May 5, 2018
By: Robby Hamman
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – No. 8 Notre Dame capped off the regular season with a dominating 17-5 victory over Army at Arlotta Stadium to win its third straight game. The five goals allowed are the fewest the Irish have relinquished this season and the 17 goals scored are tied for the most in a game.
A season-high 12 Irish players found the back of the net in the victory. Sophomore Brendan Gleason led the way with a season-high four goals while adding two assists. Senior Brendan Collins and sophomore Keaton Komatz each added two scores, marking the first two goals of Komatz’s career. The remaining nine goals were scored by nine different players.
The Irish also won the ground ball and face-off battles. The Irish dominated at the X, going 21-of-27 for the day to control possession. Notre Dame also scooped up 29 grounders to Army’s 21.
How It Happened
Playing its best lacrosse of the season last weekend at the ACC Championships, Notre Dame picked up right where it left off on Saturday. The Irish matched its season-high for goals in a first half with eight and held their largest halftime lead of the season at 8-2. Notre Dame led 3-1 after the first 15 minutes of play, receiving goals from Mikey Wynne, Nick Stinn and John Sexton.
The attack poured it on in the second quarter, firing five shots into the Army goal while holding the Black Knights to just one to extend the lead to six at 8-2 going into the halftime intermission. Gleason led the charge with three goals, while Ryder Garnsey and Thomas McNamara each added one.
The third quarter was arguably Notre Dame’s most impressive of the day, as the defense shut out the Army attack while at the other end of the field the Irish offense tacked on four more goals to blow the game wide open at 12-2. Collins scored both of his goals in the third and Gleason completed his six-point performance with his fourth of the day. The other Irish player to score was last week’s ACC Championship MVP Bryan Costabile.
With the game in hand, Notre Dame looked to its bench in the final 15 minutes of the contest, which allowed for a number of players to record career firsts. Komatz, Peter Gayhardt and Michael Fay each netted the first goals of their careers, while Tyler Ruhl dished out his first assist to put an exclamation mark on the final home game of the season. Senior Jordan Walter also scored, as the Irish went on to win by a final score of 17-5, their biggest win of the season.
Notre Dame Player Of The Game
Gleason had his best goal-scoring performance of the year despite not playing for the majority of the fourth quarter. The junior finished with a game-high four goals in the win while adding two assists to match his season-high for points in a game with six. Gleason did the bulk of his damage in the second quarter, posting a hat trick with three goals. The Essex, Vermont, native now has 19 goals and 14 assists on the season.
Notre Dame Stat Of The Game
The 12-goal win was the largest of the season for the Irish. Notre Dame’s defense put the clamps on the Army attack, holding the Black Knights to a season-low five goals scored. Conversely, the 17 goals allowed by Army mark the most the Black Knights have allowed in a game this season.
Tweet Of The Game
Sexton causes the turnover. Sexton scoops the ground ball. Sexton scores. The senior does IT ALL!
WATCH: https://t.co/xBiQ5g6bbN pic.twitter.com/dhvUjXKT8t
– Notre Dame Lacrosse (@NDlacrosse) May 5, 2018
Notre Dame Notes
- The Irish have now scored a combined 48 goals in its last three games, while allowing just 23 for a plus-25 goal differential.
- Notre Dame improves to 7-2 against Army in the all-time series and is a perfect 5-0 when playing at Arlotta Stadium.
- The Irish have scored a combined 80 goals over their five meetings against Army in games played at Notre Dame.
- The 17 goals are tied for the most the Irish have scored in a game this season, matching the 17 they scored against Virginia on April 29 in the ACC Championship title game.
- Gleason has now tallied six points on three occasions this season.
- In just his third career game, Komatz posted a career high for points with three, scoring the first two goals of his career and adding the first assist of his career on Saturday.
- Stinn, Gayhardt, Komatz and Fay each notched the first goals of their career.
- Freshman Jacob Frane went a perfect 5-for-5 from the X, while senior John Travisano, Jr. went 12-of-16 and sophomore Charles Leonard finished 4-for-6.
- Wynne scored his 125th goal of his career and remains in third place in the Notre Dame record books for career goals.
Up Next
The NCAA Selection Show is on Sunday, May 6, at 9 p.m. ET and will air live on ESPNU. The Irish will find out who and where they will play in the first round of the NCAA Championship.
— ND —
The University of Notre Dame men’s lacrosse team pursues excellence on and off the field through the three pillars in which the program is built: Character, Culture & Community. These three foundational values guide the promise of the program, which is to provide its student-athletes with the most compelling and enriching experience in all of college athletics. Through academics, competition, service and travel, the program aims to immerse its players in situations that enhance their student-athlete experience to help them become the people, students and teammates they aspire to be.
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