Fresh off its second top 15 victory of the season, the Notre Dame women’s soccer team is riding high into its first ACC home match of the season. The Irish, after defeating No. 14 Virginia by a 1-0 score on Sunday, will take on NC State on Thursday night. Notre Dame enters the contest with a 7-1-1 overall record and an eight-match unbeaten streak that ranges all the way back to Aug. 18.
Checking in on the freshmen
Notre Dame’s historic, 13-member freshman class turned plenty of heads throughout the season’s first month. Accounting for nearly all of the team’s points, the first-year group put its skill set on full display for both Irish fans and the women’s college soccer world. Still, it’s always reasonable to wonder whether or not the pressure and challenge of conference play — especially ACC play — will slow down a collection of inexperienced players. So far, it absolutely hasn’t.
All three of Notre Dame’s goals to start ACC action have come off the feet of freshmen. When conference play began just under two weeks ago, forward Ellie Hodsden carried the Irish to a 2-2 draw with her first career brace. In Sunday’s takedown of Virginia, forward Annabelle Chukwu made her return from the U20 World Cup and scored the day’s only goal. Freshman midfielder Grace Restovich assisted on Chukwu’s goal, bringing her team-leading assist total to seven. Restovich ranks inside the nation’s top five with 0.78 assists per game.
At this point, Notre Dame freshmen own 71% of the team’s points — 54 out of the 76. First-year forward Izzy Engle, despite a two-match scoring drought, still leads the Irish by a mile on goals (10) and points (21). Three more freshmen — Restovich (13), midfielder Lily Joseph (9) and Hodsden (6) — are next behind her in the points column. Chukwu already has five points despite playing in only three matches thus far.
Reinforcements are on the way
Notre Dame hasn’t played a match at full strength since the 6-0 win at Samford that started their unbeaten streak in mid-August. After that game, three players — Chukwu, junior midfielder Leah Klenke and sophomore defender Clare Logan — departed for the U20 World Cup. While the trio’s impact on the team is undeniable, the Irish turned out just fine without them. In six games without Chukwu, Klenke and Logan, Notre Dame went 5-0-1 and outscored its opponents by an 18-2 margin.
Two of the three international representatives returned on Sunday at Virginia. Chukwu, of course, tallied the game-winning goal, while Logan played all 90 minutes in her return to help Notre Dame to a clean sheet. Once Klenke makes her way back after claiming the bronze medal on Saturday, the Irish will have full capacity for October and the stretch run of ACC play. Recall that Klenke was Notre Dame’s only Preseason All-ACC selection when the season began. Knowing the Irish have gone 6-0-1 without her, look out for what they might become upon her return.
Inconsistent NC State looking for first ACC win
It’s been a bumpy start for NC State, particularly on the offensive side of the ball. The Wolfpack entered the year projected to finish 12th out of 17 teams in the ACC Women’s Soccer Coaches Poll and are off to a 3-6-1 start overall. NC State posted a losing record in non-conference play and fell to Cal and No. 1 Stanford at home in their first weekend of ACC play.
Most of NC State’s early struggles have originated from its inconsistent and largely lackluster offense. The Wolfpack have scored just 14 goals in their first 10 games, ranking dead last in the ACC for goals per game. On three occasions, they have scored three goals or more, while in the remaining seven games they have posted one goal or less. They come into South Bend on a cold streak having opened conference play with home losses to Cal by a 3-1 score and top-ranked Stanford by a 1-0 margin.
No NC State player has reached the double-digit plateau for points this season, but midfielder Annika Wohner leads the way with nine on four goals and an assist. In goal, former Louisville transfer Olivia Pratapas has played each of the season’s 900 minutes for the Wolfpack, pitching three shutouts with a 1.20 goals against average and a .755 save percentage. She faced the Irish last October, making four saves against 24 shots as Notre Dame picked up a 1-0 victory. Overall, the Irish have claimed nine out of the 12 previous meetings with the Wolfpack.
Notre Dame and NC State will get underway inside Alumni Stadium at 7 p.m. on Thursday.
