The Week in Notre Dame Athletics: Let the Tournaments Begin

Without further ado, we bring you the results of the last week's Irish match-ups.

_____

After claiming the ACC championship tand finishing the regular season with an 18-17 win over no. 19 Army, no. 5 men's lacrosse (10-5) downed no. 11 Harvard in the opening round of the NCAA tournament on Saturday, 13-5. Paul Rigney has the full game recap for you right here and a great interview with head coach Kevin Corrigan here.

This Saturday, the Irish face Albany in the NCAA tournament quarterfinals (2:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2).

_____

No. 13 women's lacrosse (9-8) concluded their season with a 2-round run in the NCAA tournament this past weekend. The Irish dominated High Point in the opening round, winning 18-4 against an over-matched opponent.

Sunday, Notre Dame dropped behind Duke in their 2^nd-round game; a late rally fell short and the Irish lost to the Blue Devils, 10-8. That ends a good season for the Irish.

_____

No. 20 Irish softball (39-11) had a great showing in their inaugural ACC tournament this past week. They began by besting Boston College in the quarterfinals, 3-0, behind a 3-run homerun in the 6^th frame.

After falling behind 5-0 in the 1^st inning, Notre Dame pulled off a huge rally to beat Virginia Tech in the ACC semifinals, 9-6.

Saturday, the Irish faced no. 4 Florida State in the ACC championship game and despite a great push, lost, 3-1.

This Friday, the Irish will head out to Los Angeles to face Long Beach State in the opening round of NCAA tournament play. If they advance, they'll play their next opponents on Saturday and Sunday. This is their 16^th consecutive NCAA tournament bid.

_____

Baseball (19-31) went 2-1 over the weekend, claiming their series against no. 22 Clemson with 2-1 and 11-3 wins on either side of an 8-0 loss. The games were held at ND's home stadium, which they hadn't played in all season until Friday, when the installation of FieldTurf was completed.

Here are highlights from Friday's 2-1 win over Clemson:

The Irish face Eastern Michigan on the road this Tuesday (6:00 p.m. ET, WatchND), then welcome Pittsburgh to South Bend on Thursday (5:35 p.m. ET, WatchND). The Irish and Panthers play again on Friday (5:35 p.m. ET, WatchND) and Saturday (1:05 p.m. ET, WatchND).

_____

Notre Dame's track & field team competed at the Virginia Challenge in Charlottesville, VA, the Dr. Keeler Invitational in Naperville, IL, and the Grand Valley Last Chance Meet in Allendale, MI, this past weekend, in preparation for the NCAA tournament preliminaries at the end of the month. The Irish earned 14 top-5 finishes, including wins in the women's 200m and 400m run, the 4x400m relay, 400m hurdles, hammer throw, javelin, and shot put, and in the men's 200m, 400m, and long jump.

Up next for the Irish is the Georgia Tech Invitational this Weekend in Atlanta.

_____

The no. 13 men's tennis squad (19-9) advanced through their 1^st 2 rounds of the NCAA tournament this past week, first sweeping Green Bay, 4-0, then defeating Ole Miss, 4-2.

This Friday, the Irish meet no. 4 Virginia in the 3^rd round in Athens, GA. The quarterfinals are on Sunday at noon ET and the semifinals, on Monday at 5:00 p.m. ET (NCAA Central).

Women's tennis (18-9) began NCAA tournament competition this past week. They swept DePaul, 4-0, in their opening round match in Evanston, IL, on Friday. Saturday afternoon, the Irish earned a 4-3 upset win over Northwestern.

This Thursday, the Irish face no. 2 Alabama in the sweet sixteen round of the NCAA tournament in Athens, GA. If they advance, they'll compete in the quarterfinals on Saturday at noon ET and the semifinals, at 1:00 p.m. ET on Monday (NCAA Central).

_____

The men's golf squad is just about finished for the year, but tri-captain Niall Platt earned an invitation to the NCAA tournament regional in Sugar Grove, IL, which begins this Thursday. Just 5 golfers received an opportunity to compete individually. Platt is only the 2^nd in ND history to do so and currently holds the school record for the best career scoring average.

The no. 54 women's squad placed 18^th at the NCAA West Regional this past week in Cle Elum, WA, as their season came to an end.

_____

No. 10 Irish rowing was idle this past week. They hit the water again this weekend as the ACC championship commences with regionals in Clemson, SC.

_____

We'll bring you updates next week on Notre Dame's Olympic sports. For now, go Irish. Beat everybody.