Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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ND Sports but this time Waldrum thinks her production is here to stay. "There comes a time in their college career where they make that decision that, 'Wait a minute, I'm not maximizing what I should really produce,'" Waldrum said. "'I'm going to have to pay attention to my fitness level and everything I do in my life if I really want to be at the next level and I really want to win championships.'" It was clear, he said, that Bohaboy had that light bulb moment during the summer, and the results are starting to show. She returned to the team this August in the best shape of her life. She scored once in Notre Dame's season-opening win against Illinois Aug. 23 and twice more two days later against Northwestern. She led the team in goals scored and was second in shots after the first week of games. Inconsistency on offense plagued Notre Dame as a team last season. They leaned heavily on their defense during the 16-6-2 campaign while waiting for the forwards to find a rhythm that never quite came. The Irish finished 52nd in the nation with 1.92 goals per game. They started this year with back-to-back 4-1 wins against the Illini and the Wildcats. "I think we're just creating a lot of different spaces for each other with our movement off the ball," Bohaboy said. "We're working hard and pressing the defense." The added pressure created a slew of shooting opportunities in the first couple games for Notre Dame. The Irish averaged 30.5 shots in their first two games. To put that in perspective, only one team in the country averaged more than 20 per game a year ago. Those numbers will probably regress toward the mean, especially when Notre Dame gets into a daunting ACC schedule, but Waldrum said as long as the team can scratch out around 15 quality chances per game, they'll continue their early success on offense. Bohaboy's new scoring prowess starts with her ability to shift gears. In the past, Waldrum said, the junior worked hard but only worked at one speed. This season she's learned how to lose defenders and take full advantage of her size and power by changing her tempo. "She's much more aggressive and much more dynamic," he said. "We kept telling her, you're not a danger for the opposition if you play at the same speed all the time." Bohaboy took her coach's advice during the offseason and forced herself to think about changing speeds each time she gets the opportunity. "It's just something I'm more aware of when I'm on the field, so now it's coming more naturally," she said. The goals are coming easier too. Bohaboy has the strength to score from 30 yards out, and now she has the talent to create shots as well. Waldrum said he believes she can develop into his team's go-to scorer this year. Notre Dame had several players in the six- to 10-goal range last year, but no one that pulled away and took command of the offense. Bohaboy has done that so far in 2013, and it's led to the first 2-0 start to the season during her career for the Irish. ✦