(Columbus) — For the fifth consecutive season, Notre Dame will be a participant in the NCAA women’s basketball Sweet 16.

But this may be the most surprising visit of that streak.

For the first time in that era, Notre Dame had to venture on the road for the first two rounds of the tournament, facing 3rd-seed Ohio State in Columbus. That didn’t faze Niele Ivey’s squad, as the Irish downed the Buckeyes, 83-73, to advance to next week’s regional semifinals in Fort Worth, Texas.

“This is all God,” exclaimed Ivey after the game. “I’ve prayed for this moment, especially this year. We believed in each other. We trusted each other. This group…we’re so close-knit. This is an incredible moment for this program, for this team and for myself. I have so much joy coaching this group. I’m so proud of them.”

As they have been all-season long, the Irish were led by All-American Hannah Hidalgo. The junior racked up 26 points with a career-high 13 rebounds and eight steals, but she had plenty of help on this afternoon. Vanessa DeJesus tallied 15 points, while Iyana Moore and Cassandre Prosper each added 13.

It certainly didn’t look promising at the start, as former Irish assistant Kevin McGuff saw his Ohio State team jump to an 11-0 lead behind sophomore point guard Jaloni Cambridge, who lead all scorers with an amazing 41-point effort. But Moore drained a pair of quick threes and KK Bransford came off the bench for a key layup as the Irish whittled the lead down to 22-20 by the end of the first.

Defense carried the Irish to the lead in the second quarter, as DeJesus converted a steal into a layup to give the Irish a 26-24 advantage and they didn’t look back. Hidalgo bedeviled the Buckeyes with steals and drives, as Notre Dame built a 43-35 cuhion at the intermission.

Notre Dame started the second half strong, only to see Cambridge key a 10-0 run that brought Ohio State within three at 50-47.

Then the Irish opened up a three-point shooting barrage in the fourth with Moore, DeJesus and Hidalgo all draining bombs early in the stanza as Notre Dame grew the lead to double digits to put it away.

Notre Dame will face 2-seed Vanderbilt Friday night at Dickie’s Arena. Game time and which ESPN Network is to be determined.