Justin Morrow and the Irish are gunning for a third straight BIG EAST Blue Division title.

Notre Dame Announces 2009 Schedule

June 11, 2009

2009 Notre Dame Men’s Soccer Schedule Get Acrobat Reader

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The University of Notre Dame has released its 2009 men’s soccer schedule. The Fighting Irish will open the campaign on Tuesday, Sept. 1 against Michigan in the new Alumni Stadium.

The Irish have eight teams on their 2009 slate that qualified for the NCAA Tournament last season. Included in those teams are 2008 national semifinalists St. John’s and Wake Forest.

“Once again, we have a fantastic schedule,” states Irish head coach Bobby Clark. “I believe last year we had the third toughest schedule in the country and this one should rival it closely. One of the things at Notre Dame that we try to do is find the best teams we can play to give our student-athletes the most competitive experience they can get.”

Following the season opener against the Wolverines, the Irish will head down state to take part in the adidas/IU Credit Union Classic in Bloomington, Ind. over Labor Day weekend. Notre Dame will face Wake Forest in the opening game on Friday, Sept. 4. The trip will not get any easier as the Fighting Irish are matched up against BIG EAST foe St. John’s on Sunday, Sept. 6 in the final day of the event. The match against the Red Storm will not count as a league contest.

Notre Dame returns home to host the eighth annual Mike Berticelli Memorial Tournament. Indiana and New Mexico will get things underway on Friday, Sept. 11, while Notre Dame will take on Seattle University in the second game. Day two features Indiana facing Seattle followed by the Irish squaring off against New Mexico.

The Irish will begin BIG EAST play with a two game-road trip. DePaul is first on the docket on Friday, Sept. 18 and Notre Dame will then travel to South Florida to face the Bulls on Sunday, Sept. 20 in Tampa, Fla.

“Our non-conference schedule is very tough and you combine that with the strength of the BIG EAST and that should make for a fantastic challenge. But I think we’ll be ready for it,” says Clark.

Notre Dame will return to campus for a three-game BIG EAST homestand. The Irish will play host to Louisville in the conference home opener on Friday, Sept. 25 before Cincinnati comes to town on Sunday, Sept. 27. Seton Hall and Notre Dame will then take to the Alumni Stadium pitch on Friday, Oct. 2.

“Without question, the new stadium will be one of the finest college soccer stadiums in the country,” adds Clark. “We hope that we’ll have a team that’ll do it proud and I think we have that.”

Following BIG EAST trips to Marquette (Oct. 7) and Providence (Oct. 10), Notre Dame will step away from league action to play host to instate rival Indiana on Wednesday, Oct. 14. The Irish return to conference play with a home date against West Virginia on Saturday, Oct. 17. The match against the Mountaineers is slated for an 11:30 a.m. (ET) start, which will be prior to the Notre Dame-USC football game.

A three-game road swing will begin at Georgetown on Oct. 21. The Fighting Irish will then travel to Pittsburgh on Oct. 24 before concluding the trip with a non-conference showdown at Michigan State on Oct. 28.

The regular season will wrap up with the Fighting Irish hosting BIG EAST rival Connecticut on Saturday, Oct. 31.

The BIG EAST tournament will commence with the first round on Wednesday, Nov. 4, while the quarterfinals are slated for Saturday, Nov. 7. The semifinals and final will be held in Morgantown, W. Va. on Nov. 13 and 15.

Following the conference tournament, the Fighting Irish will hope to see their name among the 48-team NCAA Championship field for the ninth straight season. All of those appearances have occurred during the Clark era. Tournament play begins on Nov. 20 and College Cup Weekend will be held in Cary, N.C. on Dec. 11 and 13.

Last season, Notre Dame posted a 12-7-2 record and captured the BIG EAST Blue Division title. It marked the second straight season that the Irish had claimed at least a share of the league crown. Notre Dame earned the No. 12 seed for the NCAA Championship before falling to Northwestern, 2-1, in the second round. Northwestern will be one of two exhibition games for the Irish this season. Notre Dame will play at Northern Illinois in preseason action on Thursday, Aug. 20 before hosting the Wildcats on Monday, Aug. 24.

Ticket information for the entire 2009 Fighting Irish men’s soccer season can be found at und.com/tickets or by calling the Notre Dame ticket office at (574) 631-7356.

2009 NOTRE DAME MEN'S SOCCER SCHEDULE
AUGUST20 Thur. at Northern Illinois (exhibition) 5:00 p.m.24 Mon. NORTHWESTERN (exhibition) 7:00 p.m.
SEPTEMBER1 Tue. MICHIGAN 7:00 p.m.4 Fri. vs. Wake Forest! 5:00 p.m.6 Sun. vs. St. John's! 11:30 a.m.
MIKE BERTICELLI MEMORIAL TOURNAMENT11 Fri. Indiana vs. New Mexico 5:00 p.m.11 Fri. SEATTLE 7:30 p.m.13 Sun. Indiana vs. Seattle 11:30 a.m.13 Sun. NEW MEXICO 2:00 p.m.
18 Fri. at DePaul* 4:00 p.m.20 Sun. at South Florida* 1:00 p.m.25 Fri. LOUISVILLE* 7:00 p.m.27 Sun. CINCINNATI* 3:30 p.m.
OCTOBER2 Fri. SETON HALL* 7:00 p.m.7 Wed. at Marquette* 7:00 p.m.10 Sat. at Providence* 1:00 p.m.14 Wed. INDIANA 7:00 p.m.17 Sat. WEST VIRGINIA* 11:30 a.m.21 Wed. at Georgetown* 3:00 p.m.24 Sat. at Pittsburgh* 1:00 p.m.28 Wed. at Michigan State 3:00 p.m.31 Sat. CONNECTICUT* 2:00 p.m.
NOVEMBER4 Wed. BIG EAST First Round (Campus Sites) TBA7 Sat. BIG EAST Quarterfinals (Campus Sites) TBA13 Fri. BIG EAST Semifinals (Morgantown, W. Va.) TBA15 Sun. BIG EAST Championship (Morgantown, W. Va.) TBA20/21 Fri./Sat. NCAA First Round (Campus Sites) TBA24 Tue. NCAA Second Round (Campus Sites) TBA28/29 Sat./Sun. NCAA Third Round (Campus Sites) TBA
DECEMBER4-6 Fri.-Sun. NCAA Quarterfinals (Campus Sites) TBA11 Fri. NCAA Semifinals (Cary, N.C.) TBA13 Sun. NCAA Championship (Cary, N.C.) TBA
home games in BOLD CAPS! -- adidas/IU Credit Union Classic (Bloomington, Ind.)* -- BIG EAST Conference gameall times local to site