PITTSBURGH, Pa. — John Burke (So., St. Louis, Mo.) scored with 5:34 left in the fourth quarter for the determining factor as Great Lakes Division Champion the University of Notre Dame edged New York Division Champion the United States Military Academy, 10-9, in the 11th Place game at the 2019 Men’s National Collegiate Club Championship hosted by the University of Pittsburgh.
- Squaring off in the 30th and final game of the 16-team, three-day championship event, the Cadets and Fighting Irish slugged it out on the scoreboard from the opening sprint to the closing horn with neither team holding a lead of more than two goals during the entire duration of the contest.
- Notre Dame – which previously finished 13th (2004) and 11th (2016) in its two prior trips to the Men’s National Collegiate Club Championship at home when the Irish hosted the event – jumped on the scoreboard first as Thomas Issa (Jr., Kingston, Jamaica) hurled in a shot with 4:47 left in the first quarter.
- Army responded with a pair of markers to snag the lead prior the close of the opening frame as Aaron Chough (Sr., Cerritos, Calif.) salvoed in shots at 2:41 and 12 seconds to provide the Black & Gold with a 2-1 margin through seven minutes of competition.
- The lead grew to a game-high two goals 29 seconds into the second quarter as Christopher Onorato (Sr., Houston, Texas) sniped a five-meter penalty shot past Notre Dame goalie Brennan O’Brien (So., New Lenox, Ill.) with 6:31 until halftime to make the score 3-1.
- Chris Kreienkamp (Sr., St, Louis, Mo.) posted a natural response for the Irish at 6:16, but Austin Beam (Sr., Powell, Ohio) returned the spread to a pair at 5:55 via a man-up conversion. Notre Dame erased its deficit as Matthew Dotson (So., Pleasanton, Calif.) put away an even-strength chance at 4:18 and Burke beat Army goalie Mason Calbert (Fr., Valley Center, Calif.) at 2:48 to balance the scoreboard at four-all.
- Army regained the lead at 5-4 courtesy a tactical strike by DJ Pinter (Sr., Alexandria, Va.) at 2:30, but Patrick Heffernan (So,, Madison, N,J.) answered with 13 seconds remaining in the second quarter to knot the teams at five-all heading into the break.
- Notre Dame pushed ahead for the first time since its 1-0 margin back in the early moments of the opening frame as Alex Besancency (Laguna Niguel, Calif.) cashed in a six-on-five chance with 5:45 on the third quarter clock to inch ahead 6-5.
- The lead was short-lived, however, as Onorato (4:25) and Mathieu Sanders (Jr., Sonoma, Calif.) (3:00) gave Army back a one-score lead at 7-6.
- Notre Dame and Army kept trading goals over the remainder of the third quarter as Irish evened the damage at seven-all at 2:38 courtesy a score by Kreinenkamp, Army pushed ahead 8-7 at 2:13 via a goal by Onorato and Kreinenkamp putting the ball away on a man-up bid at 1:49 to make it eight-all heading into the decisive fourth quarter.
- Notre Dame jumped ahead for the third time in the game as Kreienkamp hit pay-dirt at 6:18 before Onorato once again deadlocked the teams at nine-all with 6:03 to play. Burke punched in the determining factor at 5:34 as both teams’ defenses stiffened down the stretch to kept their foes from adding insurance or registering a tying score for the 10-9 Notre Dame win.
- For Army, Onorato scored four times with Chough, Beam, Pinter and Sanders each notching solo goals. Calbert made four saves in taking the loss.
- Army’s 11th Place finish continues a recent trend of spots for the Cadets in the bottom half of the 16-team field as 1994 National Champion the U.S. Military Academy previously posted Eighth (2017), 12th (2001, 2016) and 13th (2002, 2018) Place marks in the 21st Century.
- Kreinenkamp led Notre Dame with four goals to go along with a pair by Burke and individual contributions by Dotson, Besanceney, Issa and Heffernan. O’Brien recorded seven saves in earning the win.
| 1st Q | 2nd Q | 3rd Q | 4th Q | – | FINAL | |
| United States Military Academy | 2 | 3 | 3 | 1 | – | 9 |
| University of Notre Dame | 1 | 4 | 3 | 2 | – | 10 |
| Notre Dame Goals: | Chris Kreinenkamp (4); John Burke (2); Matthew Dotson; Alex Besanceney; Thomas Issa; Patrick Heffernan | |||||
| Army Goals: | Christopher Onorato (4); Aaron Chough; Austin Beam; DJ Pinter; Mathieu Sanders | |||||
| Saves: | Notre Dame – Brennan O’Brien (7) ; Army – Mason Calbert (4) | |||||
| Exclusions: | Notre Dame – 10 ; Army – 6 | |||||
| Advantage Opportunities: | Notre Dame – 4-for-6 ; Army – 2-for-10 | |||||
| Sprints: | Notre Dame – 2-for-3 (1st, 2nd) ; Army – 1-for-3 (3rd) | |||||
| Cards/Misconducts: | Notre Dame – YC (Patrick Heffernan, 13 seconds left in 2nd Q) | |||||
| Officials: | Jason Grubb; Martin Murray | |||||
University of Notre Dame’s Matthew Dotson (#12) grabs the ball as the United States Military Academy’s Mathieu Sanders (#17) looks on
University of Notre Dame’s Thomas Issa (#9) drops a pass over the United States Military Academy’s Mathieu Sanders (#17)
The University of Notre Dame’s Patrick Heffernan (#2) pursues the United States Military Academy’s Eric Niino (#5)
