Senior goalie Ellie Hilling prepares for a tough 2013 slate that sees the Irish play five ranked opponents.

Ranked Opponents Litter 2013 Women's Lacrosse Schedule

Nov. 6, 2012

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NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Five opponents that ended 2012 ranked and three NCAA Tournament teams highlight a 16-game 2013 regular season schedule for the University of Notre Dame women’s lacrosse team, head coach Christine Halfpenny announced on Tuesday.

The Irish play host to four teams that ended 2012 ranked, including Ohio State (No. 15) in the home opener on Feb. 27. Other ranked home opponents include reigning BIG EAST Champion Loyola (Md.) (No. 7) on April 12, Georgetown (No. 17) on April 14 and NCAA Champion Northwestern (No. 1) on April 24.

On April 19 Notre Dame invades the Carrier Dome for a meeting with NCAA runner-up Syracuse (No. 2) in its lone ranked road contest.

Notre Dame opens Halfpenny’s second season at Stanford on Feb. 16 before welcoming in the Buckeyes on Feb. 27. The Irish then head to Pittsburgh, Pa., on March 2 for a matchup with Duquesne. A pair of home games comes next as the Irish welcome in Detroit (March 5) and Boston University (March 9). For spring break Notre Dame heads to Nashville, Tenn., and a showdown with Vanderbilt. Last year the Irish snuck past the Commodores, 12-11, at Arlotta Stadium.

BIG EAST play kicks off on March 22 as the Irish welcome in Rutgers. Villanova comes to Arlotta on March 24, before Notre Dame hits the road for contests with Louisville (April 5) and Cincinnati (April 7).

Notre Dame returns home for the ranked games against the Greyhounds and Hoyas before the road matchup with the Orange. The final road BIG EAST game of the year is at UConn on April 21.

The Irish wrap up the regular season at home with the Wildcats on April 24 and BIG EAST newcomer Marquette on April 27 for Senior Day.

The four-team BIG EAST Tournament is set for Georgetown’s Multi-Sport Field from May 2-4. Last year the Irish qualified as the No. 3 seed in the tournament and fell to Loyola (Md.) in the semifinals, 11-9.

This year’s NCAA Tournament features 26 teams with the first and second rounds set for May 10-12. The NCAA quarterfinals will be May 18-19, while the NCAA Final Four will be at the University of Villanova in Philadelphia, Pa., from May 24-26.

Notre Dame returns 22 student-athletes and welcomes in 10 freshmen from a team that went 13-5 and earned a spot in both the BIG EAST and NCAA Tournaments in Halfpenny’s first year in charge in 2012.

–ND–