ACC Tournament Preview: Semifinals

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The University of Notre Dame women’s lacrosse program clinched a spot in their fourth straight conference semifinals following an instant classic against Clemson Wednesday evening. After defeating the Tigers 14-12 in the ACC Quarterfinals, the second-seeded Irish advanced to play third-seed Boston College in a primetime matchup Friday at 8 p.m. on the ACC Network.

In the contest, the No. 2-ranked Irish squad will look to build upon their early season successes and advance to the ACC Championship game for the first time in program history.

GAME DETAILS
Location: Charlotte, N.C. | ACC Semifinals vs. Boston College
Schedule: April 26, 2024 | 8 p.m.
TV: ACC Network
Live Stats: UND.com
Twitter Updates: @NDWomensLax
For a more in-depth look at the matchup – Game Notes: Notre Dame

FOR STARTERS

• The Irish kicked off their 2024 campaign with a five-game homestand in which they went 4-1 and had their best start to a season (4-0) since 2020.

• Notre Dame closed out its regular season home slate when they hosted Duke for a 19-7 win on senior day.

• The Irish boast seven 20+ goal performances this season and own one of the nation’s hottest offenses. The seven games with 20 or more goals ranks most in a single season for the Irish in program history. Their previous best was four, set multiple times including in 2023.

• The team opened their ACC Tournament play with their highest-seed in the history of the program, having clinched the 2nd place conference finish following their win at Louisville last week.

• Having advanced to the semifinals following a win over Clemson, 14-12, on Wednesday, the Irish will play for a spot in the ACC Championship game for the fourth consecutive season.

• Despite making the conference semifinals dating back to 2021, the Irish have never appeared on the final day of the ACC Tournament.

• With five goals and a program-best six assists, Jackie Wolak set a career best with 11 points against Pitt to close out the month of March.

• Kelly Denes registered 16 draw controls in that contest, tying a program record and helping the Ieish ro 26 total draw wins – good for a program best at home.

• For her performance at the draw circle against Pitt, Denes was named ACC Defensive Player of the Week.

• Doherty’s hat trick goal at Brown came with 36.5 seconds to play in regulation of a deadlocked 15-15 contest to snap the tie and give the Irish the win. She followed it up with a career night four goals at then No. 2 Boston College, including the final dagger with just 15 ticks left on the clock to hand the Irish their first win at BC since 2003. To ensure the victory, Doherty won the following draw control to give the Irish possession and run out the clock. Following the road trip, Doherty racked up numerous awards for her full field performance, including USA Lacrosse, IWLCA and ACC honors.

• Last season the Irish boasted four regular season road wins, including defeats of Duke, Butler, Pitt and Robert Morris. They have since surpassed that number this year, owning a 5-0 record on the road with three contests remaining away from home.

• Notre Dame opened their season with a 21-6 win over Eastern Michigan.

• Lilly Callahan, who has started every game this season, boasts all 17 decisions for the Irish in a 15-2 start to their season. 

• Callahan was announced as ACC Defensive Player of the Week Tuesday, March 5, following her performance at UNC.

• After an eight point weekend, including four goals and two assists against Northwestern, Jackie Wolak was named the USA Lacrosse Magazine, ILWomen and ACC Offensive Player of the Week after boasting four goals and two assists in the team’s win over then-top ranked Northwestern.

• Freshmen Angie Conley, Kathryn Morrissey, Kate Timarky and Meghan O’Hare all scored their first collegiate goals and were joined by veterans Ciara Mazzone and Maeve Dwyer in the accomplishment in the opening weekend of the season.

• Live stats will be available for the contest as well as a the game being aired on the ACCNX.

IN THE POLLS

• Notre Dame was ranked No. 2 in the latest ILWomen/IWLCA poll of the season while sitting atop the USA Lacrosse Magazine rankings for the first time in program history.

• The ACC coaches tabbed the Irish to finish fourth in the preseason rankings.
• With their win at Louisville to cap off the regular season, the Irish clinched the No. 2-seed in the ACC tournament with a 7-2 conference record and own a 14-2 record overall in the regular season.

BALANCED ATTACK

• The Irish returned an NCAA best 91-percent of their scoring from a season ago including their six top scorers in Jackie Wolak (105 pts.), Kasey Choma (88 pts.), Madison Ahern (84 pts.), MK Doherty (38 pts.), Kristen Shanahan (29 pts.) and Kelly Denes (25 pts.).

• The trio of Ahern, Wolak and Choma combined for 26 points in the team’s opening weekend to kick off 2024, led by Wolak with a team-best 12 points and 7 goals.

• Arden Tierney, a draw specialist who joined the Irish ahead of the 2024 season, registered 10 draw controls in week 1, including eight in the team’s 22-3 win over Central Michigan. Kelly Denes, who led the team in the category a year ago boasts 127 draw controls thus far in 2024 and leads the team in the category again.

• Denes led the team with eight draw controls against Northwestern, tying that of the visitors’ total at the circle as the Irish dominated draws by a 20-8 margin. She now boasts 127 draw controls this season and averages 7.47 controls per game, good for second in the ACC and 14th in the country.

• Through 17 games played, nine Irish individuals boast double digit points, led by Wolak with a team-best 89. The graduate also leads the team in goals (52) and assists (37).

• With 105 points in 2023, Wolak ranked fourth nationally and second in the ACC. With her performance against Florida to reach the 100+ point mark, she became just the third woman in program history to hit 100 points in a single season.

• With a scoring margin of 8.18, the Irish rank fourth in the nation while also ranking fifth in the country in shots per game (35.53) and shots on goal at 26.06.

LEADERSHIP GROUP

• The team named a trio of captains, as voted on by their peers, ahead of the 2024 season. This year’s captains will be Madison Ahern, Kasey Choma and Aine Maseker.