Sept. 22, 2012
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The No. 2 Notre Dame men’s soccer team suffered a 2-1 setback to Louisville in the BIG EAST opener on Saturday night at Cardinal Park. The loss was the first of the season for the Fighting Irish, who now are 7-1 on the campaign.
Louisville (5-3-0, 1-0-0) grabbed a 1-0 lead in the 34th minute as Dylan Mares headed home a goal from six yards away. The tally snapped Notre Dame’s scoreless streak which had reached 268:06 in length.
The Cardinals led 1-0 at halftime, yet the Irish controlled the stat sheet in the stanza. Notre Dame outshot Louisville 8-6 in the first half and had the period’s only three corner kicks.
“Tonight was a disappointing loss, but we also had some positive things happen for us,” stated Notre Dame head coach Bobby Clark. “We played very well in the second half and it appeared that we were the team that was going to win it.”
Senior forward Ryan Finley produced the equalizer for the Irish in the 63rd minute when he deposited a penalty kick. It was his team-leading sixth goal of the season.
Louisville was granted a penalty kick of its own in the 76th minute and Andrew Farrell delivered the game winner for the Cardinals.
“We had a lapse in concentration on their first goal and then got overanxious and committed a penalty that led to their second goal,” commented Clark. “Both penalty kicks tonight were deserved.”
The Fighting Irish had a 17-11 advantage in shots for the match. Louisville had six corner kicks, while Notre Dame had five. Senior goalkeeper Will Walsh made two saves for the Irish and Mike Mauro also had two stops for the Cardinals.
Notre Dame will return to action Wednesday at No. 14 Indiana. The non-conference clash is slated for 7 p.m. (ET) at Bill Armstrong Stadium.
“Hopefully we learned something tonight about playing in a tough environment, especially since we go to IU on Wednesday and Connecticut on Saturday,” added Clark.
Cardinal Park – Louisville, Ky.
September 22, 2012
#2 Notre Dame (7-1-0, 0-1-0) 0 1 – 1
Louisville (5-3-0, 1-0-0) 1 1 – 2
Scoring: UL: Dylan Mares (unassisted) 33:10; ND: Ryan Finley (penalty kick) 62:33; UL: Andrew Farrell (penalty kick) 75:22
Shots: ND 8-9 – 17, UL 6-5 – 11
Corner Kicks: ND 3-2 – 5, UL 0-6 – 6
Goalkeepers: ND: Will Walsh – 2 SV, 2 GA, 90:00, L
UL: Mike Mauro – 2 SV, 1 GA, 90:00, W
Fouls: ND 11, UL 12
Offsides: ND 2, UL 2
–ND–