Oct. 18, 2000
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Notre Dame senior midfielder Anne Makinen showed once again why she is widely considered the top player in womens college soccer, as the three-time All-American came off the bench Wednesday night in a rain-soaked game to spark the top-ranked Irish past a feisty Yale squad, 4-0, with the last three goals coming in the final minutes.
Makinen-who was being held out of her second straight game, in preparation for Saturdays showdown at BIG EAST Conference rival Connecticut-was sorely missed during the scoreless first half, with Notre Dame holding just a 5-4 shot edge at the intermission while the Bulldogs had nearly scored twice on shots off the posts.
Less than two minutes after checking into the game early in the second half, Makinen made an immediate impact by slicing through the Yale defense and setting up the 10th goal of the season from senior forward Meotis Erikson, on a turn-and-shoot move near the center of the box (53:58). Makinens presence helped the Irish dominate the midfield battle while igniting an offense that generated 14 shots in the second half and limited Yales counterattack chances (the Bulldogs had no shots in the final 45 minutes).
Yale (7-6-1) matched the Irish with a handful of early scoring chances but the Bulldogs failed to pull off their second upset in eight days, after posting a 1-0 win over UConn last week. The shutout was Notre Dames 11th of the season and seventh in the last eight games.
In addition to playing without Makinen for the first 50 minutes, the Irish also continued to play without freshman forward Amy Warner and senior defender Kelly Lindsey, who each could return to action sometime during the upcoming postseason.
Notre Dame (16-0-0)-the nations only remaining undefeated team among 274 Division I programs-put the game away in the closing moments, with Makinen sending a free kick over a five-player wall and into the upper left corner of the net for a 2-0 lead in the 83rd minute before freshman midfielder Randi Scheller set up a goal by classmate Amanda Guertin and scored her own goal to cap the scoring.
Sixth-year Yale head coach Rudy Meredith came away impressed with Makinens performance.
“Id always known Anne was a great player from watching her on TV but this was the first time Id seen her in person and she completely changed the game from the moment she stepped on the field,” said Meredith. “She was creating great offensive chances but also made her teammates better. Thats the sign of great player and shes the best Ive seen this year.”
Makinen set up the first goal after slicing into the right side of the box and sliding a pass to Erikson, who turned and briefly held the ball before pushing a low 10-yard shot inside the right post (53:58). A hand-ball violation just outside the top of the box later set up Makinens well-placed free kick that sailed over the wall and beyond the reach of goalkeeper Sarah Peterson for her team-leading 11th goal of the season (82:03).
Five minutes later, Scheller uncorked a shot from the upper right corner of the box and Peterson batted the ball away, but Guertin collected the rebound and sidestepped a defender before blasting the ball under the scrambling keeper for the ninth goal of her rookie season (86:48). In the waning moments, Erikson sent a cross from the right side of the box and Scheller quickly redirected a shot >from the left side for her fourth goal of the season and second in as many games (88:51).
ND HEAD COACH RANDY WALDRUM:
“Tonight was a classic example of why Anne Makinen is the best player in college soccer. She takes the game to another level for our team and presents a whole different set of challenges for teams trying to defend us. It was amazing how the game changed so quickly after she checked in. … This was one of the most competitive games we have played this season. I have to credit Yale because they came out and played with us. Even after we had taken the lead, they kept adding forwards to try to generate some offense and that opened things up at the end.”
NOTES:
Makinens 177 career points (62G-53A) move her past Holly Manthei (94-97) into 5th on the ND all-time scoring list, behind only Jenny Streiffer (211), Monica Gerardo (190), Cindy Daws (189) and Jenny Heft (189) … Yales four corner kicks are the second-most by an ND opponent this season (Portland had seven) … despite the pair of Yale shots off the posts, ND yielded no shots on goal for the third time this season (the Irish have allowed 0-2 shots on goal in 11 games and more than four just once) … since giving up a goal by Stanford on Sept. 10, the Irish have allowed just two goals (one on a PK at West Virginia and the other on a counterattack by Boston College) and 19 shots on goal in the last 11-plus games (1,128 minutes) … the Irish are two shutouts shy of tying the team record for fewest goals allowed in the regular season (5, also in 1997) … the current 16-game winning streak trails only a 17-game run in 1997 as the longest in Irish history (the 95 and 96 teams combined to win 24 straight) … ND has won its last 19 regular-season games, breaking the Irish record of 18 set from 1995-96 … Erikson has 12 points (5G-2A) in the last five games and 151 (55G-38A) for her career, just five behind 96 graduate Michelle McCarthy for 7th on the ND all-time scoring list (her 56 goals push her past 96 grad. Rosella Guerrero into 7th in ND history, three behind McCarthy, with Erikson edging past McCarthy into 10th on the ND career assists list) … Makinen and Erikson have joined Streiffer and Heft as the second pair of ND classmates to each reach 150 career points … the recent play of Guertin (5G-1A in last 6 games) and Scheller (2G-2A in last 6 GP) has helped overcome the absence of their classmate Wagner.
#1 NOTRE DAME (16-0-0) 0 4 - 4YALE (7-6-1) 0 0 - 0
ND 1. Meotis Erikson 10 (Anne Makinen) 53:58, ND 2. Makinen (free kick) 82:03, ND 3. Amanda Guertin 9 (Randi Scheller) 86:48, ND 4. Scheller 4 (Erikson) 88:57.
Shots: ND 19, YALE 4. Saves: ND 0 (Liz Wagner), YALE 6 (Sarah Peterson).
Corner Kicks: ND 1, YALE 4. Offsides: ND 2, YALE 1.
Fouls: ND 11, YALE 8. Yellow Card: ND – Monica Gonzalez (1).