The Week in Notre Dame Athletics: Fencing Finishes, Softball Sweeps

Notre Dame currently has an impressive 7 top-25 teams among its ranks. Without further ado, we bring you the results of the last week's Irish match-ups.

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No. 2 fencing earned a 3^rd place finish and 2 individual titles at the NCAA Championships this past weekend in Columbus, OH, with 12 team members in competition. Olympic foilist and Notre Dame junior Lee Keifer snagged her 3^rd consecutive individual women's title and went 21-2 in pool play; freshman Francesca Russo claimed the women's title in sabre. Madison Zeiss earned 5^th in women's foil. Ariel DeSmet finished 3^rd in men's foil. Notre Dame's 3^rd place finish saw them tied in total points with Penn State at 156 and falling just short of Columbia's team title-winning 165 points. With that, the Irish finish yet another incredibly impressive season.

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No. 22 baseball (11-3) went 1-3 over the past week, besting Central Michigan, 8-3, then dropping 3 in a row to no. 8 Louisville, 2-0, 6-4 (in 18 innings), and 3-0.

Highlights from the win over Central Michigan:

Highlights from Sunday's game vs. Louisville:

The Irish next travel to Chicago to play UIC this Tuesday (7:00 p.m. ET, WatchND). Friday, they'll host Virginia (6:05 p.m. ET, WatchND); the pair will meet again Saturday afternoon (2:05 p.m. ET, WatchND) and Sunday afternoon (1:05 p.m. ET, WatchND).

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Softball (19-11) earned an impressive 4-0 sweep over the past week. They bested Cleveland State, 8-4, in their home opener and then dominated Georgia Tech, 6-1, 13-0 (!), and 5-0.

Highlights from the victory over Cleveland State:

Highlights from Sunday's shutout win over Georgia Tech:

This Wednesday, the Irish host IPFW (5:00 p.m. ET, WatchND). Saturday, they'll face Virginia Tech at home in a double-header (1:00 and 3:00 p.m. ET, WatchND). The teams will play once more on Sunday (12:00 p.m. ET, WatchND).

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No. 2 men's lacrosse (5-1) dominated no. 15 Ohio State, 9-0, earning just the 2^nd shutout in program history. Shane Doss stopped 11 shots in goal for the Irish and Conor Kelly stopped 2. Nick Ossello earned a hat trick and Conor Doyle had 2 goals and an assist.

Look for a game recap and preview of the team's next match from Paul Rigney soon.

The Irish next play no. 1 Syracuse at home this Saturday (12:00 p.m. ET, ESPNU).

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No. 17 women's lacrosse (5-4, 2-2) earned a 13-5 win over no. 15 Ohio State this past weekend. Sophomore attacker Courtney Fortunato shone again for the Irish, scoring 4 goals, and Rachel Sexton nabbed a hat trick.

This Wednesday, the Irish play Marquette on the road (4:00 p.m. ET). They'll host North Carolina on Sunday afternoon (1:00 p.m. ET, ESPN3).

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No. 36 men's tennis earned two wins and two losses over the past week. They dropped their matches with no. 34 Texas Tech, 4-3, and no. 9 Virginia, 6-1, then won out over Georgia Tech, 6-1, and IPFW, 6-1. Friday, the Irish travel to Coral Gables, FL, to face Miami; they'll play Florida State in Tallahassee, FL, on Sunday.

The no. 32 women's squad split their last week's matches, beating no. 67 Florida State, 4-3, but dropping a close one to no. 57 Georgia Tech, 4-3. The Irish next host North Carolina State this Friday afternoon. Sunday at noon, they host Marquette.

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Members of the women's swimming and diving team competed in the NCAA Championships over the past weekend in Greensboro, NC. Seniors Allison Casareto and Emma Reaney had strong performances for the Irish, earning All-America honors (it was Reaney's sixth). Reaney came in 4^th in the 200 IM, 3^rd in the 100 breast, and 4^th in the 200 breast; Casareto came in 9^th in the 1M dive and 18^th in the 3M. Thus ends the season for the Irish women's team.

Men's swimming and diving were idle this past week and compete in the NCAA Championships beginning this Thursday. The Irish will compete in the platform, 1m, and 3m dive events, as well as the 200 medley relay, 800 free relay, 500 free, 200 IM, 400 IM, 100 and 200 fly, 100 and 200 breast, and 200 back.

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No. 32 women's golf was idle this past week. Notre Dame next heads to the LSU Tiger Classic in Baton Rouge, LA, this weekend.

Men's golf was also idle this past week. They next compete in the Mason Rudolph Invitational in Nashville in early April.

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No. 12 Irish rowing was idle this past week. Up next is the Big 10-ACC Double Duel this Saturday in Columbus, OH.

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After competing in the NCAA Indoor Championships a little over a week ago, the Irish track & field team shifts to the outdoor season beginning this Thursday at the Texas Relays in Austin, TX, and this Friday at the Bobcat Invitational in San Marcos, TX.

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No. 2 women's basketball (31-2, 18-1 ACC) advanced to the Sweet Sixteen in the NCAA tournament over the past week with wins over Montana, 77-43, and DePaul, 79-67. We've got coverage of those two big win from you right here.

The Irish compete in the NCAA Regional Semifinals (better called the Sweet Sixteen) this Friday at 9:30 p.m. against no. 4 Stanford in Oklahoma City, OK (ESPN2). If they advance, they'll play in the regional final on Sunday at 8:30 p.m. ET on ESPN. This year's Final Four will convene in Tampa, FL, and determine the national champion on Sunday, April 5^th and Tuesday, April 7^th.

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No. 8 men's basketball (28-4, 14-3 ACC) has awesomely advanced to the Sweet Sixteen in the NCAA tournament with wins over Northeastern, 69-65, and Butler, 67-64. We're lucky to have superb basketball coverage for you this season. Our recap and analysis of the Northeastern win is right here and our breakdown of the Butler victory is right here. Read up on the team's NCAA tournament success with stories from around the web here.

The Irish face their Sweet Sixteen opponent, Wichita State, this Thursday evening in Cleveland, OH (7:15 p.m. ET, CBS).

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