SOUTH BEND, Ind. — The Fighting Irish men’s soccer team earned a 1-0 victory over NIU at Alumni Stadium on Friday evening to remain unbeaten at 2-0-1 on the season.
Fresh off his hat trick in Sunday’s win, Matthew Roou continued his fine form on Friday with another goal, which ended up being the difference in the match.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Irish were on the front foot from the opening whistle, dictating play and controlling possession. Roou nearly scored the opener in the fifth minute but his effort was parried away by the NIU keeper to keep it scoreless.
In the 14th minute the Irish found the opening goal, as Roou rifled a volley off the pass from Paddy Burns just inside the near post to put Notre Dame on top 1-0.
Notre Dame continued to pour forward in search of doubling its advantage, as Eno Nto had an effort saved and Daniel Russo put the rebound just over the bar in the 33rd minute.
The Irish took the 1-0 win into the break despite outshooting the visitors by a margin of 14-2.
In the 57th minute Russo came close to adding to the Irish advantage. He caught the ball clean off his right foot on a first-time effort but lifted the shot just over the bar.
Then Roou nearly secured his brace in the 81st minute but the junior dragged his shot just wide of the far post. Then in the 89th minute Nto put an effort on target from inside the box but the goalie made a diving stop to keep the final score 1-0.
McFARLAND FAMILY MEN’S HEAD SOCCER COACH CHAD RILEY’S TAKE
On the performance…
“Proud of the group. It was a little scary there at the end but for the most part we put in a great performance and got a result which is the thing we want to do. I was really proud of the mentality where we didn’t get frustrated and kept doing the things we know how to do and stuck to our identity.”
On back-to-back clean sheets…
“That’s what you want to do. You want to be gelling together at this time. Communication is key and we are building those relationships really well.”
On Matthew Roou’s form…
“He has been aggressive and he has turned it up a notch. He is stronger, faster, more aggressive and he has his finishing boots on.”
On the crowd…
“We had a great crowd tonight and I want to thank all of the fans for coming out and making Alumni a great place to play. Our guys feed off the environment and tonight the support was tremendous.”
ND STAT OF THE MATCH
Notre Dame secured a clean sheet for the second straight outing and has allowed just one goal over its first three matches of the season.
ND NOTES
- The Irish improve to 2-1-2 against NIU in the all-time series and are an unbeaten 2-0-2 against the Huskies when playing in South Bend
- Notre Dame finished with a 26-8 shot advantage, including 11-1 for shots on frame
- Roou leads the team with four goals on the season, all coming in the last two matches
- With an assist, Burns has seven assists in his Notre Dame career
- Dowd’s clean sheet is his second of the season and 15th of his career
UP NEXT
The Irish welcome Detroit Mercy to Alumni Stadium for a non-conference clash at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Sept. 5. The game will be streamed on ACCNX and admission to the match is free.
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