Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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56 APRIL 2017 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED ND SPORTS BY DAVID MCKINNEY T here's plenty of lacrosse left to be played, but if things continue to go the way they have been so far for Notre Dame, it could be a very good season when it's all said and done. The Irish (3-1) were ranked as the No. 2 team in the country as of March 13, with their only loss coming by a score of 11-10 to No. 1 Denver March 12. Notre Dame notched wins over Georgetown (16-10), Michigan (16-5) and No. 4 Maryland (5-4). Prior to the Denver loss, the Irish were rated No. 1, but the teams swapped positions following the game. Still, Notre Dame remains one of the top teams in the country, and senior goalie Shane Doss said the key to con- tinued success will be avoiding com- placency. "The seniors in the locker room, we're happy, but we know there's a lot of season left and there's a lot of games left to play," Doss said. "We're just fo- cused on the next game and staying where we are, but continuing to get better as well." The Glen Ridge, N.J., native added that he remembers how much influ- ence the program's veterans had on him when he was young, and said he hopes he can do the same for those looking up to him now. "When I was a young guy, I always looked up to the upperclassmen, and I see how important that is," Doss said. "We try to do our best to have that blue-collar work ethic where you're coming to work, and whether it's a Monday or a game day, you treat it the same. "We try to pass that on and lead by example. That's been really important for our team." In the six remaining regular-season games, the Irish will face five ranked teams: No. 6 Syracuse, No. 9 North Carolina, No. 12 Virginia, No. 13 Duke and No. 17 Ohio State. It's a grueling schedule for sure, but Doss said he truly believes this Irish team is capable of a deep postseason run, and possibly a championship. "I don't think there's been a year that I've been here when I didn't think we had the tools to make it all the way and beat anyone in the country on any day," Doss said. "It's just a matter of executing when that day comes." ✦ BASEBALL (3-11, 0-3 ACC) The early season has not been kind to the Notre Dame baseball team. After starting the season 3-8 in non-conference action, the Irish began ACC play with three straight losses at Clemson, including a 4-0 defeat March 12. Through 14 games, Notre Dame was averaging just four runs per game and had been held scoreless three times. HOCKEY (21-10-5, 12-6-4 HOCKEY EAST) The No. 12 Fighting Irish earned the No. 4 seed and a first-round bye in the Hockey East Tournament, and then took care of business with a two-game series sweep of No. 10 Providence in the quarterfinal round March 10-11. The Irish posted a 5-0 victory in the opener and then topped the Friars 5-2 the following night to clinch the series. Notre Dame was slated to face UMass Lowell in the Hockey East semifinals March 17 at the TD Garden in Boston. WOMEN'S LACROSSE (8-2) After starting the year off the wrong way with a 14-13 loss to No. 18 North- western, No. 8 Notre Dame won eight straight games before falling to No. 7 Princeton 14-8 March 12. The win streak included triumphs over No. 15 Louisville (9-7) and No. 19 Duke (12-11). The Irish will close out the regular season with games at Towson March 15, at Virginia March 18, at Syracuse March 26, versus North Carolina April 2, at Kennesaw State April 6, versus Virginia Tech April 15 and at Boston College April 22. SOFTBALL (11-10, 1-2 ACC) It's been an up-and-down season so far for Notre Dame on the softball dia- mond. After a 3-1 start in the Beach Kickoff Tournament, the Irish lost seven of their next 10 games, including eight-run rule losses to No. 8 UCLA and No. 20 Michigan. In the following seven games, though, Notre Dame went 4-3. Notre Dame dropped two contests in a three-game series at Georgia Tech March 11-12, all three of which went into extra innings. Coming up, the Irish will play ACC series at Florida State March 17-19, ver- sus Virginia Tech March 24-26, at Louisville April 1-3, versus North Carolina April 7-9, at North Carolina State April 14-15 and against Virginia April 22-23. TRACK AND FIELD The accolades continue to pile up for Anna Rohrer. The sophomore distance runner from Mishawaka, Ind., followed up her third-place finish at the NCAA Cross Country Championships in November with another bronze medal performance at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships March 11. Rohrer set a personal record of 15:29.83 in the 5,000-meter race to earn her fourth career All-America honor. As a team, the Irish finished in 33rd place. Irish Roundup Men's Lacrosse Primed For Deep NCAA Run Senior goalie and team captain Shane Doss helped the No. 2 Irish begin the season with three wins in their first four games. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME MEDIA RELATIONS