Men's Tennis: Irish win, lose at OSU regionals
The Irish rebounded for a 4-1 win Sunday against No. 51 New Mexico after dropping a 4-3 decision Saturday to No. 35 Tulsa at the Ohio State regional of the ITA Team Indoor Championship.
The Irish rebounded for a 4-1 win Sunday against No. 51 New Mexico after dropping a 4-3 decision Saturday to No. 35 Tulsa at the Ohio State regional of the ITA Team Indoor Championship.
The Irish came in second place at their first home-hosted tournament Sunday, defeating No. 46 DePaul 6-1 on Saturday and losing 5-2 to No. 17 North Carolina during the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's Kick-Off Weekend for the 2010 season.
No. 9 Notre Dame challenged two national teams this weekend in the Champion Challenge at the Disney World of Sports in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
In desperate need of a conference win, the Irish appeared to have a break in the schedule entering Saturday's game against a Rutgers team that was winless in Big East play. Instead, Notre Dame dropped the fourth of its past five games to the Scarlet Knights, falling 74-73 on the road.
The Belles fought down to the wire, but lost to MIAA opponent Alma 79-76 Saturday.
In their final meet of the regular season, the Irish defeated Denver (245-124) but lost to Iowa (197-171) and Missouri (197-173) at the Shamrock Invitational at Rolf's Aquatic Center.
This weekend brought a rough patch for the Belles. They faced No. 14 Calvin and Alma in their last meet of the regular season and lost to both teams. Calvin defeated the Belles by a score of 177.5-58.5, while Alma took over at 125-97.
The Irish put forth a strong effort this weekend at the Indiana Invitational in Bloomington, Ind., claiming multiple first-place finishes and setting one NCAA qualifying mark in the two-day competition.
After an impressive start to the season against quality Big Ten opponents Iowa and Wisconsin, the No. 6 Irish make their home debut this weekend as they host No. 17 North Carolina, No. 33 Boise State and No. 46 DePaul for the ITA Kickoff Weekend.
Saint Mary's took first in eight out of 13 events last weekend, and have a chance to build on that success in the final meet of the regular season tonight against Calvin and Alma.
The Irish will try to stop their recent Big East slide Saturday on the road against Rutgers. Notre Dame, which has dropped three of its past four, will travel to Piscataway, N.J., in search of a crucial conference win after a loss to No. 3 Villanova Wednesday dropped the team back to 4-4 in Big East play.
The Irish will take to the piste again this weekend in the Northwestern Duals in Evanston, Ill. to take on some of their top rivals from the Midwest and elsewhere around the country.
Notre Dame hosts conference foe Nebraska-Omaha in a crucial pair of games at the Joyce Center this weekend.
The Irish return to the courts this weekend as they travel to Columbus, Ohio, to face Tulsa in the first round of the Ohio State regional of the ITA's National Team Indoor Championships.
Irish coach Brian Kelly and his staff will host 13 official visitors, including five Notre Dame verbal commits, this weekend in what will be the final major recruiting push before National Signing Day on Wednesday.
The Irish will travel south to Bloomington, Ind. this weekend to compete in the Indiana Invitational along with 21 other teams. The two-day meet begins Friday. The majority of the first day of competition consists of preliminary rounds of 60-meter sprints and hurdles. Saturday's contests will end the meet with invitational races and relays. All field events on Saturday will also be invitational.
Saint Mary's travels to Alma Saturday in hopes of ending a three-game conference losing streak that has dropped the Belles into a three-way tie for third place in conference standings with Adrian and Olivet.
This weekend, the Irish will square off in their last meet before the Big East Championships next month.
Big East reigning champion Notre Dame looks to follow up a spectacular 2009 season by traveling to Florida to take on the U.S. National Team in two preseason exhibition matches.
In her Notre Dame debut, Chrissie McGaffigan topped two Big Ten opponents, verifying the promising ability Irish coach Jay Louderback saw in her when he recruited the Iowa native.