WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Notre Dame dropped a 3-0 decision on the road against Wake Forest to close out the regular season on Friday evening at Spry Stadium.
The Irish will take on North Carolina in the first round of the ACC Tournament at 7 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Nov. 5 in South Bend. The Irish are the No. 8 seed and the Tar Heels are the No. 9 seed in the tourney.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Irish created the first chance of the evening, coming in the 10th minute of action. Notre Dame’s press caused a turnover high up the pitch and Wyatt Borso fired a shot from just outside the box that flashed just wide of the far post.
Notre Dame had spells of possession in the Wake Forest half but were unable to find the final pass to unlock the Demon Deacon defense.
In the 37th minute the hosts scored the opener to take a 1-0 lead over the Irish. A Wake Forest player was fouled in the box and after a video review a penalty was awarded. Vlad Walent converted the attempt to give Wake Forest the lead eight minutes before the intermission.
In the final seconds of the half, Nate Zimmermann put an effort on goal from outside the box but the Wake Forest goalkeeper made a sprawling save to keep its lead heading into the halftime break.
Fifteen minutes into the second half the Demon Deacons doubled their lead, as Walent scored his second goal of the night, this time from a shot from outside the box, to give Wake Forest a 2-0 advantage.
The Demon Deacons scored again four minutes later to push their lead to 3-0 with just over 25 minutes left in the match.
The Irish pushed numbers forward in the final stages of the match but were unable to find the back of the net as the match ended with a score of 3-0.
McFARLAND FAMILY MEN’S HEAD SOCCER COACH CHAD RILEY’S TAKE
On the match…
“Obviously we are all disappointed in the result. Credit to Wake, they took their chances well and played well. We had spells where we were very good and unfortunately we couldn’t capitalize. Now we have to respond like competitors and have great preparation for the ACC tournament.”
UP NEXT
Notre Dame opens postseason play with the first round of the ACC Tournament at 7 p.m. in South Bend on Wednesday, Nov. 5, as the Irish welcome North Carolina to Alumni Stadium in the No. 8 vs. No. 9 seeded match.
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