Sports

ND Women's Basketball: ND pulls away after slow start

It took two minutes and 20 seconds for the No. 6 Irish to score their first field goal of the game Saturday, but Valparaiso never recovered from the ensuing 9-0 run and the Irish grabbed the win, 96-46. Irish coach Muffet McGraw blamed the scattered play of the first few minutes on the pre-game induction of former guard SkylarDiggins into the Ring of Honor. "No more emotional pre-game ceremonies. We got off to such a slow start. I thought it was the emotion of the day that was the problem," McGraw said. "I needed a tissue after that. I think players that played with her felt it. You know, we kind of said `let's do it for Sky,' and that didn't work so well." Senior forward Ariel Braker scored the first point of the game with a free throw, and on the next play senior guard Kayla McBride stole the ball from Valparaiso sophomore guard JessiWiedemann to set up a layup from sophomore guard Jewell Loyd. In the next minute of play, layups by freshman forward TayaReimer, Loyd and freshman guard Lindsay Allen put the Irish (3-0) up by nine. "Lindsey did a really great job of pushing the ball," McGraw said. "She and Jewell were really the sparks offensively, especially early in the half when we really needed to get going, so I am really pleased with both of them." But the Crusaders did not cave in immediately. Wiedemann dropped in two 3-pointers, and sophomore guard Abby Dean added another to keep the score a manageable 15-9. Valparaiso stayed within striking distance until a three from junior guard Madison Cable stretched the Irish lead to 13 with 6:38 remaining in the first half. Cable's basket was the first in an 18-6 Irish run that brought the score to 46-24 at halftime. By the opening minutes of the second half, it was clear the Crusaders (0-3) had run out of gas. The Irish scored the first 12 points of the period and dominated the rest of the game, stretching their lead to 50. After the game, Valparaiso coach Tracey Dorow said her team has struggled just to find enough healthy players to put on the floor. Only nine Crusaders played Saturday, and the only one who played less than 13 minutes was Jazmin Taylor, a high jumper on the track team who agreed to play basketball just a few days earlier. "It was definitely a learning experience," Valparaiso junior forward Sharon Karungi said. "They are really athletic and it was great to play against such athletic players. They definitely had the upper hand on the inside and had a lot of players that were bigger than us but it gives us a great chance to learn." McGraw gave the transition game much of the credit in Saturday's win. "I thought it was the best our transition game has looked," McGraw said. "We really were running the floor well. We were rebounding well and getting the ball down the court. I was really pleased with that, it was an emphasis coming out of the half. We really wanted to get on the scoreboard early. Defensively, we came up with some steals and that was a big key for us." Loyd led all scorers with 22 points, while Allen scored 15, a career high. "[Loyd] is really doing a good job on both ends, offensively and defensively," McGraw said. "She isn't settling for shots and is attacking the basket. But she is in there fighting for rebounds all of the time. Even if she doesn't get it she is in there trying to tip it to a teammate. She is a lot more aggressive, looking to score and we need her to do that. She drives it, she shoots the three and she's really hard to guard because you just don't know what she is going to do." Senior forward Liz Horton scored 11 points and was the only Crusader in the double-digits. As far as box-score oddities, Reimer, a post player, finished the game with six assists, while guards Allen and Loyd combined for five. Loyd, however, grabbed seven rebounds, while Reimer corralled just one. "In the Princeton offense the person in the post, Taya, has the ball in her hands a lot and she is going to get a lot of assists," McGraw said. "Six assists for her is fantastic. I would like to see her rebound a lot more, though. I was disappointed in her rebounding today. She definitely needs to get on the boards more." Valparaiso coach Tracey Dorow said she and her players watched Diggins induction ceremony before the game. "It's a really neat thing for her. I worked at Notre Dame camp when she was a camper in about seventh or eighth grade and you could see even then that she was something special," Dorow said. "I was really excited to be here and to be a part of the celebration. She's a real class act. This was big for women's basketball." The Irish have a nearly week-long layoff before they head to Philadelphia to face Penn in The Palestra at 3 p.m. Saturday. Contact Vicky Jacobsen at vjacobse@nd.edu  

Men's Swimming and Diving: Notre Dame takes down Spartans, Badgers

After a month of competition on the road, Notre Dame returned to the Rolfs Aquatic Center on Friday and Saturday for home meets, where they swept Big Ten foes Michigan State and Wisconsin in a pair of dual meets. The Irish (4-4) beat the Spartans 197-103 and the Badgers 191.5-108.5 and have won three of their last four dual competitions. The weekend meets mark the first time the Irish have competed since Coach Tim Welsh announced his retirement effective at the end of the 2013-2014 campaign. With 29 years at the helm, the second-longest tenure of any Notre Dame head coach, Welsh will turn the reigns over to longtime assistant Matt Tallman. "I hope the announcement puts a sense of urgency into everything we do," Welsh said. "It makes every practice, and every workout exciting because my number of days left here is getting smaller." The squad dove into the weekend in commanding fashion, winning 11 individual events against Michigan State, including opening the meet with 10 wins in a row. Notre Dame set the tone early, winning the 200-yard medley relay with a time of 1:30.54. The team bested its individual event win total against Wisconsin, winning 12 more individual events to close out the weekend. "Our performance this weekend was excellent. We love swimming at home and you could see that right away on Friday against a deep Michigan State team," Welsh said. "The team swam very well across the board." All-Americans senior Frank Dyer and junior Zach Stephens, who have consistently been the top scorers for the team, bolstered Notre Dame's performance once again this weekend. Against the Badgers, the duo won eight of the team's 12 individual events. Dyer took home three first-place finishes Friday and took home four more top finishes for the Irish on Saturday. Stephens matched Dyer on Saturday, also bringing home four golds in the 100-yard and 200-yard breaststroke, the 200-yard individual medley and the 200-yard medley relay. Dyer and Stephens led the way for a number of strong performances from all over the Irish roster. "Saturday was a total team effort," Welsh said. "Everyone raced very well individually and side by side as a team. I thought the best part of the weekend, though, was the morale. Our team spirit was the best I have seen this year." On the diving boards, freshman Joseph Coumos swept both the 1-meter and 3-meter against the Badgers on Saturday, and won the 1-meter on Friday. His performance included a career-best 381.52 points in the 3-meter board against Wisconsin on Saturday. Teammate junior Michael Kreft, who won the 3-meter board with 375.60 points, joined Coumos on the victory podium against Michigan State. After the weekend sweep of the Spartans and Badgers, the Irish will have two weekends without competition for the first time since the season began eight weeks ago. The team is back in action for its 2013 finale at the Hawkeye Invitational on Dec. 6-8 in Iowa City, Iowa. "We are really excited about this break," Welsh said. "This past weekend allowed us to finish a month of tough racing on a high note, and now we have the opportunity to and focus on improving for the next stretch of the season." Contact Henry Hilliard at rhillia1@nd.edu  

ND Women's Basketball: Diggins honored before victory over Valparaiso

The lights dimmed, the spotlight turned on, and Notre Dame's biggest star returned for one last encore as SkylarDiggins claimed her spot in the Irish Ring of Honor on Saturday at Purcell Pavilion. Before her former team tipped off against Valparaiso, Diggins was honored in the pregame ceremony, which included a video of her highlights during her college career, congratulations from athletic director Jack Swarbrick and several standing ovations. The loudest applause of all came when the banner with Diggins' No. 4 unfurled from the Purcell Pavilion rafters, the apex of the ceremony. "That's something I dreamed about," Diggins said in her pre-ceremony press conference. "You dream about stuff like this happening. It's not a goal, ultimately; you just kind of play the game to win, to be competitive and to represent Notre Dame the best that I could, and [represent] South Bend and my family. "But the experiences I had here were so special, and the memories we made here, what we were able to accomplish, is so special, so this does not only represent myself, but also my family and my teammates and coaches and those that paved the way before me." Diggins' parents, Renee and Maurice Scott, escorted her onto the court for the induction and remained by her side throughout the ceremony. The South Bend native said she chose to attend Notre Dame to remain close to her familial support system for four more years. "They're a major, major part of the reason I stayed [in South Bend]," she said. "I wanted them to be a part of my college experience. Notre Dame is a great university, and it sells itself, but my family was a big reason why I stayed around and stayed closed to home. ... It's just great having a tight-knit family and people that are there for you to keep you grounded." The four-time All-American and the only Notre Dame player to pick up 2,000 points, 500 assists and 500 rebounds in her career joined former Irish legends Ruth Riley, Austin Carr, Adrian Dantley and Luke Harangody in the Ring of Honor. "I join such an elite group of players who have done so much for our basketball programs here at the university," Diggins said. "I'm so blessed to be a part of such an elite group." As with the other members of that group, Diggins' basketball career did not stop with her time at Notre Dame. The Tulsa Shock drafted her with the third overall pick in the 2013 WNBA Draft, and Diggins earned a spot on the league's all-rookie team after her first season. However, she said she still is not sure what the future holds for her. "I want to do so many things, and not just on the basketball level," she said. "I'm working on a lot of things now. I don't know what I want to do because I want to do so much. ... [I'm] just slowly painting my masterpiece." One thing is certain: as long as the Purcell Pavilion stands, Diggins' No. 4 will hang in the rafters, reminding players, fans and visitors of one of the most accomplished athletes in Notre Dame history. "I never wanted to leave this university," Diggins said to the crowd at the ceremony. "I grew up always wanting to come here, and I lived in this gym. I never wanted to leave this gym. I wanted to be here forever. And now I have that opportunity." Contact Mary Green at mgreen8@nd.edu  

Men's Basketball: Indiana State knocks off Irish, 83-70

The last time Notre Dame lost in November at home, Bob Davie was the football coach.

Men's Basketball: Irish fall to Sycamores

The last time Notre Dame lost in November at home, Bob Davie was the football coach. Three football coaches later, the No. 21 Irish fell to Indiana State 83-70 on Sunday afternoon at Purcell Pavilion. The loss was the first in November at home since 1998 and the first such defeat under coach Mike Brey. "I guess it has to come to an end," Brey said. "They're really a good team. It would have been a good resume win for us." The loss also snapped a 30-game non-conference home winning streak for the Irish (2-1). "Some stuff hit the fan in mid-November," Brey said. "There's going to be more stuff hitting the fan. How do we react?" The Irish turned the ball over 16 times in the game while only notching 13 assists. The sloppy performance was uncharacteristic of Brey's teams, who have finished in the top 10 in assist-to-turnover ratio in each of the last eight seasons. The Sycamores (2-1) jumped out ahead of the Irish early after Notre Dame was unable to take care of the basketball. Notre Dame turned the ball over nine times in the first half, including seven times in the first 8:34. At the under-12-minute media timeout, Notre Dame had as many points as they did turnovers. "Those are just so deflating for a team that has, historically, taken really good care of the ball," Brey said. "The wind came out of the sails." The Irish had seven turnovers total in each of their first two games. The Sycamores turned the Notre Dame miscues into 13 points in the opening period. Indiana State used a 17-2 run over 11:58 in the first half to turn a three-point deficit into a 10-point lead. "They hit a lot of shots," senior guard Jerian Grant said. "They're a really good team. We just got to keep focusing in defensively. When teams go on a run like that, we can't just stop playing." Sophomore guard Khristian Smith spurred the Sycamores during the run, scoring all nine of his first-half points during the spurt. He finished with 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting. "It creeps into our minds that 'We can do this. We can do this,'" Smith said. "We know that we can but it takes the first four minutes of energy and effort to show we can." In the first half, Indiana State buried eight of 17 3-pointers, five during a 2:37 stretch, and built up a 10-point lead by the break. The Sycamores shot 55 percent (11-for-20) from behind the arc for the game. "They're not larks," Brey said. "These guys can shoot the ball and they were really loose shooting in here." Keyed by 10 points off five Indiana State turnovers, the Irish opened the second half with a 15-4 run. Notre Dame took the lead when sophomore forward Austin Burgett converted on an and-one opportunity with 15:06 left in the second half. It was Notre Dame's first lead since 5-4 early in the first half. But the Irish lead lasted just 21 seconds. "We knew that they were going to respond," senior guard Eric Atkins said. "It's a game of runs. We made our run and they made their run to take the lead right back. We didn't respond after that and that's what hurt us right there." Indiana State responded with a 22-6 run. Six different Indiana State players scored during the spurt. The 15-point Sycamore lead was the largest of the game for the visitors and the Irish never got closer than eight points the rest of the way. "We kind of let up a little bit," Grant said. "We felt like, after we took the lead, this was our game. We had to keep playing, and you saw what happened." Junior forward Justin Gant led Indiana State with 17 points as the Sycamores had five players in double-figures. Grant scored 17 points while junior forward Pat Connaughton had 16 for the Irish. Atkins led Notre Dame with 18 points and became the 54th player in school history to score 1,000 points in his career. Last season, Indiana State knocked off two ranked teams (Wichita State and Creighton) and the eventual ACC champion (Miami). "You could say I should have my head examined to schedule them third game of the year," Brey said. The Irish will look to bounce back Friday night when they take on Santa Clara at 9 p.m. at Purcell Pavilion. Contact Matthew DeFranks at mdefrank@nd.edu  

Hockey: Irish split series with Merrimack

On a weekend when Irish senior goaltender Steven Summerhays was on top of his game, it took two crazy deflections for Merrimack to get the puck past him. But the two scores were enough for the Warriors (3-6-1, 0-3-1 Hockey East) to salvage a 2-2 tie with the No. 4 Irish (8-3-1, 2-1-1) on Saturday night at Compton Family Ice Arena. Merrimack freshman forward Vinny Scotti erased a 2-1 Irish lead with just 1:06 remaining in the game to rob Notre Dame of a weekend sweep after the Irish took the first game of the series 4-0 on Friday. "The way it finished obviously [was disappointing]," Irish coach Jeff Jackson said. "Both their goals were bounces, and that's what makes it tough. I thought that given the circumstances our guys played pretty well." The limits of Notre Dame's forward depth came into play as the Irish were forced to skate just three lines for most of the game, with regulars freshman Vince Hinostroza, sophomores Steven Fogarty and Thomas DiPauli, and senior Michael Voran all out with injuries. Notre Dame controlled the play for the game's first two periods, outshooting Merrimack 25-12, but the Warriors upped their play in the third and outscored the home team 14-6 over the final 20 minutes. "They're playing four lines, and we're playing three," Jackson said. "It's inevitable that you're going to get a little tired, but I thought that for the most part our guys handled it really well. Third period they picked it up and started being more aggressive with their defensemen that tired us out a little bit." Irish senior defenseman Shayne Taker opened the scoring on the power play in the first period, rifling a wrist shot through a screen past Merrimack junior goaltender Rasmus Tirronen, and senior forward T.J. Tynan extended it to 2-0 in the second on a great individual effort. While killing a penalty, Tynan picked the pocket of a Merrimack defenseman and beat two more Warrior players to the net, sliding a backhand under Tirronen's pads. "The positive for us is that we scored a power play goal and we scored a shorthanded goal," Jackson said. "The penalty kill killed off penalties, and special teams kept us in the game tonight." The Warriors narrowed the lead to a goal late in the second when sophomore forward Clayton Jardine one-timed a shot from the point that deflected off a Notre Dame defender and up and over Summerhays. Still down by a goal late in the third, the Warriors pulled Tirronen with 2:06 remaining for an extra attacker, and the move paid off as a series of blocked shots resulted in Scotti finding an open net with just over a minute remaining. "The fact that were up 2-1 with that situation, I'd take it again," Jackson said. "We had two blocked shots on that, and the puck bounced right to their open guy." Neither team mustered strong chances in the overtime period, leaving the game in a tie. On Friday, Summerhays stopped all 31 shots Merrimack sent his way in leading Notre Dame to the 4-0 win. Freshman forward Ali Thomas got the Irish on the board in the second period with his first career goal, and two goals from junior forward Peter Schneider and a tally from sophomore forward Mario Lucia provided all the insurance Summerhays would need. "I think [the Warriors] were just throwing everything they could on net," Summerhays said. "I think they saw some of the Minnesota game tape and noticed that I gave up some bad angle goals, but I thought we really limited their quality scoring chances." The win was Notre Dame's first home victory in a Hockey East game, and the game began with a ceremonial puck-drop by Hockey East commissioner Joe Bertagna to mark the first Hockey East game at Compton. The Irish now sit fourth in the conference standings and will travel to No. 16 Massachusetts-Lowell next weekend. Contact Conor Kelly at ckell17@nd.edu  

Men's Soccer: Notre Dame loses in ACC tourney

No. 12 Virginia knows how to cause trouble for the No. 1 Irish. The Cavaliers knocked Notre Dame out of the ACC Championship with a semifinal win on penalty kicks Friday in Campus Park, Md. After battling through regulation and two overtimes in a 3-3 tie, Virginia (11-4-4, 5-3-4 ACC) converted four penalty kicks to three for the Irish (12-2-5, 7-2-3). Both sides played well and made the game exciting, Irish coach Bobby Clark said. "It was a terrific soccer game," Clark said. "It was a terrific example of college soccer, with two teams trying to win it. When we went ahead, they fought really hard to get back in the game and pressured hard." Irish senior forward Harry Shipp, sophomore midfielder Patrick Hodan and senior defender Andrew O'Malley scored for Notre Dame in regular time, and Cavaliers sophomore midfielder Todd Wharton (penalty kick), sophomore forward Marcus Salandy-Defour and freshman forward NickoCorriveau found the net for Virginia. Control of the game shifted between the Irish and the Cavaliers as the goal total mounted. "A couple of times there were momentum shifts," Clark said. "We were up by two goals and given a penalty kick. If that goes in, that's three goals and a bit of safety. [Virginia's] first goal was a big boost for them as a team, definitely a psychological boost for their team because it brought them within reach. When we got the third goal, we were winning 3-1 with eight or nine minutes to go and you thought that would have been the difference." Three of the game's six goals came in the final 10 minutes of regular time as Virginia mounted a comeback. O'Malley's goal put the Irish up 3-1 in the 81st minute, but the Cavaliers responded with goals in the 85th and 87th minute to force overtime. "We'll see them as lucky breaks, and they'll see them as created opportunities, but that was the way the game fell," Clark said. It was not the first time the Cavaliers felled the Irish this year, as Virginia handed Notre Dame its only loss of the regular season on Oct. 26. The Irish have allowed only 0.57 goals per game for the season, but the Cavaliers managed to score two goals in the first meeting and netted three Friday. Virginia is the only team to score multiple goals in a game against Notre Dame this season. The Irish struck first with Shipp's goal in the 21st minute, and Notre Dame held the advantage with a 2-0 lead at halftime. Sophomore midfielder Connor Klekota passed the ball ahead to Shipp who chased it into the box and shot the ball to the left of Cavaliers redshirt junior goalkeeper Calle Brown for a goal. Hodan then scored nearly 24 minutes later to extend Notre Dame's lead to 2-0 shortly before the break. Virginia found its stride in the second half, however. Wharton converted a penalty kick in the 57th minute, and the Cavaliers turned up the heat in the closing minutes of regular time. Salandy-Defour and Corriveau sparked Virginia's comeback with their late goals and evened the score by the end of regulation. After two scoreless periods of overtime, the game came down to penalty kicks. Shipp converted for the Irish, but Brown saved shots from Klekota and Hodan to set the Irish back. The Cavaliers held on to secure the 4-3 penalty-kick advantage and win the match. Clark attributed the loss to a combination of Virginia's skill and Irish mistakes. "There are a few things we can certainly improve on," Clark said. "Virginia is a good team. They have very good attacking players who are very talented, so you have to give them credit for that, but at the same time we have to look at ourselves and see what we can do better." The first round of the NCAA Tournament begins Thursday, and tournament seedings are announced today. Contact Samantha Zuba at szuba@nd.edu  

ND Women's Soccer: ND overwhelms Iowa

Notre Dame freshman midfielder Morgan Andrews has played a variety of roles for her team in her first collegiate season. On Friday night, she added a new one to her résumé - designated penalty taker. Andrews converted Notre Dame's first penalty kick of the season in the 38th minute and added another goal six minutes later to spur the Irish to a 4-1 victory over Iowa in the first round of the NCAA Championship on Friday at Alumni Stadium. After Irish junior forward Lauren Bohaboy was fouled to set up the penalty kick, Andrews left little doubt as to who would step up for Notre Dame (12-7-1, 7-5-1 ACC) against Iowa sophomore goalkeeper Hannah Clark. 
"[Andrews] was already raising her hand as she was walking from outside the penalty box to let everybody know she got it," Irish coach Randy Waldrum said. "We didn't even have to say anything to the team to say, 'Let Morgan take it.'" Andrews drove home a shot inside the right post to beat Clark, who dove toward the left side of the goal. In the 44th minute, the freshman took a feed from Irish senior defender Elizabeth Tucker and fought through several defenders to knock a shot into the lower right corner of the net. "It was a great assist by Tucker, getting that ball into the box, and then it was just really a fight," Andrews said of the goal. "I think it was just picking up on the scrap ball and making sure I got the ball into the net." Andrews' two first-half goals helped Notre Dame climb out of an early deficit. The Irish fell behind in the fifth minute of action when Iowa junior defender Melanie Pickert launched a penalty kick past Notre Dame freshman goalkeeper Kaela Little to put the Hawkeyes (15-7-1, 5-5-1 Big Ten) on the board. "I thought the reaction to the [Iowa goal] was great," Waldrum said. "We were on top of it early; I thought we were really good tonight, especially with our ball possession and the opportunities we created. I felt like if we could get the first one back in the first half, it would be okay." The Hawkeyes managed only three more shots after Pickert's early goal, as Notre Dame largely controlled possession and kept the ball in Iowa's half of the field. Notre Dame outshot Iowa 32-4 and held a 13-2 advantage in shots on goal. "I think getting more numbers in the attack and getting a little more balance in our midfield helped [our offense] out quite a bit," Waldrum said. "We needed to try to find a way to start scoring a few more goals. Hopefully, we can now build on that and keep it going." Notre Dame reversed its recent trend of second-half struggles when Tucker added a goal in the 53rd minute to give the team a 3-1 lead. The senior captain received the ball on the far side of the field and beat a few Iowa defenders before firing in a shot from 13 yards out. "We've been dancing around these one-goal games in the ACC for this last month it seems like, and we've had trouble hanging onto that lead, so I think it was important that we got that second goal to put a little bit of cushion," Waldrum said. Notre Dame sophomore defender Katie Naughton added an insurance goal in the 87th minute when she took sophomore defender Brittany Von Rueden's corner kick and headed a shot into the middle of the goal. With the victory, Notre Dame improved to 46-3 all-time in NCAA Championship games at home and 7-0 all-time in NCAA Championship games at Alumni Stadium. Notre Dame will advance to play Western Michigan, who upset No. 8 Marquette, 1-0, in its first-round game, in the second round of the NCAA Championship. The Irish and Broncos (12-5-5, 7-2-2 MAC) will meet Friday at 4 p.m. in Ann Arbor, Mich. Contact Brian Hartnett at bhartnet@nd.edu  

ND Women's Soccer: Irish score four unanswered goals, advance in first round of NCAAs

Notre Dame freshman midfielder Morgan Andrews has played a variety of roles for her team in her first collegiate season. On Friday night, she added a new one to her résumé - designated penalty taker.

Hockey: Hockey East comes to Compton

Lorton: Time for replays in MLB (Nov. 15)

Men's Swimming: ND hosts Big Ten powers

After three consecutive weekends of competing on the road, the Irish return to the Rolfs Aquatic Center for a pair of dual meets against Michigan State and Wisconsin this weekend.

Women's Interhall: Pasquerillas face off in rivalry showdown

By REBECCA ROGALSKI

Men's Soccer: No. 1 Irish fall in PKs in ACC semis to Virginia

No. 12 Virginia knows how to cause trouble for the No. 1 Irish.

ND Women's Soccer: Irish open NCAAs at home

Six of No. 23 Notre Dame's seven losses this season have been by one goal, and the Irish are prepared for another tight battle as they open the first round of the NCAA Championship at home against Iowa tonight. 

ND Women's Basketball: Diggins to join Notre Dame elite

Baraka Bouts wrap up tournament with final round

Men's Basketball: Brey asks for 'sixth man' on Sunday

Men's Interhall: Three undefeated teams highlight semifinals

By ANDREW EISENREICH

Men's Soccer: ND faces Virginia in rematch