Tag: Jessica Shepard

Notre Dame players in WNBA for 2023 season

Who are the former Irish to watch this season?

The 2023 WNBA season is upon us at an all-time high in popularity for women’s basketball. More opportunities are opening up for female hoopsters at all levels, and everyone is better for it. After the thrilling college season we just had, it’s time for the professionals to show what they can do. Particular attention should be given to these players since they paved the way for the sport to reach these unprecedented levels of attention.

Notre Dame has been one of the best women’s programs for some time now. Their two national championships since the turn of the century are evidence of that, but you can see it in the WNBA, too. Ten former Irish are suiting up in the league this season, which gives Notre Dame the second-most players of any program. If you need a refresher as to who to follow over the next few months, here they are:

Notre Dame appearances at MLB ballparks through the years

The Irish have been well-represented during ceremonial first pitches.

This is an exciting week for Notre Dame. Not everyone can say they’ve been at MLB’s two oldest ballparks during the same week, but this year’s Irish will be able to make that claim. They’ll face Northwestern at Wrigley Field on Tuesday before meeting Boston College at Fenway Park on Friday. The best part for us at Fighting Irish Wire is that we’ve been credentialed for both games, so we’ll be reporting the action directly from these historic venues.

With these two games taking place during the final week of the regular season, we thought it would be nice to take a look back at Notre Dame figures making appearances at MLB ballparks over the years. We’re not talking about when the football team has played games there or former Irish players who have made the big leagues. We’re talking about when figures have made appearances on behalf of the university. If you have a really good memory, maybe you can recall at least one of these:

Former Notre Dame players on 2022 WNBA rosters

Which player(s) will you cheer for this season?

The 2022 WNBA season has tipped off, and there is plenty of Notre Dame representation. Not that this should come as any surprise given that they all played under Muffet McGraw. Hopefully one day, Niele Ivey will have just as many of her own former players competing at the pinnacle of professional women’s basketball. For now, McGraw’s legacy is far more apparent.

With nine former Irish players in the WNBA and a few of them even teammates, there’s a very good chance you’ll find one of them on a given night if you decide to flip on a random game this season. Maybe you happen to be a fan of a particular team that has Irish blood on it. In that case, congratulations for hitting the jackpot!

Don’t be so quick to write these athletes off just because it’s women’s basketball. It’s just as thrilling to watch them as it is male athletes, and you’re only hurting yourself if you refuse to watch solely based on gender. Now, with that out of the way, here are the former Irish players to look for: