time they did not lead was against Georgetown when the game was tied 4-4 at the intermission.
QUALITY QUARTERS
– Notre Dame has out-scored its opponents 21-7 in the second quarter and 23-10 in the fourth quarter.
RUNNING AWAY TO VICTORY
– In the win over Drexel on March 6, Notre Dame trailed 6-5 after three quarters, but finished the game on a 6-1 run to capture the 11-7 victory. – Against Denver on March 12, Notre Dame broke open a 7-7 tie with three straight goals to claim a 10-7 lead by the end of the third quarter. The Irish held on to win 10-9. – Versus Villanova on April 2, the Wildcats sliced the Irish lead to one (9-8) with five seconds left in the third quarter and Notre Dame went on to outscore the Wildcats 3-0 in the fourth quarter to produce the 12-8 victory.
IRISH PLACE THREE ON TEWAARATON TROPHY WATCH LIST
– Notre Dame seniors Zach Brenneman (M), David Earl (M) and Kevin Ridgway (D) have been named to the 58-man watch list for the 2011 Tewaaraton Trophy. The award is presented annually to the nation’s top collegiate lacrosse player.
FACING OFF
– The Fighting Irish boast a 54.0% (81-150) faceoff winning percentage this season. That mark ranks 21st nationally. Senior Jake Marmul is 32-59 (.542), while freshman Liam O’Connor is 49-91 (.538) in the faceoff circle. – Against Ohio State on March 23, the O’Connor and Marmul combined to go 16-19 (.842). – Notre Dame has produced one of the nation’s top faceoff units over the past few seasons. The Irish won 54.3% (185-341) of their attempts last season to rank 17th nationally. – The Irish produced the nation’s ninth-best faceoff winning percentage (.556) in 2009. Notre Dame ranked second nationally in 2008 (.628) and 15th (.546) in 2007.
SHOOTING DOWN THE COMPETITION
– The Irish have a .279 shooting percentage, while their opponents have a .206 mark. Junior attackman Sean Rogers ranks first nationally with a .520 shot percentage.
QUITE THE CROWDS
– The Notre Dame-Drexel game on March 6 drew 1,626 fans to the Loftus Sports Center. That is a men’s lacrosse record crowd for the Loftus Center. The previous mark was 1,437 from the 2009 showdown against North Carolina. – The Irish are averaging 2,496 fans over their last two games at Arlotta Stadium (Villanova & Georgetown).
SIX SUPER SEASONS
– Notre Dame has compiled a 68-20 (.773) record over the past six seasons, including this year. The Fighting Irish have earned five straight trips to the NCAA Tournament. Notre Dame was the national finalist in 2010 and also made a quarterfinal trek in 2008.
PLAYING FOR PEACE
– The Notre Dame men’s lacrosse team used Sunday’s Georgetown game as a platform to further their Playing for Peace initiative. This past December the Irish organized a 3v3 basketball tournament and Stand with Sudan peace rally to encourage students to play, pray and advocate for peace in Sudan. – Later in December, a delegation from the University of Notre Dame, including representatives of the men’s lacrosse program travelled to Washington, D.C. to lobby both elected and appointed government officials to support peacekeeping efforts in Sudan during the lead up and eventual expiration of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. – In January, a referendum took place and there was a unique opportunity for the people of South Sudan to exercise the power of self-determination. The south voted for independence and now are in the process of becoming the world’s newest nation. – Sudan continues to face many challenges; as a new nation, South Sudan is very vulnerable to internal and external conflicts, violence and injustice continue to cause suffering in Darfur. – Following the Georgetown game there was a 7v7 inter-hall Playing for Peace lacrosse tournament on the men’s lacrosse practice field. At halftime of the Notre Dame-Georgetown game the Irish men’s lacrosse team recognized all those that have supported the Playing for Peace initiative.
HOME SWEET HOME
– Notre Dame boasts an all-time home record of 135-38 (.780).
BIG START FOR BRENNEMAN
– Senior midfielder Zach Brenneman opened the season with a career-high five-point effort (3 goals, 2 assists) against Duke. That was the ninth hat trick of his career.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
– The Fighting Irish will appear on the ESPN family of networks five times during the 2011 campaign. Notre Dame’s Champion Challenge contest versus the U.S. National Team was aired on ESPNU, while the season opener versus Duke (Feb. 20) was on ESPN. ESPNU broadcasted Notre Dame’s home BIG EAST tilt versus Georgetown on Sunday. ESPNU also will cover road games against Syracuse (April 30) and North Carolina (May 6).
QUALITY COMPETITION
– The Fighting Irish have five teams on their 2011 slate that appear in the latest United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) coaches’ poll. The Irish currently are ranked second. Notre Dame opened the season with a 12-7 win over current #10 Duke. The Irish won at current #6 Denver 10-9 and claimed 12-8 home victory over #11 Villanova. The Fighting Irish also will face top-ranked Syracuse (April 30) and #9 North Carolina (May 6).
IRISH COME FROM ACROSS THE COUNTRY
– Notre Dame’s 49-man roster hails from 15 different states. The states most represented are Maryland with 12 and New York with eight.
IRVING IGNITES IRISH
– Senior long-stick midfielder Andrew Irving scored a career-high two goals in the season opener against Duke. Irving gave the Irish their first lead of the contest (3-2) with 5:17 left in the first half. Notre Dame would never relinquish that lead. Irving deposited the final goal of the game to make it a 12-7 victory. – Irving dished out a career-high two assists in the 8-7 win over Ohio State (March 23). He also picked up a game-high four ground balls against the Buckeyes. – Irving has missed the past three games after going down in the Ohio State contest with an injury.
CHALLENGING THE CHAMPS
– Notre Dame’s 12-7 win over Duke in the season opener marked the first time the Fighting Irish have ever defeated the defending national champion. The Irish had been 0-3 against defending national champs. Notre Dame’s first crack at defeating the defending national champion came in 1994 as Princeton topped the Irish 6-4. The other two occurrences came against Syracuse. The Orange bested the Irish 12-5 during the 2000 NCAA Tournament. Last season, the defending NCAA Champion Orange defeated Notre Dame 12-6.
ANOTHER KEMP IN CAGE
– Fighting Irish sophomore goalie John Kemp is the younger brother of former Notre Dame All-America goalie Joey Kemp. The older Kemp starred in goal for the Irish from 2005-08 and earned All-America honors three times. He notched a 40-14 record to establish the Irish record for wins in goal. In 2008, he became just the second student-athlete, and the first goalie, in program history to earn first team All-America honors. He also received the 2008 Kelly Award for Outstanding Goalie in NCAA Division I. – John and Joey’s older brother C.J. was an All-America goalie at Fairfield from 2000-03.
BLOOD BROTHERS
– The 2011 Notre Dame roster features two sets of brothers. Twins Billy and Patrick Maloney are senior midfielders. Freshman midfielder Tyler Brenneman joins his older brother Zach, a senior midfielder, on the Irish roster.
CHAMPION CHALLENGE
– Notre Dame fell to the United States National Team, 12-7, on Jan. 30 during the Champion Challenge in Orlando, Fla. Team USA scored the game’s first seven goals, yet the Fighting Irish responded with four straight tallies to slice the deficit to three (7-4) by the end of the third quarter. The U.S. National Team out scored the Irish 5-3 in the final quarter. – Irish senior attackman Colin Igoe had a team-high two goals in the game. Sophomore goalie John Kemp played the entire contest and made 10 saves. – Former Notre Dame All-American Scott Rodgers (2006-10) played the entire second half in goal for Team USA and made nine saves.
IRISH CAPTAINS
– Seniors Zach Brenneman (M), David Earl (M), Andrew Irving (LSM) and Kevin Ridgway (D) are first-time captains for the Fighting Irish.
SUSTAINED SUCCESS
– Notre Dame has earned five straight trips to the NCAA Championship and the Irish have made 15 tournament appearances since 1990. – The Fighting Irish were national finalists in 2010 and national semifinalists in 2001. Notre Dame has three other NCAA quarterfinal appearances (1995, 2000, 2008). – Notre Dame is competing in its 31st season of varsity lacrosse. The Fighting Irish have an all-time record of 278-145 (.657). Kevin Corrigan is in his 23rd season as the head coach of the Fighting Irish. He has a record of 214-103 (.675) during his Notre Dame tenure.
FIVE IRISH PLAYERS EARN PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA HONORS
– Five Fighting Irish seniors garnered preseason All-America honors from Inside Lacrosse. Zach Brenneman (M) and Kevin Ridgway (D) were named to the first team, while Sam Barnes (D) was a second-team pick. David Earl (M) was selected to the third team and Andrew Irving (LSM) was an honorable mention selection.
PROGRAM-RECORD FIVE IRISH PLAYERS SELECTED IN MLL DRAFT
– A school-record five Notre Dame players were selected in January’s Major League Lacrosse (MLL) Collegiate Draft. Midfielder Zach Brenneman became the highest pick in program history as he went fifth overall to the Long Island Lizards. – Syracuse led all schools with seven players selected while Notre Dame and Maryland were next with five players drafted. – The Hamilton Nationals selected Fighting Irish midfielder David Earl in the third round (13th overall selection), while defenseman Kevin Ridgway also went to Hamilton five picks later. Long Island tabbed defenseman Sam Barnes in the fifth round (29th overall) and the Denver Outlaws picked long-stick midfielder Andrew Irving in the sixth round (33rd overall).
IRISH PICKED SECOND IN BIG EAST PRESEASON POLL
– Notre Dame was picked to finish second in the BIG EAST according to the league’s 2011 preseason coaches poll. – Syracuse was selected to win the league with six first-place votes, while Notre Dame received one first-place nod. Rounding out the order of finish was Georgetown, Villanova, St. John’s, Rutgers and Providence. Coaches were not permitted to vote for their own teams. – Fighting Irish senior midfielder Zach Brenneman was tabbed as the BIG EAST Preseason Attack Player of the Year. – Four Notre Dame student-athletes were named to the 2011 All-BIG EAST Preseason Team. Joining Brenneman were fellow seniors David Earl (M), a unanimous selection, Sam Barnes (D) and Kevin Ridgway (D).
BIG EAST BOYS
– The 2011 campaign marks the second season of BIG EAST men’s lacrosse. The seven conference schools that participate in the league are Georgetown, Notre Dame, Providence, Rutgers, St. John’s, Syracuse and Villanova. The teams play a six-game single round-robin regular-season schedule. – Syracuse won the conference title last year with a 6-0 league record. – In 2012, Marquette will be the eighth program to join the BIG EAST in men’s lacrosse. – Men’s lacrosse is the BIG EAST’s 11th men’s sport while the Conference conducts 13 women’s sports. Notre Dame already is a member of the BIG EAST in 23 other sports. – Notre Dame was a member of the Great Western Lacrosse League (GWLL) from 1994-2009. The Fighting Irish captured 12 GWLL regular-season titles in addition to winning the only two GWLL Tournaments (2008 & 2009).
FALL BALL IN SAN FRANCISCO
– More than 6,000 Northern California lacrosse fans were treated to a 10-7 Notre Dame victory over Johns Hopkins on Oct 16. The exhibition contest, which was part of the second annual San Francisco Fall Lacrosse Classic, was played at Kezar Stadium. All the proceeds from the game benefitted the BAYS Foundation.
LOOKING BACK
– Notre Dame went 10-7 overall and 2-4 in BIG EAST play one season ago. – The Fighting Irish became just the fifth unseeded team to reach the title game of the NCAA Championship and the first since Massachusetts in 2006. The others were Cornell (1988), Towson (1991) and Maryland (1997). – Notre Dame’s 5.75 goals-against average during the 2010 NCAA Championship ranked second all-time behind only North Carolina in 1982 for an entire NCAA Tournament. That Tar Heel squad allowed 15 goals (5.0 per game) during their three games of the tournament en route to winning the title. The 2010 Irish surrendered 23 goals in their four games of the tournament.
KEEPING UP WITH FIGHTING IRISH MEN’S LACROSSE
– Log onto UND.com for the latest information on the Notre Dame men’s lacrosse program. UND.com, the official athletics web site for the University of Notre Dame, features press releases, game stories, feature stories, video interviews, stats, rosters and more. Fans also can sign up for Irish ALERT, a text messaging service designed to give fans game updates for all 26 varsity sports at Notre Dame. Irish men’s lacrosse fans can sign up to receive scores following each quarter. Updates and results can also be found on Twitter at UND_com. – Media members and fans may be added to the athletics media relations e-mail release list by contacting assistant media relations director Sean Carroll at Carroll.64@nd.edu or (574) 631-2664. All requests for story ideas, interview access, match credentials and further information on Irish men’s lacrosse should similarly be directed to Carroll. Credential and interview requests should be made at least 24 hours in advance.