May 26, 2003
Notre Dame, Ind. – Freshman Patrick Walsh (Wantagh, N.Y.) has been named to the STX/United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) Honorable Mention All-America Team it was announced today. Walsh, the 2003 Great Western Lacrosse Association Rookie of the Year and a first-team all-conference selection, becomes the 13th player in the 23-year history of the Irish lacrosse program to earn All-America recognition. He also is the only Notre Dame player to cop All-America accolades as a freshman.
Walsh’s selection marks the 11th straight year Notre Dame has had a player selected for All-America honors. Since 1993, the Irish have had one or more players named to one of the All-American teams.
The rookie attack led Notre Dame in scoring with 20 goals and a team-high 32 assists as he became the first freshman since Randy Colley in 1992 to lead the Irish in scoring, Colley, who went on to become the school’s all-time leading scorer ( a mark which still stands), finished his rookie season with 32 goals and 28 assists (71 points).
Walsh’s 32 assists tied the single-season mark held by both Mike Sullivan (1990) and David Ulrich (2000). He was the only freshman to start all 14 games and registered either a goal or an assist in 13 of 14 contests. Walsh had a personal-best eight points in Notre Dame’s 16-11 victory over Harvard on April 26, scoring four goals and dishing off four assists.
Notre Dame finished the ’03 campaign with a final 9-5 mark and ended the season ranked 18th in both the Warrior/Inside Lacrosse and USILA rankings. The Irish shared the GWLL championship with Ohio State and Denver as all three teams finished completed the conference season with 4-1 league marks.