Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM PRESEASON 2024 57 ND SPORTS MEN'S SOCCER Season Opener: Akron University Aug. 22 in South Bend. ACC Predicted Finish: Top three; expect defend- ing national champion Clemson and North Carolina to also battle for the league title. NCAA Best-Case Scenario: A second straight run to the College Cup and a national championship. Coach's Expectations: Fighting Irish head coach Chad Riley needed no pause for reflection when asked about the expectations for this team, this year. "We have the same goals every year," he said. "To win the ACC championship and to win a na- tional championship." With nine returning seniors and two of his top four scorers back from a team that finished second in the country last year, why mince words? "They're a pretty special group," Riley added. In between the end lines, Notre Dame will be as talented as any team in the country. In front of net remains about the only question after the gradua- tion of goalie Bryan Dowd, a three-year starter and 2023 All-American. Riley expects a "healthy competition" for the starting spot in net during training camp that will include at least four players. "It's a really good group of goalies," Riley said. Top Player: Senior forward Matthew Roou re- turns after tying for the team lead last season with 23 points, while finishing second on the Irish with 10 goals. Athlete To Watch: Midfielder Bryce Boneau is poised for a breakout senior year after finishing third on the Irish last season with 15 points on 4 goals and 7 assists in only 17 games. Don't Miss: Notre Dame hosts Clemson Sept. 27. The Tigers beat Notre Dame 2-1 in the national championship game last season. WOMEN'S SOCCER Season Opener: Michigan State Aug. 15 in South Bend. ACC Predicted Finish: Top four; defending na- tional champion Florida State, along with 2023 Col- lege Cup participant Clemson and powerful new- comer Stanford are favored to win the league title. NCAA Best-Case Scenario: A quarterfinal ap- pearance in the NCAA Championship would cap a solid season. Coach's Expectations: With the long-running success of his program, Notre Dame head coach Nate Norman refuses to call 2024 a rebuilding season. Instead, he prefers to call it a "reload," and fittingly so. Following a fine 2023 season that saw Notre Dame finish 12-4-4 overall, second in the ACC at 7-1-2, and with a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Champi- onship, the Irish graduated 12 players overall and three of its top four scorers from that team, leaving Norman with 13 true freshmen on his 2024 roster. The seventh-year Irish skipper expects to start at least four members of that No. 3-ranked 2024 recruiting class. "We're very young, so there will be adversity," Norman said. "But when those tough times come, not only do we need to get through them, we need to grow from them as well." Top Player: Graduate student midfielder/forward Ellie Ospeck returns after finishing second on the team last season with 17 points on 5 goals and 7 assists. Athlete To Watch: True freshman forward An- nabelle Chukwu will be expected to help absorb the massive scoring and production voids created when 12 Irish players graduated after last season. Don't Miss: Notre Dame gets a chance at re- venge against rival Michigan Aug. 29. The Wol- verines handed the Irish their only home loss last season — a 1-0 defeat Sept. 7. VOLLEYBALL Season Opener: Villanova Aug. 31 at Santa Clara, Calif. ACC Predicted Finish: Middle of the expanded 18-team pack. After finishing 12th in the 15-team league last year at 5-13, a finish inside the top 10 would be satisfying in this difficult conference. NCAA Best-Case Scenario: Make the 64-team field for the first time since 2020. Coach's Expectations: Entering her third season on the Irish bench, Notre Dame head volleyball coach Salima Rockwell believes this is the year that her methods begin to take root and her program begins to take off. The Irish went 5-13 in ACC play and finished 12th in the league during each of Rockwell's first two seasons here. But with a highly ranked 2024 recruiting class that includes top-five player Mor- gan Gaerte, along with a strong nucleus of sea- soned veterans, the Irish are hoping to climb in the league standings. "I'm cautiously excited about this season," Rock- well said. "We will be much better, in my opinion." The 2023 season was an up and down one for Rockwell's Irish. Notre Dame won four of five matches at one point and also strung together four wins in a row. But it slumped late in the season and lost nine of its final 10 matches. Top Player: Senior outside hitter and 2023 Irish MVP Sydney Palazzolo returns after leading the Irish with 389 kills to earn second-team All-ACC honors. Athlete To Watch: Graduate student libero Hat- tie Monson is back after a standout senior season when the 2023 team captain played in all 101 sets, and led the Irish with 397 digs and 77 assists. Don't Miss: Notre Dame will get its chance to beat the best Sept. 27, when nine-time NCAA champion Stanford plays its first-ever ACC game at Purcell Pavilion. ✦ Graduate student libero Hattie Monson played in all 101 sets in 2023 for the volleyball team, and paced Notre Dame with 397 digs and 77 assists. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME