Oct. 22, 2017
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – University of Notre Dame women’s soccer sophomore Natalie Jacobs scored her 10th goal of the season and senior Meghan Doyle tallied her second game-winning goal of the season as the Irish completed a Florida sweep with a 2-1 win over Miami at Cobb Stadium on Sunday.
The Irish scored two goals in the first half and controlled the tempo in the midfield to limit the Hurricanes’ opportunities. It was Notre Dame’s second one-goal victory of the season.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Irish (9-5-3, 5-3-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) got on the board just six minutes into the first half when Jacobs tapped in a cross from Sandra Yu inside the goal box.
Notre Dame and Miami (5-10-0, 1-8-0 ACC) played evenly throughout most of the rest of the half, playing toward the middle of the field and limiting each other’s chances. The Irish owned a 7-5 edge in shots in the first half, but Miami held a 3-2 advantage in shots on goal.
But the Irish broke through again before halftime when Doyle fired a cross from outside the 18-yard box that curled toward the goal and caromed off the left post into the net at 40:34. It was Doyle’s third goal of the season, while Jacobs got credit for the assist.
The two-goal lead didn’t last long, however, as Miami scored less than two minutes later when Jamie Brunworth curled her corner kick into the back post.
The Irish dictated the pace of play in the second half, owning a 8-2 advantage in shots – including five shots on goal – while the score remained at 2-1. Miami’s only real opportunity to even the score came in the 71st minute when Kristina Fisher took a point-blank shot from just outside the six, but goalkeeper Lexi Nicholas came away with the save.
Jennifer Westendorf led the Irish with five shots, while Jacobs registered three and Sandra Yu and Natalie Ward each picked up two. Nicholas tallied four saves in net for the Irish.
NOTE OF THE MATCH
- Natalie Jacobs scored her 10th goal of the season, becoming the first Irish player to score at least 10 goals in a season since Anna Maria Gilbertson tallied 13 goals in 2015.
MATCH NOTES
- Meghan Doyle scored her third goal of the season, which is a new career high. It was also her second game-winning goal of the season and her career.
- Notre Dame is now 9-2 all-time against Miami and picked up its first win in Coral Gables since Oct. 14, 2001.
- The Irish improved to 7-1 while playing on Sundays.
- Notre Dame also improved to 5-1-2 in games away from Alumni Stadium (including one neutral-site game).
COMING UP NEXT
The Irish will close out the regular season at 6 p.m. ET Thursday when they travel to North Carolina to take on the fifth-ranked Tar Heels in Chapel Hill. The game will be streamed live by ACC Network Extra/WatchESPN.
For behind-the-scenes coverage of the Irish women’s soccer program, follow @NDSoccer on Twitter and @NDWSoccer on Instagram. For tickets to a Notre Dame women’s soccer match, click here.
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