Nov. 5, 2000

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The top-ranked Notre Dame women’s soccer team (19-0-1) and 24th-ranked Connecticut will meet in the BIG EAST championship game for the sixth straight season, at ND’s Alumni Field on Nov. 5. Sunday’s championship game (12:05 EST) will be carried live by six regional sports cable stations, including Fox Sports Net Chicago, Fox Sports Net New England, Fox Sports Net Florida, Madison Square Garden Network, Empire Sports and Comcast Sports Philadelphia. A live internet audio broadcast also may be accessed via the Notre Dame website (www.und.com).

Sunday night’s NCAA Tournament selection show will be aired live (10 p.m. EST) on two cable sports networks: Empire Sports (DirectTV 626, Dish Network 432) and Home Team Sports (DirectTV 629, Dish Network 424). Satelleite coordinates for the selection show are: C-band, Telstar 5, Transponder 24, downlink frequency 4180 MHZ).

AROUND THE HORN – Quick Notes on the Irish

Team Notes
* ND owns a 14-0-0 all-time record in the BIG EAST Tournament (53-7 scoring edge).
* ND has outscored its opponents 67-6, an 11-to-1 ratio that ranks behind only ND’s ’97 squad (135-9, 15-to-1).
* The BC game marked the 13th time this season that ND has allowed 0-2 shots on goal (1).
* Prior to the Miami game, ND had played six of seven games on the road (during a 27-day stretch), including 10-of-11 days on the road from Oct. 14-24.
* ND is 27-0-1 in its last 28 games vs. BIG EAST teams (69-3-2/.946 since joining the BIG EAST in ’95).
* The Irish have allowed just 3G in the last 15-plus games (1,428 minutes) and have 10 shutouts in the last 12 (63 shots-28 on goal-and 21 CKs allowed in that 12-game stretch).
* ND has led for 56% of the minutes while trailing just 1.5% of the time (28 minutes, vs. BC)
* ND has scored in the first half 15 times while going scoreless past the 55:00 mark just three times.
* Season stat edges: 503-111 in shots (avg. 25-6), 288-53 in shots on goal (avg. 14-3), 137-42 in CKs (avg. 7-2).
* ND has reached 30 shots six times this season and has owned a shot margin of 25-plus in seven games.
* The Irish are 40-4-2 (.891) in the two-year tenure of head coach Randy Waldrum.
* ND is 114-7-1 (.939) in 11 seasons at Alumni Field, including 90-3-1 in the last 94 and 79-1-0 vs. unranked teams (72 straight wins) … ND’s current 22-game home winning streak includes a 60-9 scoring edge.
* The Irish own a 32-3-1 all-time record when playing as the top-ranked team.
* ND posted the 3rd unbeaten regular season in its 13-year history (17-0-1 in ’94, 18-0-1 in ’97).
* ND is ranked No. 1 for the first time since ’96.
* ND returned 16 letterwinners but lost 5 starters from its ’99 team (21-4-1, NCAA runner-up).
* The Irish lead the nation in team GAA (0.29) and rank 6th in scoring (3.4 goals/gm).
* ND’s typical starting 11 (from nine states and Finland) is representative of the University’s national student body … the 27-player roster includes players from 17 states, two foreign countries.
* The Irish opened 16-0-0, besting the top start in team history (13-0-0 in ’96)
* ND surged to #1 with tough four-game stretch (Sept. 8-17), beating Santa Clara (6-1, most goals vs. SCU in 20 yrs) and Stanford (2-1, OT) in ND’s KeyBank Classic and current #2 Washington (5-0) and Portland (1-0, in tough atmosphere) at Portland Adidas Invitational.
* The current 20-game unbeaten streak ranks 3rd in ND history (24-0-0 from ’95-’96, 23-0-1 at start of 1997).

Player Notes
* Anne Makinen has 23 pts (9G-5A) in 10 career BIG EAST Tournament games and 40 (14G-12A) in 22 career postseason games (including NCAAs) … Meotis Erikson has 28 pts (9G-10A) in 22 postseason games (6G-6A in 10 BET games).
* Amy Warner (9), Amanda Guertin (10) and Randi Scheller (6) are close to joining the ’97 trio of Makinen (23) , Meotis Erikson (22) and Monica Gonzalez (10) as the second threesome of ND freshmen to reach 10G in a season … freshmen have scored 35% of ND’s goals (26 of 67).
* Guertin has 14 points in the last 10 games (6G-2A), Scheller has 12 (4G-4A).
* Erikson, Vanessa Pruzinsky and Liz Wagner are the only ND players to start all 20 games this season.
* Erikson has appeared in all 96 games of her career, one shy of tying Kate Sobrero (’98) for 9th on the Irish career GP list.
* Liz Wagner has come up big in the big games (21 SV, 2 GA in 5 gms vs. top-25 tms) … her 0.280 season GAA (7 solo shutouts, 7 shared) now ranks 1st in the nation … Wagner takes a 580-minute shutout streak into the UConn game.
* Makinen (63G-55A) and Erikson (57G-41A) are the second pair of ND classmates ever to reach 150 career points.
* Makinen is 5A shy of becoming the sixth Division I women’s soccer player ever to reach 60G-60A.
* Senior Kelly Lindsey is ND’s only player on the defensive third of the field who had started more than 26 career games prior to 2000 (Makinen and Erikson were the only Ms or Fs with more than 26 GS).

ND-BC RECAP (3-0, BIG EAST semifinals, Nov. 3)

A rested ND team improved its all-time BET record to 14-0-0 while moving closer to a sixth straight conference title, as the Irish used a pair of impressive 1st-half combination plays and an insurance goal early in the 2nd half to defeat BC … ND posted its 14th shutout and 10th in the last 12 games … ND held a 27-4 shot edge-including a 55-minute stretch between shots-and a 12-0 edge in corner kicks … Anne Makinen and Meotis Erikson each had 1G-1A to continue their strong postseason careers while Mia Sarkesian (1G-1A) added to her growing resume of big plays … ND utilized the energy of Amy Warner off the bench while Kelly Lindsey returned to action by playing the entire 2nd half … Sarkesian scored what proved to be her fourth game-winning goal of the season, after heading a cross from Erikson into the lower left corner … Makinen’s pass down the left side set up the cross, with Erikson quickly playing the ball from the left endline to a wide-open Sarkesian for the 1-0 lead (15:46) … the second Irish goal was a textbook combination, started when Sarkesian deftly threaded a pass forward to the top of the box … Ali Lovelace-with her back to the goal-then shielded off a defender while sweeping the ball to the right side … Makinen had all the space she needed and drilled a 14-yarder into the lower left corner for her 13th goal of the season and 64th of her career (43:40) … Erikson pushed the lead to 3-0 after shaking several BC players near the top of the box before sending a shot in traffic that tucked inside the left post for her 10th goal of the season and 42nd of her career (52:36) … Erikson has collected eight points (2G-4A) in four career games vs. BC, with three game-winning assists.

BC (14-7-0)  0   0   -   0ND (19-0-1)  2   1   -   3

ND 1. Mia Sarkesian 4 (Meotis Erikson, Anne Makinen) 15:46, ND 2. Makinen 13 (Ali Lovelace, Sarkesian) 43:40, ND 3. Erikson 10 (-) 52:36.
Shots: BC 4, ND 27.
CKs: BC 0, ND 12.
Saves: BC 11 (Courtney Schaeffer, team 1), ND 1 (Liz Wagner 0, Lauren Kent 1).
Fouls: BC 6, ND 8.
Offsides: BC 0, ND 0.

RANDY WALDRUM: “We came out tonight with great intensity, which we lacked in recent weeks. We’re rested and are getting some people healthy-plus it’s playoff time, so you expect to see this type of effort. We showed good rhythm throughout the game and I anticipate Sunday’s game will be one of great intensity on both sides of the ball. … Mia is one of our most consistent players but today she really elevated her play. Ashley Dryer did the same thing last week vs. Miami and Anne played one of her most inspired games in a while. When those three are clicking for us in the midfield, it makes the players around them so much better.”

MEOTIS ERIKSON: “We were excited and ready to play. Everyone gave a great effort. Part of being successful at combination plays is not just reading when they are on but also having people move off the ball to complete the play. That’s what happened tonight. People were making runs for each other and it led to our first two goals.”

Notre Dame-Connecticut Series Notes

THE SERIES: ND leads the UConn series 9-2-2 (3-0-2 in last five), including a pair of wins in ’99: 2-1 in double OT (at ND) and 1-0 in the BIG EAST title game (at Rutgers) … ND owns a 29-16 series scoring edge, including 15-7 in the last seven games … UConn has scored more than two goals vs. ND just twice (5-4 Huskies win in ’95, 4-3 ND win in ’96) and the Irish have held UConn to 0-2 goals in each of the last eight meetings … ND owns a 149-84 shot edge (avg. 21-12) in the last seven games of the series … the series has produced low-scoring games (avg. 3.5 combined goals/gm), including one 0-0 game, three 1-0 games, one 1-1 game, one 2-0 game and three 2-1 games (the others: 5-4, 4-3, 6-1, 4-2) … each team has been ranked in the NSCAA poll in all 14 games of the series, including five in which each team was ranked among the top-four (10 with each team in the top-five) … those rankings dropped off a bit in ’99, as ND was ranked 6th prior to both games (UConn was 8th and 13th, its lowest rankings in the series prior to this year’s games) … ND is 69-3-2 vs. BIG EAST teams since joining the conference in 1995, with UConn owning two of those wins and both ties … the Irish also are 90-3-1 in their last 94 home games, with UConn handing ND one of those losses (5-4 in OT in ’95).

UCONN CONNECTIONS: ND sophomore D Vanessa Pruzinsky is a native of Trumbull, Conn., where she was an NSCAA prep All-American at Trumbull HS and twice earned Gatorade New England regional player of the year … Pruzinsky led Trumbull to three state titles and a 65-8-3 record in her four-year career … she earned three team MVP awards, finished as the school’s all-time leading scorer with 79G-59A and was part of a 20-0-0 team during her senior year that did not allow a goal … Pruzinsky helped her Weston Wild Things club team capture the ’98 national title … first-year ND assistant Barb Chura was a student assistant at UConn in ’93, after starring for the Huskies ’89-’92 squads … Chura helped UConn reach the ’90 NCAA title game and finish each of her seasons in the NSCAA top 10 … she was a ’92 team captain and finished her playing days ranked fourth at UConn in career assists.

FRIEND OR FOE?: Several ND and UConn players are former teammates, most notably ND senior Monica Gonzalez and UConn junior Lacey Toups-who were teammates at Plano East High School (both hail from Richardson, Texas) … Gonzalez played club soccer with the Dallas Sting while Toups played with the Longhorns (in a younger age group) … Gonzalez and three UConn players-senior M Lauren Molinaro and senior F Jen Carlson-played for the Portland Adidas Summer League in ’99 (shortly after Gonzalez returned from the World Cup, where she played for Mexico) … ND sophomore D Vanessa Pruzinsky (Trumbull, Conn.) played against several UConn players during her prep days while also playing alongside several UConn players during her ODP and regional team days, with her longest-standing teammate being sophomore D Lauren Naida (she also was a regional teammate of junior D Kristin Gardiner) … Pruzinsky likewise has played on regional teams with three of UConn’s players from New York: junior M Mary-Frances Monroe, junior M/D Casey Zimny and sophomore F Sarah Popper … Pruzinsky and UConn sophomore D Naima Montacer were teammates during the summer of 2000 with the Westin Wildcats … several other ND players have playing experience with Monroe with the U.S. national team program, including senior D Kelly Lindsey and senior F Meotis Erikson … ND senior M Anne Makinen and two UConn sophomore Fs-Leena Kovanen and injured Salla Ranta-attended the same high school in Finland.

ND-UCONN RECAP (0-0, Oct. 21, 2000) – The ever-growing rivalry added another chapter at Marrone Stadium, as the Irish and Huskies played to a scoreless tie in front of 2,494 spirited fans … road-weary ND-which had spent seven of eight days away from home-failed to tie the Irish record for consecutive wins in a season while seeing its string of consecutive wins over BIG EAST teams end at 25 … UConn held a 16-7 shot edge but repeatedly was thwarted by Liz Wagner, who again turned in a strong performance vs. a ranked opponent by making eight saves while smothering several other scoring chances … five ND field players logged the entire 120 minutes: Mia Sarkesian, Ashley Dryer, Nancy Mikacenic, Vanessa Pruzinsky and Monica Gonzalez … ND continued to play without two of its top players (Amy Warner, Kelly Lindsey, both out due to injury) … the Irish again elected to rest Anne Makinen at the start of the game, with Gonzalez-who also played at D and F-filling Makinen’s central M role before Makinen entered late in the 1st half (she played the rest of the way) … UConn’s Jen Carlson nearly scored in the closing moments of regulation, on a 20-yard shot that clanged off the near right post in the 87th minute … Carlson later launched a 30-yarder from the left flank that Wagner boxed away from the upper right corner with 0:02 left in the first OT … ND managed just three shots on goal, with strong chances from close range in each OT by Meotis Erikson and Gonzalez.

#1 Notre Dame (16-0-1)      0   0   0   0   -   0#25 Connecticut (12-5-2)    0   0   0   0   -   0

Shots: ND 7, CONN 16.
Corner Kicks: ND 3, CONN 5.
Saves: ND 8 (Liz Wagner), CONN 3 (Maria Yatrakis).
Fouls: ND 13, CONN 13.
Offsides: ND 3, CONN 1.

ND’S RANDY WALDRUM ON THE FIRST ND-UCONN GAME: “I’m sure that this was a fun game to watch and both teams certainly had their chances. I think you saw tonight why Liz Wagner has to be considered for BIG EAST goalkeeper of the year. In a lot of our games this season, she hardly has touched the ball and it’s hard to appreciate her skill and leadership in that type of game. But every time she has been tested in a big game she has answered the bell for us. The way she has played for us-along with the play of an inexperienced defense that has battled through some injuries-have been invaluable to us this season. … This was the first game where we could not find the right combinations or formation, but much of that was due to UConn’s play. They were very strong tonight and their won-loss record is deceiving. This was a pretty wide-open game tonight and was enjoyable to watch for the fans.”

CAREER STATS VS. UCONN: The current ND players have combined to score eight career goals vs. UConn but most of that success belongs to senior M Anne Makinen (5G-1A, 3 GWG) … senior F Meotis Erikson scored vs. UConn in a 1-0 win during her freshman year but is long overdue for her second career goal vs. the Huskies (she has 30 shots vs. the Huskies since that goal in 1997) … sophomore F Ali Lovelace scored vs. UConn in the 1999 BIG EAST title game (all four of her ’99 goals came in the postseason).

ND CAREER STATS VS. THE HUSKIES

Liz Wagner: played final 5:27 of 4-2 ND win in ’99 BE title game (1 GA, 0 SV) and all 120 minutes in this season’s 0-0 tie (8 SV).

Notre Dame-Connecticut Series Capsules (gm 13 recap on p. 2)

Series Game No. 1 … #5 UCONN 5, #2 ND 4 (OT) … Oct. 6, 1995
BIG EAST Regular-Season Game (at ND’s Alumni Field)

ND’s first BIG EAST competition in any sport featured a rare three-goal overtime, with Jana Carabino scoring twice for a 5-3 Huskies lead while Monica Gerardo capped the scoring with a PK in the final minute … Ginny Woodward gave UConn an early lead before ND’s Cindy Daws scored early in the 2nd half … UConn’s Margaret Tietjen and ND’s Holly Manthei traded goals and the Huskies took their third lead on a Anika Martinez’ goal in the 74th minute … Manthei then set up a Gerardo’s six-yard shot, tying the game with 8:30 left in regulation … ND held a 26-19 shot edge … the game remains one of just three all-time losses for the Irish at Alumni Field.

Series Game No. 2 … #5 ND 1, #5 UCONN 0 … Nov. 5, 1995
BIG EAST Championship Game (at Seton Hall’s Carroll Field)

BIG EAST Tournament MVP Amy Van Laeke scored the game’s only goal, with an assist from Gerardo in the 18th minute … the tight game featured an 11-8 shot edge for the Huskies.

Series Game No. 3 … #4 ND 2, #5 UCONN 0 … Nov. 26, 1995
NCAA Quarterfinal (at ND’s Alumni Field)

The third meeting of ’95 produced another shutout, with Jen Renola making seven saves … ND opened the scoring in the 21st minute, with D Julie Vogel scoring one of her three career goals (assisted by Manthei) … Daws and Kate Sobrero assisted on the second goal, with Van Laecke haunting the Huskies again (at the 51:00 mark) … UConn held a 12-10 shot edge but ND launched seven corner kicks (to UConn’s four) … the Irish went on to capture the NCAA title, with a pair of 1-0 wins over North Carolina and Portland.

Series Game No. 4 … #2 ND 2, #4 UCONN 1 … Sept. 22, 1996
BIG EAST Regular-Season Game (at UConn Soccer Stadium)

Gerardo scored the game-winning goal three minutes into the 2nd half to break a 1-1 tie, putting the Irish in command of the BIG EAST race.

Series Game No. 5 … #1 ND 2, #4 UCONN 1 … Nov. 10, 1996
BIG EAST Championship Game (at ND’s Alumni Field)

ND jumped out to a 3-0 lead, with 2G from Daws … the Huskies rallied (3-3) before Jenny Heft tapped in a long service from Sobrero for the game-winner and ND’s third one-goal win over UConn in a four-game span.

Series Game No. 6 … #2 ND 1, #5 UCONN 0 … Oct. 26, 1997
Regular-Season Game (at ND’s Alumni Field)

Freshman F Meotis Erikson scored early in the 1st half for the game’s only score and what remains her only career goal vs. the Huskies … ND scored the game’s only goal in the 16th minute, as Erikson took a cross from Kelly Lindsey and sent a shot from the right side that slipped through the hands of UConn ‘keeper Jennifer Traw … the Irish finished with a 13-3 shot edge.

Series Game No. 7 … #2 ND 6, #4 UCONN 1 … Nov. 9, 1997
BIG EAST Championship Game (at Rutgers, Yurcak Field)

Freshman M Anne Makinen’s hat trick earned her tournament MVP … ND scoring just 2:27 into the game, when Gerardo blasted a shot from 10 yards that bounced out of the hands of Traw, with Jenny Streiffer knocking the loose ball into the upper right corner … four minutes later, a hard foul on Gerardo set up Makinen’s PK for a 2-0 lead (6:40) and Makinen scored again after volleying a failed clear from 20 yards out, with the ball tucking under the crossbar … ND put the game out of reach with 2G in the final five minutes before halftime … Streiffer split the defense with a pass to Shannon Boxx, who dribbled in from the left wing and scored into the upper right corner (39:51) … Monica Gonzalez then intercepted a goal kick and fired a low shot from 20 yards into the right corner (44:37) … ND held a 17-1 shot edge in the 1st half (30-9 overall) while scoring the most goals ever allowed by UConn in the 1st half … UConn scored at 54:35, when Sarah Barnes headed in a pass from the top of the box from Jen Tietjen … Makinen completed her hat trick in the closing minutes (85:52), taking a feed from Erikson just past midfield and converting the breakaway, into the right corner … the 6G matched the most ever allowed by UConn (UNC ’90, UMass ’79).

Series Game No. 8 … #5 UCONN 2, #2 ND 1 … Dec. 5, 1997
NCAA Semifinals (at North Carolina-Greensboro Stadium)

Senior F Sara Whalen’s 2G helped UConn hand ND its first loss of ’97 … ND held sizable edges in shots (28-6) and corner kicks (10-0) … Whalen’s goals pushed her season total to 21 (plus 22A) … the 1st half saw ND fall behind 1-0, despite a 12-1 shot edge and eight CKs … Whalen raced up the left side and blasted a shot past a diving LaKeysia Beene for the first goal (41:01, assisted by Jen Carlson) … midway through the 2nd half, Whalen went 1-on-1 with Beene and dribbled around the right side of the ‘keeper before shooting into the open net (64:37, assisted by Jen Tietjin) … ND peppered the posts and crossbars several times, with the lone Irish goal coming at 76:01, when Streiffer headed a pass from Manthei into the net … the game halted ND’s series winning streak at six games and gave UConn a team-record 23 wins for the season … it also marked just the second time in the ’97 season that ND allowed more than one goal (with a 2-2 tie vs. UNC and just five other goals allowed in all of ’97).

Series Game No. 9 … #2 ND 1, #4 UCONN 1 … Oct. 16, 1998
Regular-Season Game (at UConn’s Morrone Stadium)

ND scored seven minutes in and held a 29-18 shot edge (three off the posts) but failed to score in the final 113 minutes … the tie snapped ND’s 36-game streak of 36 consecutive wins in BIG EAST regular-season and tournament play … Heft’s 18th goal of the season gave ND the early lead … Kara Brown lofted a pass down the left side and Heft quickly fired a shot that skimmed off the left post and into the right side of the net … UConn’s Mary-Frances Monroe tied the game in the 30th minute, after winning a ball near midfield, driving to the goal and firing a shot from 16 yards into the lower right corner (29:52) … Makinen’s 20-yard free kick slammed off the right post and Heft also found the post with a header try in the second minute of OT … the game featured a matchup of two of the nation’s leader in goals/gm (ND 4.77, UConn 4.15) and team GAA (ND 0.50, UConn 0.81).

Series Game No. 10 … #5 ND 1 , #3 UCONN 0 … Nov. 8, 1998
BIG EAST Championship Game (at UConn’s Marrone Stadium)

Makinen’s goal at 80:39 was the only score as the Irish won their 4rth consecutive BIG EAST title … Makinen repeated as tournament MVP … the goal was set up by a CK from Jen Grubb, with the kick sailing past the goal before being deflected by a UConn player to D Lauren Molinaro, whose shanked the clearing try … the ball went directly to Makinen, who quickly sent a five-yard shot inside the far right post … ND held a 19-16 shot edge (12-8 second half) and a 9-4 edge in CKs … Beene had seven saves for her 9th solo shutout … the goal marked ND’s latest 1st goal of ’98.

Series Game No. 11 … #6 ND 2 , #8 UCONN 1 … Oct. 22, 1999
BIG EAST Cross-Divisional Game (at ND’s Alumni Field)

Makinen scored the game-winner in the 112th minute, in rainy and wind-swept conditions … Heft tied the ND record for career goals (73) in the 15th minute but UConn freshman Sarah Popper sent the game into OT with her 1st career goal, in the 89th minute … ND held a 25-10 shot edge (7-3 first half, 11-6 second half, 6-0 second OT) … both teams managed just one shot in the first OT … UConn’s Maria Yatrakis made four of her 12 saves in the second OT … UConn saved Streiffer’s header off the backline in the 64th minute … Makinen scored her third career GWG vs. UConn at 111:03, after Grubb served a corner kick that the Huskies failed to clear … Makinen collected the loose ball and sent a six-yard shot towards the upper right corner, with the ball deflecting off a UConn player into the net … the game was Makinen’s 10th straight with a point … Popper scored at 88:21, taking a pass from Salla Ranta and dribbling into the box before placing an 18-yard shot into the upper right corner … Heft gave ND the lead at 73:52, settling a Kara Brown CK and half-volleying a shot that sailed below the crossbar.

Series Game No. 12 … #6 ND 4, #13 UCONN 2 … Nov. 7, 1999
BIG EAST Championship Game (at Rutgers’ Yurcak Stadium)

ND used goals by three different players and took advantage of a UConn own-goal to win its 5th consecutive BIG EAST title … Heft and freshman Ali Lovelace tallied 2nd-half goals for the Irish … Streiffer was named tournament MVP (she had 1G-1A in the title game) … ND held an 11-9 shot edge on the blustery day, with the Irish scoring twice on three shots to pull away early in the 2nd half … Streiffer struck in the 9th minute, on a play set up by Grubb’s cross from the right flank … Streiffer ran onto the ball on the left wing and dribbled inside the box before scoring past Yatrakis, who had come off her line (8:12) … later in the half, UConn played the ball back to Yatrakis but it slipped under her heel and went into the left corner of the net (36:05) … UConn forged a 2-1 game early in the 2nd half, when Alexa Borisjuk served a ball over the back line to Salla Ranta, who lofted a shot from the upper right corner of the box into the upper left corner of the net (48:22) … Heft restored the two-goal cushion at 55:37, blasting an 18-yard shot from the left wing into the upper right corner (Makinen had won the ball at midfield, dribbled downfield and dropped a pass to Heft on the left wing) … Lovelace pushed the lead to 4-1 at 71:48, son an open shot from seven yards near the right post (Heft brought the ball into the box and passed to Streiffer, who tapped the ball to an unmarked Lovelace) … Monroe closed out the scoring at 85:37 with a right-corner shot from 20 yards to beat backup Liz Wagner.

Notre Dame Team Notes

YOU NEVER KNOW
* Conventional thinking predicted that ND would experience a dropoff after losing five starters from the 1999 NCAA runner-up team to graduation, including three All-Americans (F/M Jen Streiffer, D Jen Grubb and G LaKeysia Beene) and ND all-time leading goalscorer Jenny Heft (80 career goals, with Streiffer ranking 2nd at 70), plus hard-nosed D Kara Brown (5th in ND history with 99 GP) … those five seniors combined to log 485 games from ’96-’99, including 440 starts.
* While struggling at times this season with consistent finishing, ND has risen to the top of the polls thanks to a skilled midfield that excels in possession and distribution and steady play in the defensive third that has yielded just six goals in 20 games (compared to 18 GA in the first 20 games of ’99).
* ND’s trio of central-based midfielders-senior Anne Makinen, junior Mia Sarkesian and sophomore Ashley Dryer-has provided consistent ball control that has yielded huge edges in shots (446-102), shots on goal (257-51) and corner kicks (119-38).
* The Irish defense has thrived thanks to a seven-player group that has found strong chemistry despite limited experience … that group has included junior G Liz Wagner, senior central Ds Kelly Lindsey and Kerri Bakker, junior right back Lindsey Jones and sophomore left back Vanessa Pruzinsky … senior Monica Gonzalez also has seen significant time on the D flank while sophomore Nancy Mikacenic has done a solid job when called on to play in the middle-giving the Irish D an effective six-player rotation … Lindsey is the only player among the six D who had made more than 26 career starts in the Irish defense prior to this season (Jones made 17 starts as a freshman M, Gonzalez was used strictly as a F prior to 2000 … and Wagner had no previous career starts) … Mikacenic (21 GS as a M in ’99) has started five games in place of the injured Lindsey.

PRIMED FOR POSTSEASON: Senior M Anne Makinen and senior F Meotis Erikson have done their share of scoring during the postseason, with Makinen amassing 40 points (14G-12A, 3 GWG) in 22 career postseason games while Erikson has 28 (9G-10A) … that dynamic duo has combined to average 3.1 points per game in the postseason, including a combined 4.1 points per game in BIG EAST Tournament play (Makinen has 9G-5A and Erikson 6G-6A in 10 career BIG EAST Tournament games) … senior D Kelly Lindsey started all of ND’s 20 postseason games during the previous three seasons … junior G Liz Wagner had limited postseason experience (4 GP, 33:17, 3 SV, 2 GA) prior to the Miami game, including short stints in the ’99 BIG EAST Tournament vs. Seton Hall and UConn and 12 minutes of action in the second round of the NCAAs vs. Dayton … Wagner actually saw some late-game action as a field player in 1998 BIG EAST Tournament routs of West Virginia and Syracuse (roster limits expanded from 18 to 22 players this season).

SCOUTING THE IRISH: Notre Dame returned 16 of 22 letterwinners but lost five starters from its ’99 team that went 21-4-1 and advanced to the NCAA title game … senior M and leading national player-of-the-year candidate Anne Makinen (13G-14A) has scored or assisted on nearly half of ND’s goals this season (27 of 67) while other top scorers include freshman Fs Amy Warner (9G-4A) and Amanda Guertin (10G-3A) and senior F Meotis Erikson (11G-9A) … junior Elizabeth Wagner has played most of the minutes in the nets, with 41 saves, five goals allowed (one on a PK) and the nation’s top GAA (0.28).

THE FRIENDLY CONFINES: There has been plenty of women’s soccer action at ND’s Alumni Field during the eight-day stretch of Oct. 29-Nov. 5, as the facility will serve as the site for the BIG EAST semifinals (Nov. 3) and championship game (Nov. 5) after also hosting the Oct. 29 quarterfinal game vs. Miami … ND also could play host to three NCAA Tournament games, meaning the Irish potentially could play six straight postseason games at home.

FOR STARTERS: The Irish rediscovered their 1st-half scoring form in the regular-season finale at Michigan, with scores from senior F Monica Gonzalez and junior M Mia Sarkesian … ND had totaled just two 1st-half goals in the previous five games (vs. BC and at Syracuse), compared to 20 first-half goals in the first 12 games … the Irish have totaled 14 second-half goals during the last eight games (compared to just seven in the first half) … over the course of the entire season, ND has scored 11 more goals in the 2nd half (38) than in the first 45 minutes (27) … ND owns a 27-3 scoring edge in the 1st half, 38-3 in the 2nd half (2-0 in OT) … the Irish own a 29-2 scoring edge away from home this season (38-4 at home).

IRISH POST BEST START: ND’s 16-0-0 start bested the ND record for top won-loss record to open a season (the ’96 team opened 13-0-0) … that ’96 team posted a 66-6 scoring edge through the first 13 games before dropping a 3-1 game at 9th-ranked Santa Clara (just days after the Irish had risen to No. 1 in the polls) … the ’96 team owned five wins over ranked teams during that 13-0 start, including victories over No. 14 Wisconsin (3-1), No. 13 Washington (4-0), No. 4 UConn (2-1), No. 1 UNC (2-1, OT) and No. 18 Stanford (4-0) … by comparison, the current Irish squad owns a 67-6 scoring edge and has posted three wins and one tie vs. teams that were ranked in the NSCAA poll at game time: No. 2 Santa Clara (6-1), No. 10 Stanford (2-1, OT), No. 15 Washington (5-0) and No. 25 UConn (0-0).

PERFECT MARK: The Irish concluded Mid-Atlantic Division play with an undefeated record (6-0-0) for the second consecutive season and own a 54-2-2 (.948) all-time record in BIG EAST regular-season play (including cross-divisional games and the recent tie at UConn, which was not part of the official BIG EAST schedule) … prior to the tie at UConn, ND had won 25 straight games vs. BIG EAST teams (19 regular season, six BIG EAST Tournament) … ND’s only blemishes in BIG EAST regular-season play include a 5-4 OT loss to UConn in the ’95 NCAA Championship season, a 1-1 tie at UConn in ’98, a 3-2 loss two days later at Seton Hall and the recent 0-0 tie at UConn … since joining the BIG EAST in ’95, the Irish own a 69-3-2 record (.946) in all games vs. BIG EAST opponents (including a 2-0 win over UConn in the ’95 NCAA quarterfinals and a 2-1 loss to UConn in the ’97 NCAA semi’s) … Notre Dame’s 74 games vs. BIG EAST teams since ’95 have included a 369-33 scoring edge (avg. 5.0-0.5), with a 59-7 scoring edge in 14 BIG EAST Tournament games (avg. 4.2-0.5).

IRISH COMPLETE UNDEFEATED REGULAR SEASON: The 5-1 win at Michigan yielded just the third undefeated regular season in the 13-year history of ND women’s soccer (17-0-1) … the ’94 team headed into the postseason with a similar 17-0-1 mark while the ’97 Irish squad went 18-0-1 in the regular season.

SCORE 11, LET IN 1: ND owns a 67-6 scoring edge, yielding an 11-to-1 scoring ratio that trails only the high-scoring ’97 squad (135-9, 15-to-1 ratio) in the program’s 13-year history.

READY, SET, GO!: Set plays have produced five ND goals in the last eight games: Anne Makinen’s corner kick that led to the own goal at Villanova, Mia Sarkesian’s volley that was set up by a CK at Syracuse, Meotis Erikson’s free kick at SU, Makinen’s free kick at Yale, and Sarkesian’s header off a CK at Michigan.

SCORING ‘EM AND STOPPING ‘EM: ND and No. 3 Nebraska are the nation’s only teams ranked in the top six for scoring offense and team goals-against average … ND’s 3.35 goals per game ranks 6th while the Irish lead the nation with an 0.29 goals-against average … Nebraska entered the week ranked 2nd in scoring (4.16 goals/gm) and 3rd in GAA (0.42).

ND HEAD COACH RANDY WALDRUM ON THE POSTSEASON:

“This game (at UConn, Oct. 21) could prove to be a good lesson for us and we are looking forward to having some more spacing between games that comes with the postseason. Right now, the team needs some time-physically and mentally-to get refocused and rested.

“But it’s been a tremendous season. To have predicted that we would be 16-0-1 heading into the final regular-season game-with two starters missing a stretch of games-would have been a pretty bold statement heading into this season, but this team has shown great leadership and chemistry while playing with a lot of resiliency. It’s a special group and we are looking forward to the next few weeks.”

BIG EAST HONORS
* Three ND players-senior M Anne Makinen, senior D Kelly Lindsey and freshman F Amy Warner-earned first team all-BIG EAST honors while senior F Meotis Erikson, sophomore D Vanessa Pruzinsky and junior G Liz Wagner were named second team all-BIG EAST.
* ND has produced an all-BIG EAST goalkeeper during all six of its season in the conference while also producing 13 all-conference forward, 12 a all-BIG EAST midfielders and 11 all-conference defenders.
* At least two ND forwards have received all-BIG EAST honors in every season (1995-2000) except ’97) while two Irish defenders have received all-conference honors every season since ’95 except ’98.
* ND’s 26 all-time BIG EAST first-teamers include nine midfield honors, seven forwards, seven defenders and three goalkeepers.

NO. 1 SIGN BURNS ON: October 12 brought a new look to the night sky on the northeast corner of the Notre Dame campus, as the traditional, lighted numeral one was placed atop Grace Hall, in honor of the Irish women’s soccer team’s ascension to the number-one ranking … the eight-foot sign, for years under the auspices of Grace Hall (a men’s residence hall from 1969-96), had not appeared since it last was lit in honor of the ’95 NCAA championship won by the women’s soccer team … the number-one sign, built by Father Bob Malone and a group of seminarians, originally went up at Moreau Seminary (located at the north end of St. Joseph’s Lake) in January of 1974, following Notre Dame’s 1973 national championship football season … designed to be lit anytime a Notre Dame team was ranked number one, it later moved to Howard Hall (at the center of campus, near the old Notre Dame Bookstore) before finally shifting to the roof of Grace Hall … the sign was proudly displayed during the end of the 1988 football season (when the Irish captured the national title) and returned during parts of the 1989, ’90 and ’93 football campaigns.

IRISH REMAIN NO. 1: ND has returned to the top of the national polls for the first time since ’96, following a pair of quality wins on Sept. 16-17 over current No. 2 Washington (5-0) and current No. 10 Portland (1-0), coupled with UNC’s 2-1 loss earlier that week at Clemson … North Carolina (now 14-3-0) dropped out of the top spot and is ranked 6th in this week’s National Soccer Coaches Association of American (NSCAA) poll … the Irish are ranked first in the NSCAA poll and various other polls conducted by soccer-specific publications and websites, including the long-running poll compiled by the editors of Soccer America, the SoccerTimes.com national coaches poll and the American Soccer Writers media poll (coordinated by collegesoccerdaily.com).

NO. 1 HISTORY: The previous year in which ND sat atop the NSCAA poll in the regular season was ’96, when the Irish owned the top spot for the final two months (a 2-1 win over UNC on Oct. 4 of that year, followed by a 2-0 win over Duke, bumped the Irish up from No. 2) … ND spent the final month of ’94 as the No. 1-ranked team, thanks to an earlier 0-0 tie with UNC and the Tar Heels’ loss to Duke in early October.

RISING TO THE TOP: Following Nebraska’s 2-1 loss to Oklahoma on Oct. 15, Notre Dame became the only undefeated team left in all of Division I women’s soccer (spanning 271 teams) … ND’s strength of schedule has improved since the start of the 2000 season, as Portland (10th), Washington (2nd), Boston College and Michigan (both not currently ranked) each have entered the NSCAA poll in recent weeks … other 2000 Irish opponents currently ranked in the NSCAA poll include No. 15 Stanford, Santa Clara (just fell out of the poll) and #24 Connecticut.

BULLSEYE ON THEIR BACKS: ND owns a 32-3-1 all-time record (20-1-1 in the regular season) when playing as the top-ranked team in the NSCAA poll … ND’s losses as the No. 1 team have come at Santa Clara in ’96 (3-1) and in a pair of NCAA title games vs. UNC (5-0 in ’94, 1-0 in ’96), with the tie coming last week at UConn (0-0).

A WILD YEAR: Following Nebraska’s 2-1 loss to Oklahoma on Oct. 15, Notre Dame became the nation’s only remaining unbeaten team (among 271 Division I women’s soccer programs) … just five other teams own a record with two losses or better: two teams with one loss and no ties (Nebraska, unranked Furman) and two with two losses (Washington, Hartford and unranked Jacksonville).

REGULARS IN THE LINEUP: Due to the use of various lineups and a handful of injuries, just three ND players have started all 20 games this season: senior F Meotis Erikson, sophomore D Vanessa Pruzinsky and junior G Liz Wagner … six others have appeared in every game: freshman F Amanda Guertin (17 GS), freshman M Randi Scheller (5 GS), junior M Mia Sarkesian (19 GS), sophomore M Ashley Dryer (16 GS), junior D Lindsey Jones (18 GS) and senior D Kerry Bakker (15 GS) … Erikson has started every game of her ND career (96), as has Pruzinsky (46).

DEFENSIVE-MINDED: ND’s hard-nosed D has held the opposition to six goals while having a hand in just 10 goals on the other side of the field (2G-8A) … sophomore Nancy Mikacenic (1G-3A) is the “leading scorer” among the Irish D but her header goal came on a corner kick while she was playing in the midfield (in the opener vs. Detroit) while two of her three assists also came as a midfielder … senior Monica Gonzalez (1G-1A) scored last week-while playing as a forward at Michigan-while junior Lindsey Jones (2A), sophomore Vanessa Pruzinksy (1A) and freshman Megan Rogers (1A) round out the scoring by the Irish D … seniors Kelly Lindsey and Kerri Bakker have yet to register a point in 2000 … not counting points recorded at other positions, the Irish D has accounted for just seven (7A) of the team’s 180 points (3.9 percent) … by comparison, 2000 graduates Jen Grubb (9G-8A) and Kara Brown (2G-16A) combined to total 46 points from the back during the 1999 season (those two D alone accounted for 15.0 pct. of the points in ’99).

SILVER STREAKS

Prior to the tie at UConn, ND nearly tied the team record for consecutive wins in a season (the ’97 squad won 17 straight before losing 2-1 to UConn in the NCAA semi’s) … ND’s last regular-season loss came Oct. 17, 1999 (4-2 game at then-No. 1 Santa Clara) … since that time, the Irish set a team record by winning 20 straight regular-season games (the ’94-’95 teams combined to win 17 straight regular-season games) and now are 21-0-1 in the last 22 regular-season games … ND is 29-1-2 in its last 32 games overall … a regular-season win over UConn also would have equaled the 2nd-longest overall winning streak in the program’s 13-year history (the ’95 and ’96 teams combined to win 24 straight) … ND’s current 20-game unbeaten streak ranks 3rd in ND history (the ’95-’96 teams went 24-0-0, the ’97 team opened 23-0-1).

RACKING UP THE HONORS

ND amassed 15 of 28 weekly BIG EAST awards for offensive player, defensive player and rookie (UConn was next with four) … due to strong play in front of her, Irish junior Liz Wagner was nominated just three times for goalkeeper of the week-seven saves vs. Santa Clara and Stanford, six vs. Washington and Portland and eight in the 0-0 game at UConn (Wagner has faced just 23 shots on goal in ND’s other 13 games) … the Irish produced three straight offensive players of the week (senior M Anne Makinen, senior F Meotis Erikson, junior M Mia Sarkesian) while ND players collected seven straight defensive player-of-the-week awards (three by Kelly Lindsey, one by fellow senior Kerri Bakker, three by sophomore Vanessa Pruzinsky) … Amanda Guertin was the third Irish freshman to be honored by the BIG EAST in a three-week stretch, following fellow F Amy Warner (three-time honoree) and M Randi Scheller.

NO GOALS A RARITY

The 0-0 game at UConn on Oct. 21 marked just the third scoreless tie in ND history and the first in six seasons (also at Dayton in ’91 and vs. North Carolina in a ’94 game played in St. Louis).

PLAYING WITH THE LEAD: ND has trailed just once this season while holding the lead for 56% of the minutes … just three teams have managed to forge a tie (1-1) vs. the Irish this season-Providence, Stanford and West Virginia-while Boston College is the only team to hold a lead on ND in 2000 (for 28 minutes), meaning that the Irish have trailed for just 1.5% of the minutes this season.

GAINING EXPERIENCE … AND WINS: Notre Dame’s regular starting lineup during the 2000 season includes three players who had no previous starts on the Division I level-freshman Fs Amy Warner and Amanda Guertin and junior G Liz Wagner-plus several others with limited starting experience prior to 2000: senior D Kerri Bakker (3 GS prior to 2000), freshman M Ashley Dryer (15), junior M Mia Sarkesian (17), junior D Lindsey Jones (17) and sophomore D Vanessa Pruzinsky (26) … the only members of the everyday starting 11 with more than 26 starts prior to 2000 were senior D Kelly Lindsey (68), senior M Anne Makinen (66) and senior F Meotis Erikson (63) … by comparison, the Irish headed into the 1999 season with eight players who had more than 26 career starts.

ROAD WARRIORS: Since dropping a 4-2 game at Santa Clara on Oct. 17, 1999, ND is13-1-2 record in its last 16 games away from Alumni Field … the Irish have put up solid numbers on the road in 2000 (9 games), including a 29-2 scoring edge (the other 4 GA have come at home), a 166-72 shot edge (21-9 avg.) and a 96-32 edge in shots on goal (12-4 avg.).

BREAKING THE SEAL: Three different ND players-senior M Anne Makinen, senior F Meotis Erikson and freshman F Amy Warner-each scored the first goal of the game three-plus times in the first 11 games before freshman F Amanda Guertin joined that group with the first goal in the 8-0 win at Georgetown … junior M Mia Sarkesian then did the honors vs. BC, Syracuse (and BC again) while Erikson netted the first goal at Yale, senior Monica Gonzalez did the honors at Michigan and Warner scoring off the bench vs. Miami … Makinen opened the scoring in three consecutive games (vs. Pittsburgh, Seton Hall and Rutgers), after earlier scoring the first goal versus Detroit and Tulsa … Erikson scored first vs. Santa Clara, Washington, Portland and Yale while Warner broke the ice vs. Providence, Stanford, West Virginia and then Miami.

HOMESTANDERS: ND’s home record in 10-plus seasons at Alumni Field is 114-7-1 (.939), including 90-3-1 in the last 94 games-highlighted by a 27-game win streak from ’92-’95 (5th-longest in NCAA history) … ND’s last three home losses have been at the hands of #5 UConn in ’95 (5-4, OT), #6 Portland in the ’98 NCAA quarterfinals (2-1) and top-rated UNC in the ’99 opener (3-2, OT) …the Irish currently carry a 22-game home winning streak, with a 60-9 scoring edge in those games … ND’s all-time record at Alumni Field vs. teams not ranked in the NSCAA poll is 79-1-0 (35-6-1 vs. ranked teams), with 72 straight home wins over unranked teams dating back to a 2-0 loss to Creighton in ’90 … ND played at Moose Krause Field in the program’s first two seasons (’88 and ’89), with a home record of 19-5-1 during that span (all vs. unranked teams).

QUICK STRIKES

Notre Dame jumped out to 1-0 leads in the first 12:00 of six games this season, including three of the last seven (Seton Hall, Georgetown and Syracuse) … the Irish opened the season by scoring in the 12th minute vs. Detroit and scored in the 8th minute the next week vs. Providence … the most important quick-strike goal of the season came Sept. 17 at Portland, as Meotis Erikson’s score in the 8th minute quieted the raucous 3,500-plus crowd and held up as the game’s only goal (the Irish ascended to the top of the national rankings one day later).

ND’s Quickest First Goals in 2000

 1:32 - at Syracuse (Mia Sarkesian) 7:20 - at Portland (Meotis Erikson) 8:38 - vs. Providence (Amy Warner) 9:24 - vs. Seton Hall (Anne Makinen) 9:49 - at G'town (Amanda Guertin) 11:36 - vs. Detroit (Makinen)

BIG GAPS

Notre Dame has posted dominating statistical edges during the 2000 season, including: 67-6 in scoring, 503-111 in shots ( avg. 25-6), 288-53 in shots on goal (avg. 14-3) and 137-42 in corner kicks (avg. 7-2) … the Irish have held seven teams to 0-2 shots and have allowed more than eight shots just four times (10 by Santa Clara, 11 by Portland, 16 by UConn, 16 by Michigan) … ND has allowed 0-2 shots on goal in 13 games (none in three) while SCU (7), UConn (8) and Michigan (8) are the only teams to uncork more than four shots on goal vs. the Irish … 16 of 20 ND opponents have been limited to 0-3 corner kicks (Portland had 7, Yale 4, UConn 5).

POLL POSITION

* The ND women’s soccer program has been ranked in the top-7 of the NSCAA poll since Sept. 14, 1993 (86 straight polls) and has held down a spot in the top-six since Sept. 15, 1999.
* The Irish have been ranked 1st-3rd in 60 of 87 polls during the past seven seasons and have been ranked in the top-five in 72 of the last 87 polls (in the top 10 of all but one).
* ND’s spots in the last 87 NSCAA polls include 16 weeks at No. 1, 32 at No. 2, 12 at No. 3, four at No. 4, eight at No. 5, 11 at No. 6, three at No. 7 and one at No. 12.

20-GAME CHECKUP: With 20 games in the books (the Irish could play as many as 26), ND is on pace to challenge several team records … ND has allowed just six goals (the team record is nine, in ’97) while the 0.29 team GAA is below the record of 0.36 (also set in ’97) … the Irish have posted 14 shutouts and could make a run at the record (18, in ’95) … ND set the team record for best start (the ’96 team opened 13-0-0) and-prior to the tie at UConn-was one win shy of tying the record for longest single-season winning streak (the ’97 team won 17 straight midseason games) … ND also won 20 straight regular-season games (the previous team record was 18, from ’95-’96) … Anne Makinen’s record for shots in a season (106, in ’98) could be bested this season by either Makinen (on pace for 99 over 26 games) or Meotis Erikson (on pace for 108) … Makinen owns five game-winning goals this season (Rosella Guerrero’s eight in ’94 are the ND record).

SHARPSHOOTING: ND will be looking to rediscover its improved shooting accuracy, as the Irish were averaging one goal ever 7.8 shots before scoring three goals on 12 shots at Syracuse, 4G on 19 shots at Yale, no goals on seven shots at UConn and 5G on 27 shots at Michigan (one goal every 5.4 shots over the course of those four games) before scoring just 3G on 30 shots vs. Miami and three on 27 vs. BC … the current overall average of 7.5 shots/goal is highest in ND history, up from ’98 (6.8) and ’99 (6.1) .. the best shot-to-goal ratio in ND history was 4.40 (in ’96) … the 2000 Irish are averaging 25.1 shots/gm, which ranks ahead of every previous ND season except ’97 (30.9) and ’98 (26.8) … seniors Anne Makinen (75 shots) and Meotis Erikson (83) have taken the bulk of ND’s shots this season (they have combined to average 8.1 shots/gm) … the top shooting percentages among ND regulars include junior F Kelly Tulisiak (4G on 14 shots, 3.5 shots/goal), freshman F Amy Warner (9 on 44, 4.9) and freshman F Amanda Guertin (10 on 55, 5.5).

ARE WE THERE YET?: There have been times during recent weeks in which the Irish women’s soccer team has felt like it was several weeks farther along in the season, due in large part to the preseason trip to Brazil that included seven games versus Brazilian club teams … including the games in Brazil, ND has played 27 games in 2000 (the equivalent of playing the regular season, a full allotment of eight postseason games and an additional game).

A-M FREQUENCY DIALED IN FOR SCORING: ND’s 27-player roster includes five players whose first names begin with A and five who begin with M (plus five that start with K and four with L) … five of the 10 players whose names start with A or M have combined to score ND’s first goal in every game, including five by senior M Anne Makinen, four each by senior F Meotis Erikson and freshman F Amy Warner, three by junior M Mia Sarkesian and one each by freshman F Amanda Guertin and senior Monica Gonzalez (Makinen also had the corner kick that led to an own goal in the 1-0 game at Villanova) … all told, eight players from the “A-M frequency” (also sophomore F Ali Lovelace and sophomore M Ashley Dryer) have combined to score 81 percent of the team’s goals (54 of 67), with that 67-goal total not including a pair of own goals that the A-M players helped set up (Makinen’s pass sprung Warner for a cross that was deflected in for a 2-1 overtime win over Stanford) … the names of ND’s top four forwards and entire starting midfield (all listed above) each start with an A or M.

RUGGED STRETCH: The Sept. 17 game at Portland completed a challenging stretch in which the Irish posted three consecutive wins over ranked opponents (#2 Santa Clara, #10 Stanford and #15 Washington), followed by the win over a Portland team that entered the NSCAA poll the next week at #14 … the last time ND played three straight NSCAA ranked opponents was in the 195 NCAA championship run … early in that season, ND posted successive wins over #13 Wisconsin, #19 Michigan State and #3 Stanford … later in ’95, a rugged four-game stretch in the regular season yielded a 5-4 loss to #5 UConn, a 1-0 win over #6 SCU, a 2-2 tie with #11 Duke and a 2-0 loss to #1 North Carolina.

BRONCO BUSTERS: Notre Dame’s 6-1 win over Santa Clara marked: SCU’s first consecutive losses since Sept. of 1994 (vs. LMU, Stanford and UNC), the first time SCU was outshot (23-10) in 19 games, and the most goals by an SCU opponent in 20 seasons-dating back to an 8-0 loss to UC Davis in ’80 (the last team to reach five goals vs. SCU was UNC, in ’91) … ND also became the first team to post more than 20 shots vs. Santa Clara since Washington did it in ’94 (23-18, in a 2-2 game).

FAR & WIDE

* ND’s typical starting 11 is representative of the University’s national student body, as that starting unit includes players from nine states and Finland (senior M Anne Makinen), with the lone duplicate state being Texas (junior G Liz Wagner and freshman F Amanda Guertin) … the others hail from Connecticut (sophomore D Vanessa Pruzinsky), Indiana (junior D Lindsey Jones), Michigan (junior M Mia Sarkesian), Nebraska (senior D Kelly Lindsey), New Jersey (senior D Kerri Bakker), New Mexico (freshman F Amy Warner), Utah (sophomore M Ashley Dryer) and Washington (senior F Meotis Erikson).
* The top five reserves represent three more states: Ohio (junior F Kelly Tulisiak), Pennsylvania (freshman M Randi Scheller) and Georgia (sophomore F Ali Lovelace), plus repeats for Washington (sophomore D Nancy Mikacenic) and Texas (senior D/F Monica Gonzalez).
* ND’s 27-player roster includes players from 19 states and countries (the above 13, plus California, Canada, Florida, Idaho, Illinois and New York).
* ND’s all-time roster includes players from 29 states and two countries, the above 19 plus: Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Oregon, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

ANNE MAKINEN NOTES

50-50 PROPOSITION: Senior M Anne Makinen (Helsinki, Finland) scored on Sept. 29 and Oct. 1 vs. Seton Hall and Rutgers, giving her 60 career goals to move past ’96 graduate Michelle McCarthy (59) into 5th on the ND all-time list (she then scored vs. Georgetown to move into a tie on the ND goalscoring list with 97 grad. Cindy Daws before adding her 62nd career goal at Yale, her 63rd vs. Miami and 64th vs. BC) … Makinen was stuck on 49 career assists since Sept. 17 before assisting on all three Meotis Erikson goals in the 8-0 win at GU (Oct. 6)-becoming the 13th player in Division I history, and the third ND player, to eclipse the 50-goals, 50-assists plateau (she entered 2000 as the nation’s only active 40-40 player) … Jenny Streiffer (70G-71A, ’96-’99) and Daws (61G-67A) are the only previous ND players to reach 50-50 … Makinen still has a shot at reaching 60-60, needing 5A to become the 6th Division I player to earn that distinction … members of the 60-60 club include Streiffer, Daws, Carin Jennings (102G-60A, UC Santa Barbara, ’83-’86), Mia Hamm (103G-72A, North Carolina, ’89-’93) and Mandy Clemens (67G-65A, Santa Clara, ’96-’99) … eight more goals and 15 more assists would place Makinen alongside Streiffer and Hamm in the very exclusive 70-70 club.

ANNE’S ARSENAL: Anne Makinen has totaled 40 points (13G-14A) in 19 games played (17 starts), despite being marked heavily as ND’s top offensive weapon .. Makinen heads into the UConn game with a career average of 2.18 points/gm (183 points in 84 games) … her 55 career assists rank 5th all-time an ND (she just edged past 2000 Jen Grubb, who had 53) … Makinen’s 183 career points push her into 5th on the ND all-time list, moving past Holly Manthei’s career total from ’94-’97 (176) to trail only Jenny Streiffer (211, ’96-’99), Monica Gerardo (190, ’95-’98), Cindy Daws (189, ’93-’96) and Jenny Heft (189, ’96-’99) … Makinen needs to total 48 points this season-she needs 8 more-to pass Gerardo into 2nd on the ND all-time scoring list.

MAKIN’ WAVES: Anne Makinen-who has points in 14 of 19 games played this season (17 starts)-has been the focal point of the Irish offense this season, as the three-year All-American has scored or assisted on 40% of ND’s goals (27 of 67), including five game-winning goals and four primary game-winning assists … her outlet pass also sprung Amy Warner for the cross that led to the game-ending own goal versus Stanford while her bending corner kick led to the own goal in the 1-0 game at Villanova … with her team struggling to cash in its chances vs. Tulsa on Sept. 1, Makinen took over in the lategoing by scoring a pair of goals for a 2-0 win … two days later, in the 5-1 win over Providence, her play from her central midfield spot helped the Irish eclipse 30 shots for the third straight game … her pass into the middle set up Amy Warner’s second goal of the PC game and Makinen added a long cross late in that game that Warner half-volleyed to complete her hat trick … Makinen had 1G-2A in the 6-1 win over No. 2 Santa Clara before setting up the game-ending sequence versus Stanford … at the Portland Invitational, Makinen’s long cross set up Ali Lovelace’s goal for a 2-0 lead on Washington and Makinen added a rebound goal and PK goal in that 5-0 game … the next day, her cross from the right set up Meotis Erikson’s goal in the 1-0 win over Portland … most recently, Makinen’s rocket shot from the top of the box held up as the only score in a 1-0 game with Pittsburgh before she opened the scoring to ignite the 6-0 win over Seton Hall and converted a second-half PK to give ND the lead in the 2-0 game with Rutgers … she then came off the bench in the 53rd minute to spark the 4-0 win at Yale, setting up Meotis Erikson for the first goal before sending a free kick over the wall and into the left corner for a late 2-0 cushion … Makinen’s rebounded shot was knocked in by Monica Gonzalez for an early lead in the 5-1 win at Michigan, she blasted home ND’s second goal in the 3-0 win over Miami, and she completed a strong combination play for a 2-0 lead in the semi-final win over BC (3-0).

What They’ve Said About
Anne Makinen

SANTA CLARA HEAD COACH JERRY SMITH:

“Anne Makinen is the best player in college soccer. She is a great international player, let alone a great college player. The international game is a much tougher game to be good than the college level. … I have such a high opinion of (Anne) that she would have to play just awesome for me to be kind of surprised. We talked about it in our team meeting. We just don’t have enough players that can kind of corral her.”

NOTRE DAME HEAD COACH RANDY WALDRUM:

“Tonight (Oct. 18 at Yale) was a classic example of why Anne Makinen is the best player in college soccer. She takes the game to another level for our team and presents a whole different set of challenges for teams trying to defend us. It was amazing how the game changed so quickly after she checked in.”

YALE HEAD COACH RUDY MEREDITH:

“I’d always known Anne was a great player from watching her on TV but this was the first time I’d seen her in person and she completely changed the game from the moment she stepped on the field. She was creating great offensive chances but also made her teammates better. That’s the sign of great player and she’s the best I’ve seen this year.”

Notre Dame Individual Notes

CORNER KICKERS: Despite being one of ND’s most dangerous players in the penalty box area, senior M Anne Makinen has taken many of ND’s corner kicks this season and is considered the team’s top option for that role due to her strong leg and pinpoint accuracy … senior F Meotis Erikson and freshman F Amanda Guertin also have been used recently on CKs … Erikson set up an Irish goal versus PC with one of those set plays, as did Makinen in the Detroit game … Makinen’s late corner at Villanova was bending into the goal before being kicked into the net by a VU player, for the game’s only goal … Guertin’s CK at Syracuse led to a header-volley combination by Ashley Dryer and Mia Sarkesian in the first two minutes of that 3-0 win while Erikson’s CK set up Sarkesian’s header goal at Michigan,

DYNAMIC DUO: Senior M Anne Makinen and senior F Meotis Erikson have joined 2000 graduates Jenny Streiffer (70G-71A, 211 pts) and Jenny Heft (80G-29A, 189 pts) as the second pair of ND classmates to each reach 150 career points … Makinen ranks 5th in ND history with 183 points (64G-55A) while Erikson ranks 7th with 156 (57G-42A).

MOTORING: Senior F Meotis Erikson scored three goals on Oct. 6 at Georgetown, becoming the 11th ND player to post three-plus hat tricks in her career (senior M Anne Makinen also has three career HTs) … Erikson registered three goals twice in a five-game span in late October of ’97 … just four previous ND players have turned in four-plus hat tricks: Jenny Heft (6, ’96-’99), Rosella Guerrero (5, ’92-’95), Michelle McCarthy (4, ’92-’95) and Monica Gerardo (4, ’95-’98) … Erikson’s hat trick is the 49th in ND history and the 25th in the last five seasons (freshman Amy Warner had 3G vs. PC on Sept. 3) … Erikson has points in six of the last seven games (3G-5A) and eight of the last 11 (7G-6A) … Erikson’s recent surge gives her 156 points (57G-42A) for her career, tied with `96 graduate Michelle McCarthy for 7th on the ND all-time scoring list … her 57 goals also rank 7th in ND history, two behind McCarthy, with Erikson ranks 9th on the assists list.

WALDRUM WORKING WONDERS: Second-year Notre Dame head coach Randy Waldrum has seen his Irish teams post an impressive 40-4-2 combined record (.891), including a solid 9-3-2 mark vs. NSCAA top-25 teams and a ’99 season that ended in the NCAA title game … Waldrum in ’99 became the only coach in the 18-year history of the NCAA women’s soccer championship to lead a team to the title game in his first season as that team’s head coach … he was the fourth first-year coach to take his team to the NCAA semi-finals, with the Irish beating top-ranked and previously unbeaten Santa Clara in their backyard of San Jose, Calif. … Waldrum’s 19-year record as a college head coach (with both men’s and women’s teams) is 223-109-21 (.662) … he owns a 147-54-14 (.716) record in 10-plus seasons as a Division I women’s coach, including 61-36-9 in six years at Tulsa (.580) and 46-14-3 in three seasons at Baylor … Waldrum entered the 2000 season ranked 15th among active women’s coaches for career winning percentage (he ranks 26th on the total wins list).

BIG-GAME PERFORMER: Despite facing just 46 shots on goal all season, junior Liz Wagner-who leads the nation with an 0.28 season goals-against average-has made several big plays vs. ranked opponents … in five games vs. NSCAA top-25 teams, Wagner has totaled 21 saves while allowing just two goals (she has 20 saves and 3 GA in ND’s other 15 games) … in the 6-1 win over then-No. 2 Santa Clara, Wagner made five big saves, including an early breakaway and a diving stop in the second half … she finished the KeyBank Classic (which included a 2-1 OT win over Stanford) with seven saves, as the backstop to a defense that allowed just 16 shots … Wagner then made six saves at the Portland Invitational but turned in several other big plays in both games (she thwarted two early scoring chances by current No. 4 Washington before holding off current 17th-ranked Portland’s late charge) … she arguably was the best player on the field in the 0-0 tie at UConn, making eight saves while smothering several other Huskies chances at a charged-up Marrone Stadium … Wagner is in the midst of her first season as a starter while facing the challenge of replacing All-American LaKeysia Beene and losing two starting defenders from the ’99 team (including four-time All-American Jen Grubb).

ND HEAD COACH RANDY WALDRUM ON WAGNER: “I think you saw tonight (Oct. 21 at UConn) why Liz Wagner has to be considered for BIG EAST goalkeeper of the year. In a lot of our games she hardly has touched the ball and it’s hard to appreciate her skill and leadership in that type of game. But every time she has been tested in a big game, she has answered the bell. The way she has played for us-along with the play of an inexperienced defense that has battled through some injuries-have been invaluable.”

SHUTOUT CITY: ND’s GAA (0.29) is on pace to best the team record (0.36) set in ’97, when the Irish allowed just five goals in the regular season and nine overall … the Irish have allowed just three goals (a PK at West Virginia, a counterattack by BC and a tough crossing shot at Michigan) in the last 1,428 minutes of action, stretching back to Stanford’s goal in the 80th minute on Sept. 10 … the Irish have posted 10 shutouts in the last 12 games (14 total), allowing just 63 shots (28 on goal) and 21 corner kicks during that 12-game stretch … Michigan’s goal prevented ND from tying the team record for fewest goals allowed in the regular season (5, in ’97) … junior G Liz Wagner and the Irish allowed just one goal in each game of the KeyBank Classic, vs. two of the nation’s top teams (Santa Clara, Stanford), before posting a pair of shutouts in the Portland adidas Invitational (vs. current #2 Washington and current #14 Portland), the 2-1 win at WVU and the five straight shutouts vs. Pittsburgh (1-0), Seton Hall (6-0), Rutgers (2-0), Georgetown (8-0) and Villanova (1-0), followed by shutouts at Syracuse (3-0), Yale (4-0) and 25th-ranked UConn (0-0) and BET shutouts of Miami and BC (both 3-0).

SHUT DOWN: In the season-opening win over Detroit (6-1), the Titans nearly scored the game’s first goal during an early flurry but ND responded by not allowing a shot for the final 83 minutes … the final shot margin (49-2) ranks as one of the largest in ND history (the team record for shots is 59) … the Irish gave up an early shot (not on goal) by Pittsburgh on Sept. 24 before holding the Panthers without a shot in the final 76 minutes … one week later, ND allowed Seton Hall just one shot (off goal) in the final 86 minutes before holding Rutgers without a shot of any kind for the entire 90:00 … the RU game marked the 13th time in ND history-and sixth in the last six seasons-that the Irish have held the opponent without a shot … most recently, ND held Miami without a shot for a 45-minute mid-game stretch before holding BC without a shot for a 55-minute midgame stretch during the BIG EAST semifinals.

FLAIR FOR THE DRAMATIC: Junior midfielder Mia Sarkesian has totaled just eight goals in her ND career (65 GP) but many have come in clutch situations … she scored on a looping 20-yard shot late in the first half to tie the regular-season BC game and halt ND’s only deficit of the 2000 season (that was her first goal of the season, to go along with one assist) … two days later, Sarkesian’s volley of a corner kick-header combination gave ND a 1-0 lead in the first two minutes at Syracuse and she worked a give-and-go to set up Randi Scheller’s clinching goal late in the game (3-0) … her early header then ended up being the game-winner in the 5-1 game at Michigan (all three of her scores have been GWGs) and “Mia’s magic continued in the BIG EAST semi-final win over BC, when she headed in a cross for a 1-0 lead … Sarkesian’s last five goals all have been game-winners (including four in 2000) … all three of Sarkesian’s 1999 goals came in big games: versus top-ranked North Carolina in the ’99 opener (UNC won 3-2 in OT), vs. Seton Hall in the BIG EAST semifinals (5-0) and vs. Stanford in a 1-0 NCAA third-round game.

ROOKIE TRIO

Freshmen have combined to score nearly 40% of the ND goals this season (26 of 67) …Fs Amanda Guertin (10) and Amy Warner (9) and M Randi Scheller (6) suddenly have a chance to become just the second trio of ND freshmen ever to each reach 10 goals in their rookie season (in ’97, Anne Makinen had 23, Meotis Erikson 22 and Monica Gonzalez 10) … Guertin is the 14th ND freshman to reach 10 goals in her debut season … Guertin and Scheller have provided boosts to the offense in recent weeks while helping fill the void left by the injury to their classmate Warner (who came off the bench to score vs. Michigan and Miami) … Guertin has points in seven of the last 10 games (6G-2A) while Scheller has 4G-4A in that 10-game span (she had 2G-2A in the first 10).

VERSATILE VETERAN

Senior Monica Gonzalez has filled many roles for the Irish in recent weeks, including stints as a starter at three different positions during the last four games … Gonzalez started in the midfield at Yale and Connecticut during fall break (she turned in a solid game while playing all over the field-and all 120 minutes-at UConn) before making a start at forward vs. Michigan in the regular-season finale … she then started at left back vs. Miami and BC (most of her 13 starts have been in the D).

IMPACT PLAYER

Speedy freshman F Amy Warner has not started a game for the Irish since the Sept. 29 Seton Hall game but she made her presence felt off the bench in her first two games back in the lineup, scoring shortly after checking into the victories over Michigan (capping that 5-1 win) and Miami (for a 1-0 lead in that 3-0 game) … Warner has opened the scoring for ND in four games this season, second only to Anne Makinen (5) on the Irish squad.

BIG-GOAL SCORER

Sophomore F Ali Lovelace-whose 19 career points include 10 in the postseason (4G-2A) saved her goalscoring for when it mattered most in the ’99 season, as all four of her goals came in the postseason … Lovelace scored twice to cap the scoring in the 5-0 BIG EAST quarterfinal win over Miami before giving ND a 4-1 lead in the 4-2 win over UConn in the BIG EAST title game … Lovelace then scored one of the biggest goals in ND women’s soccer history, showing her speed to break free down the right side and place a crossing shot into the net in the 75th minute to knock off No. 1 Santa Clara in the NCAA semifinals … she had an assist on Anne Makinen’s goal that gave ND a 2-0 lead last week in the 3-0 BIG EAST quarterfinal win over Miami and likewise helped set up Makinen’s goal for a 2-0 lead in the 3-0 win over BC.

STAT LEADERS

Senior M Anne Makinen entered the week ranked 12th in the nation for assists/gm (0.72, now 0.74) … ND junior Liz Wagner stands alone atop the nation’s GAA list at 0.280 ? three ND players are ranked among the BIG EAST’s top-12 scorers: Makinen (2nd, 13G-14A-40P), senior F Meotis Erikson (6th, 11G-9A-31P) and freshman F Amanda Guertin (9th, 10G-3A-23P) … ND leads the BIG EAST in goals (67), GAA (0.29), shutouts (14).

INJURY REPORT

ND freshman F Amy Warner (Albuquerque, N.M.) missed seven games with a leg injury before playing the final 20 minutes in the regular-season finale (she capped the scoring in that 5-1 win) and playing a key role off the bench vs. Miami (she opened the scoring in that 3-0 game) and UConn … senior central D and captain Kelly Lindsey was injured late in the first half at Villanova on Oct. 8 and missed six games before retuning to play the 2nd half vs. BC in the BIG EAST semi’s … the Irish have developed significant D depth in recent weeks, with four players-Lindsey and fellow senior Kerri Bakker, plus sophomores Vanessa Pruzinsky and Nancy Mikacenic-capable of playing in the central positions while Pruzinsky, junior Lindsey Jones and senior Monica Gonzalez have seen significant time on the flanks … Mikacenic started five games at Lindsey’s spot while Gonzalez started at left back vs. Miami and BC, with Pruzinsky playing centrally.