Nashville, Tenn. - Kayla McBride wouldn't let Notre Dame's pursuit of a perfect season end.

The All-American senior guard had one of the most impressive games of her career in Sunday night's national semifinal, scoring 28 points to lead Notre Dame to an 87-61 win over Maryland.

She seemingly did whatever she wanted, shedding defenders with behind-the-back dribbles and quick cross-overs before scoring. She set the tone for Notre Dame and her Irish teammates followed her lead into Tuesday night's championship game.

The Irish (37-0) will play the winner of UConn and Stanford. It's the third time in four years that Notre Dame has been in the title game. The Irish are looking for their first title since winning it all in 2001.

Notre Dame played without senior Natalie Achonwa, who suffered a torn ACL in the regional final victory over Baylor. The entire team wore shirts in warmups with Achonwa's No. 11 and the 6-foot-3 forward's nickname "Ace" on the back.

Coach Muffet McGraw was concerned coming into the game about her team's ability to rebound against the bigger Terrapins without Achonwa. It proved to be no problem for the Irish, who dominated the Terrapins (28-7) on the boards.

The Irish outrebounded the Terps 50-21, including a 19-4 advantage on the offensive end. It was the widest rebounding margin ever in a Final Four game shattering the previous mark of 19 set by Louisiana Tech in 1989. Maryland broke the national semifinals record for fewest rebounds in a game of 25 set by Minnesota in 2004.

Notre Dame also befuddled Maryland on defense, forcing them into turnovers and poor shots with ever-changing defenses. Terps' star Alyssa Thomas was constantly double-teamed and rarely got a good look at the basket. She finished with 14 points.