March 28, 2018
By Megan Golden
NOTRE DAME, Ind. — All in attendance at Frank Eck Stadium had the opportunity to witness the University of Notre Dame baseball team’s best pitching performance of the season as Cameron Brown dominated on the mound in a 2-1 victory over Kent State.
Senior Alex Kerschner delivered a clutch, game-winning single in the eighth that gave Brown and the Irish (11-13) a series split against Kent State (12-9) on Wednesday night.
How It Happened
Kent State got on the board first with a solo homer in the second inning, putting them up 1-0.
The Irish answered in the fourth, when Niko Kavadas was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning. Spencer Myers laid down a bunt single that advanced Kavadas to second with nobody out in the inning, and David LaManna‘s groundout drove in Kavadas to tie the game, 1-1.
Notre Dame’s Jared Miller drew the seventh walk of the night by the Irish offense and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt from David LaManna. Alex Kerschner lined a single into left field, driving in Miller and giving the Irish a 2-1 lead in the eighth.
Brown exited the game with two on in the ninth, giving way to the Irish bullpen. Andrew Belcik and Cole Kmet combined to escape a bases-loaded jam in the ninth, with Kmet picking up his fourth save in the 2-1 Irish win.
Player of the Game
Cameron Brown made his second career start and turned in Notre Dame’s best pitching performance of the season, working a career-high 8.0 innings with a lifetime-best seven strikeouts. Brown dealt quickly and kept the Irish defense off the field, retiring 10 straight midway through the game.
Brown limited the Golden Flashes to one run on four hits in Notre Dame’s win.
Game Notes
- Notre Dame leads the all-time series, 10-8, including owning an 8-4 mark at Frank Eck Stadium.
- Notre Dame is 3-3 at Frank Eck Stadium and 7-8 against non-conference opponents in 2018.
- Cameron Brown worked a career-high 8.0 innings with a career-best seven strikeouts. Brown’s start was the longest outing of the season by a Notre Dame pitcher.
- Cole Kmet recorded his fourth save of the season, recording two outs on two pitches.
- Alex Kerschner‘s game-winning hit was the second of his career and the second of the season for the senior, who also delivered the game-winner at Miami.
- Nick Podkul finished 2-for-3 with two walks and now owns six multi-hit games in the month of March.
Up Next
Notre Dame travels to Durham, North Carolina, for a three-game set against No. X Duke at Durham Bulls Athletic Park. The series begins at 6 p.m. ET on Friday. Each game will be streamed on ACC Network Extra and on 103.1 FM (South Bend)/WatchND.
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.
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Megan Golden, athletics communications assistant director at the University of Notre Dame, has been part of the Fighting Irish athletics communications team since August of 2016. In her role, she coordinates all media efforts for the Notre Dame baseball and women’s soccer programs. A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Golden is a 2014 graduate of Saint Mary’s College and former Irish women’s basketball manager. Prior to arriving at Notre Dame, she worked in public relations with the Cleveland Indians and Chicago White Sox.