Oct. 28, 2011
#25 WEST VIRGINIA (9-6-1, 5-3-0)
vs.
#14 NOTRE DAME (8-3-4, 4-2-1)
Saturday, Oct. 29 – Noon (ET)
Alumni Stadium – Notre Dame, Ind.
Notre Dame Leads Series 8-6-1
LIVE VIDEO BROADCAST:
– UND.com (Free)
LIVE STATS:
– Gametracker on UND.com
UPDATES:
– Irish Alert! text messaging (sign up on UND.com)
SETON HALL (4-10-2, 0-7-0)
vs.
#14 NOTRE DAME (8-3-4, 4-2-1)
Monday, Oct. 31 – Noon (ET)
Alumni Stadium – Notre Dame, Ind.
Notre Dame Leads Series 12-4-3
LIVE VIDEO BROADCAST:
– UND.com (Free)
LIVE STATS:
– Gametracker on UND.com
UPDATES:
– Irish Alert! text messaging (sign up on UND.com)
SETTING THE STAGE
– Notre Dame (8-3-4, 4-2-1) returns home following a four-game road swing to close out the regular season with two key BIG EAST Blue Division matches. The Irish will play host to West Virginia on Saturday and Seton Hall on Monday. Both contests are scheduled to kickoff at noon (ET) at Alumni Stadium. Admission to both games is free for all fans. – The Seton Hall match is a make-up from the Oct. 19 contest that was postponed due to weather. – The Fighting Irish will bring a three-game win streak into the West Virginia match. Notre Dame currently is in fifth place in the BIG EAST Blue Division, while West Virginia is fourth and Seton Hall is eighth. The Irish have already clinched a berth in the BIG EAST Tournament. – A free live video broadcast of both games will be available on UND.com. Live stats via Gametracker also will be available on UND.com.
FUTBOL BEFORE FOOTBALL
– Fans coming to campus for Saturday’s Notre Dame-Navy football game (3:30 p.m. ET) are encouraged to attend the Notre Dame-West Virginia soccer tilt at noon. No ticket or admission of any kind is needed to see the Fighting Irish take on the Mountaineers.
IRISH ITEMS
– Notre Dame won the final three matches of its four-game road trek. The Irish are coming off a 2-1 win at Providence on Wednesday. The Fighting Irish have outscored their opponents 8-2 during the current three-game win streak. – Brendan King and Harrison Shipp netted goals in the Providence match. Shipp, a sophomore forward, has scored three goals in the past two contests. Shipp and junior forward Ryan Finley share the team lead in goals (5) and points (12). Senior midfielder Adam Mena and junior midfielder Dillon Powers both have a team-high four assists. – The Fighting Irish are averaging 1.53 goals per game, while they are allowing 0.87 per contest. Notre Dame has posted five shutouts this season, while the Irish have been held without a goal three times. – Senior Will Walsh has played every minute in goal this season. He has five shutouts and boasts a 0.80 goals-against average to go along with a .812 save percentage. He has nine clean sheets in 22 career starts.
WEST VIRGINIA SERIES HISTORY
– Saturday will be the 16th meeting all-time between Notre Dame and West Virginia. The Irish lead the series, 8-6-1. The Mountaineers have won the past two matches against the Irish, including a 2-1 decision last season in Morgantown, W. Va. – The last eight showdowns between Notre Dame and West Virginia have been decided by one goal or have ended in a tie. The Irish are 3-4-1 in those contests. – West Virginia is 1-5-1 all-time at Notre Dame. The Mountaineers lone win at Notre Dame was a 1-0 decision during the 2009 campaign. – Notre Dame head coach Bobby Clark is 4-4-1 all-time against West Virginia.
A LOOK AT THE MOUNTAINEERS
– West Virginia will bring a 9-6-1 record into Saturday’s match against the Irish. The Mountaineers are fourth in the BIG EAST Blue Division with a 5-3-0 league mark. West Virginia is 3-4-1 in true road games this season. – The Mountaineers are averaging 1.38 goals per game, while allowing 1.00 per contest. Freshman forward Andy Bevin has a team-high seven goals, while junior midfielder Shadow Sebele leads the Mountaineers in assists (7) and points (19). Junior Justin Holmes has a 6-4-1 record in goal. He has a 0.89 goals-against average and five shutouts. – Last season, West Virginia went 11-8-2, which included a 5-4-0 BIG EAST record. The Mountaineers fell to Akron, 3-2, in the second round of the 2010 NCAA Tournament. – Head coach Marlon LeBlanc is in his sixth season at the helm of the Mountaineer program.
SETON HALL SERIES HISTORY
– Monday will mark the 20th meeting all-time between Notre Dame and Seton Hall. The Fighting Irish hold a 12-4-3 advantage in the series. Notre Dame produced a 3-1 victory at Seton Hall last season. – The Irish have won the last two encounters with the Pirates and Notre Dame is 7-0-2 in the last nine meetings with Seton Hall. The last Pirate victory over the Irish was a 1-0 overtime decision during the 2001 season. – Seton Hall is 1-6-1 all-time at Notre Dame. The last meeting at Notre Dame occurred in 2009 and the Irish posted a 2-1 win in that match. Seton Hall’s lone win at Notre Dame was a 1-0 victory in 2000. – Notre Dame head coach Bobby Clark is 9-1-2 all-time against Seton Hall.
A LOOK AT THE PIRATES
– Seton Hall is 4-10-2 overall and 0-7-0 in BIG EAST play. The Pirates will play host to Connecticut on Saturday. – The Pirates are averaging 1.00 goals per game, while surrendering 2.31 per match. Sophomore forward Max Garcia has a team-high five goals, while freshman midfielder Damian Bziukiewicz has a team-best four assists. – Seton Hall has used four goalkeepers this season. Sophomore Anthony Reichwaldt has a team-high seven starts in goal, while freshman Mario DeClerico has six starts. Reichwaldt is 2-3-1 with one shutout and a 1.68 goals-against average. DeClerico is 1-5-1 with two shutouts and a 2.89 goals-against average. – The Pirates went 3-13-1 last season, including a 1-8-0 mark in BIG EAST play. – Head coach Manfred Schellscheidt is in his 24th season at the helm of the Seton Hall program.
ANOTHER HAPPY HALLOWEEN?
– Monday’s match versus Seton Hall will mark the third straight season that Notre Dame has played on Halloween. The Irish are 2-0 in the past two Oct. 31 contests. Last season, the Fighting Irish topped Georgetown, 3-0, on Halloween. In 2009, Notre Dame bested Connecticut, 2-1 in overtime, on Halloween.
ROAD WARRIORS
– The Fighting Irish went 3-1 during their recent four-game road swing. It was the first time Notre Dame played four consecutive true road matches since the 2005 season. – Notre Dame is 4-2-0 in true road games this season.
OFFENSIVE AWAKENING
– The Fighting Irish have scored eight goals in the past three matches. That is the highest goal total for Notre Dame over a three-game stretch this season. – Sophomore forward Harrison Shipp has scored three goals in the past two matches.
ACCOLADES FOR SHIPP
– Sophomore forward Harrison Shipp earned national, regional and conference honors for his career-high two-goal effort in Saturday’s 3-1 win at Pittsburgh. Shipp was named to the TopDrawerSoccer.com Team of the Week and to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll. In addition to those two honors, Shipp was selected as the Chicagoland Soccer News Men’s College Player of the Week.
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS
– All but three Irish matches this season have been decided by one goal or have ended in a tie. Eight of Notre Dame’s 15 games this season have been decided by one goal. The Fighting Irish are 5-3 in those contests.
WORKING OVERTIME
– Notre Dame has played seven overtime games this season. The Irish are 1-2-4 in those matches. – Two of Notre Dame’s three losses have occurred in double-overtime. The Irish fell to Saint Louis (104th minute) and St. John’s (110th minute) by identical 2-1 scores.
STRONG STARTS
– Notre Dame holds a 12-2 scoring edge in the first half of play this season. – The Fighting Irish have scored the first goal in 10 of their 15 matches this season (two of their games have been scoreless draws). – The Irish have only trailed once at halftime this season (Marquette, 1-0).
SUCCESS ON THE STAT SHEET
– The Irish have a 105-70 advantage in shots on goal over their opponents this season. – The Fighting Irish have gained 28 more corner kicks (94-66) than their opponents.
HOME SWEET HOME
– Notre Dame is 11-2-5 at home over the past two seasons, including a 3-0-4 mark this season. The Irish are 7-0-1 in their last eight BIG EAST regular-season home matches. Notre Dame was 5-0-0 in league play at home last season.
BLANKING THE BEST
– Four of Notre Dame’s five shutouts this season have occurred against teams currently ranked in the Soccer America top-25 poll. The Irish blanked current No. 2 Connecticut and No. 8 Indiana in scoreless draws. Notre Dame shutout No. 20 Georgetown in a 3-0 victory and No. 22 Louisville in a 1-0 win.
IRISH DEFENSE RECOGNIZED
– Notre Dame has produced two BIG EAST Defensive Players of the Week this season. Junior central defender Grant Van De Casteele earned the honor on Sept. 19, while senior left back Greg Klazura received the accolade on Sept. 26. Klazura also was named to the Soccer America national team of the week. – Central defender Aaron Maund was named to the Top Drawer Soccer national team of the week on Sept. 26, while senior goalkeeper Will Walsh has been selected to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll twice this season (Aug. 29 & Sept. 26).
GUARDING THE GOAL
– Notre Dame has allowed just 32 goals over the past two seasons, a span of 35 matches. The Fighting Irish allowed just 19 goals all of last season and they have given up 13 so far this season. – The Irish have not surrendered more than two goals in a single match since a 3-1 loss at Northwestern in the second round of the 2009 NCAA Tournament.
SPREADING THE WEALTH
– Notre Dame’s 23 goals this season have come from 10 different players. Junior forward Ryan Finley and sophomore forward Harrison Shipp share the team lead with five goals apiece, while senior midfielder Adam Mena and junior forward Danny O’Leary both have three goals. Six Irish players have one goal apiece.
NOTRE DAME IN BIG EAST PLAY
– Notre Dame owns an overall record of 101-57-19 (.624) in BIG EAST regular-season play since joining the conference in 1995. The Irish have posted 10 straight winning campaigns within the league, including last season’s 6-2-1 mark. – The most wins for Notre Dame in BIG EAST play is eight, which occurred in 2004 (8-1-1), 2006 (8-3) and 2009 (8-3). – The Irish have three regular-season BIG EAST titles. Notre Dame won the championship outright in 2004 and 2008 (Blue Division) and shared the Blue Division trophy with Connecticut in 2007. The Fighting Irish captured BIG EAST tournament crowns in 1996 and 2003.
KLAZURA A LOWE’S SENIOR CLASS AWARD FINALIST
– Greg Klazura has been named one of 10 finalists up for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award in the men’s soccer division. – To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – community, classroom, character and competition. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. – Klazura graduated in May with a Bachelor of Science degree in pre-professional studies (pre-med). He finished his undergraduate career with a 3.583 cumulative grade-point average. He currently is taking courses that emphasize service and or medicine to boost his resume for medical school. Klazura was named to the 2010 National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Scholar All-Region first team. He also is a two-time BIG EAST Academic All-Star (2009 & 2010).
IRISH HAVE A MAINSTAY IN MAUND
– Senior defender Aaron Maund has started all 74 matches in which he has played during his Notre Dame career. The only five games he has missed was during his sophomore campaign in 2009 when he was with the United States Under-20 National Team at the U-20 World Cup in Egypt. He has started all 48 matches with the Irish since returning from the international competition. He played every possible minute on the pitch during the 2008 and 2010 campaigns and he has not left a match this season.
CLARK MOVES TO TOP OF PROGRAM WINS LIST
– Notre Dame’s 2-1 victory over Bucknell on Sept. 11 gave Irish head coach Bobby Clark the most wins in program history. Clark, who is in his 11th season on the Notre Dame sidelines, has a 135-62-34 (.658) record with the Irish. He moved past Rich Hunter, who was Notre Dame’s first varsity head coach from 1977-83.
SUSTAINED SUCCESS
– Since Bobby Clark took over the reins of the Notre Dame program in 2001, the Irish have won at least 10 matches during all 10 seasons of the Clark era. The Fighting Irish have qualified for the NCAA Tournament in each of the past 10 seasons. That streak ranks in a tie for fifth nationally. – Notre Dame is the only team in the BIG EAST to finish in the top two of either division standings in each of the past four seasons. The Fighting Irish also are the only BIG EAST squad to qualify for the semifinals in each of the past four league tournaments.