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Thursday, March 28, 2024
The Observer

Men's Lacrosse: Irish not able to hold on to strong first half

After a stellar first half, the No. 19 Irish were not able to follow through in the second half, falling 11-8 to Big East foe and No. 9 Georgetown Saturday in Washington, D.C.
The loss can most certainly be blamed on the disparity in performances between the two halves. Before the game, Irish coach Kevin Corrigan said he wanted his team to play solid lacrosse for 60 minutes. Unfortunately, that did not happen.
"We played a great first half and a terrible second half," Corrigan said.
The first half saw Notre Dame (5-5, 0-3 Big East) hit the back of the net eight times, including a career high four goals handed in by senior Grant Krebs and a strong defensive performance against the athletic Hoya attack. The Irish went into the break leading 8-6.
The second half was a different story. The Hoyas rallied for five unanswered goals in the final 30 minutes to clinch the victory and hand the Irish their third straight loss.
This loss also leaves Notre Dame without a Big East win in the inaugural season for the conference and brings the Irish closer to being knocked out of contention for a berth in the NCAA tournament.
Despite the loss, the Irish will continue to move forward and are working to get better every day, Corrigan said. The team's schedule does not get any easier, however, as it will face Providence, St. John's and No. 3 Syracuse in upcoming games.
"I don't expect to see any difference in our approach," Corrigan said. "I don't want to see any decrease in our work ethic either."
Other than Krebs' career-high performance, senior Neal Hicks, sophomore Nicholas Beattie and junior Zach Brenneman each had one goal and an assist. Freshman Steve Murphy added a goal and sophomores Max Pfeifer and Sean Rogers each tallied an assist.
Senior goalkeeper Scott Rodgers started for the Irish, making four saves in the first half. Freshman John Kemp finished the game and made six stops between the pipes.
Although the Irish have had their ups and downs this season, Corrigan said he remains focused on the team's work ethic and improvement.
"We need to go be best team we can be," Corrigan said. "The job is what it is. Our job is to get the best out of our players."
The Irish return to Arlotta Stadium Saturday to face Providence in a noon game.