The Milwaukee women’s soccer team faced a challenging match against Notre Dame in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament at Alumni Stadium. Despite narrowing the gap to one goal in the 59th minute, Milwaukee could not prevent Notre Dame from scoring three more times, resulting in a 5-1 defeat.
Jenni Andjelic scored for Milwaukee (12-7-2), making it 2-1 before Notre Dame regained control with a decisive goal shortly after. Parker Donahugh’s performance in goal was notable, achieving a career-high 13 saves, the most by an MKE goalkeeper in over 25 years.
Head coach Kevin Boyd praised his team’s effort: “They are an extremely talented team; this Notre Dame team is exceptional,” he said. He expressed pride in their first-half performance but acknowledged that conceding further goals was challenging. “I do not think the score reflects the quality of the game,” Boyd added.
Donahugh set an early tone with a strong save just seconds into the match. The Panthers had opportunities, including a near miss by Kristina Karlof and another close call when Zoey Pagels’ shot was deflected by an ND defender.
Notre Dame eventually broke through with a goal late in the first half and continued to apply pressure throughout. Despite Milwaukee’s efforts, including Andjelic’s goal from a corner kick, Notre Dame’s Izzy Engle extended their lead with her 17th goal of the season.
The Panthers concluded their season having reached the NCAA Tournament for seven consecutive years and winning their fourth straight regular-season title. The senior class ended their careers with impressive records both overall and within conference play.
Reflecting on the season, Boyd noted: “We played really good teams in our non-conference schedule – it was ranked in the Top 10 nationally in strength of schedule difficulty.” He emphasized that despite not achieving an upset victory, it was still “a great season.”
