It didn’t seem like a big deal until the referees made it one, and then it still didn’t seem like a major issue.
But following Notre Dame’s 70-65 loss to Oregon State in the Sweet 16 of the women’s NCAA tournament on Friday, Hannah Hidalgo’s nose piercing may have actually had an impact on her performance.
The Fighting Irish’s freshman star wears a small stud in her left nostril, and she’s played with the stud in for a lot of the season, including in the NCAA tournament’s opening weekend. But in the first half of the game against the Beavers, officials insisted she take it out, pointing to the rulebook forbidding jewelry.
Why they decided to enforce it this time when covering it with a Band-Aid likely would have sufficed is beyond us, but they did. And because Hidalgo had to take it out, she missed several minutes of the game itself in what amounted to more than 17 minutes in real time, according to ESPN’s Elle Duncan.
Hannah Hidalgo missed some time in Notre Dame's Sweet 16 matchup with Oregon State to have her nose ring removed. pic.twitter.com/1XF0XCCrjM
— ESPN (@espn) March 29, 2024
That’s not a small amount of time, and after Notre Dame’s loss, Hidalgo slammed the refs for the decision. Via ESPN:
“I thought it was B.S., because I’m on a run, I’m on a roll,” Hidalgo said. “I scored two baskets and then having to sit out for all that time, I was starting to get cold. I think [the officials] were worried about the wrong things. They should have reffed the game.”
Hidalgo said an official told her she would keep the stud in as long as it was covered, but after the first quarter, she was told to take it out or not play, ESPN also reported.
Niele Ivey on Hannah Hidalgo: "She's had a nose ring the entire season. I wish we'd known that earlier."
Said she was told jewelry was a point of emphasis for officials in the Sweet 16.
— Nicole Auerbach (@NicoleAuerbach) March 29, 2024
While Notre Dame’s season is over now with Oregon State advancing to the Elite Eight, Hidalgo said: “I’m going to play with it still until they tell me to take it out.”
