The Irish return to Alumni Stadium and put their three-match winning streak on the line in a top 25 showdown against No. 6 Louisville at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday, Oct. 6. The fixture will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra, via the WatchESPN app.
NOTRE DAME VS. LOUISVILLE
Location: Notre Dame, Ind. | Alumni Stadium
Live Stream: ACC Network Extra
Live Stats: Click Here
Twitter Updates: @NDMenSoccer
Game Notes: vs. Louisville
THE LOUISVILLE SERIES
• The Irish and Cardinals will meet on the pitch for the 19th time on Saturday evening.
• The Irish lead the series with a mark of 11-6-1.
• Notre Dame is undefeated against Louisville when playing at home, holding a record of 8-0-0 in those matches.
• The Cardinals won by a final of 3-1 in the most recent meeting between the two sides, coming in the 2016 NCAA Championship on Nov. 27.
• Six of the last eight matchups have went to overtime.
BENCH IMPACT
• A key to the Irish current three-match winning streak has been the spark the subs have given the Irish, particularly going forward.
• Four of Notre Dame’s eight goals in the last three outings have come off the bench.
• Thomas Ueland, Jack Lynn, Aiden McFadden and Paul Rothrock have each found the back of the net in the stretch.
• The goals from McFadden (vs. Boston College) and Rothrock (at Northwestern) proved to be the match winners.
AHEAD OF THE GAME
• The Irish have played a combined 919 minutes and 26 seconds (15:19:26) over the first 10 matches of the season and have trailed for a total of 100 seconds (1:40).
• Notre Dame has yet to allow a goal in the first half of any fixture this season and the winning goals in the losses to No. 2 Indiana and No. 3 UNC came in overtime.
• The only time the Irish trailed in regulation occurred when Michigan State scored in the 89th minute (88:20).
SET-PIECE SUCCESS
• Seven of the 18 Irish goals scored this season have come directly from set pieces.
• Patrick Berneski has done the bulk of the damage, scoring five headers off set pieces.
• The other set-piece goal came from a sublime Felicien Dumas free kick that proved to be the game winner against Syracuse.
• Dumas has supplied the assist in five of the set-piece goals.
THE SKIPPER DOES IT ALL
• Senior center back Patrick Berneski has had an impressive senior season after earning the captain armband prior to the 2018 campaign.
• Berneski has scored in five of 10 matches this season, leading the team with five goals.
• The senior’s five goals are the most scored this season by any ACC defender.
HERE TO ASSIST
• Senior full back Felicien Dumas has been a weapon for the Irish this season in the attack, as the set-piece specialist has six assists and a goal in 2018.
• The defender ranks second in the ACC and 12th in the county for total assists with six.
• Dumas has assisted on four of Berneski’s five set-piece goals.
• The senior also scored one of the best goals of the season, striking a perfect free kick into the top right corner of the goal in what proved to be the game winner against Syracuse.
• Dumas was named the ACC Defensive Player of the Week on following his performance at Syracuse.
SECOND-HALF SCORING
• Of Notre Dame’s 18 goals scored, 14 have come in the second half this season.
• All three of Notre Dame’s goals in the wins at Syracuse and Northwestern came in the final 45 minutes of play.
• Just as impressive, the Irish defense has not allowed a goal in the first half in any match this season, spanning 450 minutes.
The CHAD RILEY ERA UNDERWAY
• Chad Riley was named the sixth head coach in program history on Jan. 4, 2018.
• Riley is a 2004 graduate of Notre Dame, where he was a standout on the soccer team under the previous head coach Bobby Clark.
• Riley was a three-time All-BIG EAST selection during his time with the Irish and was named the skipper of the squad in 2003.
• Prior to taking the reins of the Notre Dame program, Riley spent the last five seasons as the head coach of Dartmouth.
• Dartmouth won the Ivy League Championship in each of the last four seasons under Riley’s direction, earning four trips to the NCAA Championship.