Sports

Men's Swimming: ND hosts Dennis Stark Relays

Notre Dame dives into the 2013-2014 season looking for fast times when it hosts its first two meets of the year today and Saturday at Rolfs Aquatic Center.

ND Women's Soccer: Overtime heartbreaker

Under an unrelenting downpour in Charlottesville, Va., No.9 Notre Dame fell 3-2 in a controversial double-overtime nailbiter to No.1 Virginia Thursday night.

ND Women's Swimming: Irish aim for success again

Notre Dame will look to build off last year's tremendous season when they kick off the 2013-14 campaign this Friday at the Dennis Stark Relays.

Men's Basketball: Brey adresses starters, rebounding at media day

The jerseys were tucked in. The afternoon schedule was mapped out. The assistant coaches had nattily-knotted ties to go with their sharp suits.

SMC Volleyball: Hecklinksi leads Belles to victory over Alma

The Belles beat Alma 3-1 in four tight sets Wednesday at home and pushed themselves back to a winning conference record. Saint Mary's (8-11, 6-5 MIAA) had struggled of late, but the team seems to be coming together, Belles coach Toni Elyea said. "I think we're playing great volleyball," Elyea said. "We're continuing to let teams in sometimes, and we're letting them get key runs of three or four points. We need to run and execute plays which we've had a bit of trouble with but we pulled together tonight." The Belles defeated Alma (9-11, 4-7) in four sets 25-23, 25-23, 16-25 and 25-22. Elyea said that several players turned in great performances in the victory. "We had a great contribution from [sophomore outside hitter] Katie Hecklinski, 17 kills and 14 digs, which was another double-double for her this season," Elyea said. "Defensively, [junior outside hitter] Kati Schneider had 18 digs and [junior libero] Meredith Mersits had 23." Saint Mary's posted a .122 attacking percentage in the first set compared to the Scots' .194 percentage but had the advantage in total kills with 15. The Belles hitters committed nine attacking errors in the first set but improved in each game until they posted a .265 attacking percentage with just four errors in the fourth set. Aggressive serving helped Saint Mary's create better attacking opportunities, Elyea said. "We decided that we were going to serve much more aggressively, which allowed a lot more free balls to come over from them, which we were able to capitalize on," Elyea said. Hecklinski led Saint Mary's with 17 kills. Junior middle hitter Melanie Kuczek smashed 10, and Kati Schneider added eight. The Scots' only win came in the third game when Alma outhit Saint Mary's 12 kills to nine and earned the largest victory margin of the night, 25-16. Senior middle hitter Lea Klooster sparked Alma's offense with 16 kills and a .441 attacking percentage. The Scots committed few attacking errors, but the Belles kept Alma's offense off-balance with strong serving after the third set, Elyea said. Mersits (23), Schneider (18) and Hecklinski (14) secured the Belles defense with digs. "We did not serve aggressively [in the third set]," Elyea said. "They ran their middle extremely well. Lea was on fire tonight, and she just did a tremendous job. We served much more aggressively in the fourth set." Contact Samantha Zuba at szuba@nd.edu  

Hartnett: Will the NFL cross the pond? (Oct. 10)

This Sunday, the Jacksonville Jaguars will take the field as 27.5-point underdogs against ageless wonder Peyton Manning and his Denver Broncos squad.

Making a statement

The No. 2 Irish battled ACC rival No. 5 Maryland down to the wire and pushed the game into a second overtime to finish the match as a 1-1 draw Tuesday at Alumni Stadium in South Bend, Ind. In what was the first and last meeting of Notre Dame and Maryland as fellow members of the ACC, the Irish (6-0-4, 3-0-2) and the Terrapins (5-2-4, 4-0-1) left everything on the field in a fight between two aggressive offensives.

ND Women's Soccer: Moving Forward

Coming off its second loss of the season and first loss in the ACC, No. 5 Notre Dame faces a daunting obstacle in getting back on track in the conference when the Irish take on top-ranked Virginia in Charlottesville, Va. on Thursday night.

Football: Redfield makes his mark on special teams

Max Redfield has never played quarterback, but he has had to adjust to being a defensive signal-caller.

Women's Interhall: Lewis blanks Farley for first win of the year

Lewis 6, Farley 0

SMC Soccer: Saint Mary's seeks fourth straight victory

Fresh off their third straight win, Saint Mary's looks to extend its longest winning streak of the season Saturday in a home MIAA matchup against Kalamazoo. The Belles (5-4-3, 3-2-3 MIAA) come into the matchup off their second consecutive shutout, a 1-0 overtime thriller over Trine on Sunday. Senior midfielder Mollie Valencia scored the game-winning goal in the 103rd minute on a penalty kick, her first goal of the season. The defensive unit, led by juniors Kerry Green and Mary Kate Hussey, held the Thunder to two shots, helping earn Green MIAA Defensive Player of the Week honors. Junior goalkeeper ChanlerRosenbaum notched her fourth shutout of the year, recording one save on the lone shot on goal she faced. In the Belles and Hornets (5-7-0, 4-5-0 MIAA) first matchup Sept. 12, Kalamazoo defended their home turf with a 1-0 overtime win, despite being outshot 23-14 by the Belles. However, Hussey said there is a world of difference between those Belles and the ones the Hornets will play Saturday. "Team chemistry has improved so much since then, and we are finally clicking not only off the field but more importantly on the field," Hussey said. "And now that [Belles coach Mike] Joyce has started to get a better feel for newer players everyone is comfortable with the players around them." As hot as the Belles have been - they haven't lost since Sept. 14 - the Hornets come into the matchup almost equally as cold. Despite coming off a 1-0 victory of their own over Trine, the Hornets have lost five of their last six games and six of their last eight. In addition to the differences in form, Hussey said the Belles hold another distinct advantage, albeit a subtle one. "A huge advantage for us playing on our grass field is Kalamazoo plays on turf," Hussey said. "That might not seem like a big deal but it's the type of thing that can tip the scales." Hussey said the Belles gameplan revolves around simple hard work and effort. "Our gameplan is really about just working hard, outworking the other team," Hussey said. "Other than that, our attitude has to be to encourage each other to play to the best of our ability. If we play to our potential that I know we can, especially the way we've played lately, we won't lose." The Belles and Hornets take the field Saturday at noon at Saint Mary's. Contact A.J. Godeaux at agodeaux@nd.edu  

SMC Volleyball: Belles look to continue success

After putting an end to a five-game losing streak by taking two of their last three matches, the Belles (7-11, 5-5 MIAA) will take on some familiar faces when they host Alma (9-10, 4-6 MIAA) tonight. The last time these two teams faced off on Sept. 7, the Belles were victorious in four sets  (25-21, 16-25, 25-22, 26-24).

Men's Golf: Platt leads team as senior, sets eyes on pros

Senior captain Niall Platt, four-year starter and three-time monogram winner, found his life-long sport of golf with the help of his father at the age of three. "My dad got me into it, he loved the game," Platt said. "He doesn't play much anymore, but we used to play together all the time when I was a little kid." A Santa Barbra, Calif. native, Platt said his father John attends many of his tournaments now and serves as an extra coach. "When he comes to my tournaments, he will help me out with my swing and stuff," Platt said. "He is also usually my caddy over the summer." Throughout his time at Notre Dame, Platt has made a great impact on the team. He started 11 tournaments as a freshman and has kept his starting spot through all three seasons at Notre Dame. His freshman year, Platt earned the Big East Freshman of the Year award, a spot on the All-Big East Team, and a monogram award. "Freshman of the year was a great honor for me, I was really happy with that," Platt said. "And obviously to win a monogram, especially freshman year, was a big deal for me." Platt consistently finished within the top three on the team for lowest stroke averages - 73.4 his freshman year and 73.81 his sophomore year. He led the team in lowest stroke average his junior year with 73.41. This season Platt continues to be an asset to the team, currently leading the team with a stroke average of 70.83. Platt has also had one top-10 finish and two top-20 finishes - his best place being at the Gopher Invitational on Sept. 9 with a tie for sixth. Platt said his decision to come to Notre Dame was the right one, not just because of the success he found with the team, but also because of the coaches and players he has had the privilege to golf with. "You don't want to get stuck with coaches you don't like, and luckily that didn't happen to me," Platt said. "I love competing with these guys [the team and coaches], traveling to tournaments is my favorite thing about being on the team." Platt, an applied and computational mathematics and statistics major, said he hopes play pro-golf after college. "Right now, my plan is to turn pro, and see how it goes for a few years," Platt said. "And if it doesn't work out then I will do something else, but for now professional golf is where I want to go." Platt and the team tee off again at the Crooked Stick Intercollegiate tournament in Carmel, Ind. on Oct. 14. Contact Meredith Kelly at mkelly29@nd.edu  

SMC Golf: Belles look to surpass Olivet in last tourney

Saint Mary's will wrap up its fall season this weekend at the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) End of Season Weekend Jamboree at Bedford Valley. Olivet will host the event, and is currently leading the MIAA with a season score of 1294. The Belles trail in second place by 52 strokes. The Comets have won all four prior MIAA Jamborees behind seniors Adrienne Plourde and Theresa Damico. Plourde finished second overall at the fourth MIAA Jamboree at Zolner Golf Course, and her performance led Olivet to a first place finish with a score of 320. After seeing her team finish second to Olivet four straight times, Belles coach Kim Moore said she believes it will take a consistent effort from the entire team for a Belles victory. "We're right there, its just a matter of getting four consistent scores," Moore said. "It doesn't matter if it's the number one player or the number five player, your score helps the team no matter where you're at." After finishing at least 12 strokes back in the previous three MIAA tournaments, the Belles closed the gap a bit last weekend at Zolner, shooting a season-best 329. Two Belles finished in the top-five. Freshman Ali Mahoney (76) finished third place individually, and senior Paige Pollak (77) finished fourth. Moore said that the season-best performance would be a boon to her players heading into their final tournament of the fall. "I think it just gives them confidence that we can put a couple good scores in there," Moore said. "Based on those results, we can be close to beating Olivet." Mahoney's performance in last weekend's event was her career best, and broke a streak of high-scoring outings. After shooting an 81 in her first round of the season, Mahoney shot 88 or higher in five straight rounds before last weekend's 75. Moore said she credited the freshman's practice habits for her improvement, and to continue playing at a high level, Mahoney must hone her putting game. "She had a good couple weeks of practice, and she really improved on her putting," Moore said. "[Last weekend] was her best putting performance of the year. It really shows that when you're making puts, your scores tend to drop. It was really a reflection on her preparation." In addition to Mahoney and Pollak, who lead the Belles with an average score of 80.6 on the season, Moore said Saint Mary's will need sophomore Sammie Averill, senior Alexi Brown, junior Janice Heffernan and freshman Courtney Carlson to make an impact in their final two rounds. Moore said the team's focus isn't just on a victory, but also on improving and building confidence as they did in their previous tournaments. "I really want us to go in there and take the confidence we have from the previous tournament," Moore said. "Hopefully we can add to our performance and it would be nice to get another low score in there, which I think we can." The Belles will play their final two rounds of the season at the MIAA End of Season Weekend Jamboree at Bedford Valley Golf Course, teeing off at 1 p.m. Friday and 11 p.m. Saturday. Contact Casey Karnes at wkarnes@nd.edu  

ND Women's Tennis: Irish compete in regional singles championships

In their second contest of the fall season, the Irish head to the Midwest Regional Championships today through Sunday in Ann Arbor, Mich. to test their individual strength.

ND Women's Golf: Armstrong's consistency guides Irish play

From the moment she stepped on campus, Ashley Armstrong was a leader. Irish coach Susan Holt knew that she had found a golfer that would take the reins and push her teammates to be better.

ND Women's Basketball: Irish enter ACC unsure of identity

"We are ND."

Jacobsen: Men's soccer putting on a show (Oct. 9)

Another night, another hard-fought draw for the No. 2 Irish.

Jacobsen: Breaking in to the Boys Club (Oct. 8)

Men's Soccer: Terrapin test