SOUTH BEND, Ind. — #25 Notre Dame opened it’s 2021 campaign on Friday night inside Purcell Pavilion and dropped a 3-0 decision (15-25, 22-25, 23-25) to #15 Western Kentucky to open the Golden Dome Invitational.
“Credit to Western Kentucky as they did a number of things well,” said Irish head coach Mike Johnson. “For us though, it’s always about our side. If we can meet standards with great consistency we will be successful. Tomorrow morning will come fast. Back on the horse and back at it.”
Sophomore Aubrey Hamilton paced the Irish with seven kills while Lauren Tarnoff added six kills and a .455 hitting percentage in her Notre Dame debut. Lindsey Miller also recorded five kills to go with a team-high five blocks. Zoe Nunez collected 23 assists in the three sets while Hattie Monson led Notre Dame with six digs.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
A 9-1 Hilltoppers run gave the visitors control of the opening set en route to a 25-15 decision in the first frame.
Second Set
A back-and-forth second set featured 10 ties between the Irish and Hilltoppers. After the visitors earned a 13-10 advantage, the Irish rattled off four of the next five points to even the stanza at 14-all. Western Kentucky took a 21-18 lead before a block by Tarnoff and Caroline Meuth pulled the Irish back within one at 21-20. Notre Dame also got within one at 22-21, but the Hilltoppers held on to take the set, 25-22.
Third Set
An Irish 4-0 run, which included a block and kill by Miller, evened the third stanza at 12-12 before the Hilltoppers went on a 4-1 stretch to go up 16-13. The Irish eventually responded with a 4-1 streak of their own, including an ace by Hamilton, to make things square at 23-23. However, the visitors earned the next two points to take the third set 25-23.
UP NEXT
- #25 Notre Dame continues the Golden Dome Invitational with a pair of matches on Saturday (Aug. 28)
- The Irish take on Oakland at 11 a.m. ET before wrapping up the tournament against Loyola Chicago at 7 p.m. ET.
- Both matches will be streamed live via ACC Network Extra.
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