CARY, N.C. — Freshman Andriana Leon scored with 27 minutes remaining in the NCAA women’s College Cup Sunday afternoon to lift Notre Dame to the 2010 national championship.

Leon’s (Maple, Ontario, Canada) was the only goal of the match as the Fighting Irish edged previously undefeated and top-ranked Stanford 1-0 for its third national championship.

Melissa Henderson had the assist on the goal, while Irish keeper Nikki Weiss stopped five shots to record the shutout. Notre Dame finished with seven shots on goal, all by Henderson (4) and Leon (3).

Notre Dame defeated four consecutive ranked teams to win the championship, making it the toughest run to the title in NCAA history.

The game also was Notre Dame coach Randy Waldrum’s 300th as head coach.

The Fighting Irish, a fourth seed, defeated New Mexico 3-0, USC 4-0, North Carolina 4-1, Oklahoma State 2-0 and Ohio State 1-0 to advance to the championship match. Stanford reached the finals by defeating Sacremento State 3-0, Santa Clara 1-0, UCLA 3-0, Florida State 5-0 and Boston College 2-0.

Division II

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Grand Valley State claimed its second NCAA Division II national championship on Saturday afternoon with a 4-0 victory over No. 12 UC San Diego.

Grand Valley recorded its first national championships title last season and the last team to notch back-to-back championships was UC San Diego in 2000 and 2001.

The Lakers had four different players record goals and notched its 21st shutout win. GVSU finishes the 2010 season with an impressive record of 22-1-2.

GVSU took the first shot on goal of the game at the 1:46 mark. Senior forward Jaleen Dingledine took a shot from the right side of the field, but was saved by the Tritons’ goalkeeper Kristin Armstrong. Just three minutes later senior midfielder Kristen Eible was almost able to connect for the Lakers. Eible headed the ball after an Erin Mruz’s corner kick, which land just wide of the net.

The Lakers recorded their first goal of the match during the 20th minute. Sophomore forward Kayla Addison crossed the ball over from the right side of the field to Mruz, where she took a shot from eight yards out, giving GVSU a 1-0 lead.

The Tritons had a chance to tie the score at the 28:04 mark after UCSD’s Jessica Wi took a shot from inside the box, but hit the post. Grand Valley State answered with scoring its second goal of the match during the 37th minute. Junior defender Megan Brown recorded her first goal of the season after she took a corner kick from the left side of the field, which landed in the right corner of the net, giving the Lakers a 2-0 lead at half.

In the first 45 minutes of action the Lakers outshot UC San Diego by a 10-4 margin, including a 6-0 advantage in shots on goal. Both teams recorded three corner kicks during the first half of play.

During the second half, the Tritons had an opportunity to notch a goal during the first four minutes of play. UC San Diego earned a free kick after a GVSU foul, but the shot resulted just wide of the net.

At the 55:07 mark, the Lakers added their third goal of the match after Dingledine received the ball from sophomore forward Ashley Botts. Dingledine took the ball and then crossed over UCSD’s defenders.

The senior took a shot from the right side of the field five yards out, which landed in the upper left corner of net, giving Grand Valley State a 3-0 lead.

The Lakers sealed the game scoring their fourth goal of the match at the 78:38 mark. Addison recorded her team-high 20th goal of the year after the ball was kicked around after an Mruz corner kick. Addison took a shot from inside the box to help Grand Valley State record a 4-0 win.

Grand Valley State outshot the Tritons by a 14-9 advantage, and the tough Laker backline held UC San Diego to not a shot on goal, while GVSU took eight. Parise recorded played a solid 90 minutes of action and improved her season shutout school record to 17, which also ties an NCAA Division II record.

“We fought back from a lot of adversity this season and it was hard to win back-to-back national championships,” Parise commented. “We had a great year and this is just the icing on the cake.”

GVSU was well represented on the all-tournament team as four members were named to the team. Jenna Wenglinski was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Defensive Player for the second straight year, as Ashley Botts was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Offensive Player. Also joining them on the All-Tournament team was Megan Brown and Jaleen Dingledine.

“This was a great year for us and we wanted to make sure we peaked at the right time and we did,” stated head coach David DiIanni. “Soccer sometimes is about getting on a roll and we have been the last two months. We are excited to bring another national championship to Grand Valley State along with the women’s cross country team. We are very proud to wear the Grand Valley State name and logo and very thankful for all the support we have received from the Grand Valley State family.”

The 2010 Grand Valley State Lakers set a school record and an NCAA Division II record for shutouts in a season with 21 and held opponents to just five goals this season. The tough GVSU backline also played the entire home schedule without giving up a goal and did not allow a goal in the postseason.

Grand Valley State recorded a goal in 24 of its 25 matches and had 16 student-athletes notch a goal for the Lakers this season. Grand Valley State outscored opponents by a 93-5 margin this season and set a tournament record with 17 goals scored.