May 4, 2011
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The Notre Dame men’s soccer team recently concluded a 10-match spring season. The Fighting Irish posted a 4-4-2 record against a challenging schedule.
Junior midfielder Brendan King led the Fighting Irish in scoring with five goals, which included a four-goal effort in a 5-1 win over Oakland (Mich.). Danny O’Leary, a sophomore midfielder, netted three goals during the exhibition campaign.
The spring slate began on March 15 with a 3-1 home win over Western Michigan. Left back Greg Klazura, who will be entering his fifth season with the Irish in the fall, deposited two goals in the contest. Michael Knapp, a junior defender, also scored against the Broncos.
Notre Dame fell to the Mexico Under-17 national team, 2-1, on March 17. Junior Michael Rose put the Irish up 1-0, but Mexico rallied for the victory. It marked the sixth time in the past seven years that the Irish have taken on a Mexican national team. Notre Dame is 4-1-1 in those meetings.
The Fighting Irish traveled up to Pontiac, Mich. on March 26 and had a successful afternoon by taking down Michigan (3-2) and Oakland (5-1). Freshmen Andrew O’Malley, Alex Priede and Leon Brown all notched goals against the Wolverines. In addition to King’s four tallies against Oakland, O’Leary also found the back of the net.
The Irish returned to campus for a doubleheader against Butler and Valparaiso on April 2. Following a 1-0 setback to Butler, Notre Dame topped Valparaiso 3-2. The Irish used goals from O’Leary, King and freshman forward Harrison Shipp to down the Crusaders.
Notre Dame played Cleveland State and Akron, the 2010 NCAA champion, to scoreless draws. The Irish dropped a 1-0 decision to Ohio State. All three matches took place on April 10 in Xenia, Ohio.
The program held its annual awards banquet and alumni weekend on April 15-16. Several former players returned to campus and took part in the festivities. The current Notre Dame squad defeated a group of alumni from the 2003 BIG EAST championship squad, 4-1.
The spring season concluded on April 20 with a 3-2 loss to Indiana in front of 2,500 fans in Ft. Wayne, Ind. O’Leary scored both goals against the Hoosiers.
Quotes from Notre Dame head coach Bobby Clark on the 2011 spring season …
“I felt it was a very good spring. The interesting thing for us in the spring is that we play mixed teams in nearly all the games. The key is trying to find out what everyone can do. In the fall, you can’t do that because you’re trying to put out your best team.”
“We got a really good look at the freshman class. Some of them look to have excellent potential. I think that was great.”
“It’s an exciting spring because we play two or three games in one day usually. Everyone usually gets to play a full game. That lets us see what we have. We believe greatly that you lay your foundations for the fall in the spring. You start the fitness foundation and that gives them a base going into the summer program. You also get to look at people in different positions.”
“We had to play a good bit of the spring without (starting sophomore midfielder) Dillon Powers because he was injured initially and then he was off with the U.S. Under-20 team in Guatemala. It’s good to have to play without one of your top-line players.”
“We also had to play the whole spring without (starting sophomore central defender) Grant Van De Casteele because he had surgery on his knee. That forced some of the younger guys to play. I felt it really gave Andrew O’Malley a good opportunity to see a lot of minutes and I think he played well during the spring. Two other freshmen that grew tremendously were Leon Brown and Alex Priede. It was also fun to see freshman Luke Mishu, who broke his leg last spring during his senior season of high school, to get close to full fitness. He did very well. It was also fun to see our two young goalkeepers, Pat Wall and Adam LaPlaca, play well. We have a really good freshman group.”
“We have good depth with this squad. Combine them with the incoming group of freshmen and we should be in pretty good shape in the fall.”
“We also enjoyed a nice alumni weekend. I felt the game against the 2003 team was one of our better alumni games.”
Notre Dame Men's Soccer 2011 Spring Season ResultsOpponent Result (Notre Dame goal scorers)Western Michigan W, 3-1 (Knapp, Klazura, Klazura)Mexico U-17 National Team L, 1-2 (Rose)Michigan W, 3-2 (O'Malley, Priede, Brown)Oakland (Mich.) W, 5-1 (King, King, King, King, O'Leary)Butler L, 0-1Valparaiso W, 3-2 (Shipp, King, O'Leary)Cleveland State T, 0-0Akron T, 0-0Ohio State L, 0-1Indiana* L, 2-3 (O'Leary, O'Leary)
* - match was played in front of 2,500 fans at Fort Wayne's (Ind.) Parkview Field, which is home to the Ft. Wayne TinCaps baseball team
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