SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The Notre Dame Fighting Irish (6-4-3, 3-3-0) defeated the Boston College Eagles (5-5-3, 1-5-0) in a 2-0 victory at Alumni Stadium on Saturday night.
Sophomores Ren Sylvester and Luke Burton each recorded their first goals of the season in the win and freshman Michael Capretto finished with a career-high two assists on the night. Freshman Tristan Tropeano also recorded an assist as he continues to lead the Irish in scoring with five goals and 11 points.
Junior goalkeeper Blake Kelly recorded his third clean sheet of the season and ninth career shutout.
On a free kick from Ian Shaul, the Irish had their first opportunity of the night on a header from Sean McDowd in the 11th minute.
However, in the 15th minute, Notre Dame would find the back of the net first to claim an early 1-0 lead. Tropeano played it into the box, where a light touch from Capretto sent it to Sylvester, as his left-footed strike put the Irish on the board.
Looking to extend their lead, Vlad Walent shot it on a free kick opportunity just outside the penalty arc in the 43rd minute. Walent’s shot would hit the left post, resulting in a Boston College goal kick.
The Irish led 1-0 at the half and outshot the Eagles 6-4 with a 3-0 edge on corner kick opportunities.
While Boston College would go out to outshoot the Irish 8-4 in the second half, the Irish held strong defensively as they battled to keep the Eagles off the board in the second 45 minutes of play.
With three of Notre Dame’s four shot opportunities coming in the final 12 minutes of play, the Irish would take a two-goal lead in the 79th minute. Capretto delivered it into the box towards the near post as Burton’s quick touch allowed the Irish to find the back of the net yet again to make it 2-0.
Burton would have another scoring chance in the 83rd minute as he played it inside the six-yard box close to the goal line, but was unable to put it away as the Eagles goalkeeper made the save.
Capretto also had a look in transition in the 84th minute, but Boston College’s goalkeeper would come off his line to make the stop in the box.
The Irish would go on to close it out to secure their third conference win in their third shutout of the season.
McFARLAND FAMILY MEN’S HEAD SOCCER COACH CHAD RILEY’S TAKE
On the match…
“I am very proud of the team tonight. BC is a very good team, and I was pleased with the way we played and competed throughout the game. I was especially proud of the impact our substitutes made in both halves. They came on, raised the level of our performance, and made a real difference in the game. It was a great collective effort from the group tonight.”
UP NEXT
The Irish are back in action on Oct. 25 as they travel to No. 8 Louisville (10-2-2, 3-2-1) before closing out the regular season on Oct. 30 as they host Duke (7-8-0, 1-5-0) at Alumni Stadium.