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Wednesday, May 13, 2026
The Observer

Sports


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Notre Dame heads into first Big Ten season with experience, questions

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Notre Dame heads into a new season with high hopes after catching fire late last season en route to the Frozen Four  — a run that ultimately ended at the hands of eventual champion Denver. The program has been impressive as of late, appearing in the Frozen Four three times in the past 10 seasons. Aiming to build upon this success, the Irish join the Big Ten this year for a new challenge, as the conference has four other teams ranked in the top 25 according to major preseason polls. As of now, the Irish rank No. 8, primed for a successful season amongst a competitive field. Notre Dame head coach Jeff Jackson is certainly aware of the nature of this new challenge and is prepared to face it head on.



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Irish finish sixth at Shoal Creek Invitational

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After a strong start in the first round Monday, the No. 22 Irish found themselves sitting in 2nd place heading into Tuesday at 5-over-par. The squad ultimately failed to capitalize on its advantageous position in the tournament’s second round. A combined six double-bogeys on Tuesday left the Irish 10-over-par with a sixth place finish. The Irish still found themselves just six strokes away from a top-three finish in a field, alongside noteworthy competitors such as No. 4 Wake Forest and North Florida.




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Notre Dame drops first two ACC contests to Louisville, NC State

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On Sunday, the Irish looked to bounce back in Raleigh, North Carolina, as Notre Dame took on the Wolfpack of North Carolina State (7-6, 2-0). In another tightly contested affair, the Irish went down 1-0 after dropping the first set 25-17. The second set went to the Irish, as they fought back despite an early four point deficit with a 9-1 run to win the set 25-19.