Nov. 29, 2007
With the Notre Dame women’s soccer team preparing for Friday night’s NCAA quarterfinal versus Duke (7:00 p.m., at Alumni Field), the Irish will be looking to make more history one week after an exciting 3-2 win at North Carolina. Extensive research into the record books has confirmed that the goals in that game by Brittany Bock and Michele Weissenhofer – separated by only 14 seconds – are the quickest back-to-back goals by the same team in the 26-year history of the NCAA women’s soccer tournament. It also is tied for the 11th-fastest back-to-back goals in any D-I women’s soccer game and is the second-quickest in the 20-year history of the Notre Dame women’s soccer program, bested only by the scores from classmates Anne Makinen and Meotis Erikson in a 12-second span of a 1998 win over Georgetown.
Here’s a look at the many levels of unique status that surround Notre Dame’s two-goal flurry at UNC:
• No previous game in NCAA Tournament history (including the other 55 games this season) has seen goals scored by one team so quickly in back-to-back fashion … entering the 2007 season, there were 23 entries in the NCAA record book for D-I women’s soccer teams that scored back-to-back goals in 16 seconds or quicker and none of them happened in the NCAAs … there also were entries for 18 games that have seen opposing teams score within 15 seconds or quicker (again, none of them coming in the NCAAs) … interestingly, the NCAA record for quickest back-to-back goals by opposing teams (0:06) is shared by two games and one of them involves another BIG EAST team – Connecticut – which saw Kristen Graczyk’s goal vs. Yale on Nov. 1, 2001, answered right away by a goal from Yale’s Chandra King.
• Prior to the ND-UNC game, the quickest back-to-back goals in the 2007 NCAAs had been scored by Georgia (0:26) in its first-round win over Alabama A&M (by Rachel Barstow at 69:49 and Mariah Krase at 70:15, to cap that 6-1 win) … one of Notre Dame’s fellow BIG EAST teams owns the third-quickest goal sequence of the 2007 NCAAs – by West Virginia’s Ashley Banks (75:08) and Deana Everett (75:36) in the second-round win over James Madison (2-0).
• Aside from the Bock-Weissenhofer quick strike, the only quicker back-to-back goals in Notre Dame history came more than nine years ago, in an 8-0 home win over Georgetown on Oct. 4, 1998 … Makinen ripped home a 21-yard, far-post shot from the top right corner of the box (72:09; the ball hit off the left post and went in) and Erikson then scored at 72:21, after stripping the ball away on a quick Georgetown goal kick and firing a shot into the upper right corner … Makinen and Erikson, like Weissenhofer, were budding sophomore stars at the time of their record-setting two-goal flurry.
• Notre Dame actually has registered quick back-to-back goals in each of the past three weeks … in the BIG EAST semifinal win over Georgetown on Nov. 9, Bock (28:16) and Rose Augustin (28:54) scored 38 seconds apart for the only goals in that game (the 38-second span ranks 19th in ND history) … one week later (Nov. 16), Carrie Dew and Bock scored only 75 seconds apart for the final two goals in the NCAA first-round win over Loyola Chicago (3-0) … Bock was in the thick of things for the third straight week at UNC, heading in a flip-throw from Weissenhofer at the 12:41 mark (Kerri Hanks then capitalized on UNC’s faulty kickoff and fired the ball down the center of the field, setting up the goal for the hustling Weissenhofer after the `keeper failed to control the ball at the top of the box).
• Based on the NCAA record-book listings (heading into the 2007 season), Notre Dame and Mississippi are the only D-I teams ever to score back-to-back goals in 14 seconds or quicker during two different games (ND’s are in the ’98 game vs. GU and last week at UNC) … the goals by Makinen and Erikson are tied for seventh-quickest (0:12) in the NCAA record book, with five of the six higher on the list featuring both goals by the same player … in yet another BIG EAST connection, Rutgers and Notre Dame share the record for quickest back-to-back goals by teammates in a game involving two D-I opponents (RU’s Carli Lloyd and Keri Lages scored 12 seconds apart, in a 2001 game vs. La Salle) … two Drake players scored 11 seconds apart in 1998, but that came vs. North Dakota State (a non D-I team at the time) … the Bock- Weissenhofer sequence is tied for the fourth-quickest ever by D-I women’s soccer teammates … there have been only four quicker back-to-back goals in D-I games during the current decade (two of them done by the same player) … here is the updated list:
Quickest Back-To-Back Goals by One Team in Division I Women’s Soccer History
(1) 0:05 – Fresno State vs. Cal State Bakersfield, 9/9/97 (both goals by Jill Pearson)*
0:05 – Northwestern vs. Aurora, 9/25/94 (both goals by Stephanie Erickson) *
(3) 0:10 – Mississippi vs. Memphis, 9/13/05 (both goals by Christine Liberto)
0:10 – BYU vs. Wyoming, 10/21/99 (both goals by Maren Hendershot)
(5) 0:11 – Drake vs. North Dakota State, 9/17/06 (goals by Karissa Brown and Sarah Foote) *
0:11 – Mississippi vs. Chattanooga, 9/5/98 (both goals by Sarah Wong)
(7) 0:12 – Rutgers vs. La Salle, 9/17/01 (goals by Carli Lloyd and Keri Lages)
0:12 – Notre Dame vs. Georgetown, 10/4/98 (goals by Anne Makinen and Meotis Erikson)
(9) 0:13 – Navy vs. Drexel, 9/7/03 (both goals by Amelia Sheveland)
0:13 – Wisconsin-Green Bay vs. Arkansas, 10/1/99 (both goals by Kim Woldt)
(11) 0:14 – Notre Dame vs. North Carolina, 11/24/07 (goals by Brittany Bock and Michele Weissenhofer)
* – indicates non-Division I opponent
• Notre Dame’s 20-year history of Division I women’s soccer includes 28 times when the Irish have scored back-to-back goals in 45 seconds or quicker … those 28 sets of quick-strikes include two times when ND has scored quick back-to-back goals twice in the same game: vs. Tri-State in 1989 (0:17 span and later in 0:31) and in 1998 vs. Wisconsin (in 0:20 and 0:45) … the 28 pairs of quick-strike goals also include two times (both in the BIG EAST quarterfinals) when the Irish have scored three quick back-to-back goals: vs. St. John’s in 2003 (56:27 by Lizzie Reed; 57:02 and 57:45 by Katie Thorlakson) and vs. Georgetown in 2005 (by Bock at 65:55, Thorlakson at 66:15 and Annie Schefter at 66:46) … ND’s three goals in a span of 0:51 vs. GU in that ’05 game represent the NCAA record for quickest three back-to-back goals by one team (ND scored three in 1:18 in the ’03 game vs. SJU).
• Bock has been part of three different quick-strike sequences (among the 28 on the list below): vs. Georgetown in ’05 and then vs. GU and UNC in ’07 … Thorlakson shows up on that list six times, followed by Cindy Daws (5), Monica Gerardo (4), Bock (3) and Jenny Heft (3)
• There had been only one previous game in ND women’s soccer history where the Irish scored back-to-back goals in 45 seconds or quicker when facing a top-25 opponent: in the 1996 win over #13 Washington (4-0 win capped by goals from Gerardo and Daws, in 37-second span of 78th/79th minutes).
• The 28 quick-strike sequences listed below include only three others that have come on the opponent’s field: at Indiana in 1993 (0:17; by Alison Lester and Daws); at Boston College in 1996 (0:34; by Jen Grubb and Shannon Boxx); and at Louisville in 2005 (own-goal and PK by Kerri Hanks).
• Many of the games on the ND quick-strike list came in blowouts (and often at the end of those games) … in fact, all of the other 23 games on the of the list were decided by more than one goal and only one had a two-goal margin (the 2-0 win over GU in the ’07 BIG EAST semifinals)
• There are only three other games on the list when the two-goal flurry has opened the scoring: vs. Xavier in 1995 (ND went on to an easy 6-0 win); vs. Villanova in the 1997 BIG EAST semifinals (7-0); and the 2005 game at Louisville, which saw ND suddenly go up 2-0 right before halftime (en route to a 3-0 win) … the 1993 game at Indiana was 1-0 before the Irish struck twice early in the second half (5-1 final) … Georgetown tied ND in the final game of the 2005 regular season (1-1) but the Irish then answered with the three goals in 51 seconds (6-1 final).
• Two-thirds of the quick-strike sequences (18 of 28) have come in the second half … of the 10 in the first half, only two have come earlier in a game than Bock-Weissenhofer at UNC (13th minute): the 1989 game vs. non Division-I opponent Tri-State and the 1997 BIG EAST semifinal vs. Villanova (both in the 6th/7th minutes).
Quickest Back-To-Back Goals in Notre Dame Women’s Soccer History
(1) 0:12 – vs. Georgetown, 10/4/98 (8-0) … goals by Anne Makinen (72:09) and Meotis Erikson (72:21) for 6-0 lead
(2) 0:14 – at #4 North Carolina, 11/24/07 (3-2), NCAA round-of-16 … goals by Brittany Bock (12:41) and Michele Weissenhofer (12:55) for 2-0 lead
(3) 0:17 – vs. Tri-State, 10/10/89 (17-0) … goals by Joy Sisolak (5:47) and K.T. Sullivan (6:04) for 2-0 lead … note that the Irish later had back-to-back goals 31 seconds apart in this game (see below)
0:17 – at Indiana, 9/10/93 (5-1) … goals by Alison Lester (50:24) and Cindy Daws (50:41) for 3-0 lead
0:17 – vs. Georgetown, 10/30/05 (6-0), BIG EAST quarterfinal … goals by Kerri Hanks (67:47) and Katie Thorlakson (68:04) for 5-0 lead
(6) 0:18 – vs. St. John’s, 9/3/95 (9-0) … goals by Monica Gerardo (50:29) and Michelle McCarthy (50:47) for 6-0 lead
(7) 0:19 – vs. Villanova, 11/7/97 (7-0), BIG EAST semifinal (@Rutgers) … goals by Meotis Erikson (5:46) and Jenny Streiffer (6:05) for 2-0 lead
(8) 0:20 – vs. Wisconsin, 10/30/98 (6-1) … goals by Jenny Streiffer (65:07) and Jenny Heft (65:27) for 4-1 lead … note that the Irish later scored back-to-back goals in a span of 45 seconds in this game (see below)
0:20 – vs. Georgetown, 10/23/05 (6-1) … goals by Brittany Bock (65:55) and Katie Thorlakson (66:15) for 3-1 lead … note that the Irish scored again 31 seconds later (see below) for three goals in span of 51 seconds (the quickest 3-goal span in the NCAA record book); also note that one week later, ND scored two goals in a span of 17 seconds vs. the Hoyas (listed above)
(10) 0:24 – vs. Cincinnati (7-1), 9/25/94 … goals by Rosella Guerrero (67:08) and Cindy Daws (67:32) for 5-1 lead
(11) 0:27 – vs. Rutgers (6-0), 10/20/96 … goals by Cindy Daws (82:01) and Stacia Masters (82:28) for 6-0 lead
(12) 0:28 – vs. Xavier (6-0), 10/25/95 … goals by Amy VanLaecke (20:05) and Monica Gerardo (20:33) for 2-0 lead
(13) 0:29 – vs. Loyola Chicago (9-0), 10/7/94 … goals by Michelle McCarthy (28:20) and Julie Maund (28:49) for 4-0 lead
(14) 0:31 – vs. Tri-State (17-0), 10/10/89 … goals by Kristin Kirwan (75:03) and Theresa Forst (75:44) for 17-0 lead … note that the Irish earlier had back-to-back goals 17 seconds apart in this game (see above)
0:31 – vs. Georgetown, 10/23/05 (6-1) … goals by Katie Thorlakson (66:15) and Annie Schefter (66:46) for 3-1 lead … note that the Irish also had a goal 20 seconds before Thorlakson’s score (see above) for three goals in span of 51 seconds (the quickest 3-goal span in the NCAA record book)
(16) 0:32 – vs. Miami, 11/2/99 (5-0), BIG EAST quarterfinal … goals by Jenny Heft (73:53) and Ali Lovelace (74:25) for 4-0 lead
(17) 0:34 – at Boston College, 9/1/96 (6-0) … goals by Jen Grubb (64:21) and Shannon Boxx (64:55) for 6-0 lead
(18) 0:35 – vs. St. John’s, 10/31/03 (7-0), BIG EAST quarterfinal … goals by Lizzie Reed (56:27) and Katie Thorlakson (57:02) for 5-0 lead … note that the Irish also had another goal by Thorlakson 43 seconds later (see below), for three goals in span of 1:18
(19) 0:37 – vs. #13 Washington, 9/8/96 (4-0) … goals by Monica Gerardo (77:34) and Cindy Daws (78:11) for 4-0 lead
(20) 0:38 – vs. Georgetown, 11/9/07 (2-0), BIG EAST semifinal (at WVU) … goals by Brittany Bock (28:16) and Rose Augustin (28:54) for 2-0 lead
(21) 0:39 – vs. Northwestern, 10/13/90 (11-1) … goals by Susie Zilvitis (34:19) and Stephanie Porter (34:58) for 5-0 lead
(22) 0:40 – vs. Valparaiso, 9/14/90 (12-1) … goals by Alison Lester (34:40) and Margaret Jarc (35:00) for 4-0 lead
0:40 – vs. Detroit, 10/23/94 (6-1) … goals by Cindy Daws (31:43) and Tiffany Thompson (32:23) for 5-0 lead
(24) 0:41 – vs. West Virginia, 10/25/96 (11-0) … goals by Kara Brown (57:07) and Monica Gerardo (57:48) for 8-0 lead
(25) 0:43 – vs. St. John’s, 10/31/03 (7-0), BIG EAST quarterfinal … goals by Katie Thorlakson (57:02 and 57:45) for 6-0 lead … note that the Irish also had a goal by Lizzie Reed (see above) 35 seconds before Thorlakson’s first goal, for three goals in span of 1:18
(26) 0:44 – at Louisville, 9/25/05 (3-0) … own goal (43:33) and penalty kick by Kerri Hanks (44:17) for 2-0 lead
0:44 – vs. St. John’s, 10/12/01 (7-0) … goals by Ashley Dryer (67:05) and Kim Carpenter (67:49) for 6-0 lead
(28) 0:45 – vs. Wisconsin, 10/30/98 (6-1) … goals by Jenny Heft (80:04) and Iris Lancaster (80:49) for 6-1 lead … note that the Irish scored two goals in a span of 20 seconds earlier in this game (see above)