SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Charley Niego recorded 16 kills and 16 digs, but Notre Dame fell to UW Milwaukee in four sets (19-25, 22-25, 25-19, 18-25) to close out the Shamrock Invitational on Sunday afternoon inside Purcell Pavilion.
“The truth is our finest moments in life come when we are deeply uncomfortable, unhappy, or unfulfilled,” said Irish head coach Mike Johnson. Propelled by our discomfort we will step out of our ruts and search for better ways or truer answers. We got outplayed this weekend. We will fix it and be better. We all take responsibility and are accountable to each other and to Notre Dame to improve. I’m excited to get to work.”
Four players noticed 15+ digs, including Hattie Monson (18), Niego (16), Zoe Nunez (16) and Phyona Schrader (15). Nunez collected 29 assists for the Irish with Schrader adding 10 helpers. Aubrey Hamilton paced Notre Dame with 17 kills while Niego led the Irish with a hitting percentage of .378. Lindsey Miller led all players with seven total blocks.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
After the sides opened in a 7-7 tie, Milwaukee earned six of the next seven points to grab a 13-8 lead. The Panthers maintained at least a four-point advantage from there and took the first set, 25-19.
Second Set
Two kills each by Hamilton and Meuth spurred a 6-0 Irish run to open the second stanza. The Panthers used two different 3-0 runs to eventually tie the frame at 13-13. From there, the teams worked to a 21-21 tie before Milwaukee earned four of the final five points to take the second frame, 25-22.
Third Set
A trio of early kills by Niego helped the Irish earn an 8-6 lead before an ace by Schrader put Notre Dame up 11-8 and forced a Milwaukee timeout. An Irish 5-1 run, which included a pair of blocks and an ace by Nunez, extended Notre Dame’s advantage to 19-12. A kill by Hamilton clinched the set, 25-19, as the Irish forced a fourth set.
Hamilton led the way with six kills in the third set as the Irish hit .281 as a team in the stanza.
Fourth Set
An Irish 6-1 run capped with an ace by Miller and a kill by Niego put the hosts up 7-4 to open the fourth set. After Milwaukee got within one at 8-7, the Irish answered with five consecutive points, including two aces by Niego, to grab a 13-7 lead. The Panthers responded by earning 12 of the next 14 points to go ahead 19-15. The visitors held on to take the fourth set 25-18.
UP NEXT
- The Irish hit the road for the first time this season to take on Arizona and Texas next Saturday and Sunday (Sept. 11-12) in Austin, Texas.
- Notre Dame meets Arizona on Saturday (Sept. 11) at 2 p.m. ET before taking on top-ranked Texas on Sunday (Sept. 12) at 1 p.m. ET.
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