As the campuses of the University of Notre Dame, Saint Mary’s College and Holy Cross College empty out for fall break this weekend, each institution’s athletic programs will continue full steam ahead. Here’s a look at what each team has in store over the next week and a half.
Notre Dame
Football
Much to the delight of Notre Dame students, the 5-1 Irish will bookend fall break with two games outside South Bend. They’ll take on Georgia Tech at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta at 3:30 p.m. this Saturday before opposing Navy at noon next Saturday at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Georgia Tech, an 11.5-point underdog against the Irish this weekend, comes in at 5-2 after outlasting North Carolina in a 41-34 road win last week. Quarterback Haynes King and running back Jamal Haynes put their one-two rushing punch on full display, combining for 277 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.
Navy, meanwhile, is 5-0 and ranked 25th in the nation. The Midshipmen took a bye last week after scoring a season-low 34 points at Air Force to start October. Under the direction of multi-dimensional quarterback Blake Horvath and running back Eli Heidenreich, Navy has a very real passing attack this year.
Hockey
Off to a 2-0 start, the 18th-ranked Irish will play their home opener series against Alaska this weekend. The Nanooks are 0-4 but have played in a trio of one-goal games this season, including two at Michigan Tech last weekend. They’ll have the challenge of defending sophomore center Cole Knuble, the reigning Big Ten First Star of the Week, at 7 p.m. on Friday and 6 p.m. on Saturday.
Next weekend, the Irish will play another home series against Long Island, who split with Augustana last week.
Men’s Soccer
Only four games remain in Notre Dame’s regular season, and the Irish are winless in their last three contests. Currently positioned ninth in the ACC standings, they have a series of winnable matches coming up, beginning with a 7 p.m. tilt against Boston College on Saturday at Alumni Stadium. The Eagles carry the worst conference (0-4-2) and overall (3-4-5) records in the ACC.
Moving into next week, the Irish will stay home to face UIC on Tuesday in the season’s final non-conference match. Then, two Sundays from now, they’ll head west to visit Cal, which owns the second-worst overall record in the ACC at 4-5-2.
Women’s Soccer
As of now, No. 12 Notre Dame has three consecutive top-25 matchups coming up, beginning with Thursday’s 7 p.m. clash with No. 25 Cal. After that, the Irish will travel to No. 1 Duke for a massive postseason litmus test at 7 p.m. on Thursday. At 11-1 overall and 6-0 in conference play, the Blue Devils top the ACC table and, like the Irish, have not lost since Aug. 15.
Another ranked showdown will bring the Irish back home to face No. 18 Virginia Tech on Oct. 27. Currently third in the ACC standings, the Hokies have come on strong lately, defeating No. 22 Florida State back on Oct. 6.
Volleyball
Four games await the 9-6 Irish over the next 10 days, beginning on a 6:30 p.m. home date with NC State on Friday. Notre Dame will then host Wake Forest in a Sunday matinee at 1 p.m.
While the Irish, who have played excellent volleyball at home this year, could realistically sweep this weekend, next week is as tough as it gets. Notre Dame will travel to No. 12 SMU and No. 1 Pittsburgh, two teams with a combined record of 28-5.
Cross Country
Coming off a women’s third-place finish and a championship from the men at the Joe Piane Invite on Oct. 4, Notre Dame heads to Madison this weekend. The Irish will compete at the Wisconsin Pre-Nationals, which are set to get underway at 11 a.m. on Saturday.
Men’s Golf
The 23rd-ranked Irish will wrap up their fall season from Sunday to Tuesday at the Williams Cup in Wilmington, North Carolina. Last time out, Notre Dame won the Fighting Irish Classic with a team score of 5 under par.
Women’s Golf
The rest of Notre Dame’s golfers will head to Wilmington just a few days later for The Landfall Tradition, hosted by UNC Wilmington from Oct. 25-27. The Irish women delivered their strongest performance of the season with a fifth-place finish at the Evie Odom Invitational in early October.
Swimming and Diving
Fresh off a 180-82 defeat of Miami (Ohio), the Irish will take to Ann Arbor this weekend for meets against Michigan and Wisconsin on Friday and Saturday. They will remain in Big Ten country and visit Indiana for a dual on Wednesday, Oct. 23.
Saint Mary's
Saint Mary’s College has four of their sports competing over the break including basketball, cross country, soccer and volleyball.
Basketball
The Belles basketball team will start the 2024-2025 season with a home opener over break against Lake Michigan College on Oct. 25 starting at 6 p.m. This game over break will mark the first game of the season for the Belles basketball team. The team finished the 2023-2024 season 5-20 overall and 2-14 in conference. This year, with new head coach Rob Hoffman, the team is looking to have a strong season.
Cross Country
Over the break, the Belles cross country team will be competing in the Augustana Interregional Invitational on Oct. 25.
Soccer
Belles soccer is currently 6-4 on the season overall and 1-1 in the MIAA heading into fall break. The Belles are going to be competing in three games heading into the break.
The first game that the Belles will face is on Oct. 19 against Alma with kick off set for 1 p.m. This game is also going to be senior day for the Belles. This year the Belles have five seniors on the team including Riley Lindsey, Grace Barresi, Mary Kaczynski, Katie Harrington and Izzi Linus.
The Belles are going to go back on the road to face Albion on Oct. 22 with kick off set for 7 p.m. The third and final game is going to be back at home as the Belles face off against Trine on Oct. 26 starting at 1 p.m.
Volleyball
The Saint Mary’s Volleyball team is 8-11 overall on the season so far as well as being 0-4 in the MIAA and will be competing in one game over fall break. The Belles are going to be facing off against Adrian College on Oct. 23 starting at 7 p.m.
Holy Cross
The Holy Cross Saints also have sports competing over fall break including men’s and women’s soccer, women’s basketball and men's tennis.
Women's Soccer
The women’s soccer team are currently 5-7-1 overall on the season so far and 3-2-1 in conference play. The team is competing in two games over the break.
The Saints will face Saint Xavier in their first game at 6 p.m. on Oct. 19. Their second match is against Judson on Oct. 23, with kickoff set for 4:30 p.m.
Men’s Soccer
Holy Cross College men’s soccer team is currently 4-6-4 on the season so far and 1-2-3 in conference play. The Saints are also going to be competing in three games over fall break.
The Saints will kick off their first game on October 19 at 8:30 p.m. against Saint Xavier, following the women’s soccer match. Their second game is scheduled for October 22 at 3:30 p.m., when they will face Judson. The Saints will wrap up their series on October 26 with a 2:30 p.m. kickoff against Trinity Christian.
Women’s Basketball
The women’s basketball team is playing one game over fall break. They face off against Taylor University.
Men’s Tennis
The men’s tennis team will be the last Saints team in action over the break, competing in the Cleveland State Fall Tournament, a three-day event from Oct. 25-27.
