The Irish had a No. 5 ranking to defend on Thursday evening in East Lansing against Michigan State. Losing 2-1 in last year's season opener at home to snap a 13-game winning streak against the Spartans, this game was more than simply another non-conference test for the Irish. Behind a career day from sophomore forward Annabelle Chukwu, the Irish took home the victory to improve to 5-0-1 on the season.
The No. 17 Spartans had a 17-game active unbeaten streak on their home field dating back to the 2023 NCAA Tournament. Despite a sloppy start in 2025, the Spartans were 3-0-1 on home turf and 0-1-1 away from it. The Irish certainly had their work cut out slowing down the highest octane offense in the Big Ten, boasting 17 total goals and a goal differential of +10.
Entering the match, Chukwu had scored in two consecutive matches. Many could have expected her to continue the multi-game goal streak, but she went a step further in this contest with her first career hat trick. It marked her third consecutive game with a goal and lifted the Irish ahead of a regional rival and top-20 program in the country.
The historic night began at the 26-minute mark as senior defender Leah Klenke broke past a defender from the left corner and centered an on-target cross to Chukwu. She attacked the cross and directed a header goalbound for her first tally of the match. Notre Dame maintained their 1-0 lead into the second half when Chukwu struck again.
This time, in the 48th minute, sophomore forward Izzy Engle rifled a shot that was deflected to sophomore midfielder Grace Restovich. Turning toward her left, Restovich passed to Chuwku, who created enough separation for a clean look on goal. With no hesitation, she sank her second goal of the night into the upper 90 and gave the Irish a much more comfortable 2-0 lead with plenty of game left to play.
Just two minutes after her second goal, Chukwu found herself in the right place once again, this time on the receiving end of a corner kick from junior midfielder Morgan Roy. On the near-side post, Chukwu vaulted above the defenders and scored to extend the lead to 3-0. With her second header of the night, Chukwu capped off an unforgettable performance on the road for her first career hat trick.
Chukwu's feat also accompanied her first multi-goal game in blue and gold. It marked the first Irish hat trick since Oct. 17, 2024, when then-freshman Ellie Hodsden scored three goals en route to a 5-2 Irish victory against California.
The Irish defense boasted another impressive shutout behind sophomore netminder Sonoma Kasica's three-save effort for her tenth career clean sheet. This is the fourth consecutive shutout for the Irish and builds momentum for the next challenge on the road Sunday.
Marquette
The Irish will look ahead to 4-3 Marquette on Sep. 7. The team has encountered early struggles with losses to Kansas City, Minnesota and No. 21-ranked Wisconsin, but has only been shutout in one game so far. In their 2-1 loss to the Badgers and 3-4 loss to the Golden Gophers, the Golden Eagles have not backed down against strong competition this season.
The Irish will have to contain an offense averaging 1.86 goals per game on 13.6 shots per game. Leading scorer Leigh Jocelyn has added three goals for the Golden Eagles, followed by Molly Keiper and Abby Ruhland with two apiece. On the defensive side, Hailey Wade has posted 17 saves with a .680 shot-stopping rate in front of the net. Only allowing 1.14 goals per game, Marquette will have to be virtually flawless to prevent Notre Dame from taking an early lead. The Irish will be a new test for a Marquette defense that has not posted a shutout yet this season.
Notre Dame, on the other hand, enters this game with four consecutive shutouts and an undefeated season, with their only blemish coming in a 2-2 draw on the road against No. 8 Arkansas. Behind the efforts of Engle and the captain Klenke, both of whom were named to Preseason All-ACC teams, the Irish will look to maintain the scoring barrage. Between Engle's six goals and Chukwu's five, the Irish forwards have been terrorizing opposing defenses, averaging 3.67 goals per game, which is among the best in the country.
Senior midfielder Laney Matriano and Restovich share the team lead for assists, with four each on the season. The duo has helped push the tempo for the Irish offense and feed the relentless forward play of Chukwu, Engle and sophomore forward Ellie Hodsden. Kasica has also been fantastic at the goalkeeper position with an impressive .883 save rate. The Irish defense, led by Klenke, has held opponents to 0.5 goals per game on only eight shots.
In the last match before conference play, the Irish will look to make it out of Milwaukee with another win to build considerable momentum for conference competition. Beginning conference play in Raleigh against NC State, the No. 5 Irish will look to continue their strong start to the season and make another run at an ACC title.
Notre Dame has faced what has been a challenging early slate of games about as well as any Irish fan could have hoped for. Their talent from back to front makes them as dangerous as any team in the nation. The excitement heading into the season was palpable around South Bend after last season's outstanding results. Despite facing these early tests, including multiple road games against ranked non-conference opponents, the Irish have more than lived up to the preseason hype.
Their match with Marquette will kick off at 1 p.m. on Sept. 7.
