In a trying season like this one, it’s nice to see Notre Dame have moments like it did Thursday against Virginia Tech, even if they’re futile. The Irish (10-17, 5-10) held a 23-9 scoring advantage over the Hokies (20-6, 5-10) in the game’s final six minutes. However, the 20-point deficit the Irish were faced with earlier proved to be too deep of a hole in a 68-62 loss. The game got as close as five points with 11.8 seconds left.
Sam Brunelle scored 18 of her 20 points on a career-high six 3-pointers. Destinee Walker wasn’t far behind with 19 points. But unlike Brunelle, Walker was cold from deep as she missed all five of her 3-point attempts.
This game featured more than a career performance for Brunelle, an ACC Rookie of the Year candidate. The six 3s she made were one short of the program record for most 3-pointers in a game by a freshman. Just over 20 years to the day, Alicia Ratay made 7s against Rutgers.