CARY, N. C. - Irish forward Katie Thorlakson announced her intention of remaining with the Irish on Sept. 24, foregoing the opportunity to compete for Canada at the Under-19 World Championships in Thailand.
It's a good thing she stayed.
Notre Dame won the national championship Sunday afternoon defeating UCLA 4-3 in penalty kicks after playing to a 1-1 tie in 110 minutes, the lone Irish goal scored by Thorlakson.
Against the Bruins, Thorlakson scored the game-tying goal on a penalty kick to send the contest into overtime. It was her fourth goal of the NCAA Tournament.
In overtime, neither team scored, and the game went to a best-of-five penalty kicks, the first time ever in a women's national championship game. Both teams made three of its five, and the game went into sudden victory.
Irish midfielder Jill Krivacek found the back of the net, and goalkeeper Erika Bohn stopped the Bruins to preserve the Irish win.
It was Notre Dame's second national championship ever, and the first since 1995. Thorlakson's performance in the NCAA Tournament proved to be key to the Irish title. And it was safe to say she was glad she stayed.
"It means everything to me because you play with these people every day," Thorlakson, a Hermann Trophy candidate said.
Irish coach Randy Waldrum knew in September when Thorlakson announced that she would stay at Notre Dame that something special could happen.
"This is a huge moment for our program because it shows the commitment of an elite player wiling to stay and help win a national championship," he said at the time.
And Thorlakson did just that.
