Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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50 NOV. 21, 2016 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED ND SPORTS BY LOU SOMOGYI W ith eight McDonald's All-Amer- icans on its 2016-17 roster, the No. 1-ranked Notre Dame women's basketball team has reached a point where if a recruit isn't ranked among the top 25 nationally, it's a surprise. So when head coach Muffet Mc- Graw's Irish signed 6-2 forward Danielle Patterson of Queens, N.Y., and 6-3 center Mikayla Vaughn of Fairfax, Va., in this year 's two- woman recruiting class, it didn't resonate on the national radar like in the past because Patterson was ranked No. 30 and Vaughn No. 90 by ESPN HoopGurlz. The Irish also wanted to sign a guard/wing, and the nation's No. 1 and No. 2 players, Megan Walker and Evina Westbrook, were consid- ering Notre Dame. However, Walker signed with UConn, and Westbrook inked with Tennessee. Nevertheless, after signing five elite prospects along the wing and in the backcourt the past two years, and none in the post, McGraw was relieved and more than pleased to land the duo she did. Patterson is classified as a "stretch f o u r, " w h o m McGraw com- pared to former Irish star Ericka Haney, a starter for the 2001 na- tional champs. Va u g h n i s a post figure and a shot blocker m o r e i n t h e mold of 2012 Big East Defen- sive Player of the Year Devereaux Peters. "Danielle has great versatility to play on the perimeter and also score on the block," McGraw said. "She can defend on the perimeter, score off the dribble and will fit in very well with our transition offense. "Mikayla has a tremendous up- side. She can run the floor, score around the basket and face up. She can rebound, block shots and will help us defensively by being a pres- ence inside." Landing both was vital be- cause when they arrive as fresh- men, top front- c o u r t p l a y e r s Brianna Turner, Kathryn West- beld and Kris- tina Nelson all will be in their final seasons of eligibility. "They can come in without the pressure of, 'I have to carry this team,'" McGraw said. For the next recruiting cycle, Mc- Graw is aiming to sign as many as five players, with Indianapolis' 5-10 point guard Katlyn Gilbert (ranked No. 24 by HoopGurlz) already ver- bally committed. ✦ WOMEN'S BASKETBALL (1-0) Head coach Muffet McGraw's No. 1-ranked Fighting Irish opened their 2016-17 campaign Nov. 11 at the Purcell Pavilion with a 107-47 victory against Mid-American Conference favorite Central Michigan in the first round of the WNIT. Sophomore Arike Ogunbowale tallied a career-high 30 points while shoot- ing a blistering 12 of 13 from the floor, including converting all five of her three-point attempts. Notre Dame jumped to a 15-0 advantage against the Chippewas and never looked back while rotating the 10 scholarship players liberally. Everyone played at least 11 minutes and no one more than 27. The 11th, freshman guard Jackie Young, did not dress for the game while recovering from a thumb injury sustained earlier in the week in an exhibition game. Notre Dame shot 61.5 percent from the field and assisted on 29 baskets. The Chippewas converted only 27.0 percent of their field goal attempts. Three other Irish players finished with double-digit scoring: sophomore guard Marina Mabrey (17); senior point guard Lindsay Allen (13), who also had a team-high eight assists and four steals, plus five rebounds and zero turnovers; and junior forward Brianna Turner (12). CROSS COUNTRY Both the men and women competed at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional Nov. 11 in Madison, Wis. The women placed second out of 30 teams behind sophomore Anna Rohrer's runner-up finish, while the men logged a 14th- place showing. The women earned an automatic berth to the NCAA Championships Nov. 19 at Terre Haute, Ind. HOCKEY (4-3-1, 1-1-0 HOCKEY EAST) Notre Dame had a two-week break from Oct. 28 to Nov. 12, and then returned to action for a two-game series at Northeastern. Notre Dame was slated to return home Nov. 17 to host a two-game series with UMass Lowell. MEN'S SOCCER (11-6-2) The No. 16 Irish were eliminated from the ACC Tournament in the quarter- finals with a 1-0 loss at No. 2 Wake Forest Nov. 6. Notre Dame was awaiting word on whether or not it will receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, which begins Nov. 17. WOMEN'S SOCCER (13-3-5) The No. 11 Irish — who fell 2-1 to North Carolina in the semifinals of the ACC Tournament Nov. 4 in Charleston, S.C. — earned their 24th straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament and were tabbed as the No. 2 seed. However, Notre Dame's season came to an end Nov. 11 when it fell 5-4 in a shootout to SIU Edwardsville in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The two teams played to a scoreless draw through 110 minutes of play before the contest was decided by penalty kicks. VOLLEYBALL (19-8, 10-5 ACC) Notre Dame registered a 3-0 win at Wake Forest Nov. 4, but dropped matches at Duke (3-1) Nov. 6 and at Louisville (3-1) Nov. 9. The Irish will host Virginia Nov. 13 before hitting the road for contests at Clemson Nov. 18 and at Georgia Tech Nov. 20. — Lou Somogyi and David McKinney Irish Roundup Women's Basketball Recruiting Class Lacks Past Sizzle, But Fills Need DANIELLE PATTERSON MIKAYLA VAUGHN