Sports

Men's Soccer: Undefeated Irish face NC State

Kelly says Tuitt "stumbled" into question about future

Irish junior defensive end StephonTuitt said he will return for his senior season next year, he told The Observer on Wednesday.

Men's Soccer: ND draws with Northwestern

The No. 2 Irish battled No. 13 Northwestern into double overtime and finished in a 1-1 deadlock at the rain-sodden Alumni Stadium on Tuesday. 

ND Women's Soccer: Little stays cool in goal

CLARIFICATION: The Observer's October 16th story about women's soccer goalie Kaela Little needs the following clarifications to reflect the standards of accuracy for which a news publication should strive: Sophomore goalkeeper Elyse Hight was injured during a preseason exhibition and did not compete with Little for the starting job. A post-publication change to our story said "Hight was injured to begin the season." Hight is still injured and is scheduled for surgery later this month. Hight started 16 of 24 games as a freshman.

Head-to-Head: USC vs. Notre Dame

Orgeron replaces Kiffin, leads the Trojans

The unceremonious firing of former USC head coach Lane Kiffin in the early morning hours following the Trojans' lopsided loss to Arizona State on Sept. 28 concluded what had been a high-profile, high-controversy regime at Los Angeles' premier football program.  

Gastelum: Tommy Rees is a new breed of Irish quarterback (Oct. 18)

"If you're too big for the little things, then you're too little for the big things"- @t_rees11's Twitter bio

Football: Kelly anticipates 'great matchup'

Irish coach Brian Kelly did not beat around the bush regarding Saturday's matchup with USC.

Staff Predictions: USC vs. Notre Dame

By ANDREW GASTELUM

Belles get second shot against Alma

After falling 4-0 to Alma a month ago, the Belles will play the Scots for a second time at home today.  

Elmer, Onwualu benefit from early enrollment

Midway through their freshman campaigns, Irish receiver James Onwualu and offensive lineman Steve Elmer already seem like veterans. After enrolling early in the spring, both players have thrived in the transition to Notre Dame and onto the field.

Women's Interhall Football: Pasquerilla East clinches postseason berth

By RENEE GRIFFIN Sports Writer Pasquerilla East beat Cavanaugh 28-6 Sunday with an outstanding defensive performance, ensuring the Pyros a spot in the playoffs. Pasquerilla East (4-1) shut down the usually potent offense of the Chaos (3-2), which averaged nearly 23 points per game through its first four contests. The only Cavanaugh touchdown came late in the fourth quarter, after the Pyros secured their lead. The Pyros' defensive effort featured four sacks as well as three interceptions by freshman Maddie McGovern. McGovern returned one of those picks for a touchdown in the fourth quarter to seal the win. Pasquerilla East's offense capitalized on the field position and turnovers its defense provided. Pyros junior quarterback Macy Mulhall threw three touchdown passes, one early to senior running back KiahSchaefbauer and two to junior receiver Nicole Ameli later in the game. "I am overjoyed with how well we played," Pyros senior captain and defensive lineman Caroline Kuse said. "We came out and we were ready for them. This game really got our spirits up, and I think that will really help us in the postseason." With its playoff spot secured, Pasquerilla East will take on Badin on Nov. 3 in its final regular-season game, while the Chaos play Farley the same day. Contact Renee Griffin at rgriffi6@nd.edu

Men's Soccer: Irish take on Wildcats

When Notre Dame moved to the ACC, conventional wisdom suggested that the Irish would be challenged as they joined one of the nation's top soccer conferences. But the No. 2 Irish (7-0-4, 4-0-3 ACC) aren't just living for the weekends. Notre Dame has already notched two regular-season victories against Big Ten opponents on school nights, beating regional-rival Michigan on Sept. 17 and defending national champion Indiana on Oct. 2. Notre Dame will see if the trend continues tonight when No. 14 Northwestern, a squad that Irish coach Bobby Clark describes as "one of the strongest teams in the country," pays a visit to Alumni Stadium. "I think they're a very well organized team," Clark said. "They're a team that they're very difficult to break down. They've obviously got some very good players, also." The Wildcats (8-3-1, 1-1-0 Big Ten) won their last meeting with the Irish, beating Notre Dame 2-1 in Evanston, Ill., on Oct. 12, 2012. The loss was one of just four defeats handed to the Irish over the course of the season. "Obviously I think we'll have to defend very well tomorrow, because they counter very quickly," Clark said. "I hope that our finishers are very sharp, because they're not an easy team to break down. "We've got to take the charges at one end and obviously we've got to do that a little better than we did last weekend, and we're going to have to prevent them getting opportunities. That's important." The Wildcat attack is led-at least statistically-by sophomore forward Joey Calistri, the reigning Big Ten freshman of the Year. Calistri has scored four goals so far this season, and was named national player of the week by College Soccer News in mid-September. Clark, however, said the Irish don't have any special plans for shutting down the sophomore. "We just know that he's a very good player. But they have a lot of good players; he's not the only one," Clark said. "They have so many good players. If we spent all of our time worrying about one, we would be leaving someone else. They don't have many weak links, if any, on their team." Generally speaking, Clark said he doesn't send his team onto the field with a specific game plan, preferring to prepare them to react to any situation they might encounter on the pitch. "There's no timeouts in soccer, so they've got to recognize what's happening and they've got to adjust," Clark said. "It's not like we can call them in. You don't see them for 45 minutes until halftime, so you need leaders on your team, and they need to sort things out if necessary." As of Monday night, Notre Dame is one of just four remaining undefeated teams in Division I men's soccer. The Irish are joined by No. 1 California (7-0-2) and No. 24 Wisconsin-Milwaukee (9-0-1) as well as No. 3 Washington (8-0-3), which is coached by Clark's son Jamie, who was an assistant at Notre Dame in 2006 and 2007. The Irish aim to remain in the ranks of the unbeaten as they face off against the Wildcats at 7 p.m. tonight at Alumni Stadium. Contact Vicky Jacobsen at vjacobse@nd.edu

Men's Interhall Football: Knott dominates Duncan for first win

By MEGAN WINKEL Sports Writer Knott emerged victorious in a battle against Duncan on Sunday 26-0, with a strong offense and a stronger defense that brought in two interceptions and shut out Duncan's offense. "It feels great to get our first win of the season," Knott senior captain James Hodgens said. "If we keep playing like we did today, at that intensity, I think we'll put ourselves in a good position to keep winning this season." Hodgens said he was most excited about how the offense played. "Scoring 26 points means you have to be doing something right," Hodgens said. "Our offensive line played really well. We didn't turn the ball over once, which was a big part of our success today. [Sophomore] receiver Griffin Carroll had a few touchdowns that were great passes and great runs. Overall, offense played really well." Knott (1-2) and Duncan (0-3) headed into the game in similar positions, both having lost its prior two games. Duncan junior captain Alan Keck said the team will focus on defense in practice. "Defense gave up way too many yards this past game and way too many points," Keck said. "We're going to go over specific plays for the defense in practices and work on tackling and who covers who." Duncan will have a chance for its defense to prove itself when it faces Siegfried on November 3rd, and Knott hopes to continue its successes against Morrissey the same day. Contact Megan Winkel at mwinkel@nd.edu

Football: Learning curve

From picking up blitzes to memorizing plays and learning time management skills, freshmen can face any number of challenges during their transition to college football. But on an October day with highs in the low 70's, Cocoa, Fla., native Tarean Folston complained that his toughest challenge thus far was the chilly South Bend weather. "It's gotten cold a few times; it's kind of scary," Folston said. "I know there's a lot colder weather coming along. I'm preparing myself." Folston might not enjoy Notre Dame's usual long, frigid winter, but that doesn't mean he's not up for a challenge. Just a few months into his Notre Dame career, the freshman running back has powered through most of those early transitions, and has succeeded in making an impact in a crowded backfield. Folston sits with fellow freshman Greg Bryant behind veteran juniors George Atkinson, Cam McDaniel and Amir Carlisle, and has had to work hard to see any action at all this season. But for Folston, his time as an understudy has given him the opportunity to adjust and grow outside of the spotlight. "I have a couple great running backs in front of me. It's not about coming in right away and playing," Folston said. "You have to come in and prepare yourself for a college football life. It's a whole different lifestyle. It's a whole different way of going about the game of football. There's a lot to learn." His competitors at running back of all ages have eased that learning process, Folston said. All three older backs have helped him along through camp and the season, giving out their experience freely, he said. And while Bryant is out indefinitely with what Irish coach Brian Kelly called patellar tendinitis, Folston said having another back to go through freshman year with has made the adjustments that much smoother. "[Greg and I], we're like best friends," he said. "On the football field we work together, we help each other... we're really close." Folston's hard work has paid off, as he quickly made inroads in the Irish backfield. After coming into the season buried in the depth chart, he has been one of the five "co-starters" listed at running back for the past several weeks. Folston has earned 11 carries so far this season but has made the most of them, amassing 69 yards and a team-best average of 6.3 yards per carry. Much of that total came on the biggest run of Folston's young career, with the Irish down 14-0 and reeling against Oklahoma. Out of the shotgun, the freshman took a handoff to his left and ran parallel to the line of scrimmage for nearly 20 yards. He finally found his hole as he neared the sideline, and with one hard plant step turned 90 degrees upfield, dashing 36 yards to the Oklahoma 3-yard line. Notre Dame punched the ball in two plays later, stopping the bleeding with its first score of the game. "A long run like that always builds confidence, but after...you've just got to focus on the next play," Folston said. "I just try to stay focused every day, and take the opportunities that I do get in the game and try to make something happen with them." Carries are still hard to come by in the Irish backfield, and Folston is now the lone freshman among Notre Dame's four healthy backs. But if Folston can continue to run like he did against Oklahoma, he'll ensure that he isn't left out in the cold. Contact Jack Hefferon at wheffero@nd.edu

Men's Golf: Irish take eighth at Crooked Stick

After two days and three rounds of golf, the Irish finished in eighth place out of a field of 14 teams in the Crooked Stick Intercollegiate in Carmel, Ind.

SMC Volleyball: Belles rally past Comets

It took the entire allotted five sets, but after falling early to Olivet, Saint Mary's rallied back in thrilling fashion to take the match 3-2 (20-25, 21-25, 25-19, 25-23, 15-10). 

Men's Swimming and Diving: Irish finish third at Stark relays

You can't stop the music

Since the Alma Mater is off the table, Scene Staff suggests some alternatives to turn to after a football loss (just in case). 

Men's Golf: Crooked Stick to host 14-team field