Oct. 2, 2005

Final Stats

TAMPA, Fla. – Katie Thorlakson had two goals and an assist – creeping closer to the 50-goal/50-assist milestone for her career – while Maggie Manning and Susan Pinnick added their fourth goals of the season, as the fifth-ranked Notre Dame women’s soccer team rebounded from its second loss of the season with Sunday’s 4-0 win at South Florida.

Notre Dame (10-2-0, 4-1-0 BIG EAST) continued to dominate the run of the play, racking up a 31-6 edge in total shots, 15-3 in shots on goal and 7-4 in corner kicks. The Irish rested many of their regulars while utilizing 19 of the 20 players on the roadtrip.

The game marked Notre Dame’s 100th all-time BIG EAST Conference regular-season game, with the Irish owning a .905 winning percentage (89-8-3) in those games.

Thorlakson posted five-plus points for the ninth time in her career while pushing her career totals to 48 goals and 52 assists (148 points) in 82 games played. She is the 19th player in the 24-year history of Division I women’s soccer to reach 48 career goals and 48 assists, needing two more goals to become the 17th player in the elite “50-50” club (former Notre Dame standouts Jenny Streiffer, Cindy Daws and Anne Makinen are among the 16 previous 50-50 players).

The Irish continued to play minus two injured defensive starters, as preseason BIG EAST goalkeeper of the year Erika Bohn remains sidelined with an ankle injury while all-BIG EAST defensive midfielder Jill Krivacek is out with a knee bruise.

Junior goalkeeper Nikki Westfall drew the first start of her career en route to her first career decision with the Irish, stopping all three shots she faced for Notre Dame’s fifth shutout in the past six games. All three Irish `keepers (Bohn, Westfall and sophomore Lauren Karas) now have posted at least one solo shutout during the 2005 season.

Sophomore forward Amanda Cinalli set up the first goal with her eighth assist of the season, second only to Thorlakson’s 12 assists among the 2005 Irish players. Cinalli carried the ball into the left side of the attacking third before playing a pass into the near side of the box. Thorlakson received the pass and dribbled into the penalty area before cutting a shot inside the far-right post for her 10th goal of the season (28:32).

The score held up as Thorlakson’s 15th career gamewinning goal with the Irish, tying Streiffer for 7th-place in the Irish record book. Thorlakson also ranks 4th in ND history with 15 gamewinning assists while her 45 gamewinning points now are tied for 4th-place (with Makinen and Jenny Heft) on that Irish list, just behind Michelle McCarthy’s 46 and Amanda Guertin’s 47 (Streiffer holds the record with 51 career GWPs).

Thorlakson scored 10 minutes later for a two-goal leading heading into the intermission. Thorlakson fired a shot from 10 yards and slid the deflection to freshman Kerri Hanks near the left post. Casey Garrett saved the ensuing shot from Hanks but Thorlakson one-timed the rebound from five yards out for her 11th career multiple-goal game (38:15).

That scramble goal provided Notre Dame the magical cushion, as the Irish now have own a 216-game winning streak when claiming a 2-0 lead (239-0-1 all-time).

Junior midfielder Jen Buczkowski initiated the third-goal sequence early in the second half. Fifth-year veteran Candace Chapman then sent a cross from the right side and Manning was open at the far post for a tap-in, giving the senior forward her 11th career goal with the Irish (52:06).

That goal marked another clincher for the Irish, who now are 127-1-0 since 1995 when scoring three-plus goals (223-3-1 all-time).

Thorlakson added to her nation-leading assist total (now 14) in the closing minutes of the game, after playing a short pass to Pinnick in the left corner. The sophomore forward and South Bend native then dribbled down the endline before sending a near-post shot over Garrett for the 4-0 final (85:57).

Notes: Chapman (16G-18A) and Buczkowski (15G-22A) both have 52 points in their ND careers … ND is 41-5-0 in its past 46 game vs. first-time opponents and is 74-25-2 all-time in series openers (.743) … the Irish have posted a 36-3 scoring edge in six wins vs. first-time opponents this season … Thorlakson’s 148 career points remain 9th in ND history (McCarthy is 8th, with 156) while her 48 goals now are tied with her former teammate Guertin for 9th on that ND career list (Rosella Guerrero is 8th, with 55) … Thorlakson’s 52 career assists remain 7th in ND history, now just one behind Jen Grubb … junior defender Kim Lorenzen made her first start since early Sept. (she missed six games due to illness and played off the bench Friday at Marquette) … freshman Kerry Inglis made played 15 minutes in both the first and second half, as a midfielder, after missing the previous 11 games due to an ankle injury … ND now is 54-2-0 in its past 56 games when scoring first … the Irish have posted seven shutouts and allowed one goal in three other games this season … the Irish are 47-3-2 in their past 52 regular-season games … Hanks extended the nation’s second-leading point total to 39 (16G-7A) … ND has scored 3-plus goals in 10 of 12 games this season (4-plus in 6 games) …the ND players have combined for 979 career games played and 599 starts … Chapman (79) is one game shy of becoming the 36th all-time ND player (18th in Randy Waldrum era) to appear in 80-plus games with the Irish … Thorlakson (82), Buczkowski (63) and senior M Annie Schefter (63) have played in every game of their ND career while junior D Christie Shaner has played in 62 of 63 (60 straight) … Hanks has points in 10-of-12 games this season, Thorlakson in 9-of-12 (she now had 36 points, with 11G-14A) … ND has held the CK edge in 21 of the past 24 games (one even) … ND’s updated season stats now include a 53-9 scoring edge (avg. 4.4-0.75), plus 270-54 in shots ( avg. 22.5-4.5), 145-30 in shots on goal (12.1-2.5) and 80-19 in CKs (6.7-1.6).

#5 Notre Dame (10-2-0, 4-1-0 BIG EAST) 2 2 – 4
South Florida (5-4-2, 0-3-2 BIG EAST) 0 0 – 0

ND 1. Katie Thorlakson 10 (Amanda Cinalli) 28:33; ND 2. Thorlakson 11 (Kerri Hanks) 38:15; ND 3. Maggie Manning 4 (Candace Chapman, Jen Buczkowski) 52:06; ND 4. Susan Pinnick (Thorlakson) 85:52

Shots: ND 18-13 – 31, USF 5-1 – 6
Corner Kicks: ND 4-3 – 7, USF 3-1 – 4
Saves: ND 3 (Nikki Westfall), USF 11 (Casey Garnett)
Fouls: ND 8, USF 14
Offside: ND 1, USF 3
Yellow Cards: Jessica Zabel (USF) 31:34; Erin Dafeldecker (USF) 47:50; Katie Thorlakson (ND) 87:11, 3rd of season