Oct. 25, 2002
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Junior midfielder Randi Scheller’s pair of goals in the game’s first five minutes signaled a strong offensive night for the 18th-ranked Notre Dame women’s soccer team, as the Irish continued their lateseason push with a 6-0 victory over visiting Syracuse – in BIG EAST cross-divisional action Friday night at Alumni Field.
Notre Dame (10-7-0) – winners of three of its last four, heading into Sunday’s regular-season finale at Boston College – owned a 27-4 shot edge and a 9-1 advantage in corner kicks. Junior forward Amanda Guertin registered her sixth and seventh corner-kick assists of the season, setting up header goals by Scheller and sophomore midfielder Mary Boland.
The Irish pushed their home winning streak vs. BIG EAST teams to 44 games (dating back to 1995), including 30 shutouts and just one game with more than one goal allowed by the Irish in that stretch. Notre Dame also has won its last 25 games played during the final week of the regular season (dating back to 1990), including five in the Randy Waldrum era (since ’99).
The six goals represent Notre Dame’s highest goal output in 26 games, since a 7-0 win over St. John’s on Oct. 26, 2001.
Boland turned in one of her best all-around games of the season, also scoring in the game’s 69th minute for a 5-0 lead. Freshman midfielder Katie Thorlakson and junior forward Amy Warner rounded out the Irish scoring in the second half.
Friday’s game marked the third time this season that Guertin corner kicks have assisted on two Irish goals (also in 5-2 win over #25 Maryland and 3-1 win over #8 UConn). Her 10 total assists in 2002 equal her combined assist total from the 2000 and ’01 seasons.
Guertin’s rightside corner set up Scheller’s header in the early moments (3:25), with Scheller’s fifth goal of the season coming less than a minute later. Thorlakson chipped a lead pass into the right side of the box and Scheller scored inside the near right post for the early 2-0 cushion (4:30).
A leftside corner from Guertin led to the third goal, with the 5-9 Boland elevating near the far side of the goal and heading in her fourth goal of the season (23:47).
Sophomore defender Candace Chapman used her sneaky dribbling skills to get loose on the left endline midway through the second half, threading a pass into the box for Thorlakson – who used the outside of her right foot to nudge the ball into the far sidenetting (61:51).
Boland then scored on a high shot from the top of the box (68:25) and Warner capped the flurry on a chip shot from the right side (her team-leading ninth goal of the season), after taking a pass from freshman forward Maggie Manning (78:57).
Scheller registered the second multi-goal game of her career (also vs. Michigan in 2000; 17 career goals) while Boland notched the first multi-goal game of her career (8G total).
#18 NOTRE DAME 3 3 – 6
SYRACUSE 0 0 – 0
ND 1. Randi Scheller 6 (Amanda Guertin) 3:25; ND 2. Scheller 7 (Katie Thorlakson) 4:30; ND 3. Mary Boland 4 (Guertin) 23:47; ND 4. Thorlakson 3 (Candace Chapman) 61:51; ND 5. Boland 5 (-) 68:25; ND 6. Amy Warner 9 (Maggie Manning) 78:57.
Shots: SU 0-4-4, ND 14-13-27.
Corner Kicks: SU 1-0-1, ND 6-3-9.
Saves: SU 11 (Emily Kowalchzk) , ND 3 (Erika Bohn 0, Lauren Kent 3).
Fouls: SU 4, ND 15.
Offsides: SU 1, ND 2.