SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The ACC regular-season finale for the No. 11 Notre Dame women’s soccer team was oh so sweet. The Fighting Irish (11-2-4, 7-1-2) not only knocked off a top-10 opponent in the No. 8 Clemson Tigers (13-2-3, 7-2-1), but also secured the No. 2 seed in the ACC Tournament.
With only the top-six teams making the ACC Tourney, that means the Irish head straight to the semifinal round on November 2 in Cary, North Carolina. They’ll await the winner of Clemson vs. Wake Forest.
Leah Klenke put an exclamation point on her regular season with her ACC best 10th assist tonight, on Maddie Mercado’s game-winner in the 13th minute. Mercado scored via header from a Klenke cross from the left side, marking her team best seventh goal of the season.
Heading straight to the ACC Tournament Semifinals!! #GoIrish ☘️ pic.twitter.com/C614JH3RWN
— ND Women's Soccer (@NDSoccer) October 27, 2023
The Irish, who have found much success scoring off corners this season, secured yet another set-piece goal in the 51st minute as Morgan Roy found Sophia Fisher’s head in the middle of the box. It marked Fisher’s second goal on the 2023 season and Roy’s fourth assist. Important to note, Fisher started in the backline yet again and went the full-90.
Speaking of the Irish defense, freshman keeper Atlee Olofson earned her fourth shutout on the year. She only needed to make two saves on the evening.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The first-half stats might show just two Notre Dame shots on goal compared to Clemson’s one, but the Irish dictated the possession for most of the half and practically lived in the Tiger’s side of the field.
The Irish did take a 1-0 lead into the half, with the goal arriving in the 13th minute. ACC assist leader Leah Klenke crossed the ball to Maddie Mercado around the top-middle of the six and the graduate’s header tucked it neatly to the near post. Mercado then did her signature sprint to the bench to celebrate with a raucous bench.
The second Notre Dame goal occurred in the 51st minute off of a Morgan Roy corner kick. It marked the seventh corner kick goal the Irish have scored this season. The goal scorer, none other than starting defender Sophia Fisher, her second on the year.
The Irish could have made it a 3-0 victory in the 83rd minute when Ellie Ospeck was taken out in the box by the Clemson goalie. The result was a penalty kick taken by Kiki Van Zanten, but Halle Mackiewicz came up big with the save.
The Irish press was relentless and they cruised to the 2-0 victory, earning seven ACC victories for the second year in a row. Also keep in mind, this is a Clemson Tigers squad that had only surrendered eight goals heading into tonight’s ACC regular-season finale, before giving up two to the Irish.
UP NEXT
The Irish know the date and time for their ACC Tournament semifinal, but not the opponent. Notre Dame will play on Thursday, Nov. 2 at 5:30 p.m. ET inside WakeMed Soccer Park. They’ll face the winner of Clemson/Wake Forest, who play on Sunday.
– ND –