On Thursday, #7 Notre Dame defeated Virginia Tech in another ACC matchup. This week the team will face #9 Louisville and Georgia Tech.

Game Recap & Observations

Thursday’s game had a Notre Dame team that had won its previous four games visit a Virginia Tech team that had lost its previous four games. Once again, Erin Boley started in place of Kathryn Westbeld, who is still recovering from an ankle injury. However, Westbeld did enter the game during the first quarter and played a total of 24 minutes.

The Irish struggled to get going in this game, turning the ball over five times in the first four minutes and allowing the Hokies to take the early lead. Marina Mabrey hit two threes early for ND’s first six points. It wasn’t until Westbeld made a layup with 2:52 remaining in the first quarter that Notre Dame took their first lead at 10-9. However, they extended this to a 19-11 lead by the end of the first quarter. From the end of the first into the early part of the second quarter, the Irish went on a 14-2 run. After some back and forth play, the Hokies were able to chip away at this extended Irish lead and made it a five-point game (34-29) at halftime.

The Irish opened the third quarter on another run (11-2). The defense played well in the third quarter also, as ND was able to take a 61-46 lead going into the final quarter. Early in the fourth quarter, the team lost their edge and made some poor decisions. In addition to some turnovers, during the single minute of play between 8:36 and 7:36 remaining the team collected three fouls. However, they cleaned things up before the end of the game and collected a 76-59 win over the Hokies. Notre Dame dominated this one inside, outscoring Virginia Tech in the paint 42-20.

Westbeld is still nursing her ankle injury according to the team, but she played exceptionally well in her 24 minutes of action. Despite the injury, she tallied a season-high 15 points to go along with seven rebounds, four assists, and a block. She always seems to come up with rebounds in clutch moments, and certainly isn’t playing like somebody who is worried about a sore ankle. Arike Ogunbowale also had an impressive game with her first career double-double: 16 points and ten rebounds (plus six assists).

It’s hard to learn much about this team from a victory over a team that is struggling like the Hokies, but it’s always nice to come away with the win. This Monday’s game against #9 Louisville is going to be an interesting test. I’m anticipating a close game, and it should give us a good idea of where the Irish stand going into the last few weeks of the regular season.

Burger Basket Leaderboard

No updates this week since the game was away.

Erin Boley – 2
Jackie Young – 2
Arike Ogunbowale – 1

Coming Up

The Irish will host two home games this week. They welcome No. 9 Louisville on Monday night, then have a longer break before hosting Georgia Tech on Sunday.