Oct. 27, 2012
2012 BIG EAST Championship Bracket
MILWAUKEE, Wis. – Senior forward Ryan Finley netted the equalizer in the 88th minute and the No. 7 Notre Dame men’s soccer team ended tied, 1-1, with No. 3 Marquette following two overtime periods on Saturday night at Valley Fields. The match was the regular-season finale for both squads.
Notre Dame (13-3-1, 5-2-1) will be the No. 3 seed from the Blue Division for the upcoming BIG EAST Championship. The Fighting Irish will play at Syracuse, the No. 2 seed from the Red Division, on Saturday in the league quarterfinals. The match is slated for 7 p.m. (ET) in Syracuse, N.Y.
Marquette (14-2-1, 5-2-1) got on the board in the 29th minute when Axel Sjoberg deposited the rebound off an Andy Huftalin shot that was stopped by Irish goalkeeper Will Walsh, who made a career-high eight saves on the night. Walsh has a 6-2-1 record this season.
With just under three minutes remaining in regulation, Finley collected a loose ball at the top of the penalty box and deposited his team-high 17th goal of the season. Finley has 11 goals in the last seven matches. He netted two goals in Wednesday’s 3-1 win over Marquette at Alumni Stadium.
“We showed a lot of character in the second half,” said Notre Dame head coach Bobby Clark. “I felt a tie was a fair result for both teams. It would have been unfortunate had we lost and it was looking like that might be the case with three minutes left. I was happy with how we got after it in the second half, but we just couldn’t get it going in overtime.”
The Fighting Irish outshot the Golden Eagles 19-18 for the match, including a 5-4 edge in overtime. Finley and junior forward Harrison Shipp both had attempts saved by Marquette goalkeeper Charlie Lyon in the early stages of overtime. Lyon had fives saves in the match. Finley had a game-high six shots, including four on goal.
Tonight was Notre Dame’s second overtime match of the season. The Irish defeated Michigan, 1-0, in double-overtime on Sept. 16.
Saturday will be the first meeting between the Fighting Irish and the Orange since the 2008 season. The Irish won that contest 3-0 at Notre Dame. Notre Dame is 9-2-2 all-time versus Syracuse.
“Tonight was like a tournament game because it was two rivals going at it to try and win the league,” said Clark. “A game like this will prepare us for next week at Syracuse. It definitely won’t be an easy game because Syracuse is having a good season.”
Valley Fields – Milwaukee, Wis.
October 27, 2012
#7 Notre Dame (13-3-1, 5-2-1) 0 1 0 0 – 1
#3 Marquette (14-2-1, 5-2-1) 1 0 0 0 – 1
Scoring: MU: Axel Sjoberg (Andy Huftalin) 28:10; ND: Ryan Finley (unassisted) 87:07
Shots: ND 6-8-3-2 – 19, MU 7-7-2-2 – 18
Corner Kicks: ND 2-4-1-1 – 8, MU 1-4-2-2 – 9
Goalkeepers: ND: Will Walsh – 8 SV, 1 GA, 110:00, T
MU: Charlie Lyon – 5 SV, 1 GA, 110:00, T
Fouls: ND 13, MU 16
Offsides: ND 1, MU 0
–ND–