NOTRE DAME, Ind. — The University of Notre Dame women’s soccer team scored two second-half goals in the final 30 minutes of the match to come away with a hardfought 2-1 comeback victory over Cincinnati on Thursday evening. Freshman Olivia Wingate and senior Karin Muya scored the Irish goals in the winning effort.
How it Happened
The Irish had the best chance of the first half in the 34th minute after earning a corner kick. Senior Sabrina Flores sent it high towards the far post where freshman Jade Gosar had position after just entering the match moments before. Gosar sent a header low towards the far post but the Bearcats’ keeper was there to make the save.
The Bearcats jumped out in front in the 58th minute, taking advantage of a rebound opportunity. Cassie Weldon fired a shot from 20 yards out but Brooke Littman was there to make the initial save, sending the ball bouncing away. Sydney Kilgore got to the rebound for the Bearcats and scored the opening goal.
The Bearcats didn’t hold the lead for long as the Irish found the equalizer minutes later. Wingate brought the ball into the box from the left side and fired a strong shot towards the far corner past the keeper for the goal. It was the second straight game that Wingate has scored for the Irish.
Less than 10 minutes later, the Irish struck again to take the lead. Notre Dame had numbers in the attacking third and Jenna Winebrenner sent a cross in from the right side. The ball took a few bounces across the face of the goal until Wingate got to it and put a shot on goal. Cincinnati’s Madison Less made the save for the Bearcats but Muya came streaking in and struck the rebound into the back of the net. It was Muya’s first goal of the season and seventh of her career.
Stat of the Match
- The Irish won their 10th-consecutive match over the Bearcats with the 2-1 win Thursday night. Notre Dame is now 14-1-1 all-time against Cincinnati.
Coach Norman Said…
On whether he said anything to the team after they fell behind.
“Nope. I just told them to keep going and I let them….this team, they we try to, we really want them to run the show and you know, soccer is the ultimate players’ game and we try to empower them to motivate and inspire each other. You might give a little bit but you let them…they know. They don’t need to hear it. I was so proud of how they responded.”
On the long-term significance of a win like this.
“I think we challenged them in the Butler game and it wasn’t necessarily a tactical thing, we just challenged them to be more competitive, to be more gritty, and they did. I told them we could create an entire highlight video from this game. They just played great soccer. We won so many 50/50 balls, we had girls chasing people 80 yards back. I told them just help each other, and that stuff is contagious. I think they did a great job of that tonight.”
Coming Up Next
The Irish will finish off the two-game homestand with a Sunday matinee matchup with Ohio State. Sunday’s match with the Buckeyes will begin at 1 pm ET and be aired on the ACC Network Extra.
For behind-the-scenes coverage of the Irish women’s soccer program, follow @NDSoccer on Twitter and @NDWSoccer on Instagram. For tickets to a Notre Dame women’s soccer match, click here.
–ND–Matt Paras, athletics communications assistant director at the University of Notre Dame, has been part of the Fighting Irish athletics communications team since January 2018. In his role, he coordinates all media efforts for Notre Dame women’s soccer, baseball and assists in ice hockey. A native of Warwick, Rhode Island, Paras is a graduate of the University of Louisville where he completed his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Sport Administration. Prior to arriving at Notre Dame, he worked at Vanderbilt University as the sports information contact for the women’s soccer and lacrosse programs.