March 26, 2009
Notre Dame, Ind. –
Complete Release in PDF Format 
• The Game: #9/#10 Notre Dame (8-1/1-0) vs. #6/#8 Georgetown (5-3/0-0)
• Date/Time/Site: Friday, March 27, 2009 • 8:00 p.m. • Loftus Sports Center • Notre Dame, Ind.
• All Notre Dame home women’s lacrosse games will be available via Game Tracker at und.com. Selected games are available through live via video streaming at und.com.
• The Game: #9/#10 Notre Dame (8-1/1-0) vs. #13/#13 Loyola (Md.) (7-1/0-0)
• Date/Time/Site: Sunday, March 29, 2009 • 1:00 p.m. • Loftus Sports Center • Notre Dame, Ind.
• All Notre Dame home women’s lacrosse games will be available via Game Tracker at und.com. Selected games are available through live via video streaming at und.com.
BIG EAST WEEKEND: Notre Dame wraps up its five-game homestand with a pair of BIG EAST games against nationally ranked teams. On Friday night the Irish will play host to the #6/#8 Georgetown Hoyas in an 8:00 p.m. game at the Loftus Center. Sunday afternoon the #13/#13 Loyola (Md.) Greyhounds visit Loftus for a 1:00 p.m. game. Notre Dame brings a seven-game winning streak into the weekend and is 3-0 on the current homestand. The Irish are 8-1 overall and 1-0 in BIG EAST play and are ranked ninth in the IWLCA coaches’ poll and 10th by Inside Lacrosse.com. They have beaten Hofstra, Rutgers and California in the first three games of the homestand. The Hoyas enter the weekend with a 5-3 overall record and will be playing their first BIG EAST games this weekend. Georgetown is coming off a big win a week ago when the Hoyas knocked off third-ranked Duke, 12-11, at home. They have now played the top three teams in the country – Northwestern, Maryland and Duke – in a row, going 1-2 in those contests. They close out the weekend at Rutgers on Sunday. Loyola enters the week with a six-game winning streak of its own and will play at Rutgers on Friday before visiting South Bend. The Greyhounds are 7-1 to start the week and are coming off wins versus James Madison and Delaware last weekend. Following the two BIG EAST games, the Irish take to the road next week to face the conference’s newest teams, Cincinnati (4/3) and Louisville (4/5).
IRISH VERSUS THE HOYAS: Notre Dame and Georgetown have met 12 times in the all-time series with the Hoyas holding a 9-3 edge in the games played. At Notre Dame, the Irish have won twice and are 2-4 against Georgetown. Last season, the teams met twice, once in the regular season and once in the BIG EAST Tournament. On April 12, the teams played at Georgetown with the Irish taking a 10-8 win for their first-ever win on the Hoyas’ home field. On April 25, Georgetown ended Notre Dame’s BIG EAST dreams, winning 15-14 in three overtimes at Notre Dame Stadium. In each of the last three seasons, the two teams have met in postseason play. In 2006, the Irish won an NCAA game versus the Hoyas and in 2007 and 2008, Georgetown beat Notre Dame in the BIG EAST Tournament.
IRISH VERSUS GREYHOUNDS: Notre Dame and Loyola, an associate member of the BIG EAST, have met three times since the Greyhounds joined the conference for the 2006 season. The Irish have won all three games, winning once at home, once in Maryland and once on a neutral field. Last season the teams met at Notre Dame (3/22) with the Irish taking a 13-10 win.
A LOOK BACK AT LAST WEEK: The Irish ran their winning streak to seven games with a BIG EAST win versus Rutgers and a non-league win versus California on Sunday afternoon in last week’s action. On Tuesday, March 17, they celebrated St. Patrick’s Day with an 18-9 win over Rutgers at the Loftus Sports Center to open the BIG EAST Conference schedule for both teams. Notre Dame was led by junior attack Gina Scioscia (Summit, N.J.) who set a personal mark with eight points in the game, scoring twice and dishing out six assists. The six-assist game tied a Notre Dame record held by Kerry Callahan `99. Joining Scioscia on the score sheet were Jillian Byers (Sr., Northport, N.Y.) who had four goals, sophomore Ansley Stewart (Alexandria, Va.) added three goals and one assist, while Kaitlin Keena (So., Vienna, Va.) had three points (2g, 1a). Freshman Megan Sullivan (Winchester, Mass.) had the first two-goal game of her career and Maggie Tamasitis (Fr., Boyertown, Pa.), Shaylyn Blaney (So., Stony Brook, N.Y.), Jackie Doherty (So., Ellicott City, Md.), Kailene Abt (So., Huntington, N.Y.) and Beth Koloup (Sr., Phoenix, Md.) rounded out the goal scoring. The Irish scored the first five goals of the game on the way to a 10-3 halftime lead. They went on to score three of the first four goals of the second half to make it 13-4 and built the score to 18-7 before the Scarlet Knights picked up the last two goals of the game. Notre Dame out shot Rutgers, 31-22. Erin Goodman (Sr., Cortlandt Manor, N.Y.) gave up six goals and made seven assists in the first 43 minutes. Junior Amy Winik (Freehold, N.J.) played the final 13 minutes, giving up three goals while making one save. On Sunday versus California, Notre Dame scored early and often on the way to a 20-4 win over the Golden Bears. Byers paced the Irish attack with five goals and one assist while Abt scored four times with a pair of assists and Scioscia picked up two goals with four helpers to give Notre Dame three players with six points. Joining the scoring parade was freshman Kelly Driscoll (Andover, Mass.), who recorded her first collegiate goal and first two-goal game in the win. Tamasitis scored one goal but chipped in three assists for a four-point afternoon. Meredith Locasto (So., Pittsburgh, Pa.), Shannon Burke (Sr., Timonium, Md.), Maggie Zentgraf (Jr., Charlotttesville, Va.), Blaney, Koloup and Keena also had single goals in the game for the Irish. Notre Dame outshot California, 38-10 in the game. Goodman played 45:26, giving up three goals while making two saves. Winik closed out the game, playing the final 14:34 with one goal against and one save.
BIG EAST OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Junior Gina Scioscia was named the BIG EAST offensive player of the week after she recorded 14 points in wins over Rutgers (18-9) and California (20-4). In the Rutgers victory, Scioscia had a career-best, eight-point game, scoring twice with six assists. The six-assist game tied the Notre Dame record for assists in a game, held by Kerry Callahan `99, who did it 10 years to the day – March 17, 1999, in a 20-10 win over Gannon. She then added a six-point game (2g, 4a) in the 20-4 win over California for the best week of her career.
PREMIER PLAYMAKER: Gina Scioscia’s eight-point game versus Rutgers was a career best for the Irish playmaker. Her previous best was a seven-point game last season set against Rutgers (4/20/08) where she had two goals and five assists. She also had a seven-point game this season versus Duquesne in the season opener, scoring four goals with three assists. Her six-assists were the most in a game since Kerry Callahan `99, had six assists in a 20-10 win over Gannon on March 17, 1999. Callahan had nine points in that game.
SHE’S ABT TO SCORE: Sophomore midfielder Kailene Abt is quickly becoming a major scoring threat for the Irish in her second season. Already this year, the Huntington, N.Y., native is fourth on the team in scoring with career highs in goals (18), assists (3) and points (21). She recorded a career-high six-point game in Notre Dame’s 20-4 win over California, scoring four goals and two assists. The four-goal game tied a career high set earlier this season against Ohio State. FEARSOME FRESHMAN: Freshman midfield/attack Maggie Tamasitis has contributed to the Irish attack in a big way during her rookie year. The Boyertown, Pa., native is sixth in scoring with 17 points on six goals and 11 assists in nine games off the Notre Dame bench. In the win against California, Tamasitis had a career-high four-point game, scoring once and adding a career-high three assists in the contest.
MAKING THE STOPS: Senior goalkeeper Erin Goodman has now won seven straight games in goal for the Irish and continues to move up the charts among Notre Dame netminders. She has now started in 45 consecutive games since the start of the 2007 season and has won 31 of them. Her 31 career wins ties her for the top spot at Notre Dame along with Jen White `03 who had 31 from 2000-03. Goodman ranks among the top Notre Dame goalkeepers in several different categories.
Single Season
GP - t1st (19) - 2008
Wins - t3rd (12) - 2008
Minutes - 1st (1,117:21) - 2008
Saves - 4th (172) - 2008
SV% - 9th (.454) - 2008
GAVG - 7th (10.74) - 2008Career
GP - 3rd (45)
Wins - t1st (31)
Minutes - 3rd (2,687:21)
Saves - 3rd (383)
GAVG - 3rd (10.71)
SCORING BARRAGE: Through the first nine games of the season, Notre Dame has scored 145 goals for an average of 16.11 per game. Prior to this season, Notre Dame’s top scoring season came in 2006 when the Irish averaged 13.84 goals per game.
PASSING FANCY: While one would expect to see Jill Byers among Notre Dame’s scoring leaders, you might be surprised by who is the team’s top scorer through the first eight games. Gina Scioscia leads the Irish with 24 goals and 20 assists for 44 points while Byers comes into the Georgetown game with 33 goals and seven assists for 40 points. Scioscia’s 24 goals are a career high, already passing her career high of 20, set last season. During Notre Dame’s seven-game winning streak, Scioscia has three or more points in all seven games and three-or-more goals in five of them. During her seven-game point streak, the playmaker has 20 goals and 17 assists for 37 points. Her 20 assists lead the team. Scioscia has also moved into the all-time top 10 at Notre Dame in points as she now has 48 goals and 59 assists for 107 career points to rank ninth all-time in scoring. Her 59 assists rank her sixth on the all-time assist list.
WEARING THE GREEN: Notre Dame’s win on St. Patrick’s Day against Rutgers improved the Irish record to 4-0 in games played on March 17. The 18-9 win over Rutgers marked the first time that Notre Dame has played on St. Patrick’s Day since March 17, 2002.
FAST START: Notre Dame’s 8-1 start is the best for the Irish since starting the 2006 campaign with a 9-1 record. The current seven-game winning streak is Notre Dame’s longest since starting the 2006 season with seven straight wins. The longest Irish win streak is 14 games and was set between the end of the 2003 season and the start of 2004.
CLIMBING THE CHARTS: Notre Dame’s All-American and Tewaaraton Trophy candidate Jillian Byers continues her assault on the Irish record books. After setting the Notre Dame goal-scoring record on Feb. 28, Jillian Byers continues to score at a torrid pace for the Irish. In the win over Hofstra (3/14), she recorded her 200th career goal and 250th career point. Versus California she broke the all-time mark for draw controls. Here are her numbers at Notre Dame.
Goals1. Jillian Byers (2006- ) 2122. Crysti Foote (2003-06) 1613. Caitlin McKinney (2005-08) 1524. Danielle Shearer (2000-03) 1305. Lael O'Shaughnessy (1998-01) 1226. Meredith Simon (2001-04) 1097. Kerry Callahan (1997-99) 838. Natalie Loftus (1999-02) 769. Courtney Calabrese (1998-99) 6910. Alissa Moser (1999-02) 67-- Shaylyn Blaney (2007- ) 64
Assists1. Caitlin McKinney (2005-08) 802. Crysti Foote (2003-06) 763. Lael O'Shaughnessy (1998-01) 684. Danielle Shearer (2000-03) 665. Kerry Callahan (1997-99) 636. Gina Scioscia (2007-) 597. Jillian Byers (2006- ) 537. Meredith Simon (2001-04) 499. Heather Ferguson (2005-08) 3510. Natalie Loftus (1999-02) 33
Points1. Jillian Byers (2006- ) 2652. Crysti Foote (2003-06) 2373. Caitlin McKinney (2005-08) 2324. Danielle Shearer (2000-03) 1965. Lael O'Shaughnessy (1998-01) 1906. Meredith Simon (2001-04) 1587. Kerry Callahan (1997-99) 1468. Natalie Loftus (1999-02) 1099. Gina Scioscia (2007- ) 10710. Lauren Fischer (2001-04) 85 Alissa Moser (1999-02) 85-- Shaylyn Blaney (2007- ) 75
Draw Controls1. Jillian Byers (2006- ) 1282. Alissa Moser (1999-02) 1263. Kaki Orr (2004-07) 1104. Shannon Burke (2006- ) 1075. Crysti Foote (2003-06) 1036. Tina Fedarcyk (1999-02) 967. Meredith Simon (2001-04) 918 Kathryn Lam (1999-02) 909. Danielle Shearer (2000-03) 7610. Lael O'Shaughnessy (1998-01) 74
HEAD COACH Tracy Coyne: Tracy Coyne is in her 13th season at Notre Dame and her 22nd year in collegiate lacrosse. Coyne brings a 232-104 (.690) career record into this weekend with Georgetown and Loyola. On Sunday, Feb. 17, 2008, she recorded her 100th career win at Notre Dame with a 16-4 win over Duquesne. As the only head coach in the Notre Dame program’s history, Coyne is 118-78 (.602). A 1983 Ohio University graduate, Coyne recorded her 200th career win at the end of the 2006 season with a 16-8 win over Cornell in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. She has guided Notre Dame to four NCAA tournament appearances (2002, 2004, 2006, 2008) in the last seven seasons, including the school’s first-ever NCAA finals appearance in 2006. In her first 22 years of coaching, Coyne was 23-5 in two seasons at Denison (1988-89), 91-21 in seven years at Roanoke (1990-96) and 115-78 in this, her 13th season at Notre Dame. The Pittsburgh, Pa., native led Denison (1988) and Roanoke (1990, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1996) to the NCAA Division III tournament during stops at those schools. Coyne also has coached on the international level as the head coach for the Canadian women’s lacrosse national team from 1999-2005. In June of 2005, she led Team Canada to a fourth-place finish at the 2005 World Cup, her second, fourth-place finish (2001) as Canada’s field boss. Coyne is 3-9 all-time against Georgetown and 3-0 versus Loyola (Md.)
SUPER SOPHOMORES: The Irish have gotten strong play from their sophomore scorers this season. The group of five – Shaylyn Blaney (21g, 2a), Ansley Stewart (14g, 7a), Kailene Abt (18g, 3a), Jackie Doherty (5g, 6a) and Kaitlin Keena (7g, 7a) have accounted for 65 goals and 25 assists for 90 points. They five have 65 of the team’s 145 goals, 25 of 67 assists and 90 of 212 points this season.
RAPID IMPROVEMENT: As a freshman, Ansley Stewart, now a sophomore, saw action in just two games for the Irish, getting just one shot on goal. This season, the Alexandria, Va., native has started all nine games to date and ranks fifth on the team in scoring with 14 goals and seven assists for 21 points. She teams with senior Jillian Byers (33-7) and junior Gina Scioscia (24-20) to give Notre Dame a potent trio on attack as they now have 71 goals and 34 assists this season.
THE IRISH ALL-TIME: The 2008-09 season is the 13th campaign for the Notre Dame women’s lacrosse program. The Irish (8-1 this year) come into the weekend with a 118-78 (.602) all-time record. That includes a 59-28 (.678) home mark and a 46-43 (.517) road record. Notre Dame is 14-7 all-time on neutral fields. The win in the season opener at Duquesne gives the Irish an 11-2 mark in season-opening games. TEWAARATON WATCH LIST: Two members of the Notre Dame women’s lacrosse team have been named to the Tewaaraton Trophy “Watch List” for the 2009 season. Senior Jillian Byers and sophomore Shaylyn Blaney were among the 45 players selected to the watch list. That group will be cut down later in the season to a candidates list followed by a list of finalists. For Byers, this is her third year on the watch list while Blaney is making her first apperarance. She is the sixth Notre Dame player to be named to the Watch List in the 13-year history of the Notre Dame women’s lacrosse program.
CAN’T CATCH KOLOUP: Senior defender Beth Koloup has always been tough and tenacious on defense. This year she’s become a threat to score as she now has a two-game goal-scoring streak with goals in the wins over Rutgers and California. For the year, she has three goals with one assist for four points, while grabbing 12 ground balls, with four draw controls and five caused turnovers.
BAD NEWS BURKE: Defensive standout Shannon Burke (Timonium, Md.) continues to be a dominant force for the Irish in the defensive midfield. The senior captain grabbed five ground balls and caused five turnovers in the 20-4 win over California on March 22 to earn BIG EAST honor roll honors. In nine games this season, the preseason all-BIG EAST selection has scored three goals with two assists for five points. On the defensive side, Burke is second on the team with 21 ground balls, is fifth with 17 draw controls and is tied for the team lead with 16 caused turnovers. For her career, she has 100 ground balls, to rank 11th all-time; she has 107 draw controls to rank fourth on that list and her 78 caused turnovers put her fourth on that all-time list. <>FRESHMEN MAKING THEIR MARK: Several members of the Notre Dame freshman class have performed well in their rookie seasons. Maggie Tamasitis (Boyertown, N.Y.) leads the class in scoring with five goals and eight assists for 13 points in her first eight games. Her eight assists are second on the team. Megan Sullivan (Winchester, Mass.) has scored three goals, getting a pair of markers in the win over Rutgers on March 17. Kate Newall (Middlesex, England) has moved into the starting lineup at defensive midfield. She made her first career start versus Rutgers on March 17. Kelly Driscoll (Andover, Mass.) joined the list of freshmen contributors after scoring a pair of goals in the win versus California.