FALL SPORTS: 2001 in Review
Observer Staff Report
Men's Soccer
With a new coach and one of its best incoming freshman classes in recent history, the Irish set out to reach the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1996.
And they delivered.
After starting the season 1-2, the Irish cruised through the regular season by winning 11 of its last 14 games en route to a 12-5 regular season. Notre Dame concluded its Big East season with a 7-3 record, qualifying them for second place in the Big East — its highest finish ever — and earning a first-round bye in the postseason tournament.
A 1-0 win over Georgetown in the Big East quarterfinals earned the Irish its first spot in the Big East semifinals in four years. Unfortunately, the Irish fell in the semifinals to St. John's.
That same week, new Irish coach Bobby Clark was named Big East Coach of the Year.
After the Big East tournament, it was announced that the Irish qualified for the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1996. In a hard-fought defensive battle with Maryland in the first round, the Irish succumbed to a Terrapin goal with 1:41 left in regulation, dealing the Irish a heartbreaking 1-0 loss.
- Bryan Kronk
ND Women's Soccer
The 2001 season was a difficult year for the Notre Dame women's soccer team as the Irish failed to duplicate the success of the 2000 squad that reached the Final Four.
The underdog Cincinnati Bearcats upset this year's edition of the Irish in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Head coach Randy Waldrum's team finished 17-3-1 on the season.
Defense was the trademark of the 2001 campaign as the Irish gave up only 18 goals in 21 games. Offensively, sophomore Amanda Guertin led the Irish in scoring with 14 goals and 6 assists. Defender Candace Chapman was named to the freshman All-American team, while junior Vanessa Pruzinsky was named an Academic All-American for the second straight year.
~ Joe Licandro
SMC Soccer
It was a season that was promising. It was a season that offered hope for improvement. It was a season that could have been the first step on the ladder to national prominence. But ultimately, it was a season that ended in near-despair.
In February, the Belles soccer team, a team that was hopeful that it would finally move from the bottom of the MIAA to national prominence, watched its hopes fly away on the same plane head coach Bobby Johnston to his new job in Tampa, Fla.
Johnston had led his team to the best finish in recent history, even if that finish only included six wins.
The first-year head coach led his team to a seventh place finish in the MIAA, just one game behind league rival Hope.
But then he left.
"I do have to make a living in this profession," he said.
Due to financial reasons, Johnston accepted a full-time head-coaching position at the University of Tampa.
- Katie McVoy
ND Volleyball
It was a season of personal accolades and conference success for the Notre Dame volleyball team before head coach Debbie Brown's team fell to Michigan State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
The Irish ended the season with an impressive 22-7 record, which included an undefeated Big East regular season and the team's seventh Big East Tournament Championship. The Irish, however, struggled against ranked opponents throughout the season, falling to Florida, Northern Iowa, UCLA, Nebraska and Pepperdine.
Senior middle blocker Malinda Goralski was named Big East Player of the year.Before the season, senior Kristy Kreher was named Preseason Big East Player of the Year.
The team's undefeated conference record earned Brown Big East Coach of the Year honors, while sophomore setter Kristen Kinder was named Big East Setter of the Year.
~ Noah Amstadter
SMC Volleyball
Last year, the Belles managed a seventh place finish, and they finished as high as third in 1997. But with only one victory this year, eighth was where the Belles found themselves.
It was a tough end to a tough season for the Belles volleyball team. After a season of hard-fought, losing battles, Saint Mary's found itself in the basement of the MIAA — a place they hadn't been since they joined the MIAA. In their last game of the year — a first-round playoff game against the Alma Scots — the Belles finally came together as a team, but it happened too late.
"We played better as a team than we have played probably all season," said head coach Julie Schroeder-Biek. "Alma was good competition for us and I felt like we finished the season with our heads held high."
- Katie McVoy
Men's Cross Country
After the Irish took home the Big East title on Oct. 26 by narrowly beating out Villanova, 52-49, senior Ryan Shay, referring to his teammates, said, "Those guys definitely know how to step it up … and [they] weren't going to let anything deter them from winning." All season the Irish asserted their individual strength and combined depth.
Ranked No. 4 going into the national meet, the Irish had hoped the return of Ryan Shay, who had been suffering from an injured Achilles, and senior Pat Conway, who had been battling a chest cold, would be enough to upset Colorado and Stanford.
Luke Watson and Shay's finishes in the NCAA meet earned them All-America Honors. It marked the second straight All-America honor in cross country for Watson, who finished seventh individually in 2000. It also was Shay's second All-America recognition, after he finished 12th in 1999. Watson's NCAA finish marked the highest by an Irish runner since Bill Clark took second in 1964.
- Katie Hughes
ND Women's Cross Country
The Irish started the season missing four seniors, but freshman Lauren King, juniors Jen Handley and Jen Fibuch and sophomore Megan Johnson stepped up and led the team to exceed early expectations.
King, Handley, junior Jen Fibuch and sophomore Megan Johnson were the consistent core at the head of the pack for the Irish, though they didn't start competing in the first few meets.
The Irish went on to qualify for the NCAA National Championship, which they had failed to do the year before. They had started the season unranked, and finished a respectable 19th in the national meet in Greenville, S.C. King took home All-American honors after finishing 23rd. Handley finished in 101st place and Johnson finished right behind her. Jennifer Fibuch and Christi Arnerich wrapped up the top five Irish runners.
- Katie McVoy
SMC Cross Country
The Saint Mary's cross country team got stuck in the mud. After finishing in seventh place in the MIAA Jamboree, they had their hopes set high for the MIAA Tournament. But conditions were cold, wet and muddy and the Belles found themselves without three of their top runners. Despite the fact that their seventh place finish was a far cry from victory, they were still proud of the season-ending performance.
"Considering we were missing three of our top seven [runners], I think we did really well," head coach David Barstis said. "I think we could have beat [sixth place finisher Adrian and fourth place finisher Alma] had it been a good day weather-wise and if we had our top seven. We were prepared."
- Katie McVoy
Men's Golf
The 2001-2002 golf season was an educational one for the Notre Dame men. With an inexperienced squad consisting in part of three freshmen and first year head coach John Jasinski, the team had low expectations and treated the spring as a learning process, preparing for future successes while forsaking present glories.
While the team's inconsistent play generally reflected its lack of experience, senior captain Steve Ratay quietly put together the best single season in school history, shooting a glittering 73.03 average.
While Ratay was consistently great, his young teammates were consistently inconsistent. At their best, freshmen K.C. Wiseman, Ryan Marshall and Steve Colnitis demonstrated that they could compete with almost anyone. However, when off their games, the talented trio couldn't compete at all. Too often, bad rounds would become atrocious rounds and scores would spiral into the 80s, an unacceptable level in college golf.
- Kevin Berchou
ND Women's Golf
A season that began last fall with great expectations ended in late April with a rainout and disappointment.
But the Notre Dame women's golf team has minimal regrets from its first season under head coach Debby King, the program's first full-time coach.
In one particular tournament, everyone on the team seemed to be able to play well at once. The Irish finished second at the Snowbird Invitational in Florida over Spring Break, with Lotta finishing fifth after shooting rounds of 77 and 73 on the par 72, 5,940-yard Pebblecreek Golf Course. McMurtrie, junior Terri Taibl and Byrne each finished tied for eighth, 13th and 25th, respectively.
Notre Dame's last tournament was rained out, leaving the Irish tied for 9th place.
- Joe Lindsley
SMC Golf
It was a bittersweet end to two successful seasons. At the end of their fall season, the Belles took home a disappointing third place finish on their home course in the MIAA Championship tournament. But worse than that, at the end of their spring season the Belles had to say goodbye to their coach.
"I wasn't expecting it," said freshman Stefanie Simmerman. "I thought it would be a given that she would be here for all four years, but I realize family priorities came up."
Under Teresa Pekarek's leadership, the Belles took home a third place finish in the MIAA following a championship tournament at Brookwood golf course on Sept. 28. They began the season by taking home a first-place finish at an MIAA tournament at Hope. But at the end of the fall season, despite the disappointment, Saint Mary's had high hopes.
But they'll have to carry those threats without Pekarek, the coach who launched Saint Mary's golf program.
On March 28, Pekarek announced that she would not be returning for the fall season, citing family reasons and the fact that she just didn't have enough time to give to a team that was moving forward.
- Katie McVoy
All Sports Stories for Friday, May 17, 2002
