Trailblazers in Hoops: Notre Dame Women’s Basketball Makes Headlines With Major News.

Notre Dame women’s basketball is going to the NCAA Tournament for the 30th time in the program’s history. The Fighting Irish, a three-seed after a 26-5 regular season, will face Stephen F. Austin in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday.

In an attempt to qualify for its first Final Four since the spring of 2019, how far can Notre Dame go?

Notre Dame has emerged as a major force in women’s basketball despite starting relatively late. Here is a brief overview of Notre Dame’s NCAA Tournament history as Niele Ivey seeks to carry on the South Bend tradition started by Muffet McGraw.

Nine Final Fours in History

Since its first appearance in the Final Four in 1997, Notre Dame has advanced nine times. Only UConn, Tennessee, Stanford, and Louisiana Tech have more Final Four appearances than the nine total, which puts them in fifth place overall in NCAA women’s basketball history.

More than 30% of Notre Dame’s 29 NCAA Tournament outings prior to 2025—9 out of 29 or 31%—have resulted in a trip to the Final Four.

Seven Appearances in All-Time National Championship Games

In the history of NCAA women’s basketball, Notre Dame has made seven appearances in the national championship game, second only behind two-time champions UConn (13) and Tennessee (12).

Two National Titles

Two of those seven trips to the national championship game have been won by Notre Dame, most recently in the spring of 2018 when Arike Ogunbowale crushed buzzer beaters to defeat Mississippi State in the national championship and UConn in the national semi-finals.

When Notre Dame defeated Purdue in the national championship game in 2001, it also triumphed. In just their eighth-ever NCAA Tournament trip, the Fighting Irish team was led to victory by Ruth Riley and Niele Ivey.

Additional Notes on the Notre Dame NCAA Tournament

Starting Friday, Notre Dame will begin its 30th NCAA Tournament. The Fighting Irish have a 69-25 record overall and have advanced to the Final Four nine times, the Elite Eight ten times, and the Sweet 16 twenty times.