LYNDHURST, Ohio – Notre Dame scored a pair of goals by the 12th-minute, then held on to win, 2-0, in an American Mideast Conference Tournament First-Round game against Walsh on Sunday night. The win propels NDC to the Final Four in the AMC Tournament. (Box)

#Morgan Lichtinger# and #Katie Christensen# scored early in the first half, and goalkeeper #Emilie Lamarche# and a solid Falcon defense would make those goals stand up with by pitching their eighth shutout of the season.

With the win over Walsh (6-8-3), Notre Dame (12-6) advances to the league's Final Four, which will be held in Houghton, N.Y. next weekend (Nov. 13-14). The victory marks the Falcons' third postseason win in program history, and it is Notre Dame's fifth consecutive win. NDC hasn't lost since Oct. 20; they're also on a run where they've won nine of 10.

“I was delighted with our attitude and work tonight,” said Head Coach #Mike Shiels#. “We knew coming in that Walsh was a hard-working team and that it would require a solid all-around effort from the whole team. Amidst all that hard work, we threw in a couple minutes of inspired play and scored two cracking goals.”

Those goals came early on as Notre dame pressured the Walsh defense in close quarters to the WU keeper.

NDC struck first when #Morgan Lichtinger# controlled a loose ball in a scramble in front of the Walsh net. Lichtinger got a boot on a shot that whipped past WU keeper Jillian Zanney at 4:49. That goal came on NDC's first shot of the night.

Just a few minutes later, Notre Dame was as successful on their second shot. A #Lauren Acker# feed found #Katie Christensen# darting through the box, and Christensen sent a shot toward the top-right side of the net. Like Lichtinger's shot had moments earlier, Christensen's found the net, and the Falcons were up, 2-0, by the 12th minute of the contest.

That pair of goals would hold up as play unfolded in the first. Walsh didn't put their first shot on goal until the 19th minute despite frequently maintaining control of the ball on the attack. That shot, and one more, were turned away by Emilie Lamarche, who went into halftime with a pair of saves and a 2-0 lead.

In the second half, NDC had a pair quality scoring chances in the 68th minute; both were turned away. The Falcon defense was stalwart in front of Lamarche. The Blue & White allowed just two shots on goal in the second and four for the game.

For the match, Walsh outshot Notre Dame, 13-8. NDC put five shots on goal, to the Cavaliers' four.

The victory for Notre Dame served as a reprisal for a frustrating 2-1 loss the Falcons had at the hands of the Cavaliers in North Canton on Set. 22. In fact, the win also serves as payback for a lot of losses over the last decade – Walsh had been 9-1 against NDC in their 10 previous meetings, dating back to 1998.

With Sunday's victory, Notre Dame is now headed to Houghton, N.Y. next weekend. Houghton College will host the circuit's final four on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 13-14, by way of winning the AMC's regular season title. In Friday's action, the No. 3 seed Falcons will meet the No. 2 seed, Mount Vernon Nazarene, in a match kicking off at 1:15 .m. 


NOTES FROM THE NEST ...

ZERO TOLERANCE:  Notre Dame has now recorded eight shutouts this season and 28 over the last three (2007-09).  In 2009, the Falcons' goals-against average is 0.94. ... NDC's 12 victories are the second-most recorded in a single-season on program history; the Falcons won 13 matches (13-4-2) in 2007.

TOP TWO:  Either Lauren Acker or Katie Christensen or both have tallied a goal in nine consecutive NDC matches.  On the season, Acker leads the Blue & White in scoring, with 21 points (9G, 3 A); Christensen is second on the squad in points, with 20 (9G, 2A). ... Morgan Lichtinger's goal against Walsh marked her second of the season; she also has three assists.

PARTING SHOT:  Notre Dame has been outshot in each of their last two matches and still managed to earn a victory in each.  For the season, the Falcons have won four matches in which their opponent has gotten off more shots. ... For the season, NDC is averaging 12.6 shots per game, while yielding 13.9.