With the schedule Notre Dame soccer coach Jim Schemerhorn assembled for his 2010 Lady Irish, some losses were expected. His hope was that in those losses, his players could find a way to win in close-game situations.
Thursday night, they did just that.
The Class A/AA third-ranked Lady Irish took a two-goal lead into the second half of their game against 10th-ranked East Hamilton. They allowed an early goal in the period but held on for a 2-1 victory on senior night at Notre Dame, earning their fourth win of the season.
"It doesn't get any easier for us, either," Schermerhorn said.
Notre Dame finishes the season with fourth-ranked Chattanooga Christian, Class AAA top-ranked Bearden, Division II-AA top-ranked Baylor and big Murfreesboro school Riverdale.
Notre Dame (4-7) physically outplayed the Lady Hurricanes in the first 40 minutes, beating them to the ball. A bad clear by the visitors led to Notre Dame's first goal, by Mary Ann Wagner 17 minutes in. In the 30th minute, Mackenzie Nadeau crossed a ball into Lacey Mahoney, who touched it ahead to Sophie Mullin for a goal.
East Hamilton controlled the early part of the second half. Chandler Smith scored when a shot by Yinka Ladapo was deflected by Notre Dame keeper Grace Courter. A charging Smith was there to put the shot away and cut the lead in half.
The Lady Hurricanes had some other opportunities, but late chances were either stopped by defenders Michelle Spangler and Ashley Henry or gobbled up by Courter.
"We needed two second halves," East Hamilton coach John Millard said. "Notre Dame obviously won the first half; they were more aggressive, won more 50-50 balls and made us pay for our mistakes. I loved our response in the second half, though. We got a goal - I wish it had been two or three - but this is a tough place to play."
Said Schermerhorn: "We're still needing to fix our mistakes in games, because a good team will make you pay for mistakes. I think we panicked some when they scored, but we settled down and were good enough to win."
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6311.