Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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50 NOV. 26, 2022 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY TODD D. BURLAGE J ulia Andreach — a Rochester, N.Y., native — was only about 10 years old when she started considering Notre Dame as a potential place to play her college tennis someday. Coming from an area in Upstate New York rich with tennis talent, Andreach got to know and stayed in contact with two future Irish players during her early play- ing days. Quinn Gleason (2012-16) still competes professionally, and she has won 14 ITF titles in doubles (13) and singles (1), and competed at the 2021 Wimbledon Championships. Matt Gamble (2016-21) also enjoyed a fine career at Notre Dame. "Growing up, I was always around them and I got their view of what Notre Dame was, and how important it was to them," Andreach recalled. "That kind of just opened my eyes to Notre Dame." A campus visit to South Bend eventu- ally followed for Andreach, and a bond between a school and a future student- athlete was born. "Notre Dame lived up to the all of the expectations I had," said Andreach, a multiple-time ACC All-Academic hon- oree who is studying economics. "And it has ever since." Andreach and the Fighting Irish tennis team recently completed their abbrevi- ated fall season, a two-month stretch that provides players, coaches and programs a chance to look ahead to the spring. "It will be nice now to have a month or two to focus on some technical and mental things, just to be ready to go into the spring season in full force," explained Andreach, who played in four fall tourna- ments, including the ITA Super Region- als. "That was a great chance to com- pete against players from the Big Ten and other conferences outside of the ACC." As a two-time individual New York state champion from Our Lady of Mercy High School in Rochester, Andreach's prep career and road to Notre Dame ap- pears to have stayed on a linear course. But that isn't necessarily the case. Andreach won her first high school state title as a sophomore in 2017. Want- ing more, she and her family decided that a transfer before her junior year to the prestigious IMG Academy boarding school in Bradenton, Fla., would boost her game and flatten life's learning curve. IMG provides intense training and top-notch coaching. Andre Agassi, Mon- ica Seles, Jim Courier, Serena Williams highlight a long list of distinguished alumni. It's all tennis all the time. Andreach appreciates her time and all that she learned at IMG, but … "I like to describe it as a good learning experience because it helped me learn ex- actly what I wanted in a college," she said. "Would I want to go through it again? No, probably not. But I wouldn't take it back." As a 15-year-old relocated far from home, Andreach admits that some cul- ture shock and homesickness got the best of her at IMG. But she finished out the year, returned to Rochester for her senior year in 2019 and claimed her sec- ond New York state title. "I prefer a more traditional school. I like having my friends that have noth- ing to do with the sport I was playing," she said. "And that is something that Notre Dame gives me. It fulfills that. It's everything I love about going to school here." ✦ Tennis Player Julia Andreach Is Right At Home In South Bend Andreach was a two-time individual New York state champion from Our Lady of Mercy High School in Rochester. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS ND SPORTS Irish Roundup Through Nov. 17 CROSS COUNTRY The No. 5-ranked women's team and the No. 13 men's squad both earned automatic bids to compete at the NCAA Championships Nov. 19 in Stillwater, Okla. HOCKEY (5-5-2 OVERALL, 2-3-1 BIG TEN) The No. 20 Fighting Irish earned a split in their two home games versus No. 3 Michigan, falling 5-1 Nov. 11 before rebounding with a 3-2 overtime victory Nov. 12 … Next up for the Irish are two games at Ohio State Nov. 18-19. WOMEN'S SOCCER (15-2-3 OVERALL, 7-2-1 ACC) No. 1-seeded Notre Dame blanked Omaha 5-0 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament Nov. 12 in South Bend … The Fighting Irish host No. 8 seed Santa Clara in a second-round match Nov. 18 … If they advance, they would face either No. 4 seed Michigan State or No. 5 seed TCU in the round of 16 Nov. 20 in South Bend. MEN'S SWIMMING AND DIVING (2-1) The Fighting Irish suffered a 191-109 setback at the hands of No. 10 Louisville Nov. 11 in South Bend … From Nov. 17-19, the Notre Dame swimmers will compete at the Ohio State Invitational in Columbus, Ohio, while the divers will take part in the Texas Diving Invitational in Austin, Texas. WOMEN'S SWIMMING AND DIVING (2-1) Notre Dame fell to No. 10 Louisville 172-128 Nov. 11 in South Bend … The Irish swimmers will be at the Ohio State Invitational in Columbus, while the divers will be at the Texas Diving Invitational in Austin, Nov. 17-19. VOLLEYBALL (9-16 OVERALL, 4-11 ACC) The Fighting Irish were edged by Florida State Nov. 11 … Notre Dame plays at North Carolina State Nov. 19. — Steve Downey