Oct. 23, 2012
#3 MARQUETTE
vs.
#7 NOTRE DAME
Wednesday, Oct. 24 – 7 p.m. (ET)
Alumni Stadium – Notre Dame, Ind.
Saturday, Oct. 27 – 7:05 p.m. (CT)
Valley Fields – Milwaukee, Wis.
Notre Dame leads series 13-6-1
UND.com Game of the Week Primer
WEDNESDAY
INTERNET: UND.com Game of the Week (free video broadcast)
LIVE STATS:
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SATURDAY
INTERNET: MarquetteRadio.org (free live audio)
LIVE STATS:
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#7 IRISH TO CONCLUDE REGULAR SEASON WITH TWO MATCHES AGAINST #3 MARQUETTE
– No. 7 Notre Dame (12-3-0, 4-2-0) will conclude the regular season this week with a home-and-home series against No. 3 Marquette (14-1-0, 5-1-0). The Fighting Irish will play host to the Golden Eagles at 7 p.m. (ET) Wednesday at Alumni Stadium. Notre Dame will travel to Milwaukee to face Marquette on Saturday at Valley Fields. That match is slated for 7:05 p.m. (CT).
– Both contests will have major implications in the race for the BIG EAST Blue Division title. Marquette currently is tied with Connecticut for first place (15 points), while Notre Dame and Georgetown are right behind in a tie for third place (12 points).
UND.COM GAME OF THE WEEK
– Wednesday’s match is the UND.com Game of the Week. The web site will feature a free streaming broadcast and live stats.
– Pre-game coverage begins at 6:50 p.m. (ET) and fans should stay tuned at halftime for a special feature on head coach Bobby Clark, who recently notched his 300th career victory.
HOME SWEET HOME
– Saturday’s 3-0 win over Providence improved Notre Dame’s home record to 7-0 this season.
FIGHTING IRISH VS. THE GOLDEN EAGLES
– Notre Dame owns a 13-6-1 advantage in its series with Marquette. The Golden Eagles won last season’s encounter, 1-0, in Milwaukee. That snapped Notre Dame’s seven-game win streak in the series.
– The Irish are 8-1-1 all-time at home against the Golden Eagles and the Fighting Irish are 5-5-0 all-time at Marquette.
– Head coach Bobby Clark is 7-1-0 versus Marquette during his Notre Dame tenure. All eight of those meetings have occurred since the Golden Eagles joined the BIG EAST Conference in 2005.
SCOUTING MARQUETTE
– The Golden Eagles are 14-1-0 this season and 5-1-0 in BIG EAST play. The lone loss was a 2-1 setback at Georgetown.
– The Marquette offense is averaging 2.27 goals per game, while the defense has a 0.60 goals-against average.
– Senior forward Andy Huftalin has team-high totals in goals (9) and points (21), while junior midfielder Bryan Ciesiulka has a team-best seven assists. Sophomore goalkeeper Charlie Lyon has played every minute in goal and boasts a .857 save percentage with nine shutouts.
– The Golden Eagles went 9-8-2 last season and won the BIG EAST Blue Division with a 7-2-0 league mark.
– Head coach Louis Bennett is in his seventh season at Marquette.
IRISH FOURTH IN RPI
– Notre Dame is fourth in this week’s RPI rankings. Six Fighting Irish opponents appear in the top 11 of the RPI. Those squads are Connecticut (2), Akron (3), Georgetown (6), Indiana (7), Louisville (8) and Marquette (11).
– Seven BIG EAST squads are in the top 25 of the RPI, including four Blue Division teams in the top 11 (Connecticut, Notre Dame, Georgetown, Marquette).
– Maryland is No. 1 in the RPI.
HAT TRICKS
– Senior forward Ryan Finley notched a hat trick in Saturday’s 3-0 win over Providence. All three goals came in a span of 9:13 in the second half. It was the fourth career hat trick for Finley and his first since joining the Irish last season after transferring from Duke.
– It was the second straight game that an Irish player produced a hat trick. Junior forward Harrison Shipp tallied three goals in the 6-1 victory at Seton Hall.
IRISH ACCOLADES
– Ryan Finley (Sr./F) and Max Lachowecki (So./D) were named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll for their role in Saturday’s 3-0 win over Providence.
– Finley had a hat trick against the Friars. He also was named to the College Soccer News National Team of the Week for the third time this season.
– Lachowecki assisted on Finley’s first goal against Providence. He and the Irish defense also limited the Friars to just two shots on goal en route to posting their seventh shutout of the season.
FINLEY HAS FIREPOWER
– Senior forward Ryan Finley has tallied 18 points in the last five matches. He has three multiple-goal games during that stretch.
– Finley netted two goals in both the Pittsburgh and Georgetown contests and recorded a hat trick versus Providence. He has 12 career multiple-goal games, including four hat tricks.
– Finley ranks third nationally in total goals (14) and is fourth in total points (31). The 14 goals are the most for an Irish player in a single season since Joseph Lapira had 22 in 2006
OFFENSIVE OUTBURST
– Notre Dame has combined for 19 goals in its last four BIG EAST games.
– Notre Dame has scored three or more goals six times this season, including four times in the last five games. The Irish are averaging 3.5 goals per game in BIG EAST play.
– The Fighting Irish lead all BIG EAST teams with a 2.4 goals-per-game average (all games). That mark ranks sixth nationally.
– Notre Dame’s seven-goal output against Pittsburgh was the largest for the Irish since a 7-1 win over Western Michigan on Oct. 14, 1997. The seven goals were the most scored by the Irish against a BIG EAST opponent.
– The 10 combined goals versus Pittsburgh and Georgetown are the most ever for the Fighting Irish in consecutive BIG EAST games. It was the first time the Irish combined for 10 goals in two games since 1995.
GETTING GOALS
– The Irish have not been shutout this season. It is the first time since the 1987 campaign that Notre Dame has not been blanked in the first 15 matches of a season.
– This is just the third time in the 36-year history of the Notre Dame program that the Irish have not been shutout in the first 15 contests of a season.
– Notre Dame is 11-0 this season when scoring first.
– Nine different Fighting Irish players have scored at least one goal this season.
SECOND HALF SUCCESS
– Notre Dame has outscored its opponents 25-3 in the second half and overtime this season.
OWNING THE STAT SHEET
– The Fighting Irish have outshot their competition 287-151 this season, which includes a 123-45 advantage in shots on goal. The Irish also have earned 30 more corner kicks (92-62) than their opponents.
TAKING DOWN TOP-10 FOES
– Marquette will be the fifth top-10 team that Notre Dame has faced this season. The Fighting Irish are 3-1 against top-10 competition this season. The wins have come against No. 3 Georgetown (3-0), No. 4 Akron (3-1) and No. 10 Indiana (1-0). The Irish fell at No. 2 Connecticut (2-1).
WINNING WAYS
– This season’s 12 wins are the most for the Irish since the 2008 campaign when Notre Dame finished 12-7-2.
– Notre Dame has reached the 12-win mark in nine of head coach Bobby Clark’s 12 seasons with the Irish. The most wins for the Irish under Clark are 16 in 2003 (16-3-4).
Bobby Clark NOTCHES 300TH CAREER WIN
– Notre Dame’s 6-1 win at Seton Hall on Oct. 13 was the 300th career victory for Bobby Clark as a college head coach. Clark, who is in his 12th season with the Irish, has a 148-67-34 record at Notre Dame. He was 71-21-12 at Stanford (1996-2001) and 82-42-13 at Dartmouth (1985-93).
– Clark is the 14th active Division I men’s soccer head coach to reach the 300-win milestone.
POWERS PERFORMING
– Senior midfielder Dillon Powers has a team-high six assists this season. His 14 points are tied for second on the team, while his four goals are tied for third among all Irish players.
ROOKIE ON THE RISE
– Freshman midfielder Patrick Hodan has 11 points on four goals and three assists this season. It’s the most goals and points for an Irish freshman since Kevin Goldthwaite tallied four goals and 13 points as a rookie in 2001.
– Hodan was named the BIG EAST Rookie of the Week on Oct. 15 after he tallied five points on two goals and one assist in two matches.
– He has played in every match this season, including one start.
KEEPING IT CLEAN
– Notre Dame has posted seven shutouts this season. The Irish are allowing just 0.80 goals per game, which ranks 24th nationally.
– Fifth-year senior Will Walsh and junior Patrick Wall have split time in goal. Walsh has a 6-2 record with four shutouts, a 0.88 goals-against average and a .696 save percentage. Wall is 6-1 with three shutouts, a 0.71 goals-against average and a .773 save percentage.
IRONMEN
– Senior midfielder Dillon Powers has played in a team-best 66 straight games, including 53 consecutive starts. The only five games he has missed during his Fighting Irish career were during his freshman season when he played for the U.S. at the Under-20 World Cup in Egypt.
– Senior central defender Grant Van De Casteele has started 53 straight matches. He did not play during the 2009 campaign, but has not missed a game since.
– Junior forward Harrison Shipp has appeared in all 53 matches during his Irish career.
NOTRE DAME IN BIG EAST PLAY
– Notre Dame owns an overall record of 106-60-19 (.624) in BIG EAST regular-season play since joining the conference in 1995. The Irish have posted 11 straight winning campaigns within the league, including last season’s 5-3-1 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.
POWERS A SENIOR CLASS AWARD FINALIST
– Midfielder Dillon Powers has been named a finalist for the Senior CLASS Award in the men’s soccer division. The Fighting Irish standout is among 10 student-athletes up for the prestigious honor.
– 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 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.
– The finalists were chosen by a media committee from the list of 30 candidates that were announced in September. Nationwide fan voting begins immediately to help select the winner. Fans are encouraged to vote on the Senior CLASS Award website through November 19 (once daily per computer). Fan votes will be combined with media and Division I head coaches’ votes to determine the winner.
– The Senior CLASS Award winner will be announced during the 2012 NCAA Men’s College Cup, which will take place December 7 and 9 in Hoover, Ala.
CLOSE CALLS
– Each of Notre Dame’s three losses this season have been one-goal decisions. The Fighting Irish are 6-3 in one-goal contests this season.
DEJA VU
– Prior to the double-overtime victory at Michigan, Notre Dame’s last overtime triumph was a 2-1 decision over Michigan last season at Alumni Stadium. Both games took place on Sept. 16.
HAULING IN THE HARDWARE
– Notre Dame has played in both the Indiana Classic and the Mike Berticelli Memorial Tournament in each of the last 10 seasons and this year marks the first time the Irish have won both events in the same season. It was Notre Dame’s fifth Berticelli tournament title (11 appearances). The Irish also won in 2003, 2005, 2008 and 2010. It was the second time in 13 appearances that Notre Dame won the IU Classic. The Irish also captured the 1993 tournament.
SHIPP SIBLINGS
– Freshman midfielder/defender Michael Shipp has joined his older brother, Harrison, this season on the Irish roster. Harrison is a junior forward.
CAPTAINS
– Midfielders Dillon Powers and Michael Rose will serve as Notre Dame team captains during the 2012 campaign. Powers, a senior, will be serving as captain for the second straight season, while Rose, a fifth-year senior, is a first-time captain.
FOLLOW THE IRISH ON UND.COM
– All 2012 Notre Dame home matches that are not televised can be seen live on UND.com. The streaming broadcasts are free of charge. Log on to UND.com to stay up to date on the Fighting Irish men’s soccer team throughout the 2012 campaign.