It’s been over 20 years since the Notre Dame women's soccer team played the Berkeley women. The two haven’t played each other since 2000 when Notre Dame defeated Cal 3-0 at home.
This Thursday, however, Notre Dame will again host the Golden Bears for a long-awaited rematch. The Irish women are currently ranked 12th in the NCAA with a record of 8-1-2, and in Atlantic Coast Conference play, the Irish are ranked ninth with a record of 2-0-3. In comparison, the Bears are ranked 25th in the NCAA but sixth in the ACC.
The Irish last played unranked Louisville on Oct. 12 in Kentucky. Though the Irish had four times as many shots as their opponent and maintained the majority of possession, they ended with a scoreless draw. However, just one week before competing against Louisville, the Irish dominated against Syracuse, ending comfortably with a score of 3-0.
Lily Joseph, a freshman midfielder from Connecticut, scored two goals against Syracuse. Joseph has five goals this season. Freshman goalkeeper Sonoma Kasica played the entirety of the games against Louisville and Syracuse, and the Florida native secured the shutouts with three saves. Freshman forward Izzy Engle from Minnesota continues to lead the team in goals scored with 10 goals in just 12 games. In the ACC, she is ranked second for goals scored. Grace Restovich, a freshman midfielder from Saint Louis, leads the team in assists with eight and also has three goals for the Irish.
The Irish have crushed their opponents in terms of goals with 2.5 goals per game compared to their competitors’ 0.42. They also have almost double the amount of shots per game as their opponents (20.2 versus 10.6).
Compared to Notre Dame's record of 8-1-2, the Berkeley women have a record of 10-1-2 in overall play and a record of 3-1-1 in the ACC. Over the past week, the Golden Bears have lost to both No. 1 Duke and No. 2 North Carolina. Most recently, Cal lost 2-1 to Duke, whom they played on Oct. 13. Duke came back from 1-0 down late in the second half with the equalizer in the 71st minute and game winner in the 87th. Against North Carolina, the Bears lost 1-0 on Oct. 10.
Up top, senior Karlie Lema leads the Golden Bears in goals scored with 14 this season and 29 over her four years. She scored the lone goal against the Blue Devils on the 13th. Velize King, a senior from Moreno Valley, California, made the assist to Lema and has seven other assists this season. Junior Teagan Wy plays in goal for the Golden Bears and has 26 saves this season and has let in six goals. Last year, Wy ranked second in the ACC with 86 total saves.
It’s been a long time since the Irish have faced the Golden Bears, and neither of the teams are coming off of wins. It will definitely be a tough battle to see who comes out on top.
The Irish will host the Golden Bears on Oct. 17 at 4 p.m. at Alumni Stadium.
