When the No. 11 Notre Dame (1-0) men's lacrosse team comes to State College to face Penn State (0-1) this Sunday, the biggest battle may not come between the players who directly meet each other on the field. Rather, the outcome may rest on the performances of a pair of talented goalies, Penn State's Drew Adams and Notre Dame's Joey Kemp.

"They have a great goaltender. One of the fun things about this game this weekend it might be, if not the two best, then two of the best goalies in the country facing off against each other, so it's really kind of a neat matchup," Penn State assistant coach Guy VanArsdale said.

Notre Dame beat then-No.13 Loyola last week largely due to Kemp's efforts.

The junior goalie made nine saves in the win and was named Great Western Lacrosse League player of the week.

Last year, he ranked eighth nationally in save percentage and 12th in goals against average, and was named a pre-season All-America honorable mention by Inside Lacrosse for 2007.

"Their strengths are in their face-off game and their goalie," senior captain Pat Heim said. "Their goalie's back, and he's a returning All-American. He's very good. I like to compare him to Drew, but right-handed."

Kemp also won rookie of the year honors two seasons ago from his conference, much like Penn State's Adams.

The Nittany Lion sophomore was named ECAC's rookie of the year and goalie of the year in 2006, and also begins the 2007 season on the All-America honorable mention list along with Kemp.

Even though Notre Dame boasts a talented goalie, the entire squad will be a tough matchup for Penn State. Notre Dame plays a more conservative style, different from last week's fast-paced Denver team, but the Lions know that the Irish are still a very challenging opponent. Penn State has not beaten Notre Dame since 2002, losing in their last meeting 8-4.

"They've got a solid defense," Heim said.

"They have some tough offensive guys back, and they're very well-coached. They're ranked No. 11 for a good reason. Right now our main focus is being well-executed. We had a lot of shots against Denver, we just got to put them away. It's just execution and focus and doing the right things."

Notre Dame is just the second game in the Lions' four-game homestand to open the season. The Lions face three ranked teams in a row, and the fourth, Ohio State, is under consideration for a ranking in the national poll.

Even though the early schedule is tough, the team only looks at the challenge in a positive light. With the ambition of competing in the NCAA Final Four, Van Arsdale said that playing a tough schedule is the only way to reach that goal.

Not only will the team improve in game situations, but it will improve in practice too.

"It's the road you have to take, but we're glad to do it," VanArsdale said. "It also makes it more exciting, and it creates a willingness and an eagerness to prepare. All of our guys are guys of competitive sorts who like to challenge themselves, and our schedule certainly allows that."