Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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ND SPORTS advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament. The Irish have also advanced to the national semifinals each of the past two years, helped by tremendous tal‑ ent and leadership. Senior attackman Matt Kavanagh, senior defenseman Matt Landis and junior midfielder Sergio Perkovic were among the 25 athletes nation‑ ally named to the watch list for the Tewaaraton Award, which is given to the top male and female lacrosse player in the NCAA. Landis was named one of five finalists May 15. All three returned to the Irish after earning first‑team All‑America hon‑ ors in 2015. They have already earned All‑ACC honors this year, and Landis was named ACC Defensive Player of the Year for the second straight sea‑ son. That's not counting other key con‑ tributors like rookie attack Ryder Garnsey, who ranked third on the Irish with 37 points through May 15 and won ACC Rookie of the Year. All the talent is in place. The Irish just have to put together a couple more 60‑minute games. "I can't think of a year where it makes less difference who we play," Corrigan told UND.com after they beat Army May 8. "I can't think of a team that's going to be in this tourna‑ ment that's not capable of winning it, and I can't think of a team that's go‑ ing to be in this tournament that we can't beat. "We are more prepared to go three straight weeks than anybody because that's what we've been doing all year with the schedule we've played. "It's all about making sure we're playing with an understanding that it's about this moment right now. It's not about having poise and confi‑ dence in the future at some point. It's not about leadership at some point or developing an identity at some point. "We've got our leaders, we've got our identity, we've earned our poise and confidence. It's about exercising them every single day, with our best efforts emotionally, physically and mentally. It's about being committed and all in on everything we do. "It's right now." The Irish were set to take on North Carolina May 22 for the chance to advance to a third straight national semifinal. BASEBALL FALTERS DOWN STRETCH Head coach Mik Aoki has watched his team's bats go cold at the worst time. Notre Dame finished 12‑6 in April and looked positioned to earn a sec‑ ond straight NCAA Tournament bid, but the team struggled in May. The Irish managed to win just two of their first nine games in the month as of May 16. Baseball America listed Notre Dame among its "First Four Out" in NCAA Tournament projections prior to its May 6‑8 series against Pittsburgh. The Irish lost two out of three to the Panthers, and then dropped a mid‑ week doubleheader 1‑0 (11 innings)