The No. 2 women's soccer team completed a solid weekend Sunday with a 2-1 victory over No. 10 Santa Clara at the SCU Adidas Classic. The Irish opened play in the tournament with a 0-0 tie against No. 16 Stanford.Although the Irish only scored two goals on the weekend, they dictated the majority of the play in both contests, taking a 14-5 advantage in shots against Santa Clara while having a 13-7 advantage against Stanford.With the win and tie, the Irish moved to 7-0-1 on the season. Santa Clara fell to 3-2-1 and Stanford exited the weekend with a 3-3-1 record.The Irish took the early lead against Santa Clara, with the tandem of junior Mary Boland and sophomore Katie Thorlakson combining on both goals against the Broncos. Thorlakson started the sequence five minutes in, with her cross going through the box to Boland, who placed the ball into the far right side of the net for her team-best seventh goal of the season, matching her combined total from her first two seasons at Notre Dame.Santa Clara notched the equalizer early in the second half, scoring on their only shot on a goal from freshman Marian Dalmy. It was only the fourth goal allowed by the Irish all season and the first goal allowed by Notre Dame in the second half of any game.The tie was short-lived however, with senior forward Amy Warner starting the eventual game-winning sequence. After gaining possession on the right side, she passed to Boland, who struck a low shot toward the goal. Santa Clara goalkeeper Julie Ryder saved the ball momentarily, but Thorlakson hammered home the rebound to provide the final margin.The Irish controlled most of the game against the Cardinal as well but could not find the net. The closest opportunity for the Irish came when senior Amanda Guertin's shot was saved by goalkeeper Nicole Barnhart and banged off the crossbar. The Irish also sent a few shots high just over the bar. Warner also played a strong game for the Irish, playing almost all 110 minutes while constantly harassing the Cardinal defenders.Freshman defender Christie Shaner was named the tournament's defensive MVP, while Boland and Warner also made the all-tournament team. The Irish now return home for an eight-game home-stand beginning with games against North Texas and Indiana State coming before an important weekend of Big East contests against West Virginia and Villanova starting October 3.
Notesu The Irish are undefeated in their last 14 overtime games.u The Irish have outscored their opponents this season 29-4.u Santa Clara's goal was the first scored against the Irish in 418 minutes of play.
