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    'Cats Host No. 7 Notre Dame Under the Lights at Lakeside Field
    Irish are highest-ranked opponent NU has faced all season
    NUSPORTSDOTCOM NU head coach Tim Lenahan is 2-0-2 against Notre Dame during his tenure with the Wildcats.
    NUSPORTSDOTCOM
    NU head coach Tim Lenahan is 2-0-2 against Notre Dame during his tenure with the Wildcats.
     NUSPORTSDOTCOM

    Oct. 5, 2012

    Northwestern (RV) (7-2-2, 2-0-0 B1G)
    vs. No. 7 Notre Dame (10-2-0, 2-2-0 Big East)
    Tuesday, Oct. 9 • 7 p.m.
    Evanston, Ill.
    Lakeside Field
    Live Video: Big Ten Digital Network on Wildcats All-Access
    Live Stats: Gametracker
    In-Game Tweets: @NU_SportsLIVE

    Notre Dame Match Notes Get Acrobat Reader


     

     

    Ticket Prices: $7 Adults • $4 Youth/Seniors • $3 Groups of 15 or more

    Tuesday's Match
    Northwestern hosts its highest-ranked opponent of the season Tuesday when No. 7 Notre Dame visits Lakeside Field. Match time is set for 7 p.m. and fans in attendance will receive FREE Northwestern soccer t-shirts while supplies last!

    Recent Success vs. Notre Dame
    Northwestern is 2-0-2 in its last four meetings against Notre Dame and all four have been exciting matches. Last year, NU staged one of its many comebacks in South Bend. Notre Dame took the 1-0 lead in the 38th minute but then-senior Oliver Kupe scored the equalizer in the 79th minute and after two scoreless overtime periods, the game ended in a 1-1 draw. It was a similar story the year before with another 1-1 draw in a match that was played at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Ill. This time, it was Northwestern who got on the board first with Matt Eliason's goal in the 48th minute off a rebound and Notre Dame responded in the 79th minute with the equalizer.

    The 2010 match was the first regular-season meeting for the two squads since the 2000 campaign but Northwestern and Notre Dame met twice in the NCAA Tournament. The Wildcats took both matches, winning the 2009 opening-round game 3-1 at Lakeside Field to advance to the second round and downed the Fighting Irish 2-1 in 2008 during a second-round match in South Bend.

    Here are the recaps from the last four matches vs. the Fighting Irish:

    • 2011: Kupe's Goal Helps Northwestern Come Back to Tie No. 12 Notre Dame
    • 2010: Northwestern and Notre Dame Play to 1-1 Draw at Toyota Park
    • 2009: Hillgard's Headers Vault NU Past Notre Dame, Into NCAA Third Round
    • 2008: Kupe's Two Goals Give Wildcats Comeback 2-1 Win Over Notre Dame

    Home Field Advantage
    Northwestern has defended its home turf very well during the Tim Lenahan era. The Wildcats were undefeated in 13 straight home matches at Lakeside Field prior to the DePaul game and look to begin another streak Tuesday against Notre Dame Tuesday.

    Since 2004, Northwestern is 55-15-10 in home matches under Lenahan. Here’s a look at NU’s home records in the last nine seasons:

    2004: 7-2-1
    2005: 5-2-1
    2006: 8-1-0
    2007: 6-2-1
    2008: 8-1-1
    2009: 7-2-2
    2010: 4-3-1
    2011: 7-1-2
    2012: 3-1-1
    Nine-year total in home games: 55-15-10

    'Cats and Fighting Irish in the Polls
    Here's a look at how Northwestern and Notre Dame rank in the various college soccer polls (please note that the poll recognized by the NCAA is the NSCAA poll):

    Northwestern Notre Dame
    NSCAA: RV No. 7
    TopDrawerSoccer.com: No. 15 No. 7
    College Soccer News: No. 24 No. 9
    Soccer America: NR No. 7

    Add Another to the Mix
    With his first career goal last Wednesday at Bradley, freshman Henry Herrill became the eighth different Wildcat to score a goal for Northwestern this season. The ’Cats have replaced Oliver Kupe, who was the team’s leading goal-scorer the last two seasons, by committee. Senior midfielder Chris Ritter and freshman forward Joey Calistri each have four goals to lead Northwestern. Senior midfielder Kyle Schickel (three goals), sophomore forward Eric Weberman (two goals), sophomore midfielder/defender Grant Wilson (one goal), sophomore defender Nikko Boxall (one goal) and senior forward Nick Gendron (one goal) have all contributed to the scoring load.

    Aside from freshmen Herrill and Calistri, Weberman and Wilson both tallied their first career goals this year in their sophomore seasons. Webermen’s first career goal came against Rhode Island, and he also tabbed his first game-winner in double overtime vs. MSU, while Wilson’s first goal came against Michigan.

    Scouting Notre Dame
    The Fighting Irish are 10-2-0 on the season and had a signature 3-0 win at home against No. 3 Georgetown on Saturday, their third win over a top-10 opponent this season. Notre Dame's two losses came on the road against Big East foes Louisville (2-1) and No. 2 Connecticut (2-1), but after the loss to the Huskies, the Irish bounced back with an offensive outburst against Pittsburgh, winning 7-1. The Fighting Irish have combined for 10 goals in their last two matches, allowing just one. Ryan Finley, a senior forward, leads the team with 10 of Notre Dame's 26 goals while senior midfielder Dillon Powers is second on the squad with four scores. Nine different players have scored goals for the Fighting Irish. Two keepers have split time for Notre Dame in net as Patrick Wall and Will Walsh each have six starts. Wall started Saturday's match vs. Georgetown and has a 0.50 goals-against average.

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