Notre Dame avenges our only loss on the season as we head back to Philly to defend our title
Anyone else feel like the month of May is a long time past the month of February? Yeah, it is a good amount past…
On Monday, February 26th, 2024 the Notre Dame men’s lacrosse team circled Sunday, February 25th, 2024 as a day that they would think about and remember. In a season that has been littered with dominating wins, that Sunday was the lone blemish on our Irish’s record as we dropped an overtime game to the Georgetown Hoyas at home at Arlotta. For those in attendance (I was there with my family) and for those who watched on TV, it was a well played game by Georgetown and one of our tougher outings with what we showed on on our side on the afternoon. The Hoyas managed to slow down the play with their offense, stop our Irish with their slides and they got some really solid goaltending from their freshman keeper. They beat us and they did so fair and square.
But as we have done so many times over the last couple of years, our Irish, whether said or not said externally, took that loss personally and we came out on Saturday on Long Island and dominated the Georgetown Hoyas in the rematch by a final score of 16-11. It was not as close as the final tally would indicate and our Irish locked in our plans to head to Philadelphia for a return trip to the Final Four to defend our 2023 national championship.
I was on Long Island for the afternoon and had the chance to be in person for the matchup. It was so great being out at Hofstra University in such a lacrosse loving area as the fans came out in droves for the Irish vs Georgetown game and then for the Duke vs Maryland matchup. Over 9,000 lacrosse fans were in attendance and it was a fun day of lacrosse with the Maryland Terps moving on to Philly as well.
One of the best parts of the afternoon was the Notre Dame tailgate and having the chance to meet up with so many Notre Dame lacrosse families, friends and relatives both before and after the game. There was an energy and a confidence before the game amongst the crew and then the celebration afterwards was filled with lots of hugs and high fives as families took in the Irish win and welcomed the team members over with a well-deserved meal. You could sense the players enjoyed the victory, but you could also see that they have a focus and an understanding of what lies ahead over Memorial Day weekend. They are ready and they are confident, next weekend can’t get here soon enough.
There’s a lot to get into around everything so let’s get after it…
First Quarter
Georgetown won the opening faceoff, but Notre Dame rode hard and caused a turnover. And it paid off as Chris Kavanagh eventually got the ball up top to Devon McLane and he hit home on a rocket to the corner, 1-0 Irish. Some good back and forth before Georgetown hit the pipe on one of their possessions. Notre Dame next got the loose ball and cleared and Reilly Gray hit home on the run with his left hand, beat Anderson Moore low and the Irish went up 2-0. Notre Dame won the next faceoff clean to Carter Parlette and the third line midfield was out there. Shortly after, Jake Taylor with the one handed pass to Chris Kavanagh in front, and he put it home with 6:41 to go, 3-0 Irish. Jack Schubert scored to make it 3-1 Irish with 3:11 to go in the first and that is where we would be as the quarter came to a close.
Devon McLane hit BOTH PIPES on the first goal of the game ✌️ @NDlacrosse
(via ESPNU) pic.twitter.com/Vn5BsJHIXG
— TLN (@LacrosseNetwork) May 18, 2024
This ONE-HANDED assist by Jake Taylor was even better than the goal @NDlacrosse
(via ESPNU) pic.twitter.com/moTr8q1QYC
— TLN (@LacrosseNetwork) May 18, 2024
Second Quarter
Georgetown won the opening faceoff of the quarter. Great save by Liam Entenmann on their first possession. Great hustle by Jordan Faison to stop the Georgetown clear, caused a turnover, Irish got possession again. Timeout Georgetown after an elongated Irish possession and coming out of the timeout the Irish ran our first team midfield out there. Pat Kavanagh caused a turnover on the attempted Hoya clear, got the ball to X quickly, hit Chris Kavanagh in front for a quick stick that made it 4-1 Irish. Will Lynch won the next faceoff, but a nice save by Anderson Moore and Gtown cleared. Shawn Lyght caused turnover and a nifty ground ball to himself and at this point the third line midfield was out there again with Fulton Bayman getting some run too. Aidan Carroll got one back for the Hoyas with 5:49 to go on a nice shot from the outside, 4-2 Notre Dame. A faceoff violation on Georgetown gave Notre Dame the ball and Will Angrick beat his man up top, found Chris Kavanagh at GLE and he rocketed it into the corner, 5-2 Irish with 3:38 to go. Notre Dame won the faceoff, great ground ball play by this unit on the exchange. First line midfield back out there and Chris Kavanagh to Eric Dobson from the side with high heat to the corner, 6-2 Irish with 1:21 to go. It was a LONG possession before the goal, Georgetown had to have been tired and the Irish made them pay. Next, Will Lynch won the faceoff to himself, the Irish got it into the offensive zone and called a timeout to get the last possession of the half. Second line midfield came out and Pat Kavanagh got it to X, took his man around and scored, made it 7-2 with 7.9 seconds to go. That is where we would end going to the half as it was a dominating first 30 minutes from Notre Dame lacrosse.
KAVANAGHS BEING KAVANAGHS!
Pat turns Georgetown over and finds his brother Chris for his 2nd goal of the day! Watch on ESPNU.#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/WdXrRNCFLt
— Notre Dame Lacrosse (@NDlacrosse) May 18, 2024
Third Quarter
Georgetown won the opening faceoff and the Hoyas scored on their first possession, Alex Vadaro beat his man, made it 7-3 less than a minute into the third. Next, Pat Kavanagh beat his man one on one and we got it back with 13:27 to go, Irish up 8-3. Some back and forth before some nice passing from Gtown as TJ Haley hit Chase Llewellyn who was wide open in front and put it home, 8-4 Irish. Soon after we saw a great save from Liam, Irish got possession with 4:50 to go and the third line midfield was out there. Pat Kavanagh with 5 seconds on the shot clock, took it from X, hit a bouncer home, 9-4 Irish. HUGE goal with the shot clock expiring. Another great save by Liam Entenmann led to an Irish possession and Jordan Faison drove from up top and hit home on the run, 10-4 Irish. Not too long after, Chris Kavanagh took his man and scored the goal of the game as he beat his man, got to GLE, went backhand and scored, 11-4 Irish with 55 seconds to go in the quarter. That is where we would finish, 11-4 Irish with 15 minutes to play.
HAVE A DAY CHRIS KAVANAGH!
Quite the homecoming for the Long Island native, as he now has 6 points (4G, 2A) through 3 quarters. Watch on ESPNU.#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/vmglDJ4w2w
— Notre Dame Lacrosse (@NDlacrosse) May 18, 2024
Fourth Quarter
Will Lynch won the opening faceoff, gave Notre Dame possession, and we had a long possession before a shot clock violation. Georgetown got on the board first, Graham Bundy from the outside, 11-5 Irish with 12:41 to play. Will Lynch won the next faceoff and Chris Kavanagh beat his man from X, came in dove and scored, made it 12-5 Irish, his 5th goal of the day with 11:26 to go. Graham Bundy got another one with 9:34 to go, Irish 12, Hoyas 6. Will Lynch won the faceoff, Gtown went to a 10 man ride and Marco Napolitano hit it home from beyond midfield, 13-6 Irish with 9:15 to go. What a goal (Marco’s first ever) and Liam with the assist! Will Lynch won the next faceoff, took it himself and scored, 14-6 Irish and at this point the rout was on. Georgetown got another with 7:07 left, made it 14-7 Irish. Then after another faceoff violation made it three for Gtown, the Irish on the man-up and Devon McLane hit home with a rocket to the corner, Irish up 15-7 with 6:41 to go. Graham Bundy from up top, made it 15-8 Irish with 4:32 to go. Will Lynch won the faceoff again to himself and Fulton Bayman from the left with a drive toward the goal hit home on a bouncer, 16-8 Irish. Georgetown would get the next three with Graham Bundy finishing their scoring that made it 16-11 Irish with 1:36 to go. That is where we would end as the Irish ran the clock from there and locked in our second consecutive trip to the Final Four in Philadelphia over Memorial Day weekend.
FIRST CAREER GOAL ALERT!
Napolitano from beyond midfield off the assist from Entenmann! Irish are ROLLING. Watch on ESPNU.#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/7VI5PH5uPT
— Notre Dame Lacrosse (@NDlacrosse) May 18, 2024
Notes and Thoughts
Notre Dame dominated possession in the first quarter and it would be a sign of things to come as we controlled the clock and wore down the Hoyas with their defense having to play some really long possessions. It was a reversal from our February matchup as we dictated play and we were the ones who made them battle against long offensive sets. This is what we have seen from the Irish all year (outside of that early February matchup) and as we discussed before, as long as we play our brand of Notre Dame lacrosse, it is going to be really hard for another team to beat us. Great work by the boys and the coaching staff making sure that this time around, the Hoyas would need to react to us.
Will Lynch was OUTSTANDING on Saturday and he continued to prove why he is one of the top faceoff men in the country. He won so many faceoffs to himself throughout the day, and in the second half with the Irish going on some goal runs, it became a game of make it take it and it really put the game away. In the 4th it was so great to also see him pick up one of the faceoffs, go down the middle and hit home with his left hand. No one deserved the goal more more and it was awesome to see that play and finish. Just an unreal game from Will Lynch.
I think it’s about time we talk about Chris Kavanagh…..Five goals and three assists on the day. What an afternoon for him as he played one of his best games of his career not too far from where he grew up on Long Island. He was everywhere on Saturday and you could tell that a lot of the game plan was to get Chris the ball and get him up top and isolated. He took advantage and whether that was beating his man in one on ones or finding himself open near the crease for quick goals, he had a stellar day. He has been under appreciated all year by a lot of folks (probably to an extent by me as well) and he proved out on Saturday that he is one of the best attackmen in the country. So good to see him play how he did at Hofstra, he was not going to let Notre Dame lose on Saturday.
Speaking of Kavanaghs, across Pat and Chris, they had 8 goals and 4 assists on the game. It was a complete performance from these two and don’t think that they didn’t remember that they did not score until the 4th quarter the last time these two teams played. Big time players step up in big time games and these two continue to prove on the largest of stages that they are in the top tier of the sport.
The Notre Dame defense played an extremely strong game across the course of the afternoon. If you watched the action, Notre Dame was up 15-7 with under five minutes to go in the 4th quarter. That means the Irish defense held the Georgetown offense to 7 goals across the first 55 minutes of action. That is ELITE defense in May and this unit righted all the tough aspects of their performance from February. Everyone came to play and especially the SSDM unit which had a tough outing against the Hoyas in our first matchup. Goaltending, ground balls, sliding, forcing long and tough shots from the outside, one on one defense….all of it was done incredibly well by our our entire Irish defensive unit on Long Island. Clearly this group had something to prove and they did so across our close defense, LSMs, SSDMs and Liam Entenmann.
Freshman defender Shawn Lyght is going to be a BIG PROBLEM for future offenses
(via ESPNU / @NDlacrosse) pic.twitter.com/VlNjBeAVU1
— TLN (@LacrosseNetwork) May 18, 2024
Not sure how many goals there were total that were created out of Notre Dame’s ride, but I think I counted at least two or three. It is these plays that Notre Dame thrives on and it is what makes it so hard to beat our Irish. Georgetown’s coach, Kevin Warne, made note of it in the postgame presser where he talked about how the Hoyas would have a good defensive stand, but the Irish would cause a turnover in the ride and then get an elongated possession. It wore down Georgetown physically, but just as much so mentally as they had to get their minds back in a place of playing another 60 to maybe 80 seconds of defense. This has been a calling card of Notre Dame for years now, and in critical games like this one, it can make all the difference.
Thirteen different Irish players got either a goal or an assist on Saturday. We continue to get diversified scoring from all different aspects of our team (and that includes a goal by Marco Napolitano and an assist by Liam Entenmann). And I think this is another aspect that just makes it that much harder to defend our team. If you decide to shut off Jake Taylor, than Pat and Chris Kavanagh will score to the tune of 8 goals. We are deep across our midfield so they are going to score and we saw 5 goals from those players on Saturday. It’s a complete team effort for our Irish and if another team stops one aspect, they will have to be prepared to have another part of our squad take advantage.
Another tremendous job by the coaching staff getting the boys ready for this rematch. You knew Georgetown was not going to play exactly like they had back in February, they had to try and mix things up. We were ready for anything they were going to throw at us and we also made the changes necessary on our end to get our Irish in a position to start strong and start fast. A 7-2 Irish advantage at halftime showed exactly how good the preparation had been and what they had accomplished over the past week.
I talked about it before, but the leadership of this Irish team is so impressive. They will not let this squad lose and they made sure that on Saturday the team was prepared, we were ready and we going to play our brand of lacrosse. There is a confidence amongst this group that has been built over time…and it is so fun to watch what they do when they hit the field.
I am just saying this….with the Duke loss, only three more players who are up for the Tewaaraton are still playing in the tournament – Pat Kavanagh, Liam Entenmann and Connor Shellenberger. Something interesting to watch as we head to the Final Four next weekend.
As I was walking into James M. Shuart Stadium on Saturday, it was starting to get hot and it felt pretty muggy as the game got underway. By halftime it had cooled off a little bit, but it was still a little bit warmer than I was expecting based on the temperature forecasts. In the end, in games where there is some heat, I think it only helps Notre Dame’s chances as we can go deeper than pretty much every other team out there and we know we can be fresher as the game goes on. This is a big advantage for us and will be so this weekend in Philly.
Once again, a Thank You to all the Notre Dame parents who hosted a great tailgate both before and after the game on Saturday. I really appreciate the invite and having the chance to spend some time with everyone during the day. I have gotten to know so many of the players’ parents this year and it has just been really nice talking with them and getting to know them. It’s been just awesome.
Fred’s Pics
Fred Assaf was on the Island getting some awesome photos from the matchup at Hofstra. Just unreal! All photos are at the end of the article and all photo credits to Fred Assaf.
What’s Next
It’s the Final Four and it’s Philadelphia. It’s the same location as last year, but already off the bat Maryland is a new team relative to what we saw across last season. There will be two other teams across Syracuse, Denver, Johns Hopkins and Virginia. Notre Dame will play the winner of the Orange and Pioneers while Maryland will take on either the Blue Jays or the Cavs.
This is what we have been building to all year. We have said from Day One that the goal of this season should be to be playing on Memorial Day weekend. We have reached that goal, and now is the time to go out and prove that we are the best team in the country. There is nothing more exciting and no better time of year to be a college lacrosse fan.
Notre Dame is 34-3 across our last 37 games. This is a team that is built for this time of year and they know the task that is ahead. Can’t wait to see what our squad does on Saturday against whomever we are facing. No stage is too big for this group.
My goal will be to have an article up later across this week taking a look at the Final Four weekend once the final matchups are set.
Final, final…The next Exit 77 podcast should be coming your way this week. David Brogan and I will break down the Georgetown win and look ahead to the Final Four matchups. Also, don’t forget to follow along with 18Stripes, their Gtown write up should be up here soon.
Two more games of lacrosse left in the season….”Time to Be Great” again.
Let’s Go Irish!
!
For the 2nd straight season the Irish are heading back to Philly.#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/VEQ2IRwIyg
— Notre Dame Lacrosse (@NDlacrosse) May 18, 2024
Ticket Punched: we are heading to Philly!#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/Xa5VcrdsbS
— Notre Dame Lacrosse (@NDlacrosse) May 18, 2024