Game 11 Preview: RV/#17 UNC

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – No. 3 Notre Dame caps off its regular-season schedule with an ACC tilt against No. RV/17 North Carolina at noon ET on Saturday, May 6 at Dorrance Field. The game will be broadcast on ACCN.

GAME DETAILS
Location: Chapel Hill, North Carolina | Dorrance Field
Schedule: May 6 — Noon ET
TV: ACCN
Live Stats: UND.com
Twitter Updates: @NDlacrosse
For a more in-depth look at the matchup – Game Notes: Notre Dame

THE UNC SERIES

• Saturday will be the 23rd meeting all-time between Notre Dame and UNC.

• The Irish and Tar Heels are tied in the series with at a mark of 11-11 in the matchup.

• The matchup has been extremely competitive, as 15 of the 22 games in the series have been decided by two goals or less.

• The Irish won the game earlier in the season at Arlotta, winning by a score of 16-9 in dominant fashion on Saturday, April 22.

• Eric Dobson led Notre Dame in scoring, finishing with three goals. Pat Kavanagh added a four-point performance off a goal and three assists. In goal, Liam Entenmann was masterful, making 16 saves.

• The Irish have won three of the last four meetings between the two sides, with the last two matchups being seven-goal wins for ND.

PAT KAVANAGH: TEWAARATON HOPEFUL

• Pat Kavanagh enters the weekend fourth in the country in points per game (5.27 despite facing some of the best defenders in the country week in and week out.

• The senior has 58 points on the season off 19 goals and 39 assists.

• Kavanagh’s average of 3.55 assists per game ranks first in the country.

• The attackman also ranks second on the team in ground balls (30), trailing only Irish FOGO Will Lynch. He is also fifth on the team in caused turnovers with eight.

• Kavanagh has had a pair of monster performances against teams currently ranked in the national polls, tying his own ND record for points in a game with 10 (4G, 6A) against Michigan and posting eight (3G, 5A) in the win over then No. 1 Duke.

• The senior also has delivered in some of the biggest moments, scoring the game winner against No. 4 Maryland in triple OT to snap the Terrapins’ 22-game home win streak.

• Kavanagh is currently playing his best lacrosse of the season, as he has posted 34 points over his last six games, coming against some of the top teams in the country.

BEATING THE BEST

• The matchup against No. 17 UNC will be Notre Dame’s ninth game this season against a team ranked in the top 20 in the InsideLacrosse poll at the time of the game.

• Notre Dame has recorded wins over then No. 15 Georgetown, No. 4 Maryland, No. 10 Ohio State, No. 20 Michigan, No. 1 Duke and No. 15 UNC.

• The Irish have a record of 44-39 against top 10 teams since the start of the 2010 season, including a record of 3-2 this season.

STRONG STARTS

• The Irish have wasted no time jumping on opponents early in games this season, outscoring the opposition by a combined score of 48-25 in first quarters.

• Notre Dame has scored on its first possession in seven of its 11 games this season

• Eric Dobson has scored Notre Dame’s opening goal in five games this season.

• Chris Kavanagh and Eric Dobson have thrived in first quarters,  as each has scored nine goals on the season in the opening 15 minutes of play.

DOMINATING DEFENSE

• The Irish enter the weekend allowing just 9.91 goals per game, leading the ACC and ranking sixth in the country.

• Notre Dame leads the ACC and ranks sixth in the country in caused turnovers per game this season, averaging 10.27.

• The Irish have recorded at least 10 caused turnovers in eight of 11 games this season.

• ND recorded a season-high 14 caused turnovers in the win over No. 10/9 Ohio State.

ENTENMANN IS ELITE

• Senior Liam Entenmann has cemented his status as one of the top goalies in the country with his play in 2023.

• Entenmann leads the ACC and ranks seventh in the country in goals against average, allowing just 9.62 goals per game.

• The senior has a save percentage of .562 (131 saves, 103 goals allowed), ranking fifth in the country.

• Entnemann has made double-digit saves in each of the last nine games, including a season-high 16 in the win over No. 1 Duke.

• Entenmann currently ranks seventh on the ND all-time saves list with 485 in his career and is 12 saves shy of Shane Doss who is in sixth (497).

• He has been named the ACC Defensive Player of the Week three times this season following his performances in wins over No. 4 Maryland, No. 10/9 Ohio State and No. 15/14 UNC.

SHARING IS CARING

• Notre Dame’s ball movement has been dizzying at times this season, as the Irish have dished out 95 assists this season.

• ND ranks ninth in the country in assists per game, averaging 8.64.

• Pat Kavanagh leads the Irish in assists per game (3.55) and ranks first in the nation.

• Fifteen different players have recorded at least one assist this season.

• Pat Kavanagh is the program’s all-time career assist leader, tallying 122 in his career.

ATTACKING MIDFIELD DEPTH

• Despite the Kavanagh brothers earning much of the national headlines, the Irish midfield units have been very productive in 2023.

• The starting midfield trio of Eric Dobson, Quinn McCahon and Reilly Gray have combined for 49 goals in 2023.

• Dobson leads the group with 24 goals, while Gray has 13 and McCahon has added 12.

• The second midfield has combined for 25 goals, as Jack Simmons has scored 10 while Brian Tevlin has nine and Bryce Walker has chipped in six.

CASHING IN ON THE EMO

• Notre Dame had one of the greatest  man-up units in recent memory during the 2022 season, leading the country in efficiency.

• The Irish enter the weekend 18-for-29 (.621) on the EMO through this season, leading the ACC and ranking second in the country.

• Chris Kavanagh is ninth in the nation in EMO goals with seven.

• The Irish EMO unit cashed in on 21-of-31 chances (.677) during the 2022 season.

FITTING RIGHT IN

• Notre Dame welcomed four transfers to the 2023 roster and each player made has made significant contributions.

• Chris Fake and Chris Conlin have each earned starts as defensemen in every game this season, combining for 22 caused turnovers and 43 ground balls.

• Brian Tevlin and Jack Simmons have played major minutes in the midfield, as Simmons has 10 goals and six assists while Tevlin has nine goals and three assists while adding 24 ground balls and 13 caused turnovers.

• Tevlin has also traded his short stick in for a long stick on the Irish man-down unit at times this season.

STATEMENT WINS

In nine wins on the season, the Irish have handed opponents their worst loss of the season in eight of them:

• Marquette – 21-10 (11 goals)

• Cleveland St. – 18-8 (10)

• Georgetown – 15-8 (7)

• Ohio St. – 16-3 (13)

• Michigan – 18-8 (10)

• Syracuse – 20-12 (8)

• Duke – 17-12 (5)

• UNC (tied for worst loss) – 16-9 (7)

THE BROTHERS KAVANAGH

• Pat Kavanagh became the fourth Tewaaraton Finalist in program history in 2021 and his brother Chris joined the 2022 squad as an attackman.

• The two brothers have combined for 103 points this season, Pat totaling 58 (19G, 39A) and Chris recording 45 (33G, 12A).

• Chris and Pat became the first set of ND teammates to each record eight or more points in the same game in program history, each posting eight, in the win over Cleveland State.

• The brothers have linked up on 24 goals during their career, with one assisting the other’s goal.

• Pat led the team during the 2022 season in points (64) and assists (39). He was second in goals (24), caused turnovers (12) and ground balls (39) while Chris was second in points (33) and assists (11) while tied for third in goals (22).

• In just 12 games in the 2022 season, Pat became the all-time single-season ND assist record holder with 39, breaking his own record from the 2021 season.

• Pat owns the single-game points record at ND, recording 10 points in a game three times in his career, twice against Syracuse and this season again against Michigan.

• The brothers also excel in the ground ball aspect of the game, combining for 59 on the season.

CORRIGAN ALL-TIME DI PROGRAM WINS LEADER

• With the win over No. 1 Duke on April 10, 2021, Baumer Family Head Men’s Lacrosse Coach Kevin Corrigan broke the NCAA record for most wins at a DI program with 311, passing Bob Shillinglaw (Delaware).

• Corrigan became just the third coach in NCAA Division I men’s lacrosse history to reach the 300-win mark at a single school with the win over Marquette on April 10, 2019.

• Corrigan is one of just four active Division I coaches to reach the 300-win mark in his career.

• Corrigan has an overall record of 340-174 in his 37 seasons of coaching.

• The head coach is 330-159 in his 35 seasons at Notre Dame.

• Corrigan is the longest tenured men’s lacrosse coach at the DI level.