NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Doug & Lisa Jones Family Notre Dame women’s soccer head coach Nate Norman continues to bolster the strength and depth of his squad for next fall, adding fifth-year Northwestern transfer Mackenzie Wood. It’ll mark a homecoming for the 5-9 goalkeeper who hails from Granger, Indiana and attended Penn High school. Wood also played Club for the Indiana Fire.
“We are very excited to have Mackenzie join our team. She is extremely talented and as a four-year starter at Northwestern, she will bring a ton of experience to our program,” Coach Norman explained. “We have seen Mackenzie play for a long time and have always been very impressed with her. We feel fortunate she can finish her already outstanding career here at Notre Dame.”
Wood started in the net for the Wildcats in all 67 games played, racking up 20 career shutouts and 258 career saves. After four years of patrolling the net for Northwestern, Wood boasts a 0.779 career save percentage with a 1.05 career goals-against-average.
“I am beyond excited to be a part of the Notre Dame family and compete in the ACC next fall,” Wood said. “Being surrounded by the caliber of teammates in the program will help challenge me as a soccer player and grow as a person. I am grateful to coaches Nate, Dawn, and Jason for the opportunity to represent the University and give back to the community I grew up in while playing for a nationally ranked soccer program.”
Wood earned Big-Ten All-Freshman Team honors in 2018 as she finished the season with a .650 goals-against-average which ranked 31st in the nation and first in the Big Ten, an .854 save percentage which ranked 30th in the nation and third in the Big Ten, and eight shutouts which ranked 28th in the nation and second in the Big Ten. In addition, she helped Northwestern post the longest shutout streak in program history, a 668:42 mark from August 19 to September 14.
Her sophomore year, Wood once again ranked in the top-three in the Big Ten in both total saves (75) and saves per game (4.2). In her junior year (shortened Covid season), Wood tallied yet another GAA below 1, 0.91 to be exact. Then Miss consistent tacked on 73 more saves with three shutouts in her senior year campaign.
Before Northwestern, Wood was named the 2018 WPSL Defensive Player of the Year and earned WPSL All-Conference Team honors of the Central Region North Conference. In high school, she participated in both the U18 and U16 U.S. National Training Camps spanning 2016-17.
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