Tag: Sonia Citron

Notre Dame women’s basketball remains perfect with win over Lafayette

Another day, another victory.

The Notre Dame women’s basketball team is hurting right now. That’s evidenced by the fact that it had only six rotational players available against Lafayette. But the Irish are so talented that they barely had to break a sweat in a 91-55 victory.

The Irish (4-0) never trailed the Leopards (1-3) and did just about everything to keep their perfect record intact. Their offense was in sync as it typically is, which led to a program-record 15 3-pointer. Their defense also was smothering as usual. There was nothing to indicate that the Irish would slip up in this game.

All the Leopards could do was try and give a respectable showing to their home crowd, which they said they did on their postgame TV interviews. They should say that though after only scoring one less point than the Irish in the fourth quarter.

[autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag] led everybody with 29 points and five steals. [autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag] was equally lethal with 20 points and seven assists. [autotag]Emma Risch[/autotag] scored all 12 of her points off the bench on four 3-pointers.

[autotag]Kate Koval[/autotag] flirted with a triple-double with 11 points, 19 rebounds and seven blocks. [autotag]Sonia Citron[/autotag] nearly achieved a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds while also accumulating six assists, three steals and three blocks.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on X: @gfclark89

Notre Dame guards projected top-four picks ahead of WNBA draft lottery

This would reflect quite well on the Irish.

Notre Dame guards [autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag] and [autotag]Sonia Citron[/autotag] are headed for the WNBA after this season. At least that’s the expectation. The real question is how high both players will be picked in the draft.

The WNBA draft lottery will take place Sunday. The participants are the Washington Mystics, Los Angeles Sparks, Dallas Wings and Chicago Sky. According to two projects, Miles and Citron both have a chance to be picked by one of those teams in the top four of the draft.

Tankathon has Miles and Citron going back-to-back at third and fourth, which would be an incredible accomplishment for the Irish. ESPN isn’t as optimistic with Miles going fourth and Citron projected as the final pick of the first round. ESPN previously had Miles going fifth and Citron 11th.

First things first though, both players are focused are bringing the Irish a national championship. Having [autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag] and rising freshman [autotag]Kate Koval[/autotag] with them will make the journey a lot easier.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on X: @gfclark89

Notre Dame women’s basketball clobbers Purdue on road for second win

Make that two blowout wins to start the season.

If an opponent isn’t contending for an ACC or national championship, Notre Dame is likely to run it out of the gym. That’s exactly what happened during the Irish’s first road game of the season against Purdue. Much like with the football team less than two months earlier, this game was never close as the Irish won, 102-58.

The Irish (2-0) scored the game’s first nine points before jumping out to an 18-3 lead and never looking back. Every time the Boilermakers (1-1) got any sort of momentum going, the Irish answered and often expanded their lead. They gave themselves more scoring chances with plays on both ends of the floor and took full advantage.

[autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag] had a trademark night with 28 points and six steals. [autotag]Liatu King[/autotag] did a tall player’s impression of Hidalgo, scoring 18 points and recording four steals. She also achieved a double-double with 15 rebounds.

[autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag] scored 17 points, which included this ridiculous shot from beyond half-court as time expired on the third quarter:

[autotag]Sonia Citron[/autotag] added 14 points in her season debut after missing the opener with an injury, and [autotag]Kate Koval[/autotag] grabbed 10 rebounds while coming within two-points of a double-double.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on X: @gfclark89

Three Notre Dame players among ESPN’s top 25 in women’s basketball

The Irish have serious talent. No doubt about it.

Notre Dame is expected to contend for a national championship this season. That’s not by accident. There are many talented players on the Irish, and at least one prominent sports media outlet recognizes that, not that others don’t.

ESPN has released its preseason list of the top 25 players in women’s basketball. The Irish were one of seven teams to have more than one player on the list. In all, three Irish players were afforded the honor.

Unsurprisingly, [autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag] ranks the highest among her teammates at third. Even without having played last season, [autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag] still made the list, clocking in at 13th. [autotag]Sonia Citron[/autotag] is right behind her at 14th.

To make things even more exciting, the Irish will face every player this season who is ranked alongside Hidalgo in the top five of this list. Those players are JuJu Watkins, the top-ranked player, alongside USC teammate Kiki Iriafen, Paige Bueckers of UConn and Madison Booker of Texas, which also clocked Rori Harmon in at ninth.

There indeed are some fun times in store for the Irish this season.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on X: @gfclark89

Notre Dame guard Sonia Citron named to shooting guard award watch list

Good luck, Soni!

For all the talk about [autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag] and [autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag], there’s a third Notre Dame guard who often gets lost in the shuffle. [autotag]Sonia Citron[/autotag] has made both All-ACC and All-ACC Tournament in two consecutive seasons. She was ACC Rookie of the Year two seasons before Hidalgo arrived.

Now, there’s a possibility she could be honored in a different way this season. The Ann Meyers Drysdale Award is presented annually to the best female shooting guard in the country. Citron is one of 20 to make this year’s watch list.

Also on the list is defending winner JuJu Watkins of USC, which will face the Irish in nonconference play. If Watkins impresses as she did as a freshman, Citron will have to somehow surpass that level to have a shot at the award. Of course, the Irish will take that version of Citron if only to improve their national championship chances:

Best of luck to Citron in her attempt to dethrone Watkins.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on X: @gfclark89

Three Notre Dame women’s basketball players are on key watch list

Notre Dame has three women on the Naismith Player of the Year list.

Notre Dame has three women’s basketball players on the Naismith Trophy Women’s Player of the Year Watch List.

The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame made the announcement Monday that Sonia Citron, Hannah Hidalgo and Olivia Miles are on the watch list.

The 50-player list includes the nation’s top players, and very few teams have more than three players on it.

Citron averaged 17.3 points per game and played 35.8 minutes a game on average. That’s fourth in Notre Dame history and head coach Niele Ivey called her the team’s “glue.”

She was also All-ACC Second Team last season.

Hidalgo is a pre-season AP All-American and last season averaged 22.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 4.6 steals per game. She led the country in steals.

Miles, meanwhile, is coming back from a torn ACL. The 2023 ACC Player of the Year runner-up averaged 14.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 6.9 assists and 2.1 steals per game during her junior season.

Feb 24, 2022; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard Olivia Miles (5) dribbles as Clemson Tigers guard Madi Ott (30) defends in the second half at the Purcell Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on X (Formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Tim on X: @tehealey

Notre Dame women’s hoops sells 1,000 new season tickets for 2024-25

Time to jump on the bandwagon!

Notre Dame’s women’s basketball team in 2024-25 will have its highest expectations since [autotag]Niele Ivey[/autotag] took over the program. Fans have taken notice of that, and they want to watch the Irish play at Purcell Pavilion. If you need proof of this, look no further than this announcement the Irish made on social media:

If you haven’t gotten on board with Notre Dame women’s basketball, now is the time. [autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag] is coming off being named First Team All-American as a freshman. All-American [autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag] will be back after missing all of last season. [autotag]Maddy Westbeld[/autotag] and [autotag]Sonia Citron[/autotag] also are returning, and the Irish added two quality transfers in [autotag]Liatu King[/autotag] and [autotag]Liza Karlen[/autotag].

Anything less than the Final Four for the Irish in 2024-25 will be a disappointment. Ivey has been blessed with the most talent she’s had while leading the program, and it’s up to her to get that talent to mesh.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Notre Dame lands Marquette forward Liza Karlen from transfer portal

Big get for the Irish.

When Marquette traveled to Notre Dame to play Ole Miss the first round of last year’s NCAA Tournament, it had a future Irish player in tow. That player was standout forward [autotag]Liza Karlen[/autotag], who was in her fourth season with the Golden Eagles. Karlen announced on Instagram that she is transferring to the Irish for the 2024-25 season:

https://www.instagram.com/liza_karlen/p/C6mZ5a2OO68/

Karlen made First Team All-Big East last season, so that alone makes this a big get for the Irish. Her career-high 17.3 scoring averaged ranked fourth in the Big East and would have just edged out [autotag]Sonia Citron[/autotag] for second in scoring on last year’s Irish. She also would have ranked second in rebounds (7.9) and blocks (1.2).

The 6-foot-2 Karlen is the latest big the Irish are adding for next season after incoming freshman [autotag]Kate Koval[/autotag]. [autotag]Maddy Westbeld[/autotag] also is returning next season. We still don’t know the latest on [autotag]Kylee Watson[/autotag]’s knee injury, but this move gives the Irish insurance and much more. Either way, the lack of bigs the Irish had last season shouldn’t be an issue this time around.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Three Notre Dame players projected as 2025 WNBA first-round picks

You’ll definitely want to watch these players for the Irish next season.

The dust barely has cleared on the 2024 WNBA draft. But that hasn’t stopped people from looking ahead to the 2025 draft. And if you do that as a Notre Dame fan, you’ll realize why next season likely will be the best chance yet for the current group to go far.

Sabreena Merchant of The Athletic has put together a list of who she believes will make up the first round of next year’s WNBA draft. Merchant figures three current Notre Dame players will be taken in that round, beginning with [autotag]Sonia Citron[/autotag] at No. 3:

“It’s hard to design a more prototypically perfect 2-guard than Citron. She is tall and strong, defends well and has a beautiful jumper that goes in 37 percent of the time from long range. Citron is overtaxed as a primary ballhandler, but let her run off screens or handoffs, and she can create her own shot. She is plug-and-play on any team, adding positive value on both ends of the floor.”

[autotag]Maddy Westbeld[/autotag], who announced her return to the Irish for next season earlier this week, also made the list as the sixth overall pick:

“Another player who could have been a first-rounder in this year’s draft, Westbeld does everything well. She can shoot from distance (36 percent on 3s in her college career), and she also can drive to the basket. Westbeld is a load in the paint and dominates on the glass. She can body bigger players on defense; her effort to limit (Elizabeth) Kitley to 12 points on 4-of-11 shooting during the 2024 ACC season was an eye-opener. It’s unclear if she has All-Star upside, but Westbeld is the type of player winning teams find minutes for.”

[autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag] rounds out this list at No. 8, but she has an asterisk next to her name since she still has a medical redshirt year:

“It’s been a long time since we watched Miles play basketball, so in case you forgot, she’s an elite passer who excels at creating offense in transition. She rebounds well for her position and is a defensive playmaker with 2.1 steals per game. The 3-point jumper was a work in progress during her sophomore season, but she started to fill it up from midrange at least. Without the jumper, she’d be a solid backup point guard in the WNBA, but she has a chance to be even more if that developed during her rehab year.”

So yeah, the 2024-25 Irish are going to be special. Get excited for it now because there’s no time like the present, but more importantly, all of these special players will be off to greener pastures before you know it.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Niele Ivey, Sonia Citron, Maddy Westbeld speak after Notre Dame loss

Niele Ivey surely has to be bothered that she still can’t get over the Sweet 16 hump as a head coach. Yes, Notre Dame was ravaged of depth and height by season’s end, but that likely doesn’t make the pill any easier to swallow. Still, she has no …

[autotag]Niele Ivey[/autotag] surely has to be bothered that she still can’t get over the Sweet 16 hump as a head coach. Yes, Notre Dame was ravaged of depth and height by season’s end, but that likely doesn’t make the pill any easier to swallow. Still, she has no choice after the Irish lost to Oregon State in Albany Regional 1, 70-65. It’s the third straight season the Irish have been stopped short of the Elite Eight.

Among those returning next year will be guard [autotag]Sonia Citron[/autotag]. In three NCAA Tournament games this season, she averaged 22.7 points, 7.7 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.0 assists while shooting 47.4% from the field. She will be key to the success of the 2024-25 Irish.

Unknown at this point is whether [autotag]Maddy Westbeld[/autotag] will exercise her final year of eligibility and return to the Irish for a fifth season. She averaged 16.0 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.7 blocks a game in March Madness. Hopefully for Irish fans, it won’t take much convincing for her to come back, especially with a healthy team sure to have high expectations.

Ivey, Citron and Westbeld all spoke to the media shortly after their season ended. Here’s what they had to say: