SOUTH BEND, Ind. — The Notre Dame Fighting Irish men’s soccer team is College Cup bound for the third time in program history following Saturday night’s thrilling 1-1 draw, advancing 5-4 on penalty kicks past Indiana in front of a raucous, sold-out Alumni Stadium crowd.
Notre Dame has now reached the NCAA Championship Semifinals for the second time in the last three seasons, both with McFarland Family Men’s Head Soccer Coach Chad Riley at the helm.
Daniel Russo played the role of hero for the Irish, scoring a ridiculous free kick in the 17th minute. He then took the last penalty of the shootout, scoring on Notre Dame’s fifth attempt to send the Irish to the NCAA Championship semifinals.
Bryan Dowd made three saves in goal, to help keep the Hoosiers potent attack at bay.
The Irish will play in the semifinal match against Oregon State on Friday, Dec. 8 at Lynn Family Stadium in Louisville, Kentucky. The match will air on ESPNU. Buy tickets here.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Notre Dame had the best chance in the early stages of play, as Russo beat his defender and squared a ball across the six-yard box but no Irish player was able to connect with it.
The Indiana attack started to grow in the match, putting the Notre Dame backline under pressure but the Irish defense was up to the task, keeping the Hoosiers off the board.
Notre Dame earned a free kick on the top of the box, setting the stage for Russo’s moment of brilliance. The senior used his left foot to curl in a sublime strike just inside the post to give the Irish a 1-0 lead.
The Hoosier pressure paid off in the 63rd minute, as Patrick McDonald leveled it with a strike from the edge of the box to make the score 1-1.
The final five minutes of regulation were frantic, as Paddy Burns collected a loose ball on the edge of the area but his shot went just wide of the far post.
With just over a minute remaining the Hoosiers hit the post on a shot from distance. The Irish managed to clear their lines, sending the match to overtime.
The Irish nearly retook the lead in the first minute of overtime as Kyle Genenbacher’s cross connected with Matthew Roou, who headed a shot towards the far post. Indiana’s keeper made a big diving save to keep the match level.
Then in the 99th minute, the Irish earned a free kick from about 30 yards out and Russo’s effort just went over the bar.
Neither team managed to score the winner in the second overtime, sending the match to penalties.
For the second straight match, the visitors went first and didn’t convert their opening penalty attempt, as the Indiana effort went off the bar. The Irish were clinical from the spot, as Paddy Burns, Matthew Roou, Eno Nto, Mitch Ferguson and Russo each found the back of the net to help the Irish advance.
McFARLAND FAMILY MEN’S HEAD SOCCER COACH CHAD RILEY’S TAKE
On the performance…
“Couldn’t be more proud of this team. You saw everything tonight. There was so much quality, so much resilience, so much fight in the team and different guys stepped up. I couldn’t be prouder of a team than what I was tonight.”
On the crowd and field storm…
“I think it was the best soccer crowd in the history of this program and it is a big reason why we are going to the College Cup.”
ND STAT OF THE MATCH
Through two penalty shootouts during the 2023 NCAA Championships, the Irish are now 9-for-9 from the spot.
ND NOTES
- The Irish improve to 23-20-6 all-time in the NCAA Tournament and 17-8-5 when playing at home in the NCAA Tournament
- The Irish reach the NCAA Championship semifinals for the third time in program history and second time in last three seasons
- Notre Dame is now 5-2 in penalty shootouts in NCAA Championship history and have advanced to the next round in each of the last five shootouts at Alumni Stadium in the NCAA Tournament
- The Irish have now held opponents to one or no goals in 18 of 20 matches this year
- Russo’s goal was fourth of the season and 14th of his career
- Russo now has two free kick goals on the season and Notre Dame has 16 set piece goals during the 2023 campaign
UP NEXT
The Irish will play in the semifinal match against the winner of UNC and Oregon State on Friday, Dec. 8 at Lynn Family Stadium in Louisville, Kentucky. The match will air on ESPNU. Buy tickets here.
FOLLOW THE IRISH ON SOCIAL MEDIA
For a behind the scenes look at the Notre Dame men’s soccer program follow the Irish on Twitter (@NDMenSoccer), Instagram (@ndmensoccer), Facebook (/NDMenSoccer) and TikTok (@ndmensoccer).