April 3, 2018
By Matt Paras
NOTRE DAME, Indiana – The Notre Dame women’s lacrosse team (7-6) got back on track Tuesday night after a strong all-around game against Michigan (5-8). The Irish started fast and put 11 goals up in the first half and then limited the Wolverines to just three goals in the second to claim a 14-8 home win.
Coach Halfpenny’s Thoughts
On the keys to the fast start and maintaining the lead in the second half:
“We had a fantastic first half. We were very organized in what we were doing and made great adjustments on both ends of the ball. We were able to get more possessions from the hustle stats, the ground ball battle was huge and we did a fantastic job winning that battle. Our defense fueled our offense, getting the stops we needed and helped maintain the lead in the second half.”
On the continued improvements this season:
“We were almost 100% on clears and that is a goal of ours so that is very exciting to see that improvement. Really excited to see us lessen our turnovers and we are getting better every time out. It is April and we are looking like a team this is really starting to gel and get to postseason form which isn’t too far away.”
How It Happened
The Irish opened Tuesday’s contest with the first two goals of the game. Molly Cobb netted the first goal followed by Maddie Howe. Michigan responded with two goals of its own to tie the contest at 2-2.
Notre Dame’s defense stepped up following the second Wolverine goal and limited the offensive opportunities for Michigan. The Irish responded with a long run to take control of the half.
Andie Aldave got it started with two quick goals within a two-minute span. Jessi Masinko found the back of the cage next followed by the first career goal from Kaci Messier. Notre Dame held a 6-2 lead with 15:31 remaining in the half and Michigan called timeout.
The Irish kept up the offensive pressure and scored the next two goals. Masinko scored her second of the night and then Nikki Ortega followed it up with her first goal off the assist from Maddie Howe.
Michigan broke through at the 10:24 mark and scored the next three goals to put the pressure back on the Irish.
Masinko halted the Wolverine run with her third goal of the game. Howe and Ortega added two more goals to give the Irish an 11-5 lead going into halftime. This was the third straight opponent the Irish have held to five goals or less in the first half.
The second half was a defensive battle for both teams. Neither team scored in the first 11 plus minutes until Michigan got a goal from Kirby Chandler to break the scoreless drought. The Wolverines scored the next goal to the cut the deficit to 11-7 with 13:28 remaining.
Howe tallied a hat trick on the ensuing possession to break the Irish scoring drought and stop the Wolverines from gaining anymore momentum. Masinko added her fourth of the night and Aldave recorded a hat trick of her own to put the game out of reach and secure the 14-8 win.
Stat Leaders
- Maddie Howe tied a career-high with six points on three goals and three assists.
- Jessi Masinko led the team with a season-high four goals. It was one shy of her career high that she set against Detroit last season.
- Andie Aldave recorded her fourth hat trick of the season.
- Kaci Messier scored her first career goal and is the fifth freshman to score a goal this season.
- Nikki Ortega scored twice and dished out an assist for her 10th multi-point game of the season.
- Samantha Giacolone made eight saves on 16 shots for her eighth game with a .500 save percentage or higher.
- Notre Dame improves to 7-1 this season when allowing 10 goals or fewer.
- The Irish had nine players with two or more ground balls.
- Kathleen Roe tied a career high with three caused turnovers.
Up Next
The Irish go back on the road this weekend to take on one of their Midwestern rivals. Notre Dame will face off with Northwestern Sunday afternoon at 1 pm ET. The game will be broadcast on BTN Plus which is available via BTN2GO.
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Matt Paras, athletics communications assistant director at the University of Notre Dame, has been part of the Fighting Irish athletics communications team since January 2018. In his role, he coordinates all media efforts for the Notre Dame women’s lacrosse and cross country/track & field programs. A native of Warwick, Rhode Island, Paras is a graduate of the University of Louisville where he completed his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Sport Administration. Prior to arriving at Notre Dame, he worked at Vanderbilt University as the sports information contact for the women’s soccer and lacrosse programs.