It was a rocky beginning for Notre Dame this year, but the Irish rebounded from the uncharacteristic start to be once again considered one of the top teams in the nation this season.

The Irish suffered a stretch in September that included three shutout losses in four games, albeit to perennial powers North Carolina, Stanford and Santa Clara. 

At the time, Notre Dame was also working through some key injuries, losing senior midfielders Courtney Rosen and Micaela Alvarez for the season, while senior forward Michele Weissenhofer was sidelined for an extended period of time with a hamstring injury.

"I think early on we played a couple games and we got through it, but then all of a sudden you jump in and play the type of caliber teams that we were playing, we really struggled offensively," said head coach Randy Waldrum.  "The main thing we struggled with was getting anybody upfront that could really hold the ball for us long enough for us to make some kind of counter or build-up in our attack.  That's where we got exposed a lot early."

"It turned our world upside down because we're used to winning games and having those high standards," said junior Lauren Fowlkes.  "At the time it was really hard, but it was definitely beneficial for the team."

Read more here: http://www.ncaa.com/sports/w-soccer/spec-rel/110509aab.html