SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Notre Dame begins a three-match road swing to close out the regular season with a non-conference matchup against NIU at 7 p.m. ET in DeKalb, Illinois, on Tuesday, Oct. 21. The match will be streamed on niuhuskies.com.
NOTRE DAME vs. NIU
Location: DeKalb, Illinois | NIU Soccer and Track & Field Stadium
Stream: niuhuskies.com
Live Stats: Click Here
Twitter Updates: @NDMenSoccer
Game Notes: vs. NIU
THE NIU SERIES
• The Irish and Huskies will meet on the pitch for the sixth time on Tuesday.
• Notre Dame leads NIU in the series with a mark of 2-1-2.
• The Irish defeated the Huskies by a score of 1-0 during the 2023 season, the most recent meeting in the matchup.
• Neither side has scored more than two goals in a match over the previous five installments in the series.
INSTANT IMPACT
• The freshman class has already made its presence felt on the Notre Dame roster, as the group has produced 22 points off seven goals and eight assists this season.
• Luke Burton has led the way from the striker position with three goals and two assists while making nine starts up top for the Irish.
• Ren Sylvester has found his form with two goals and two assists
• Alex Rosin has made seven starts at left back and has proved capable of going forward in attack with two goals and three assists.
• Karson Baquero has played in six matches as a midfielder, recording an assist in the win over Green Bay.
SET-PIECE SUCCESS
• The Fighting Irish have scored 11 goals off set pieces during the 2025 campaign.
• Three of the goals have come from free kicks, with Mitch Ferguson scoring a direct free kick and Diego Ochoa and Ferguson finishing from service into the box.
• The Irish have been even more lethal on corners, firing in eight goals this season. Ferguson, Burton and Rosin have each scored twice while Wyatt Borso and Martin Von Thun have each recorded one.
BK THE GK
• Blake Kelly has been a mainstay in goal for the Irish during his sophomore season, posting four clean sheets.
• The shot stopper ranks second in the ACC in saves per game with a mark of 3.64 per outing.
• Kelly started 12 matches for the Irish in 2024 and became the first true freshman goalie to start the season opener in the last 30 years for the program.
STRIKE FORCE
• The starting striker tandem of Wyatt Borso and Luke Burton has continued to gel over the course of the season, as the two have combined for eight goals and two assists.
• Borso leads the team in goals with five, scoring in five on the season which is a career high.
• Burton has recorded a point in five of the last nine matches, scoring in wins over Pitt, Omaha and Hope and picking up assists in victories over Louisville, Wright State and Hope.
BALANCED ATTACK
• Eleven players have scored the 22 goals for the Irish this season, as Wyatt Borso (5), Mitch Ferguson (4), Luke Burton (3), Alex Rosin (2) and Ren Sylvester (2) have each scored multiple times while Nolan Spicer, Jack Flanagan, Stevie Dunphy, KK Baffour and Diego Ochoa and Martin Vont Thun each found the back of the net once.
• Ten returning Irish players registered at least one point in their Notre Dame career, as the team returns 54 points from last year.
• Nine players that scored a goal during the 2024 campaign are back on this year’s team.
• Flanagan is the top returning goal scorer on the 2025 squad after firing in a career-high four goals during his sophomore campaign.
2025 CAPTAINS
• Mitch Ferguson and Wyatt Lewis will serve as the captains for this year’s Fighting Irish team and Blake Kelly will take on the role of assistant captain.
• Ferguson has appeared in 64 games over his Notre Dame career, scoring seven goals and adding eight assists from the center back position.
• Lewis enters his third season with the Fighting Irish and has three goals and four assists as a holding midfielder.
• Kelly started 12 matches as a freshman in 2024, posting a record of 4-3-5 while recording 26 saves.
THE CHAD RILEY ERA
• McFarland Family Head Men’s Soccer Coach Chad Riley is in his eighth season in charge of the Notre Dame men’s soccer program in 2025.
• Riley became the first head coach in program history to lead the Fighting Irish to two College Cup appearances, coming during the 2021 and 2023 seasons.
• Notre Dame has captured both an ACC regular season and tournament title under his direction, both firsts in program history.
BRANDON AUBREY – NFL PHENOM
• Dallas Cowboys kicker and Notre Dame men’s soccer alum Brandon Aubrey has become one of the best kickers in the NFL in just three short seasons.
• The kicker was an All-American center back for the Irish before being drafted in the first round of the 2017 MLS Draft by Toronto FC.
• Aubrey was named First-Team All-Pro and an NFC Pro Bowler after his rookie season in 2023.
• The Irish alum has set the record for most 60+ yard field goals made in a career with five, despite only being in his third season in the league.
• Aubrey is 15-for-15 on field goal attempts this season and 91-for-100 in his career, including an astounding mark of 29-for-32 on attempts of 50+ yards.