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The Observer

SMC Basketball: Belles' season sets record heights

By The Observer · Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2009

The Belles enjoyed their greatest season in program history, coming up just short in their bid to capture the MIAA title in a tough loss in the conference finals. With a 17-10 record overall, 13-3 in conference, Saint Mary's eclipsed the school's previous record for wins in each category. The Belles also reached the championship game of the MIAA conference tournament for the first time in school history, but fell to conference powerhouse Hope 77-47 in the finals on February 28. "It means a lot to reach the MIAA championship game," third-year head coach Jennifer Henley said. "Every team in this conference strives to get there." After graduating one of the most distinguished senior classes in the program's history, Saint Mary's used a balance of veteran leadership and impact freshmen to finish with 13 wins in the MIAA, second only to Hope's 15-1 mark. The Dutchmen's lone loss came at the hands of the Belles at Saint Mary's Angela Athletic Facility in January. Henley is confident that her squad will be able to build on this season's success, and the strong freshman and sophomore classes are a testament to the program's bright future. "With each new season, we continue to try and get one step closer to the [NCAA Division III Championships]," Henley said. "Despite coming up short, making it to the championship game validates that we are moving in the right direction." The Belles will lose four seniors from this year's team: Meghan Conaty, Katie Rashid, Erin Newsom and Nicole Beier. "I am very proud of our four seniors," Henley said. "They took ownership of this team early on and are a big reason for the success we had. One of the best parts of this season for me is to watch how this team has improved since [going 2-6 in non-conference play]." Newsom earned an All-MIAA first team selection, while forward Beier received All-MIAA second team honors. Newsom finished third in the MIAA in both scoring (14.4 ppg) and rebounds (7.8 ppg). Sophomore guard Liz Wade also earned conference honors, being named the MIAA Defensive Player of the Year after leading the league in steals (3.56 spg) and finishing second in assists. Losing four seniors, especially a senior class as strong as the Belles', will hit any program hard, Henley said. "It's hard to say who will fill the roles that are seniors had this year," she said. "Each season brings a new identity. Our four outgoing seniors have set the bar high for those that follow. I am very proud of this team and all that they have accomplished this season."

The Observer

Baseball: Improved ND closing strong

By The Observer · Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2009

Irish coach Dave Schrage thinks his team is playing its best baseball of the season as it prepares for the Big East tournament, which is set to begin Tuesday in Tampa, Fla. Notre Dame (30-20, 13-11 Big East) has won five of its last six games before its final conference series of the season begins today, at St. John's in Jamaica, N.Y. And in that stretch, the Irish took two of three from South Florida, the Big East's top team that had lost just two conference games all season before visiting Notre Dame. "We played really well and showed a lot of heart in all three games, coming from behind," Schrage said. "I liked how we came together and played, and we got a great spark from our seniors." No senior has given his team more sparks than shortstop and captain Jeremy Barnes, who is one of two players - along with junior center fielder A.J. Pollock - to start every game for the Irish this season. Barnes led Notre Dame in batting average (.358), home runs (10), RBIs (57) and total bases (122) heading into the weekend, and he trailed Pollock by just one for the team lead in hits. While Barnes has had the most eye-popping statistics of any of his classmates, Schrage said the constant presence of all five of his seniors - Barnes, co-captain Ryan Connolly, Sam Elam, Eddy Mendiola and Evan Sharpley - has been invaluable on a team with several young, up-and-coming stars. "They have meant a lot to us from a leadership standpoint," Schrage said. "Barnes and Connolly couldn't have been better captains, and they have all been great in the clubhouse and meant a lot to the program. We're certainly going to miss them." The Irish will certainly have an opportunity to make some waves and extend their season in the conference tournament. If Notre Dame takes two of three from St. John's this weekend, the Irish will earn the No. 4 seed in the Big East bracket after getting off to a fairly slow start. But Notre Dame has played more consistent ball of late, and Schrage said his team has shown it can play with anybody. "What's strange about this season is we've won two of three from all the teams at the top of the league," Schrage said. "We've got a lot of confidence, and I like how we're playing right now." A strong showing against the Red Storm would go a long way in preparing the Irish for what lies ahead in the Big East tournament, Schrage said. "We want some momentum going into the tournament," he said. "You want to be playing your best baseball at the end of the season." With solid starting pitching from Cole Johnson, Brian Dupra and Eric Maust, and a balanced lineup that starts with speedy outfielders Pollock and Golden Tate, Schrage said his squad may have the right pieces to make a late-season run. "In the league tournament, it's the team that plays the best for four days. That's baseball," Schrage said. "You've got to get hot, get good pitching and get some timely hits. We're going to be playing great competition, but whoever we play, our kids are going to feel like we can beat them."

The Observer

Hockey: Conference champs upended by Bemidji St.

By The Observer · Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2009

Led by a group of seniors that Irish coach Jeff Jackson said helped changed the culture of the program, Notre Dame followed up last year's national runner-up finish with a dominating regular season and a CCHA title that won't soon be forgotten despite a disappointing loss in the NCAA tournament's first round. "Probably 95 percent of the teams in the country would have loved to have our season," Jackson said. "It's a blemish, but it's the timing of [the NCAA loss] that hurt the most. I think winning the league and playoffs was another sign that we're making good progress." Perhaps the biggest sign of the Notre Dame (31-6-3, 21-4-3 CCHA) program's development under Jackson was the Feb. 12 announcement that the University will begin construction on a new, freestanding ice arena next spring that will be ready for the 2011-12 season. First-year athletics director Jack Swarbrick was a major supporter of the project, which had significant funding secured more than a year ago, but only recently received approval and a definite timeline for completion. "The fact that hockey has arrived on the campus is a huge thing, and we want to continue that in the next few years moving into a new building," Jackson said. Jackson has emphasized all along that while the graduating seniors won't have the opportunity to play in the new rink, it was their contributions over the last four years - Jackson's first four at Notre Dame - that helped make the dream facility a reality. Captain Erik Condra led the Irish in scoring in each of the last four years, and he was also a finalist this past season for the conference's top defensive forward honor. Condra, along with goaltender Jordan Pearce, was also one of 10 finalists for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. Pearce manned the Notre Dame goal for each of the past two years after sitting behind All-American Dave Brown for his first two. But Pearce made his time count, leading the nation and setting single-season Irish records in wins and shutouts as a senior. And Jackson said his other four seniors - current Toronto Maple Leafs center Christian Hanson, Luke Lucyk, Garrett Regan and Justin White - all stepped it up for their final season and provided valuable ice time in addition to quality leadership in the locker room. "There's no question that they've put us in position to be where we are," Jackson said. "Erik Condra was consistent throughout his career, but [others] really took their game to another level." The seniors' departures will surely hurt the Irish, but the proverbial cupboard is not bare by any means. Notre Dame will likely be one of the top teams in the country in preseason polls, as one of the nation's top recruiting classes will team with a solid returning core that includes eight of last season's top 10 scorers. Among the returnees will be sophomore Calle Ridderwall, who built on a strong finish to his freshman campaign by leading the Irish with 17 goals, including 11 on the power play - one of the top totals in the country. Notre Dame will also return freshman Billy Maday, whose 16 goals put him among the nation's top newcomers. The blue line will also be strong come October, with the return of juniors Kyle Lawson and Brett Blatchford and sophomores Ian Cole and Teddy Ruth to a defense that was underrated in the shadow of Pearce's dominance and the offense's ability to put up crooked goal tallies. "There will be some adjustment, but we've got potential for a good group of leaders next year," Jackson said. "We've got some big holes to fill, but I'm hoping that some guys continue to elevate their game similar to what Christian and Jordan did this year." Notre Dame's tremendous regular season came as no surprise to most, as the Irish were a consensus No. 1 or No. 2 pick in the preseason polls. But they struggled a bit out of the gate, dropping three of their first five games - including the first two conference games at home to Miami (Ohio). Perhaps those early defeats served as a wake-up call, though, as Notre Dame then rattled off a school-best 20-game unbeaten streak that spanned nearly three months - from an Oct. 31 loss to Miami to a Jan. 30 defeat at the hands of Michigan. "We were getting production from a lot of people," Jackson said of the streak. "I think our consistency was much better than in previous years." The streak helped the Irish distance themselves from the rest of the CCHA pack and solidify one of the top two spots in the national polls, where Notre Dame was ranked for nearly the entire the season. After the Miami series, the Irish never again lost back-to-back games, running away with the league title and then taking the CCHA tournament championship with wins over Northern Michigan and Michigan. The championship game victory over the Wolverines was particularly impressive, as Notre Dame overcame a two-goal deficit and a heavily pro-Michigan crowd to score five unanswered goals and win, 5-2, at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit. "That's why you play 60 minutes," Jackson said after that victory. "It was just a matter of being patient enough to generate some scoring chances. Once we caught a break, it turned the tide for us." Most viewed the Irish as being poised for a deep NCAA run, but Notre Dame went up against a feisty, quick Bemidji St. team in the first round at the Grand Rapids, Mich., regional. The Beavers took control with a pair of fluky goals early in the game, and Notre Dame never recovered in a 5-1 loss that sent the heavy favorites home in shock. "To be honest, it didn't sink in for me until I was sitting in the locker room, looking around, and realized I was never going to put on this jersey again and never play with these guys again," Hanson said after the game. Though the end of Notre Dame's season came sooner than many would have liked, Jackson noted that those feelings are another indication of how far the program has come just a few years removed from a single-digit win total. "Expectations have changed for our program and I think that we left with an empty feeling to an extent," Jackson said. "To become one of the top 10 teams in the country is one thing, but to try to sustain it is a lot more challenging."

The Observer

Women's Basketball: Injuries end Irish season, lead to Gophers' win

By The Observer · Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2009

Déjà vu can be positive or negative, and unfortunately the Irish got all of the bad kind and none of the good. Notre Dame lost sophomore forward Devereaux Peters to a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), the same ACL she tore last February. While we're at it, sophomore guard Brittany Mallory had the same injury. But there would be no return to the Sweet 16 for the Irish, who finished 22-9 but lost to Minnesota in the first round of the NCAA Tournament March 22. The Irish received the No. 7 seed in the Tournament and got a chance to play at home in the first round, but lost 79-71 to the No. 10-seed Gophers. The Irish gave up eight 3-pointers, a common problem for them all season. Five of them went to Gophers guard Katie Ohm. "Same old story, every game, we can't defend the 3-point line," Irish coach Muffet McGraw said after the game. "It was a fantastic crowd out there today and we didn't give them their money's worth." Ohm hit back-to-back 3s that acted as an early death knell for the Irish. "When Ohm hit those two back-to-back 3s that was really the gamebreaker right there," Irish junior guard Melissa Lechlitner said after the game. The Irish return every player next season, thanks to senior guard Lindsay Schrader's extra year of eligibility due to a torn ACL before her sophomore season. Peters tore her ACL during a win over Boston College on Nov. 23. Since she only played in three games, she can receive a medical redshirt. Notre Dame's start to the season boded well. The Irish began with a seven-game winning streak that included a 62-51 win over Purdue. Lechlitner scored 19 points to lead the team. The Irish suffered their first setback at Michigan, where they lost 63-59 in overtime. Notre Dame missed layups in the extra period and allowed Michigan's Stephany Skrba to score twice in a row. The Irish also lost Mallory to her ACL injury in the game. The Irish wouldn't lose again until they entered Big East play, running off seven straight victories. Included in these games was a 59-57 win over No. 20 Vanderbilt during which Notre Dame came back from down 18 points. Notre Dame outscored Vanderbilt 35-21 in the second half, led by Schrader and sophomore forward Becca Bruszewski with 12. Bruszewski scored 10 of her 12 points in the second half. Once Notre Dame entered conference play, however, it had difficulty mounting a winning streak like it had against non-conference opponents. The Irish defeated DePaul and Georgetown but then lost three of their next four. Marquette defeated the Irish on the road, 75-65, to start the skid. Notre Dame responded by edging St. John's 70-67 in a tough game. Schrader blocked a potentially game-tying 3-pointer to secure the Irish victory. Lechlitner had 15 points and Schrader and junior guard Ashley Barlow each had 13. Two straight losses to Villanova and Rutgers dampened the win. The Wildcats beat the Irish 55-48 on the road and sank 10 3-pointers in the process. "That's their game," McGraw said after the game. "I actually thought we did a decent job holding them to 55 points." Barlow led the low-scoring Irish offense with 11 points. Senior forward Laura Kurz had 16 points for the Wildcats. The Scarlet Knights didn't make life any easier when they visited the Joyce Center. Brittany Ray scored 26 points and Epiphanny Prince 24 in a 78-68 win over the Irish. "I thought Rutgers' two best players stepped up and played great," McGraw said. "We battled at the end. We definitely tried to fight down the stretch but it was too little, too late." Freshman guard Natalie Novosel led the team with 19 points, going 7-of-11 from field goal range. Lechlitner had 18 and Barlow added 17. This dropped Notre Dame's record to 15-4, 4-3 in conference play. The Irish alternated wins and losses for the next six games before ending the season on a three-game win streak. Schrader made sure the Irish beat Cincinnati by scoring 19 points and grabbing 15 rebounds in a 66-50 win at the Joyce Center. "We're just sick of losing, and we're sick of talking about losing," Schrader said after the game. "We have to go out there and let our actions show." Freshman forward Kellie Watson hit two back-to-back 3s near the end of the game. No momentum for Notre Dame, however, because Pittsburgh's Shavonte Zellous scored 29 points as the Panthers defeated the Irish 82-70 on the road. Freshman forward Erica Solomon scored 14 points in the game, as did Bruszewski. The Irish got within one in the second half, but Pittsburgh went on a 14-6 run to put them away. Notre Dame spanked DePaul in the Blue Demons' house the first time around, and the Blue Demons came for revenge. DePaul had a long 3-point attempt to tie that came close, but clanged off the rim to give Notre Dame a 62-59 win during "The Pink Zone" promotion that raised money to fight cancer. "I was holding my breath. That was a pretty open shot from quite a ways out," McGraw said. "I was saying some prayers there." Bruszewski hit a baseline jumper with 50 seconds left to give Notre Dame a two-point lead and the Irish made their free throws down the stretch. She finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds. No. 10 Louisville came to town next, and Notre Dame gave the Cardinals a tough challenge, but lost 71-66. Notre Dame had a 6-0 run to pull within two in the final minutes, but Lechlitner fouled Cardinals senior Angel McCoughtry as she attempted a 3-pointer. McCoughtry made all three free throws and Louisville came out on top. "When you look at us now, they're a top 10 team and we obviously are right there with them," McGraw told the Associated Press after the game. "So even though we lost I think we can draw some good things from that game." After a win on the road at South Florida, Notre Dame traveled to Storrs to face the undefeated, No. 1 team in the nation, Connecticut. The Huskies had blown out opponents all season, but the Irish stayed within 10 points in a 76-66 loss. The margin of victory tied the lowest for Connecticut on the season. Barlow led the Irish with 18 points and Schrader had 17, but four Huskies starters scored in double figures. From there, Notre Dame won out against Syracuse, Providence and West Virginia and earned the No. 5 seed and a first-round bye in the Big East tournament in Hartford, Conn. In the second round, the Irish faced No. 13-seed St. John's and, after a dismal first half, outscored the Red Storm 42-23 in the second half to win 62-45. Schrader had her seventh double-double of the season, which broke Notre Dame's single-season record for guards. "I was getting on the block more," she said after the game. "I got a lot more opportunities and I was just making them." This gave the Irish a second-round matchup against No. 4-seed Villanova, and the Wildcats used the same tools to beat the Irish as earlier in the season. They hit 10 3s on their way to a 58-47 win. Kurz had 21 points and 11 rebounds and Wildcats forward Lisa Karcic had 11 points. Siobahn O'Connor hit three of her six 3-point attempts. "We were trying to double-team Lurz because she was hurting us down low, we were sending the double team down and rotating back out defensively," McGraw said after the game. "For some reason we stopped short on her twice." Notre Dame earned the No. 7 seed in the NCAA Tournament but lost to Minnesota. The prospects for next year, however, look positive. Schrader and Mallory will be healthy and Skylar Diggins, one of the nation's top high school guards and a senior at nearby Washington High School in South Bend, will play for the Irish. "We had seen her play and I knew she was going to be a great player," McGraw told The Observer. "She was really special and I think we could tell that right away."

The Observer

Men's Lacrosse: Perfection falls in first round

By The Observer · Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2009

Notre Dame's unbeaten season came to a screeching halt Sunday in a 7-3 loss to Maryland in the first round of the NCAA tournament. "We're a very good team," Irish coach Kevin Corrigan said. "I'm not going to beat up our team for going 15-0. We had a great season, but we didn't play well today and therefore we lost." The Irish started off the season with nonconference wins over Loyola (Md.), Penn State, and Dartmouth. On March 8, Notre Dame notched its most impressive win of the season over then-No. 3 North Carolina. Notre Dame rolled through Great Western Lacrosse League (GWLL) play, winning each game by no fewer than two goals and rising as high as No. 2 in the nation. The Irish conference dominance continued in the conference tournament, which they won with victories over Quinnpiac and Ohio State. The cornerstone for Notre Dame's success this season was its defense, which allowed a nation-best 6.19 goals per game. The Irish backline was anchored by senior netminder Scott Rodgers, who led the NCAA with a 6.14 goals against average and a 0.663 save percentage. In addition to their team accomplishments, the Irish boast a number of seniors with significant individual achievements, which came to a peak during their final season on campus. In April, senior attackmen Ryan Hoff and Duncan Swezey, midfielder Peter Christman, defenseman Regis McDermott and Rodgers were all named first team all-conference in the GWLL, which the Irish have won each of the past three seasons. Furthermore, Rodgers, who leads the country in goals against average, was named GWLL Player of the Year and has been named a finalist for the Tewaaraton Trophy, which is awarded annually to the nation's top lacrosse player. "More than anything else, they did things right," Corrigan said. "They worked hard, loved each other, loved play lacrosse and represented Notre Dame in excellent fashion. They love what they're doing, love being a part of the team, and bring a sense of fun to the team." Corrigan ultimately thinks that this is the best lesson that his seniors could teach the program that they have contributed so much to in their four years on campus. "The lesson [from the seniors] is that you should do something because you love it and do it right," Corrigan said.

The Observer

Women's Lacrosse: MVP Goodman leads Irish to Big East crown

By The Observer · Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2009

The Irish defeated Vanderbilt 19-13 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday, and will face North Carolina this weekend in the tournament quarterfinals. "Our success has been expected and unexpected," Notre Dame head coach Tracy Coyne said. "We had some key players choose to leave the program in the beginning of the year, which made us re-evaluate our direction. The seniors, in particular, have done an incredible job in doing that and a great job in bringing the team together." Notre Dame (16-4) has had one of their most successful and record-setting seasons this year. Winning the Big East Championship for the first time was just a highlight for the 2009 Irish team. Making an impact on the team over the last four seasons are the four Notre Dame seniors: co-captains Shannon Burke and Jillian Byers, defender Beth Koulup and goalkeeper Erin Goodman. Leading the defense, Burke has a season 56 ground balls, 31 draw controls and 42 caused turnovers, a Notre Dame single-season record, as well as seven offensive points. Named to the All-Big East First Team with teammates Byers and sophomore midfielder Shaylyn Blaney, Protecting the goal for Notre Dame is the record-breaking Goodman. Not only is she the all-time winningest goalkeeper for the Irish, but Goodman has also started in 55 consecutive games, playing the most minutes overall of any Irish goalkeeper. Goodman holds a career record of 38-17 for a .690 winning percentage, and was named this year's Big East MVP. Byers is statistically the most successful player Notre Dame has ever seen. She is the all-time points leader, with 325 off of her 253 goals and 72 assists. Her 74 goals and 36 assists coming this season make her the second Irish player to ever score over 100 points in a season and are career highs. She leads the Big East in goals and point totals while ranking second nationally for points, and was named the league's co-attack of the year with Syracuse senior Katie Rowan. Byers is also the NCAA's all-time active leading goal scorer. "Individually, they [the seniors] are all outstanding competitors," Coyne said. "Looking back on the last four years and all they have learned and become, they represent the Notre Dame family well, and are all great people. They have really raised the level of competitiveness of the program. Their legacy is always looking for ways to get better, all the time." The Irish will face North Carolina in Chapel Hill on Saturday.

The Observer

Fencing: Runner-up finish disappoints Irish

By The Observer · Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2009

For the second consecutive year, the Irish finished second overall at the NCAA Fencing Championship and, for the second consecutive year, the Irish left the strip after having a national title snatched out of their hands. Notre Dame fell to the heavily favored Nittany Lions of Penn State, but accumulated 182 wins over the course of the four-day tournament. Despite falling short of their ultimate goal, the Irish turned in impressive performances each day of the competition on both the men's and women's sides. By the end of the championship, the squad featured 10 All-Americans and two silver medalists. "We just mobilized all the energy, everything to fight," Irish coach Janusz Bednarski said. "We had a very good season and in general, many teams wanted to be second. We are not happy anyway because we have a bigger appetite, but we have to wait until next year." But by any objective measure the Irish turned in a truly impressive season, considering the team featured 14 freshmen and missed the support of a very strong senior cast from 2008. After combining for a 14-0 record at the Notre Dame Duals in early February, the men's fencing team finished the regular season ranked No. 1 in the coaches' poll at a perfect 34-0. The undefeated 2009 season is the 20th in program history and the first since 2003, while the men's win total of 34 is the highest in Notre Dame history. Not to be outdone by the men's team, the women also went undefeated at the Notre Dame Duals with a combined record of 12-0. The women's squad finished 32-2 in the regular season, tying the program-best mark in win totals originally set in 1995. Despite the lack of experience at the collegiate level, the Irish did boast some experience at the world level. Olympians Gerek Meinhardt and Kelley Hurley played an important role in developing the attitude and work ethic of the successful fencing squad. Meinhardt, a freshman foiler and the youngest male U.S. Olympian in Beijing in 2008, believes Olympic experience has immense value when translated to collegiate fencing. "Beijing will help in getting used to pressure situations," Meinhardt said in December. "It's the highest level of competition, so I'll better be able to deal with nerves that come with playing in the NCAA." In addition to the outstanding fencing of Meinhardt, who finished with a silver medal in the foil at the NCAA Championship, the core of young talent was greatly supported by first team All-American Courtney Hurley and second team All-American Avery Zuck. Hurley, a freshman and the younger sister of Kelley Hurley, finished tied for third in the epee at the championship, while sophomore Zuck finished in fifth in the sabre division. Bednarski, the only coach in Notre Dame's history to win a national title in his first season and win multiple national titles in fewer than five seasons, believes his young team is well on its way to a national title in the near future. "Each year is different because we don't know who will come to support them next year," Bednarski said. "We know that we have a core team that is very strong and very young. But anything can happen if we make it to the Bloody Four."

The Observer

Football: Bowl streak snapped after late season letdowns

By The Observer · Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2009

Talk about a turnaround. No, not a complete 180 from the face-plant that was the 3-9 2007 season. It was a switcheroo from one extreme - a snowball-filled embarrassment of a loss to Syracuse at home on Senior Day and a blowout against USC - to the other, a honeymoon-esque escape to warm and sunny Hawaii. When the Irish took off their swim trunks and flippy-floppies and got to work, they demonstrated the totality of their shift in a 49-21 win over Hawaii in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl on Christmas Eve. The bowl win, Notre Dame's first since 1994, capped a 7-6 season that saw both promise and despair. Notre Dame's start to the season had fans believing that last year's demons had been exorcized. The Irish defeated San Diego State at home, 21-13, on Sept. 6. "It's a great feeling to get the win, especially coming off of last year," sophomore receiver Golden Tate said after the game. "To get a win in the first game, we feel much more confident." Tate had six receptions for 93 yards and a touchdown in the game. Sophomore quarterback Jimmy Clausen completed 21-of-34 passes and threw three touchdowns. Notre Dame's success continued against Michigan the next week. The Wolverines' new coach, former West Virginia head coach Rich Rodriguez, was still figuring out how to run his style of offense with the players he inherited. That, plus the monsoon that drenched Notre Dame Stadium and a good Irish running game, helped Notre Dame win 35-17. During the game, junior linebacker John Ryan was shoved out of bounds and into Irish coach Charlie Weis, knocking him to the ground. Weis suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and medial collateral ligament (MCL). "I'll show up as a coach, but I'll be gone for the year as a player. Tommy Brady's got nothing on me," Weis joked after the game. "I feel like an athlete. First time in my life." Sophomore running back Robert Hughes ran 19 times for 81 yards and two touchdowns in the game, getting a ton of carries in the downpour. Notre Dame's early-season success stopped on the road against Michigan State. The Irish lost, 23-7, largely in part to the performance of Spartans senior running back Javon Ringer. Ringer rushed 39 times for 201 yards and two touchdowns. "With Javon Ringer being such a dynamic guy, I think the one thing you needed to do was make sure you had everybody in every gap," Weis said in his Sunday post-game press conference. "And the few times in the gap where we didn't have somebody in every gap, like the one 60 yarder that he went for, was the one time if you go back and watch it you'll see there was no one in that gap where he ended up running through." Clausen threw two costly interceptions, one in the end zone and one while the Irish were driving. Spartans kicker Brett Swenson made three field goals in the game, one from 45 yards out. Notre Dame got back on track with a 38-21 win against Purdue. Sophomore running back Armando Allen carried the Irish, rushing for 134 yards and a touchdown. "We went out there and showed people that we really can run the ball," Allen said after the game. "We always hear that we can't run the ball, so to go out there and run the ball effectively is great." Clausen had another good day, throwing for 275 yards and three touchdowns. "I thought [Clausen] improved a lot," senior receiver David Grimes said after the game. "He was coming up to the line of scrimmage and calling plays just like Brady (Quinn) used to do. I think he grew up a lot today. I'm proud of him." Freshman receiver Michael Floyd led the Irish receivers with six catches for 100 yards. Sophomore kicker Brandon Walker, who had struggled up to this point, made a 41-yard field goal during the game. "It boosted my confidence, the coaches' confidence and the players' confidence in me, so it was a relief," Walker said after the game. Notre Dame moved to 4-1 with a 28-21 win over Stanford despite only 83 yards rushing. Clausen had his best game yet, throwing for 347 yards and three touchdowns while completing 72.5 percent of his passes. "We were really getting Jimmy a lot of time and keeping him off the ground, and it just got going," junior tackle Sam Young said. "Our receivers made great plays. I thought the line did a pretty good job keeping Jimmy up and keeping him clean." So then came a big chance for the Irish: A road game against a ranked North Carolina team that would cement the fact that Notre Dame had returned. But a costly second-half interception and a last-second play that almost worked doomed the Irish, who lost 29-24 in Chapel Hill. Notre Dame scored first, on a 19-yard touchdown pass to Tate. The Irish led 17-9 at the half, but on the first play of the second half, Tar Heels linebacker Quan Sturdivant picked off Clausen's pass and returned it for a touchdown to make the score 17-16. Junior running back James Aldridge scored to put the Irish ahead by eight, but two North Carolina touchdowns in the final six minutes put the Tar Heels ahead by five. Notre Dame had a chance at the end of the game, but Floyd's catch came short of the end zone as time expired. Despite the loss, Weis was happy with his team after the game. "That team in that locker room today, it was the first time in a long time where I've looked in their faces against a good opponent and it was a team that really feels bad," he said after the game. "And the reason they felt really bad is because they're starting to get it." No worries, though, because after the bye week Notre Dame traveled to Seattle and trounced Washington, 33-7. Floyd scored a 51-yard touchdown pass on the first drive and the Irish never looked back. In fact, Notre Dame would have shut out the winless Huskies had Washington not threw a six-yard touchdown pass in the final three minutes. Aldridge rushed 13 times for 84 yards and two touchdowns in the game. Back in South Bend after fall break, the Irish and Pittsburgh needed extra time to decide the game, but the Panthers won, 36-33, after four overtimes. Notre Dame led 24-17 with 5:38 remaining, but a late touchdown pass tied the game. Pittsburgh kicker Conor Lee and Walker traded field goals in the first two overtimes. When Lee made his in the third, Walker attempted a 48-yarder that barely curved over the lower left corner of the crossbar. In the fourth overtime, however, Walker missed a 38-yarder wide left. Lee knocked his through, and the game ended. "It's not [Walker's] fault at all that we lost," senior safety Kyle McCarthy said. "He played a great game, and he is a big reason that we stayed in the game throughout. It's the offense and defense's fault just as much as anyone's." Whatever demoralization resulted from Pittsburgh may have carried over into the next game, against Boston College in Chestnut Hill. Clausen threw four interceptions in a 17-0 loss. Boston College ran one of those interceptions back for a touchdown, and Eagles running back Montel Harris rushed for 120 yards. The Irish held Boston College to just 79 yards passing, but Notre Dame's offense could not take advantage. "The defense put out a winning performance, unfortunately that's only one-third of the composition of a team," Weis said after the game. "It took us over a quarter to get into any kind of flow." Notre Dame's record fell to 5-4 after being 4-1 at one point. The Eagles extended their winning streak over Notre Dame to six games. Notre Dame's 43-game winning streak over Navy, snapped in 2007, now stands at one. Notre Dame eked out a 27-21 win that Navy threatened to ruin in the final minutes. Notre Dame led 27-7, but Navy back Shun White broke a long touchdown run to make the score 27-14. The Midshipmen recovered an onside kick and after a long pass put them on the 1-yard line, they punched the ball in to make the score 27-21. Then they recovered another onside kick, but Irish fans breathed easy when Notre Dame's defense stopped the Midshipmen. Then came Syracuse. Not good times for the Irish, who lost 24-23 to the Orange. Notre Dame led 23-10, but Syracuse scored twice in the fourth quarter, once with less than a minute left, to win. The Irish could only muster 41 yards on the ground in the game. Against top-10 Southern California in Los Angeles, the wheels fell off. Notre Dame couldn't get a first down until the last play of the third quarter during a 38-3 loss. Then came Hawaii, and Notre Dame stomped the Warriors in their home stadium. Clausen blew the Hawaii secondary out of the water, completing 22-of-26 passes for 401 yards and five touchdowns. Tate had 177 yards receiving and three touchdowns. Both set Irish bowl game records. "I'm glad that we got the monkey off our back, and that we were the team that did it," senior defensive tackle Pat Kuntz said after the game.

The Observer

Men's Basketball: Shooting woes, tough schedule doom Irish

By The Observer · Thursday, May 14, 2009

They began with a top 10 preseason ranking and had four returning starters from a team that made the NCAA Tournament a year ago, including the reigning Big East player of the year in Luke Harangody. It was a recipe for success. But there was one ingredient in Notre Dame's season that spoiled the finished product - a tough and grueling schedule. Notre Dame faced the No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament a total of six times, with five of those games coming in conference, and suffered through a seven-game losing streak that played a large part Notre Dame's relegation to the NIT. The Irish finished the year with a 21-15 record (8-10 Big East) and went 1-5 in this matchups against those No. 1 seeds. The writing on the wall for this season may have come before Notre Dame began conference play, in a contest against Ohio State at Lucas Oil Stadium. Harangody played despite fighting the effects of pneumonia he contracted during Notre Dame's time in Maui playing in the Maui Invitational. He still scored 25 points and grabbed 16 rebounds. Harangody wasn't the problem. The problem was that Notre Dame couldn't make up for the off night senior guard Kyle McAlarney had. Ohio State closely guarded McAlarney and held him to just six points on 3-for-11 shooting. Junior guard Tory Jackson was second in scoring for Notre Dame with 13 points as the Irish struggled and fell 67-62 to the Buckeyes. Ohio State had designed the blueprint on how to beat Notre Dame - let Harangody get his points, but contain McAlarney. The rest of the Irish weren't score-first players the way Harangody and McAlarney were, and Notre Dame's defense was inconsistent, and made it hard for the Irish to stay in close games. Notre Dame's Big East opponents certainly took notes from Ohio State's victory. Teams took away McAlarney at times during Notre Dame's seven-game losing streak, while his teammates struggled to pick up the slack. The streak began with a Jan. 12 overtime loss to Louisville, then continued with a 93-74 loss to Syracuse on Jan. 17. Still, optimism abounded around the Irish squad. The following weekend ESPN's College Gameday came to campus, as did top-tier opponents in Marquette and Connecticut. The Huskies came to town on Saturday amidst all the hype. Notre Dame may have been struggling, but those struggles were away from the Joyce Center, where the Irish had won 45 straight games. However, that ended on Jan. 24, when Connecticut beat Notre Dame 69-61. McAlarney had some open looks, but scored just nine points on 3-of-15 shooting. Senior Ryan Ayers had his own troubles, shooting just 1-of-10 for the night. Then Marquette defeated Notre Dame two days later, and again Notre Dame's shooters couldn't find their touch. The Golden Eagles hounded McAlarney and limited him to nine points. Ayers shot 0-for-7 for the night. While offensive problems doomed the Irish in the losses to Marquette and Connecticut, defensive deficiencies contributed to Notre Dame's next two losses. The Irish gave up 93 points each to Pittsburgh and Cincinnati. Their seventh loss of the streak, however, was just an overall disaster on both ends of the floor. The Irish reached their low point in Los Angeles at the hands of UCLA. The Bruins delivered an 89-63 thumping of Notre Dame, aired nationwide on CBS. "Time for us to go back to step one," Harangody said following the defeat. "There's not much you could say. This was embarrassing today, definitely a low point in my career at Notre Dame." The streak ended in perhaps Notre Dame's weirdest game of the season. Against eventual Big East champion Louisville on Feb. 12 at the Joyce Center, Notre Dame played outside of itself and beat the Cardinals 90-57. Everything went right for the Irish that night, but soon, Notre Dame came back down to earth, ending the Big East season with two straight losses to Connecticut and Villanova - playing two straight Final Four teams can do that to you. West Virginia knocked the Irish out of the Big East tournament and days later, the Irish learned they would play in the NIT. They advanced to the semifinals before losing to Penn State. Their final season may not have gone as they planned, but Notre Dame's four graduating seniors - McAlarney, Zach Hillesland, Ayers and Luke Zeller - certainly accomplished a lot during their four-year careers The four struggled through a tough freshman season that mirrored their final season in some ways. They suffered defeat after agonizing defeat and missed the NCAA Tournament. But those two years bookended two solid years where the Irish had one of the most potent offenses in the country. And each had their own memorable moments. McAlarney hit nine 3-pointers his junior year against Syracuse, then hit 10 in a loss this year to North Carolina. Hillesland posterized DePaul's Mac Koshwal in a game in March of 2008. Zeller's left-handed dunk against Marquette, which his teammates named "The Baptism" sparked Notre Dame to a key win in 2008 against Marquette, while Ayers hit what Irish coach Mike Brey called one of the most important shots of the past four years when he was a sophomore against Villanova. Ayers, a bench role player during his sophomore year, hit a key 3-pointer to tie the game late against the Wildcats, then hit two free throws to give Notre Dame the lead. The Irish won the game, advanced to 5-3 in the Big East on their way to advancing to the NCAA Tournament. The four seniors had some moments on the court they'd like to forget, but the good memories they created should be enough to drown out the bad.

The Observer

Vivamus bibendum, nulla ut

By The Observer · Sunday, May 10, 2009

Ut nulla. Vivamus bibendum, nulla ut congue fringilla, lorem ipsum ultricies risus, ut rutrum velit tortor vel purus. In hac habitasse platea dictumst. Duis fermentum, metus sed congue gravida, arcu dui ornare urna, ut imperdiet enim odio dignissim ipsum. Nulla facilisi. Cras magna ante, bibendum sit amet, porta vitae, laoreet ut, justo. Nam tortor sapien, pulvinar nec, malesuada in, ultrices in, tortor. Cras ultricies placerat eros. Quisque odio eros, feugiat non, iaculis nec, lobortis sed, arcu. Pellentesque sit amet sem et purus pretium consectetuer.

The Observer

Aliquam et nisl vel ligula

By The Observer · Sunday, May 10, 2009

Aliquam et nisl vel ligula consectetuer suscipit. Morbi euismod enim eget neque. Donec sagittis massa. Vestibulum quis augue sit amet ipsum laoreet pretium. Nulla facilisi. Duis tincidunt, felis et luctus placerat, ipsum libero vestibulum sem, vitae elementum wisi ipsum a metus. Nulla a enim sed dui hendrerit lobortis. Donec lacinia vulputate magna. Vivamus suscipit lectus at quam. In lectus est, viverra a, ultricies ut, pulvinar vitae, tellus. Donec et lectus et sem rutrum sodales. Morbi cursus. Aliquam a odio. Sed tortor velit, convallis eget, porta interdum, convallis sed, tortor. Phasellus ac libero a lorem auctor mattis. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit.

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