Notre Dame women’s lacrosse closed out their regular season with a thrilling win Saturday, taking down Louisville 15-14.
The Irish fell behind early on the road, with the Cardinals jumping out to a quick 6-2 lead in Louisville. But in the second quarter Notre Dame began to close the gap, outscoring the Cardinals 6-4 to enter halftime trailing 10-8. The second quarter run was fueled by strong performances from junior Kasey Choma and graduate student Maddie Howe, who each notched a pair of goals late in the frame to close out a 4-1 Irish run.
Notre Dame would go on to take their first lead in the third quarter, thanks to a strong rebound from a quick 2-1 run by the Cardinals coming out of the break. Down 12-9, the Irish would score four consecutive goals to take a 13-12 lead into the final quarter. The surge was capped off by a goal from senior Madison Mote, who took the ball at midfield, raced to the goal, and slotted in the score.
The fourth quarter would prove to be the most intense of the game. Louisville took advantage of the break to recollect themselves, and stopped the Irish run by quickly tying up the score at 13 barely five minutes into the quarter. Choma would give Notre Dame the lead again by firing home her fifth goal of the game, but the Cardinals didn’t back down. With just under eight minutes left in the game Louisville scored again, leaving the two teams knotted up with all to play for down the stretch.
But with a little more than two and a half minutes left on the clock it would be Notre Dame that would go ahead for good. The Irish broke away in transition and junior Madison Ahern found Howe, who coolly found the back of the net for the game winner. The goal would also complete a hat trick on the day for Howe, and a hat trick of assists for Ahern.
Looking ahead the Irish will now prepare for postseason, with a matchup against the Duke Blue Devils in the ACC Tournament looming. Notre Dame has had a chance to face the Blue Devils already in conference play, falling 12-15 at home in late March. Mote had a great game for the Irish that Saturday, notching a team high five goals in the game. Catriona Barry powered a high flying Duke attack, pacing the offense with a six goal performance. The game was a close one throughout, with the quarter-by-quarter score actually being tied for two of the four frames. However, it was a strong opening and closing performance by the Blue Devils that ensured their victory. Duke outscored the Irish in both the first and fourth quarters to break the deadlock and leave South Bend with a win.
Notre Dame women’s lacrosse will open ACC tournament play Friday, when Duke travels to South Bend. The game is slated to begin at 2:30 p.m. and will be broadcasted on the ACC Network.
