Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Official Athletics Website

Women's Soccer Wraps up Regular Season With Win

November 1, 1998

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Sophomore All-American midfielder Anne Makinen scored her third career hat trick, and junior forward Jenny Heft added a goal to tie the Notre Dame single-season goal record as the fifth-ranked Irish women’s soccer team closed out the regular season with a 7-0 BIG EAST win over Syracuse on Sunday at Alumni Field. With the win, Notre Dame earns the No. 2 seed into the eight-team BIG EAST women’s soccer tournament and will play host to West Virginia in a quarterfinal game on Tues., Nov. 3, at 7:30 p.m. at Alumni Field. The Irish improve to 16-2-1 and 9-1-1 in the BIG EAST, while Syracuse falls to 12-5-1 and 7-3-1.

Notre Dame entered the game in second place in the BIG EAST standings, and Syracuse was in third, with the winner earning the No. 2 seed into the BIG EAST tournament. The Irish outshot the Orangewomen 23-5 in the game and scored on five of its first 14 shots to build a 5-0 lead. Notre Dame added two goals in the second half.

Senior forward Monica Gerardo scored what would be the game-winning goal at 3:56 when she headed in a cross from Anne Makinen for her Notre Dame record 66th-career goal. Gerardo then set up Notre Dame’s second goal at 15:35 when she served a cross to sophomore forward Meotis Erikson that ricocheted off a Syracuse defender and into the net.

The Irish scored three goals in a 10-minute span to take a 5-0 lead into halftime. Makinen scored her first goal with a free kick from 30 yards out into the top left corner of the net at 27:55. Erikson then connected with a blast from just beyond the box into the upper center of the net at 34:27. Makinen scored on a header from a corner kick by junior defender Jen Grubb at 37:03.

Notre Dame freshman goalkeeper Elizabeth Wagner started in goal in the second half in replace of junior All-American LaKeysia Beene and quickly sparked the Irish. She served a ball played back to her to Gerardo on the left side of midfield who then lofted a pass to Makinen on the right sideline. Makinen sped down the sideline, went to the goal as she turned the corner and fired a shot into the upper left corner of the net just 40 seconds into the second half for a 6-0 lead.

Heft tied Cindy Daws’ 1996 record for the most Notre Dame single-season goals with her 26th of the year at 87:08. She volleyed in a cross from Kara Brown into an open net with the goalkeeper off her line attempting to intercept the cross. The goal extended Heft streak to seven straight games with at least one goal, just two games behind the Notre Dame record of nine consecutive games with a goal set by Amy VanLaecke in 1995 and Erikson in 1997.