The Notre Dame men's lacrosse team will finish off their three-game home stand this Saturday as it takes on Ohio State in a Great Western Lacrosse League contest.

The Irish lost a heartbreaker to the Buckeyes a year ago on a last second goal.

"This is a huge game," said captain Kevin Higgins. "Everyone remembers what it was like last year to lose and how bad it felt."

The Irish are coming off a tough one-point loss to Hofstra in which the play of both the offense and defense was sporadic and inconsistent.

Notre Dame gave up seven points in the first half but rebounded, letting up only one in the second. The Irish have given up big second periods in their last two losses, and players hope to avoid any letdowns against Ohio State.

"I just think we have to keep our concentration," Higgins said. "We are playing good teams and we have to realize that good teams are going to make runs and we have to keep it just them making good plays and not us making mistakes. If we do this we will be fine."

With a win, the Irish would be in a good position to win the league championship and get an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

After coming out tentative in the last few games the Irish need to establish some of the offensive firepower that helped them knock off Penn State in the opener. Facing a possible three-game losing streak, they have been working hard and preparing for Ohio State all week in practice.

"Basically we have been working on some fundamental things," Higgins said. "Everyone has been fired up all week to get another shot to get back at them. It was disappointing and embarrassing last year and everyone is so fired up to play this weekend."

Ohio State is heading into this game with a 3-3 record and they are fresh off a 7-4 victory over Vermont. The Buckeyes are lead by offensive leader Greg Zytkowski and goalie Mike Abeles, both pre-season all-Americans. The Irish are going to need to come together as a team and play a full game to gain a well-needed victory on Saturday and put them closer to clinching a tournament birth.

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