Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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50 OCT. 30, 2017 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED ND SPORTS BY DAVID MCKINNEY T he Notre Dame hockey team wasn't able to pull out a win against No. 1 Denver during its two- game series with the visiting Pio- neers Oct. 13-14, but head coach Jeff Jackson said there's not much to be disappointed about for the Irish. On Oct. 13, Notre Dame played Denver to a 2-2 tie. The Pioneers ended up winning the shootout that followed a scoreless overtime period, but the game officially counted as a tie. The following day, the Irish fell 4-2 for their first loss of the season. Battling the No. 1 team in the coun- try and defending national cham- pions, the Irish for the most part matched up well with Denver. Jack- son said they needed to play to the Pioneers' level throughout the entire game, not just select moments. "There were two really good hockey games," Jackson said. "They're a tre- mendous team, and there were points in each game where we played toe-to- toe with them. We have to find a way to do that for 60 minutes." What it came down to for Notre Dame, Jackson said, was not capital- izing on some opportunities. "We know where we are today, and hopefully we continue to get better," Jackson said. "Rightfully so, they're the top team in the country. The series even moved Notre Dame up to No. 5 nationally — before losing to unranked Sacred Heart, 6-4 Oct. 19, a game where Jackson said the Irish were "outworked" in a classic letdown. Even with the tie and the loss to Denver, Jackson said there were still plenty of positives to take away from the two games. Notre Dame likely won't face a better team all season, and getting his squad experience playing against the best team in the country should be beneficial. "Our depth isn't really where it needs to be right now, but it is an op- portunity for guys who might not have gotten in there to get in there. I thought they did a good job," Jackson said. "That really bodes well for the future. It's going to make it harder for those other guys to get back in when they get healthy." The star of the weekend for Notre Dame was freshman goaltender Dylan St. Cyr, who made his second career start in Friday night's 2-2 tie. St. Cyr racked up 46 saves, including the first 10 Denver shots and four late stops that kept the game even. "He plays the position very intel- ligently, and it allows him to be more aggressive because he controls re- bounds," Jackson said. "If you can do that, it makes a big difference." ✦ MEN'S GOLF Notre Dame took third place out of 16 teams at the Autotrader Collegiate Classic Oct. 16-17 in Duluth, Ga. Junior Miguel Delgado led the way for the Irish, carding a three-round, 7-under-par 209. Delgado finished in second place overall individually, marking the closest he's come to winning a tournament in his Irish career. The next event for the Irish was the Quail Val- ley Intercollegiate Oct. 23-24 in Vero Beach, Fla. WOMEN'S GOLF The Irish captured their first tournament cham- pionship in two years at the Bettie Lou Evans Invitational Oct. 6-8 in Lexington, Ky. Notre Dame wad led by junior Emma Albrecht, who finished in first place individually with a three-round, 5-under-par 211. Fellow junior Maddie Rose Hamilton took fourth place with an even-par 216. Notre Dame will take part in the Landfall Tradi- tion Oct. 27-29 in Wilmington, N.C. MEN'S SOCCER (9-4-1, 3-2-1 ACC) After three straight wins that included defeats of then No. 5 Clemson (2-1) on the road Oct. 6 and No. 24 Michigan (3-1) at home Oct. 10, No. 12 Notre Dame was shut out in its next two games. The Irish fell 1-0 to Pittsburgh at home Oct. 13 and 2-0 to Akron on the road Oct. 17. The Irish have three games left in the 2017 regular season — at home against No. 6 Duke Oct. 20, at No. 4 Michigan State Oct. 24 and at No. 1 North Carolina Oct. 27. WOMEN'S SOCCER (7-5-3, 3-3-1 ACC) The No. 16 Irish split their most recent stretch of games, playing Virginia to a 1-1 tie on the road Oct. 5 before topping Syracuse 2-0 at home Oct. 8 and losing 2-1 to Virginia Tech in South Bend Oct. 15. Notre Dame wraps up the regular season with a three-game road trip to No. 18 Florida State Oct. 19, Miami Oct. 22 and No. 2 North Carolina Oct. 26. VOLLEYBALL (14-5, 4-4 ACC) After opening up ACC play with three straight losses, Notre Dame bounced back in a big way by winning four of their next five. Following the 3-2 win over Florida State Oct. 1, the Irish took to the road and posted 3-1 wins over Virginia Oct. 6 and Virginia Tech Oct. 8. They then dropped a 3-1 decision to Georgia Tech at home Oct. 13, but rebounded with a 3-0 sweep of Clemson two days later. The Irish will travel to Florida State Oct. 20 and Miami Oct. 22, before returning home to host Louisville Oct. 25. — David McKinney Junior forward Jack Jenkins and the Irish went toe-to-toe with the top-ranked Pioneers, posting a 2-2 tie Oct. 13 before dropping a hard-fought 4-2 decision Oct. 14. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME MEDIA RELATIONS Hockey Finds Positives In Series With No. 1 Denver Irish Roundup