Mary Votava Notre Dame women’s basketball picked up its third consecutive win Thursday night, dispatching Virginia 86-76.
A physical, four-quarter affair saw the two teams combine for 56 fouls. Seven players accumulated 4 or more personal fouls, and two Cavalier starters (Camryn Taylor and London Clarkson) fouled out. The Irish attempted 44 foul shots on the game, including 17 in the fourth quarter.
Junior guard Sonia Citron, now in her fourth game back after a months-long injury absence, brought the offensive firepower for No. 19 Notre Dame. The junior combo guard notched a game-high 28 points, with the Irish now 3-1 following her return. Freshman guard Hannah Hidalgo also chipped in across the stat sheet, adding 23 points, 9 assists, 6 steals and 5 rebounds. Citron and Hidalgo combined for 20 of the team’s 22 points in the final quarter.
Notre Dame will continue their road swing against a Wake Forest team fighting against an ugly mid-season spiral.
The Demon Deacons have struggled all year and are yet to win consecutive games in 2023-24. Whereas other lower-tier ACC teams have largely steadied their season record in non-conference matches against mid-major opponents (Pittsburgh is 0-5 vs. ACC opposition and 6-7 outside of conference play, Virginia is 0-5 in conference and 8-3 outside), Wake Forest entered its ACC slate with a 4-8 record.
Since the start of conference play, things have gone from bad to worse for the Deacons’ season outlook. The team remains winless against ACC foes. Three of their five conference losses have come by margins of more than 20 points.
Elise Williams has paced Wake Forest offensively, with her 10.3 points per game making her the only Demon Deacon to average double figures in scoring. Kaia Harrison is close behind in the scoring department, averaging 9.9 points per game. Expect Williams, who also leads Wake in assists and is tied for second in rebounds, to draw the most Irish defensive attention.
The Demon Deacons have been better in Winston-Salem, with three of their four wins coming at home. Perhaps more notably than any win though, Wake also put forth a very solid showing against a Virginia Tech team that ranks among the nation’s best at LJVM Coliseum, falling 82-73. Notre Dame is 1-1 on the road against conference opponents this season, including a tight win over 6-12 Pitt.
After a shaky start to their ACC slate, Notre Dame will come to Winston-Salem having found their groove. A couple of key returnees (Citron from a longer-term leg injury, senior forward Maddy Westbeld from a short stint in concussion protocol) meant last week’s game against Boston College marked just the first time since mid-November the Irish had their full opening day starting lineup on the floor again.
Notre Dame still awaits the returns of junior guard Olivia Miles and freshman guard Cassandre Prosper. The recovery timetable for both remains unknown. In the meantime, the Irish will look to extend their winning streak with a key road showdown against longtime rival No. 9 UConn looming.
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