Notre Dame Stuns No. 17 Clemson with Late Tropeano Winner

Notre Dame opened Atlantic Coast Conference play in dramatic fashion Friday night, going on the road and knocking off No. 17 Clemson, 1-nothing, at historic Riggs Field.

For nearly 88 minutes, neither side could find the breakthrough.

Then freshman Tristan Tropeano delivered.

Notre Dame went on the attack late in the second half when Vlad Walent threaded a pass through a pair of Clemson defenders and found Tropeano making the run.

Tropeano did the rest, beating the Clemson goalkeeper for his second goal of the season and giving Notre Dame the 1-nothing advantage in the 88th minute.

Walent picked up the assist.

It capped a night in which Tropeano had been one of Notre Dame’s most dangerous attacking threats.

He nearly opened the scoring in the ninth minute, attacking in transition and avoiding a Clemson tackle before sending a right-footed attempt just wide.

Tropeano threatened again in the 71st minute, getting into the box from the left side and attempting to pick out the far upper corner, but his shot went off target.

Notre Dame nearly broke through before the eventual winner when Nate Zimmermann fired a low shot toward the far post in the 84th minute, only to have the Clemson goalkeeper make a diving save.

Four minutes later, Tropeano finally broke the deadlock.

At the other end, Blake Kelly turned in another outstanding performance in goal for Notre Dame.

Kelly made four saves and recorded the seventh shutout of his career.

Two of those saves came during the opening 45 minutes as Notre Dame and Clemson went to halftime scoreless with each side recording four shots.

Kelly came up big again following a Clemson header in the second half, and then delivered perhaps his most important stop in the 89th minute, denying Clemson’s final opportunity and preserving the victory.

Kelly now leads the ACC with 26 saves this season.

The Fighting Irish improve to 3-1-and-2 overall and 1-0 in ACC play.

Clemson falls to 4-2 overall and 1-1 in the conference.

For Notre Dame, it’s a second consecutive victory following Sunday’s dramatic 2-to-1 win over Michigan — and this one comes on the road against a nationally ranked opponent.

The Irish return home Tuesday night when they host Detroit Mercy at Alumni Stadium with kickoff scheduled for 7 Eastern..