Games 14 & 15 Preview: Liberty & Virginia Tech

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The Irish kick off their three-game road trek this week to close out the regular season with stops at Liberty and Virginia Tech this Thursday and Saturday, respectively.

The Irish and the Flames are set to compete Thursday, April 11 at 1pm. In 5 previous meetings with the Flames, the Irish boast an undefeated record, having most recently met in 2023 where Notre Dame defeated Liberty 19-8 at home. Madison Ahern led the team a season ago with eight points against Liberty, including six goals, both of which were career bests for the then-senior. The Irish have traveled to Lynchburg once previously, dueling to a 14-10 win on the road in 2019.

Notre Dame then travels to Blacksburg, Virginia to return to conference play when they face the Hokies Saturday, April 13 at noon. The Irish and Hokies have met 13 times in program history with the Irish holding the 11-2 advantage all-time. Most recently, the two teams met in 2023 with the Irish reigning victorious with a 14-1 win on home turf. Kasey Choma set a career-high in the contest, registering eight goals in the win and scooping up five ground balls.

GAME DETAILS
Location: Lynchburg, Va. | Blacksburg, Va.
Schedule: April 11 @ 1pm – Liberty | April 13 @ Noon – Virginia Tech
TV:  ESPN+ | ACCNX
Live Stats: UND.com
Twitter Updates: @NDWomensLax
For a more in-depth look at the matchup – Game Notes: Notre Dame

FOR STARTERS

• The Irish kicked off their 2024 campaign with a five-game homestand in which they went 4-1 and had their best start to a season (4-0) since 2020.

• Notre Dame closed out its regular season home slate last weekend when they hosted Duke for a 19-7 win on senior day.

• Prior to the game, the Irish honored the 17 graduating members of the team, including 11 seniors and 6 graduate students.

• The honorees accounted for 29 of the 30 total points scored on the afternoon, connecting on the first 18 goals before Kathryn Morrissey scored the final goal of the game with under two minutes to play.

• Four individuals had hat tricks in the contest including Madison Ahern, Kasey Choma, Arden Tierney and Jackie Wolak.

• Choma and Tierney tied for a team-best six points in the contest, off three goals and three assists a piece.

• The Irish boast five 20+ goal performances this season and own one of the nation’s hottest offenses.

• With five goals and a program-best six assists, Jackie Wolak set a career best with 11 points against Pitt to close out the month of March.

• Kelly Denes registered 16 draw controls in that contest, tying a program record and helping the Irish to 26 total draw wins – good for a program best at home.

• For her performance at the draw circle against Pitt, Denes was named ACC Defensive Player of the Week.

• Doherty’s hat trick goal at Brown came with 36.5 seconds to play in regulation of a deadlocked 15-15 contest to snap the tie and give the Irish the win. She followed it up with a career night four goals at then No. 2 Boston College, including the final dagger with just 15 ticks left on the clock to hand the Irish their first win at BC since 2003. To ensure the victory, Doherty won the following draw control to give the Irish possession and run out the clock. Following the road trip, Doherty racked up numerous awards for her full field performance, including USA Lacrosse, IWLCA and ACC honors.

• Last season the Irish boasted four regular season road wins, including defeats of Duke, Butler, Pitt and Robert Morris. They have since surpassed that number this year, owning a 5-0 record on the road with three contests remaining away from home.

• Notre Dame opened their season with a 21-6 win over Eastern Michigan.

• Lilly Callahan, who has started every game this season, boasts all 11 decisions for the Irish in a 9-2 start to their season.

• Callahan was announced as ACC Defensive Player of the Week Tuesday, March 5, following her performance at UNC.

• After an eight point weekend, including four goals and two assists against Northwestern, Jackie Wolak was named the USA Lacrosse Magazine, ILWomen and ACC Offensive Player of the Week after boasting four goals and two assists in the team’s win over then-top ranked Northwestern.

• Freshmen Angie Conley, Kathryn Morrissey, Kate Timarky and Meghan O’Hare all scored their first collegiate goals and were joined by veterans Ciara Mazzone and Maeve Dwyer in the accomplishment in the opening weekend of the season.

• Live stats will be available for the contest as well as a the game being aired on the ESPN+ and ACCNX.

IN THE POLLS

• Notre Dame was ranked No. 5 in the latest ILWomen/IWLCA poll of the season.

• The ACC coaches tabbed the Irish to finish fourth in the preseason rankings.

BALANCED ATTACK

• The Irish returned an NCAA best 91-percent of their scoring from a season ago including their six top scorers in Jackie Wolak (105 pts.), Kasey Choma (88 pts.), Madison Ahern (84 pts.), MK Doherty (38 pts.), Kristen Shanahan (29 pts.) and Kelly Denes (25 pts.).

• The trio of Ahern, Wolak and Choma combined for 26 points in the team’s opening weekend to kick off 2024, led by Wolak with a team-best 12 points and 7 goals.

• Arden Tierney, a draw specialist who joined the Irish ahead of the 2024 season, registered 10 draw controls in week 1, including eight in the team’s 22-3 win over Central Michigan. Kelly Denes, who led the team in the category a year ago boasts 91 draw controls thus far in 2024 and leads the team in the category again.

• Denes led the team with eight draw controls against Northwestern, tying that of the visitors’ total at the circle as the Irish dominated draws by a 20-8 margin. She now boasts 91 draw controls this season and averages 7.00 controls per game, good for second in the ACC and 16th in the country.

• In addition to being one of the team’s top contributors offensively, Denes led the team at the draw circle last season, boasting 135 draw controls while MK Doherty’s 111 controls gave the Irish their first season in program history with two individuals eclipsing triple digits.

• Through 13 games played, eight Irish individuals boast double digit points, led by Wolak with a team-best 61. The graduate also leads the team in goals (42) and assists (24).

• With 105 points in 2023, Wolak ranked fourth nationally and second in the ACC. With her performance against Florida to reach the 100+ point mark, she became just the third woman in program history to hit 100 points in a single season.

• With a scoring margin of 8.31, the Irish rank third in the nation while also ranking second in shots per game (37.31) and shots on goal at 26.69.

• With an average scoring offense of 17.15 goals per game, the Irish attack ranks fourth in the nation and is second in the ACC.

LEADERSHIP GROUP

• The team named a trio of captains, as voted on by their peers, ahead of the 2024 season. This year’s captains will be Madison Ahern, Kasey Choma and Aine Maseker.