CLEMSON, SC – The eighth-ranked Clemson men’s soccer team (11-5-1, 3-4-1 ACC) defeated ninth-ranked Notre Dame (8-7-2, 3-4-1) 3-1 on Wednesday night at Historic Riggs Field , advancing them to the ACC quarterfinals for the 32nd time in program history. With the win, head coach Mike Noonan recorded his 100th career victory at Historic Riggs Field.
Less than 12 minutes into the game, the Tigers took advantage of an own goal by the Fighting Irish. The Notre Dame defender headed the ball back to the goalie in an attempt to stop Clemson’s quick shot, but fell short, heading the ball into the back of their net.
With just under five minutes left in the first half, Clemson was helped by another own goal by the Fighting Irish on a free throw by Alvaro Gomez. With a lot of traffic congested in front of the net, the puck was deflected by a Notre Dame defender in their own net to give Clemson a 2-0 lead heading into the locker room. Goaltender Joseph Andema made three saves as Notre Dame outshot Clemson, 4-3, in the first 45 minutes.
The Tigers came out of the locker room hot to start the second half. After a series of yellow cards were handed out to both teams, Clemson got another goal on the board. Mohamed Seye sent the ball into the net for his fourth goal of the season, thanks to a nice pass from Enrique Montana.
In a last-ditch effort, the Fighting Irish scored a goal with less than 10 minutes left in the game to avoid the shutout, but in the end it wasn’t enough as the Tigers took home the 3-1 win. Andema recorded three more saves for a career-high six total.
Regarding the team’s performance, Noonan said: “We worked hard defensively because we were conceding some pretty soft goals there in the middle. I think the boys did a good job tonight. Obviously, Joseph made some key saves at key times…We’ll have our hands full in Durham.”
Next time, Clemson will travel to Durham, NC to face top-seeded Duke in the ACC quarterfinal game on Sunday, November 6th. Kickoff is at 8 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on the ACC Network.
For all the most up-to-date information about the Clemson men’s soccer team, visit ClemsonTigers.com and follow @ClemsonMSoccer on Twitter and Instagram.
