Notre Dame just needed to warm up a little.
On a cold and rainy night at Alumni Stadium, the Irish (5-4-1, 3-2 Big East) scored two goals in the second half for a come-from-behind 2-1 victory over Seton Hall.
"I think everyone was a little disappointed about how we played in the first 45 minutes," Irish coach Bobby Clark said. "I think the players knew they hadn't performed the way they're capable of. But full marks to them. It's not always easy to pull themselves up and they showed good character and they certainly came out with a different attitude in the second half."
Seton Hall (4-5-1. 1-3-1) struck early with a goal from Brayan Martinez in the 19th minute.
However, that was all the offense Seton Hall could muster. The Irish defense held the Pirates to just two shots on goal and seven overall shots. The second shot on goal, also by Martinez, was saved by senior goalkeeper Philip Tuttle.
The Irish were unable to score in the first half, but came out fast in the second period. Senior midfielder Michael Thomas scored in the 51st minute on a penalty kick to tie the game at one.
"The first goal always gets it back," Clark said. "The longer the game goes the more excited the other team becomes."
Senior midfielder Justin Morrow secured the game with a shot from 35 yards in the 71st minute. The shot went right through the hands of Seton Hall goalie Paul McHenry and into the goal.
"It was very well shot by Justin," Clark said. "Their goalkeeper played exceptionally well throughout. I think if he looks back he'll think if he had moved his feet a little quicker or if he had gotten his body behind it, it might have hit his body. It was a very good strike."
After scoring most of their goals in the second period, the Irish have earned a reputation as a second half team.
"We had to chase the game, which we do in quite a few games," Clark said. "Even in the games we've lost, we've played very well in the second half. In the games we've won the goals have come in the second half as well. It's good in that it shows the team has drive, determination, they perform, they have good fitness. But it's hard to spot why we don't score earlier."
The win moves the Irish into a third-place tie with Georgetown in the Big East Blue Division, while Seton Hall dropped to seventh.
"Like every game, if we're going to do what we did the last two years, win the league, there's not a lot of room," Clark said. "It's pretty clear what we've got to do. The win was very important."
The Irish will continue their conference schedule as they travel to Marquette Wednesday. That game is scheduled to start at 8:05 p.m.
Note:
uSophomore defender Aaron Maund and freshman midfielder Dillon Powers will return to Notre Dame earlier than expected.
The two left the Irish on Sept. 15 to play for the?United States at the Under-20 World Cup in Suez, Egypt. The Americans lost 3-0 to Germany, defeated Cameroon 4-1 and lost 3-0 to South Korea. Their overall score of three did not qualify them to move on to the next round in the tournament.
Clark said Maund and Powers were scheduled to land in New York early this morning but there is no decision yet about whethere they will play at Marquette.
"We've got to see where they are with their academics,"?Clark said. "The big thing is with Internet you can catch up and do a lot, and the professors have been very helpful.
"So the first question is academically can they make the trip to Marquette. Obviously we would love to have them but the academics come first."
