CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — The 25th-ranked Notre Dame baseball team kept the bats rolling to another victory when they defeated No. 21 Virginia 12-4 Saturday afternoon at Disharoon Park. The win clinched Notre Dame’s fourth-consecutive series victory dating back to last season. It is the first time the Irish have won four-straight series since joining the ACC.
“Proud of the execution and grit of the team,” said head coach Link Jarrett. “Two good starting pitchers went toe to toe. I was pleased with how Bertrand settled in after a difficult fourth inning. He showed poise and was able to continue to collect outs after UVA had strung together several good at bats in a row.”
John Michael Bertrand was excellent once again for the Irish (6-2, 6-2 ACC). He tossed seven innings of work and allowed just three runs. After surrendering the lead in the fourth inning, Bertrand retired the final 10 batters in his outing. It was the second straight start that Bertrand pitched seven innings.
“McGary was electric out of the gates, but our hitters didn’t get overly distracted and continued to drive up the pitch count,” said Jarrett. “So many guys had key at bats, Coetzee’s HR again proved to be key. Brannigan had a good day at the plate and made some solid plays at third base. There were several innings where two-strike hits and putting tough pitches in play against quality UVA arms helped our offense to maintain some momentum.”
The middle innings were big for the Irish as they scored in three straight innings from the third to the fifth. The Irish had their best inning right after the Cavaliers tied it with five runs in the fifth, capped off by a two-run home run from Brooks Coetzee to break the game open.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The second time through the lineup proved effective for the Irish once again on Saturday. The Irish loaded the bases with no outs to start the third inning. Two runs came home in the inning after a sacrifice fly from Carter Putz and a groundout from Jared Miller. The Irish added another run in the fourth after a RBI single from Jack Brannigan scored David LaManna.
Virginia clawed back in the bottom half of the fourth, scoring three runs to tie the game at 3-3. The tie did not last long as the Irish struck right back in the next half inning.
The Irish started the inning with three straight hits, a single from Putz, RBI-double from Miller and a single from Niko Kavadas. Kavadas scored after LaManna reached base on an error from the third baseman and Miller scored on a ground out from Brait. The Irish weren’t done in the inning as Coetzee blasted his second home run of the series to extend the Irish lead to 8-3.
Bertrand was in cruise control for most of his outing against Virginia. He made quick work of the Cavaliers in multiple innings, posting four 1-2-3 innings on the afternoon.
Notre Dame scored two more runs in the seventh to add more breathing room. Brannigan picked up his second RBI of the game with his single that scored Coetzee. Prajzner also scored in the inning after an errant throw on a double play attempt by the Cavaliers.
In the ninth, the Irish tacked on two more runs. Brannigan set a career high with his fourth hit in the inning to score another run.
STATS OF THE GAME
- The Irish scored in double figures for the second-straight game in the series. It is the first time since April 26-27, 2016 that the Cavaliers gave up 10 or more runs in consecutive games.
- Brooks Coetzee hit his second home run of the series in the fifth inning.
- It is the first series win for the Irish over Virginia in program history.
- Jack Brannigan set a career high with four hits.
UP NEXT
The Irish will look for the series sweep when the two teams meet for the final time of the series on Sunday. The game is set for a 1 p.m. ET first pitch and it will be aired on the ACC Network. The Irish have not named their starting pitcher for the series finale.
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