PHOENIX, Ariz. — The University of Notre Dame baseball team lost the second game of the series 20-7 to Arizona State Saturday night at Phoenix Municipal Stadium.
The Irish (0-2) got the first lead of the game after a Jared Miller two-out RBI single gave them a 1-0 lead. Then Notre Dame fought back and regained the lead in the third inning. Senior captain Eric Gilgenbach launched a two-run game-tying home right to left and Niko Kavadas scored following a passed ball to give the Irish the lead back.
Arizona State (2-0) used a big fifth and sixth inning to take back the lead and gain control for the rest of the game.
How It Happened
The Irish did not waste any time Saturday night, striking in the top half of the first inning. Ryan Cole led things off with a single to left and made it to second after a fielder’s choice from Daniel Jung. Jared Miller hit a ball through the right side and Cole was running on contact with two outs. He avoided the tag and slid into home to give the Irish an early 1-0 lead.
In the bottom half of the inning, the Sun Devils strung together a few hits to take the lead. By the end of the first inning, Arizona State held a 3-1 lead.
The lead did not last long thanks to Eric Gilgenbach. He blasted a two-run shot over the fence in left to tie the game at three in the top of the third. The Irish took a 4-3 lead before the end of the inning thanks to some heady base running from Niko Kavadas. He scored the go-ahead run on a passed ball that got by the Sun Devils catcher.
Arizona State was threatening in the bottom half of the fourth and the Irish went to Andrew Belcik to get out of the jam. The Sun Devils scored once in the inning and had runners on the corners. Belcik struck out Aldrete to end the inning and keep the Irish in the lead.
The next inning, the Sun Devils broke through and took the lead back. After a leadoff walk, Workman doubled down the line and brought a run into to tie the game. Then Workman advanced on a wild pitch and continued home for the go-ahead run after an errant throw to third. By the end of the inning, Arizona State put seven runs on the scoreboard and held an 11-5 lead.
Another big inning for Arizona State in the sixth put the game out of reach.
Game Notes
- Jared Miller tallied his first RBI of the season in the first inning. He had six RBI during his freshman campaign in 2018.
- Eric Gilgenbach notched his first home run of the season with a two-run blast in the third. He led the Irish with 10 home runs last season.
- Niko Kavadas tallied a run for the second straight game to begin the season.
- Cameron Brown totaled five strikeouts over three and two third innings of work. It is the most strikeouts he has had since he tallied six against Northwestern on April 11, 2018.
- John Arndorfer collected his first two career RBI after a base hit to left field in the eighth inning.
- Ryan Carr made his first collegiate appearance as a pinch hitter and got his first career hit in the ninth inning.
- Zach Mazur also made his first collegiate appearance as a pinch hitter and got his first career hit in the ninth inning.
Up Next
Notre Dame and Arizona State will meet for the third and final game of the series on Sunday, Feb. 17, at 2:30 p.m. ET. It can be seen live on the Pac-12 Network Plus stream through your cable provider.
For a behind-the-scenes look at the Irish baseball program, follow @NDBaseball on Twitter and @NotreDameBaseball on Instagram. For tickets to an Irish baseball game, click here.
–ND–