Aug. 11, 2012
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The Notre Dame men’s and women’s soccer teams will hold the 2012 “Meet The Teams” barbecue and fan appreciation event from 4-6 p.m. (ET) on Saturday, Aug. 18 at The Salvation Army Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center in South Bend.
This free annual event, which has become a favorite of fans and teams alike, allows members of the South Bend/Michiana community to meet the players and coaches from both nationally-ranked Irish squads. Student-athletes of both teams will be on hand to sign autographs and take pictures. Some of the Fighting Irish players also will be available to compete in pick-up games and skills challenges. Along with free food, there will be activities for younger fans, including face painting and balloon animals.
The University and the Kroc Center would like to thank the Mishawaka Meijer Store on Bremen Highway for providing food for this free community event.
The event will take place rain or shine. Along with outdoor turf fields, the Kroc Center, which is located at 900 West Western Ave., features an indoor facility in case of inclement weather.
The “Meet The Teams” barbecue will take place as part of the kickoff to the 2012 Notre Dame soccer season. The Notre Dame women’s soccer program opened its 25th anniversary season Friday with a 2-0 exhibition win over Virginia. The Irish will play host to Baylor at 1 p.m. (ET) Sunday in exhibition action. Just like the Virginia match, the Baylor contest will be played at the team’s practice field, located behind the outfield wall of Frank Eck Baseball Stadium. Admission is free, with fans asked to park in the Gold Lot adjacent to Eck Stadium and follow the access road behind the outfield wall to the practice field.
The Fighting Irish women kick off their 2012 regular season home schedule at 1 p.m. (ET) Aug. 26, welcoming East Carolina to Alumni Stadium for the first-ever meeting between the two schools. A week later, Notre Dame will play host to the 21st annual Adidas Invitational, one of the nation’s top nonconference tournaments, with the Irish squaring off against fellow perennial powers Santa Clara (7:30 p.m. ET, Aug. 31) and North Carolina (1:30 p.m. ET, Sept. 2), while another BIG EAST member, Connecticut, completes the tournament field.
The Irish men’s team will open their 2012 exhibition slate Sunday at Northern Illinois. That match is slated for 12:30 p.m. (CT) in DeKalb, Ill. Notre Dame will face the Chivas Guadalajara U-21 team Aug. 16 as part of the Shindigz National Soccer Festival in Ft. Wayne, Ind. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. (ET).
Irish head coach Bobby Clark and the Notre Dame men’s squad will play host to Duke Aug. 25 in the regular season opener.
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Notre Dame will conclude exhibition action Aug. 20 with a home match versus Xavier (7 p.m. ET). That contest will be Notre Dame’s annual game to benefit Grassroot Soccer (GRS), which is an international non-governmental organization that uses the power of soccer to educate, inspire and mobilize communities against the spread of HIV. GRS has a special connection to Notre Dame soccer as Dr. Tommy Clark, the eldest son of Irish head coach Bobby Clark, founded the organization. This will be the ninth season that Notre Dame has held a match to benefit GRS. Admission to the game is free and donations for GRS will be accepted at Alumni Stadium.
Notre Dame will play host to Duke Aug. 25 in the regular season opener. Kickoff between the Fighting Irish and Blue Devils is set for 7:30 p.m. (ET). The Irish men will hold the 11th annual Mike Berticelli Memorial Tournament Sept. 7 and 9 at Alumni Stadium. Notre Dame will face Oregon State and Akron in the event, while Indiana rounds out the field.
To purchase tickets for the 2012 Fighting Irish men’s and women’s soccer seasons, call the Murnane Family Athletics Ticket Office at (574) 631-7356, visit the official Notre Dame athletics ticketing web site, UND.com/tickets or stop by the Murnane Family Athletics Ticket Office windows during normal business hours (9 a.m.-5 p.m. ET Monday through Friday). Tickets also can be purchased at Alumni Stadium on match days.
A season package, which includes tickets for both the men and women, is $40 for adults and $30 for youths (ages 21 and younger) and seniors (ages 55 and older), while children ages three and younger are admitted free. In addition, a Fighting Irish “Fan Pack” of four season tickets may be purchased for $100. This year, Notre Dame season ticket packages include a variety of special amenities, including a Fighting Irish soccer scarf (one per season ticket purchased), priority seating in the blue chairbacks at Alumni Stadium, priority purchasing for any postseason matches (BIG EAST Conference or NCAA) hosted by Notre Dame, and free access to chalk talks with Fighting Irish staff prior to the men’s match vs. Pittsburgh (Oct. 3) and the women’s match vs. Seton Hall (Oct. 5).
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