Notre Dame enters the 2015 season coming off an interesting 2014 season. Their tournament hopes looked bleak after posting a 6-5 regular season record. However, something clicked for the Fighting Irish as soon as the postseason started and they won the ACC Tournament and took care of business to reach the NCAA Championship Game against Duke. Notre Dame lost 11-9 but the Irish should feel good about their chances to get back to Memorial Day Weekend as they return a roster loaded with talent and experience. The only players they miss from last year’s run are All-American defenseman Stephen O’Hara and the team’s third and fifth leading scorers in attackman John Scioscia and midfielder Jim Marlatt.

While they will be three big losses on both ends of the field, the team returns seven of its 11 starters! The biggest name coming back is attackman Matt Kavanaugh who led the team with 74 points, 24 more than the second leading scorer for the Irish. That second leading scorer is Conor Doyle who had 50 points and will pair with Kavanaugh to make one of the best 1-2 punches in the nation.

At midfield, the ‘Motor City Hitman’ aka Sergio Perkovic returns after a really good freshman year in which he recorded 33 points, including five goals in the National Championship Game. Nick Ossello and Jack Near will also make up what will be a really good all-around first line. With so much talent coming back, the offense should improve on its 11th ranked offense which mustered a little over 11 goals a game last year.

On defense, O’Hara will be sorely missed as he could lock down the top scorer on any squad but goalie Conor Kelly really grew up during their postseason run and is poised for a big year. Matt Landis is the best defenseman that returns and will be expected to take over for O’Hara this season. Freshman Garrett Epple saw time in every game and started seven of them and should be expected to slot into the starting lineup.

Notre Dame was very active in the offseason as they took a team trip out to Italy and then returned to compete in the NCAA Seatown Lacrosse Classic out in Seattle, Washington where they took on Team USA. You can watch some of the highlights from the scrimmage and if you are an Irish fan, you have to be encouraged by what you saw in that game. They didn’t face the USA team that went to the FIL Championships in Denver but they did face some of the best players in lacrosse currently. They held their own through the first half as they led 10-6 and Conor Kelly looked really sharp. The offense was also very capable as they beat Jesse Schwatrzman multiple times throughout the game. The Irish did lose the scrimmage but that is to be expected when the younger players come in and play against some of the best lacrosse talent in the nation.

To be fair, the Irish should have an advantage as they have been working together and are more conditioned than a Team USA squad that was probably put together in a week or two and didn’t have much time to practice together. However, the Irish looked sharp and it should be a good sign of what is to come as the Irish will be a favorite to hoist the NCAA Championship trophy that escaped them last year.

Finally, the team brings in a very talented incoming freshman class that includes five Under Armour All-Americans headlined by the No. 4 ranked recruit in the nation in attackman Mikey Wynne. Midfielder Brendan Collins (No. 24), defenseman Alex Hurdle (No. 30), goalie Owen Molloy (No. 38) and defenseman John Sexton (No. 40) are the other four notable recruits. In total, they bring in eight players that are ranked in the Top 100 according to Inside Lacrosse.