NOTRE DAME, Ind. — After a year and a half without a live crowd in Purcell Pavilion, the Notre Dame women’s basketball squad got to enjoy an exhibition bout in front of the Irish faithful on Monday night. The Fighting Irish made the most of its final tune-up, rolling to a 104-46 victory over the visiting Emporia State Lady Hornets.
Grad transfer Maya Dodson certainly impressed in her Irish debut, shooting 11-of-14 from the field to lead the team with 24 points. Dara Mabrey notched a double-double with 12 points and 10 assists. All-in-all, five Irish finished in double figures, including both of Notre Dame’s freshmen, Olivia Miles (13 points) and Sonia Citron (15 points). In addition, 10 of the 12 rostered players scored in tonight’s contest.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Notre Dame took a 29-17 lead in the first quarter with Dodson leading the way with 11 of those first-quarter points. The Irish tallied five blocks and three steals on the defensive end of the court. Notre Dame had an impressive 10 assists on 13 made field goals to close out the first quarter.
The second quarter was much of the same as the Irish went on a 7-0 run over the course of two minutes early in the quarter. Dodson continued to dominate and run the floor, adding in eight more points, followed by teammate Maddy Westbeld who tacked on six points. The Irish closed out the half with an 11-0 run, with senior Dara Mabrey and freshman Olivia Miles combining for eight of said points.
The Irish went into the break with the 53-27 advantage, shooting 24-of-36 (.667) in the half. Dodson was 9-for-11 with 19 points. Mabrey was a perfect 3-for-3 for nine points, while Miles boasted nine points as well.
Coming out of the half, the Irish put up 22 more points to finish out the quarter 75-38. Sonia Citron led the Irish through the quarter with 10 points, shooting five-of-six from the free-throw line and two-of-two from the field. Dodson continued to impress as she not only added five more points to the score but also added five rebounds and three blocks.
The Fighting Irish finished out the game with a 10-0 run giving Notre Dame the 104-46 win. Sophomore Natalija Marshall came into the game and immediately tallied eight points and six rebounds in the quarter. Three more points from Mabrey landed her with a double-double in 12 points and 10 assists. The last time a double-double occurred with points and assists was Marina Mabrey in the national semifinal versus the University of Connecticut in 2019 with 12 points and 12 assists.
Notre Dame finished shooting 41-65 (.631) from the field and 7-14 (.500) from behind the arc. Eventually, all twelve players for the Fighting Irish saw action on the court.
UP NEXT
The Irish begin regular season play on November 9 at 7:00 pm against Ohio in Purcell Pavilion.