At the end of each season, successful teams can often pick out key moments that got them where they are. The Notre Dame men’s soccer team, in the event that they continue building on their strong start to the 2023 season, might pick out their 0-0 draw on the road against No. 4 ranked Akron as one of those moments.
As conference play in the ACC begins, the resilience showed in this non-conference test should encourage the Irish. Traveling to face an Akron team that had opened the season outscoring opponents 16-5 en route to a 5-0-2 record would prove to be a tall task. The Irish defense, however, was up to the challenge.
Spearheading the effort was the brilliance of senior goalkeeper Bryan Dowd who made a massive 12 saves. Dowd made eight in the first half alone.
What makes this performance so special is more than the solid result against one of the country's best teams. Notre Dame displayed character, especially defensively. The match marked the team’s fourth clean sheet of the season, an impressive record considering the level of competition faced.
With the defensive unit performing as well as they have, the attack should be empowered to take chances and be creative in breaking down opponent defenses. The Irish will hope to put it all together and build on their gutsy performance as they face Virginia back at home on Friday night in a pivotal ACC matchup.
Virginia has opened up the season 4-2-1 overall with a 1-1 conference record. The Cavalier attack has produced nine goals in seven matches. It has been led by freshman forward Stephen Annor Gyamfi who has a team-high four goals in seven appearances. Senior forward Leo Afonso has four goal contributions of his own, scoring two and assisting two in six appearances.
The defense has allowed just eight goals through seven matches. Senior goalkeeper Holden Brown has saved 11 of the 16 shots he has faced in his six appearances. Both units will need to be at the top of their game going into their matchup with the No. 15 ranked Irish.
Notre Dame seeks to improve their ACC record to 2-0-1 and remain at the top of both the Coastal division and the entire conference. Following a disappointing 1-1 draw in their last ACC match against North Carolina, the Irish will look to feed off of the home crowd’s energy and spark a bit more creativity in front of the goal. They likely will create chances against this Virginia defense. The question is: will they finish them? This will be answered on Friday at 8:00 p.m. at Alumni Stadium and on the ACC Network.
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Irish continue ACC play following a difficult non-conference test
Irish senior goalkeeper Bryan Dowd looks ahead during Notre Dame's 1-1 draw with Indiana at Alumni Stadium on Aug. 24.
