SOUTH BEND, Ind. — The 13th-ranked Notre Dame baseball team (26-8, 11-7) faced a six-run deficit and never led in the game until Carter Putz hit a walk-off single in the ninth to complete the comeback in a 13-12 win over Wake Forest (28-12, 10-11) Sunday afternoon at Frank Eck Stadium. With the win, the Irish secured their fourth ACC sweep of the season and won their 11th-straight game at home.
The Irish faced an 8-2 deficit heading into the bottom of the fifth and a 12-8 deficit heading into the bottom of the second but ended up tying the game in the seventh. Jack Zyska hit his second home run of the afternoon, a three-run blast, over the wall in left center to put the game level for the first time since it began. After two shut-down innings from Aidan Tyrell, Putz walked it off in the ninth, as his single scored Brooks Coetzee III from second to seal the win and the series sweep.
The Irish amassed 42 runs over the course of the series, the most runs ever in a conference series since joining the ACC in 2014. The previous record was 36 last season in the series sweep of North Carolina. It was the most runs in a three-game conference series since 1993 when the Irish scored 48 runs in a three-game sweep of Dayton when they were members of the Midwestern Collegiate Conference.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Wake Forest jumped out to an early lead in the first with a two-run home run. The Demon Deacons added a run in the third to increase their lead to 3-0.
The Irish started to claw back in the bottom of the fourth as they got two runners on with two outs. Jack Penney stepped in and deposited a ball into right field that scored both runners as he made it to third for a triple. After four innings, the Irish trailed 3-2.
Wake Forest responded in the fifth with a five-run frame to extend its lead to 8-2.
The Irish weren’t done yet as they answered with a five-run bottom of the fifth inning. Danny Neri blasted his second home run of the season, a two-run shot, to get the scoring started in the inning. Zack Prajzner added a single to right that scored two and Ryan Cole singled to center that scored another run. After the inning was complete, the Irish trailed by one at 8-7.
The Demon Deacons responded once again in the sixth. A three-run home run pushed them back up by four at 11-7.
Zyska hit his sixth home run of the season, a solo shot to left, in the bottom of the sixth to get the Irish one run closer. The Deacons responded in the top of the seventh with a run of their own and built the lead back up to 12-8.
The Irish kept going in the seventh and tied the game for the first time since the game began. With the bases loaded, Putz hit a deep fly ball to right that was caught on the warning track but brought a run in to trim the deficit to three. Zyska stepped in next and he belted a towering fly ball to left center that kept carrying over the wall to tie the game. His three-run home run was his second of the day and tied the game up at 12-12.
The score stayed tied until the bottom of the ninth as Coetzee III began the inning with an infield single. The throw ended up in the Demon Deacons dugout so Coetzee was awarded second on the error. Putz stepped in looking for his first hit of the game and he ripped a 1-0 fastball back up the middle into center field. Coetzee rounded third and slid in home ahead of the throw to complete the comeback win.
UP NEXT
The Irish head on the road for their next midweek contest. They head north to Detroit as they are set to take on Michigan State Tuesday night from Comerica Park, home of the Detroit Tigers. Tuesday’s matchup is set for a 6:35 p.m. start and will be the third professional park the Irish have played in this season.
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