PHOENIX, Ariz. — In the series finale Sunday at Phoenix Municipal Stadium, Arizona State continued its hot streak at the plate and defeated Notre Dame 16-5.
After falling behind early, the Irish fought back in the early innings to keep the game close. Zack Prajzner recorded his first career RBI in the second inning and then the Irish used some small ball in the third. Notre Dame scored off of a fielder’s choice and a double steal to cut into the lead.
The Sun Devils would not let up at the plate and had an answer all afternoon when the Irish began to build some momentum.
How It Happened
Arizona State got on the board in the bottom of the first after Bishop sent a two-run homer over the fence in right field.
The Irish battled back in the top half of the second and it all got started with Jared Miller. He worked a full count walk and advanced to second on a deep fly ball to center field. Prajzner stepped to the plate with two outs and sent a single through the left side. Miller was running on contact and came home ahead of the throw for the first Irish run of the afternoon.
The Sun Devils kept up the hot offensive start in the bottom half of the second, scoring three runs in the inning.
Irish responded once again in the next inning using situational baseball to score two runs and cut into the deficit. Jung scored on a fielder’s choice for the first run of the inning and then the Irish pulled off the double steal. Miller forced a throw from the catcher on his attempt to steal second and Ryan Cole broke from home and scored to cut the Sun Devil lead to 5-3.
Just as they did in the second inning, the Sun Devils were able to get the runs back. Arizona State scored twice in the bottom half of third and regained their four-run lead.
Later in the game, Jung tied a career high with his third hit of the afternoon with a single to right field. Jung would score on the RBI single by Miller, who tied a career high in RBI with two.
In the top of the ninth, Niko Kavadas belted his second home run of the year. It was another solo shot to right field.
Game Notes
- Daniel Jung tied a career high in hits after going 3-for-5 on the afternoon. It is the sixth time in his career he has recorded three hits and the 21st multi-hit game of his career.
- Jared Miller also tied a career high against the Sun Devils with two RBI on the afternoon.
- Niko Kavadas hit his second home run on the year with a solo shot to right. He had five home runs during his freshman season in 2018.
- Freshman Zack Prajzner collected his first career RBI in the second inning.
- Ryan Cole scored for the second straight game and totaled three runs over the weekend. Cole tallied just eight runs during his freshman campaign in 2018.
Up Next
Notre Dame will head to San Antonio for the annual Alamo Irish Classic. The Irish will open the Classic with two games against Eastern Michigan (Feb. 21-22) and finish with two games against Incarnate Word (Feb. 22-23). All four games will be played at Nelson Wolff Stadium in San Antonio.
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–