Resiliency has been key for Notre Dame all season long. The Irish (11-5, 4-1 Big East) have been able to come back from tough and unexpected losses to keep themselves in the picture for both the Big East and National Championships.
Sunday proved to be the ultimate example of that resiliency, as the Irish bounced back from a tough loss to Vanderbilt on Wednesday with a 20-9 thumping of Rutgers (7-9, 2-3 Big East) in Piscataway, N.J.
Sophomore attack Gina Scioscia highlighted the Irish offense with a career-high seven points on two goals and five assists. She now leads the team with 28 assists on the season after posting her fifth five-assist game on the year.
Junior attack Jillian Byers notched five first-half goals to bring her season total to 61. Senior midfielder Caitlin McKinney added six points with three goals and three assists.
Junior goalkeeper Erin Goodman had another strong performance, limiting the Scarlet Knights to six goals during her time between the pipes. Some of that can be attributed to the shot disparity, as Notre Dame out shot Rutgers 43-20.
Notre Dame dominated the game right from the start, with the Irish jumping out to an early 4-0 under 4 minutes into the game. They would score 10 out of the game's first 11 goals, and cruised to an 11-5 halftime lead. The second half would prove to be more of the same, as Notre Dame found the back of the net 5 times in the first 10 minutes of the half, stretching their lead to 16-5 and putting the game out of reach for the Scarlet Knights.
The game was the last regular season Big East game for the Irish, and they next play in the Big East tournament, which will begin on Friday in Notre Dame Stadium. With the win, the Irish have solidified the No. 2-seed heading into tournament play and will take on Georgetown on Friday night.
