The Irish upperclassmen stood out on Senior Day Saturday in Arlotta Stadium, but it was a freshman that stole the show. In Notre Dame's 13-10 win over No. 16 Georgetown, midfielder Kaitlyn Brosco scored four goals to spur the Irish onto victory.
After Georgetown's Dina Jackson scored to put the Hoyas (8-6, 6-1 Big East) up 2-1 early in the first half, it was Brosco who responded with a free-position goal 57 seconds later to tie the game. Brosco's goal triggered a 6-0 Notre Dame run that lasted nearly 10 minutes. The freshman capped this run with an unassisted goal to put the Irish (7-8, 4-2) up comfortably 7-2.
"[Brosco] has been amazing the last two games," Irish coach Tracy Coyne said. "She was doing a great job reading the Georgetown defense."
Junior attack Maggie Tamasitis helped the Irish by chipping in three goals and an assist of her own, extending her point streak to 33 games. Senior midfielder Kaitlin Keena also turned in a solid effort, scoring two goals and assisting on two others while scooping up four ground balls.
Hoya sophomore midfielder Sophia Thomas led Georgetown in team highs with three goals and three draw controls. While Georgetown came into the game with an opportunistic defense that caused nearly 11 turnovers per game, the Hoyas could only cause three turnovers from the Irish.
"We played an awesome first half," Coyne said. "We had built such a big lead, [the second half turnovers] didn't cost us."
Brosco continued her sizzling two-game stretch, which began when Notre Dame played No. 20 Vanderbilt April 20. In Notre Dame's 12-10 overtime loss to Vanderbilt, Brosco tallied four goals and an assist for a career-high five-point game.
In the loss to the Commodores (8-7), senior midfielder Shaylyn Blaney had another complete game with two goals, two ground balls, three draw controls and two caused turnovers.
After falling behind 6-3 in the first half to Vanderbilt, the Irish responded in a big way – driven by Brosco, who scored four consecutive goals in less than four minutes to give Notre Dame the lead.
"Brosco was on fire. She was just in the zone," Coyne said.
Blaney's second goal of the day with just 10:02 left in the second half tied the game at 10, where it would stay until overtime. In overtime, Vanderbilt senior attack Katherine Denkler struck first with a free-position goal less than two minutes into the period. Notre Dame only managed one shot in overtime.
"We started pressuring a little more [in the second half]. We were conservative in the first," Coyne said. "It was a pretty bitter loss — there was no talking on the bus."
With the win over Georgetown, the Irish now have sole possession of fourth place in the Big East, ahead of their Friday opponent Louisville (10-6, 3-4).
