Oct. 28, 2001
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Sophomore forward Amanda Guertin (Grapevine, Texas) delivered in overtime while extending her goalscoring streak to five games, as the eighth-ranked Notre Dame women’s soccer team closed the 2001 regular season with a 2-1 victory over 23rd-ranked Michigan in Sunday-afternoon action at Alumni Field.
Notre Dame (13-2-1)-which is unbeaten in its last 36 home games (35-0-1) and 8 -0-3 in its last 11 overtime games, with both streaks dating back to a 3-2 double-OT loss to North Carolina in the ’99 opener-struck first on a goal by sophomore midfielder Randi Scheller in the 65th minute but Michigan junior Abby Crumpton tied the game 10 minutes later.
The Irish finished with a 21-6 shot edge, including 9-2 in shots on goal. The game featured a rarity of no corner kicks attempted by either team.
Notre Dame is 6-1-0 vs. top-25 opponents this season and 18-5-2 vs. top-25 teams during the three-year tenure of head coach Randy Waldrum (57-7-3 overall). The Irish also set a team record for overtime games in season (5) while extending the team record for overtime wins in a season (4).
Guertin’s five-game goalscoring streak is the longest by a Notre Dame player since Nov. 14, 1999-when Jenny Heft scored for the eighth straight game and Jenny Streiffer for the seventh consecutive game in a 5-1 NCAA win over Dayton (neither scored in the next week’s 1-0 win over Stanford). Guertin leads the Irish with 24 points (9G-6A), including points in 10 of the last 12 games.
Sophomore forward Melissa Tancredi set up the gamewinning goal with a cross from the left side. A Michigan player tried to clear the ball away from the far right post but shanked the ball towards the center of the box. Guertin was in position and calmly sent a six-yard shot into the lower left corner for the 20th goal of her Irish career and her fourth gamewinner of the season (matching her 2000 total, which included the GWG in a 3-1 NCAA win over Michigan).
Guertin’s recent streak includes scoring four of Notre Dame’s last five goals, five of the last seven of six of the last 10.
Midway through the second half, senior midfielder Mia Sarkesian’s pass found Scheller open in the middle of the field. The 5-3 sophomore-who also scored twice in last year’s 5-1 win at Michigan, including a blast from outside the box-then surprised UM ‘keeper Bre Bennett with a strong 25-yard shot that clipped the bottom of the crossbar and kicked off Bennett’s back before bouncing into the goal for Scheller’s third goal of the season (64:47).
Crumpton’s ninth goal of the season tied the game in the 75th minute. Crumpton raced onto the ball near the top left corner of the box and cut back to avoid an Irish defender before striking a crossing shot into the right corner of the net (74:40) to set up the tense finish.
NOTES:
- ND opens play in the BIG EAST tournament at home on Sunday, Nov. 4 (1:00), facing St. John’s
- The NCAA recently announced a scheduling change for the first and second-round NCAA games, which will be played on Friday, Nov. 16 and Sunday, Nov. 18 (earlier schedules list the first round on Nov. 14 and the second round on the 17th-18th)
- The Irish are 109-3-2 (.965) in their last 114 home games
- ND is 32-2-2 in its last 36 regular-season games
- The Irish still have allowed just four first-half goals this season (none in the last five games).
MICHIGAN (10-6-1) 0 1 0 - 1#8 NOTRE DAME (13-2-1) 0 1 1 - 2ND 1. Randi Scheller 3 (Mia Sarkesian) 64:47, UM 1. Abby Crumpton 9 (-) 74:40, ND 2. Amanda Guertin 9 (-) 101:27.
SHOTS: UM 2-3-1-6, ND 9-8-4-21
CORNER KICKS: UM 0, ND 0
SAVES: UM (Bre Bennett) 7, ND (Liz Wagner) 1
FOULS: UM 9, ND 13
OFFSIDES: UM 4, ND 4