SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Notre Dame coach Randy Waldrum coached Baylor from 1996-98 and won a Big 12 title in 1998. He beat Colorado twice in his time in the conference.

He beat the Buffs again Friday night, 3-0.

This time he did it in the Sweet 16 and as the leader of the program at the top of women's soccer.

Waldrum has been able to see first-hand what the CU program was like a decade ago and assessed how much it has improved under coach Bill Hempen.

"It's night and day. Bill has taken it to the next level and to where they are on the national scene," Waldrum said. "I always thought they had the material to be a good team and sometimes I was wondering why we would beat them."

Waldrum wanted to make sure there was no disrespect toward former CU coach Austin Daniels or Waldrum's former team. He was trying to compliment Hempen, who took over the CU program in 2001 and won just three games that season. Since then the Buffs have averaged 13.2 wins per season. The most wins CU had in a season before that was 11 in 1999. With Friday's Sweet 16 loss, the Buffs finished the season 14-6-4.

The Buffs may have solidified themselves as a consistent top 25 program by making the Sweet 16. When his team qualified for the NCAA Tournament Hempen wouldn't go as far as saying his team had reached elite status yet. The Buffs will likely have to reach the Sweet 16 again next year, or make a run even farther into the tournament before that can happen. At least now the Buffs have turned into a team that has showed it can compete at the highest levels of the game.

"We beat a very good team tonight," Waldrum said. "I am pleased at how we played because they are a very good team. I respect what they can do."

Road trip

Members of the CU track and cross country team were in the stands for Friday night's game. The quintet left Thursday night and drove 16 hours straight through from Boulder to South Bend. The cross country runners are not on the team that will participate in nationals on Monday in Terre Haute, Ind.

The group, which includes season-long soccer fans James Begley, a thrower, and sprinter Greg Castro, is heading to Terre Haute for the meet on Monday.

Buffs in the Hall

Some members of the team visited the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend. They were at the Hall at the same time as the Army football team and head coach Bobby Ross, who coached Georgia Tech when the Yellow Jackets and CU won a share of the 1990 football national title. Army plays at Notre Dame today.

The Buffs were able to see the jersey of one of CU's most distinguished alumni, Byron "Whizzer" White. The Supreme Court Justice is a member of the Hall and his jersey is on display there.

Ross makes jump

Last season Kelly Ross earned first-team All-Front Range League honors playing for Monarch High. Friday night she played an entire game against the No. 1 collegiate team in the nation.

Ross was not the most heralded member of the CU recruiting class but established herself as a starter during the Buffs' late-season run. The defender played well against Notre Dame and gained valuable experience she can use in the next three years of her career, which she will spend playing minutes from her Superior home.

Irish defender reveals illness

Notre Dame's Christie Shaner was a game-time decision because she had been sick and missed practice. But the team didn't disclose what exact illness she had. Shaner said after the game she had meningitis and actually was in the hospital for 3 1/2 days. She played 26 minutes as a reserve and had one shot on goal.

Notable

Friday night was the third time CU has played a No. 1-ranked team. The previous two games were losses to North Carolina. ... CU had won eight of its last nine before Friday night. ... Neither CU's Nikki Marshall or Notre Dame's Michele Weissenhofer scored Friday night. The two are in the top four in the nation in scoring by a freshman. Marshall scored 17 goals and Weissenhofer has scored 15.