Oct. 2, 2009
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The Notre Dame men’s lacrosse team has announced its 2009 fall schedule. The Fighting Irish will face the Canadian National Team twice on Oct. 11 in Orchard Park, N.Y. Notre Dame concludes the slate with a home game at Arlotta Stadium against the Iroquois National Team on Oct. 16.
Notre Dame will meet the Canadian National Team at Orchard Park High School in Orchard Park, N.Y., which is just south of Buffalo. There will be two games, with the first starting at 10:00 a.m. (ET). The second contest will follow immediately afterwards.
The Canadians won the world championship during the last world games. They will bring their top 50 players to face the Fighting Irish. Their roster will then be reduced to 23 members for the games next summer.
The game against the Iroquois National Team will be the first game held at the state-of-the-art Arlotta Stadium. Game time is slated for 4:00 p.m. (ET) and there is free admission for all fans. The official stadium dedication will take place the following morning (Saturday, Oct. 17) prior to the Notre Dame-USC football game.
The Iroquois are a unique entity, comprising the only Native American team sanctioned to compete in any sport internationally. They have transitioned from box lacrosse to the field game. The Iroquois team members have also achieved great success. They boast NCAA All-Americans, professional players in the National Lacrosse League and many International Lacrosse Federation World Team members.
Lacrosse is one of the oldest team sports played in North America. Rooted in centuries of Native American tradition, the game took on many variations before reaching its present day form. The annual collegiate player-of-the-year trophy for men’s and women’s lacrosse is named the Tewaaraton Trophy. `Tewaaraton’ is the Mohawk name for their game and the progenitor of present day lacrosse.
Notre Dame posted a 15-1 record last season en route to garnering the No. 7 seed in the NCAA Championship. The win total and winning percentage were program records. Notre Dame won the Great Western Lacrosse League regular season and tournament titles.
The 2010 season will mark a new era for Fighting Irish lacrosse. Not only will Notre Dame begin play in Arlotta Stadium, the Irish also will be competing in the BIG EAST Conference. This will mark the first year the BIG EAST has sponsored men’s lacrosse. There will be seven members of the league that will compete in men’s lacrosse (Georgetown, Notre Dame, Providence, Rutgers, St. John’s, Syracuse and Villanova).
NOTRE DAME MEN'S LACROSSE 2009 FALL SCHEDULE
Date Opponent Site Time
Sunday, Oct. 11 Canadian National Team* Orchard Park, N.Y. 10:00 a.m. (ET)
Friday, Oct. 16 Iroquois National Team Notre Dame, Ind. 4:00 p.m. (ET)
* - Notre Dame will play two games against the Canadian National Team