NILES — The 2021 calendar year has been quite a successful one for the Notre Dame boys soccer program.

After setting a school record with six conference wins during the spring 2021 COVID-influenced season, the fall version of the squad, which returned 21 of 24 players, had already hit that mark with three conference games remaining entering Saturday’s contest with Marist.

The fall season has gone even better for the Dons (16-1-1), who already have set a new school record for regular-season wins and earned the program’s first top seed, in the Speer Sectional, for the upcoming state playoffs.

The Dons, ranked 22nd in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, can add one more first as they set a new school record with their seventh East Suburban Catholic Conference win, a 2-1 decision over Marist that improved their East Suburban Catholic Conference record to 7-0-0.