DURHAM, NC – The No. 8 seed Notre Dame Fighting Irish fell to the No.12 seed Pitt Panthers in the first game of pool play in the 2023 ACC Championship at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park in Durham, NC.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Fighting Irish finished game one with a strong offensive outing, recording 15 hits on the day. The Irish were led by TJ Williams and Carter Putz who each finished 3-5 at the plate. Zack Prajzner, Vinny Martinez, and Brooks Coetzee each recorded two hits a piece for the Irish.
Despite trailing 2-0 heading in the bottom of the first after Pitt struck with a lead off home run and an RBI double, Notre Dame didn’t waiver. They responded with four hits and a run from Putz as he scored on an RBI single from Coetzee to bring the Irish within one after the first.
The Panthers tacked on one more run in the top of the second to make it a 3-1 ballgame before Carter Putz scored again on a triple from Vinny Martinez, his first of the season. DM Jefferson reached on a HBP and as he went to steal second, Martinez would steal home for the final run of the inning to make it an even 3-3 heading into the fourth.
The Panthers claimed the lead yet again in the top of the fourth after a three-run home run to right field. Trailing 6-3 heading into the bottom frame, Williams recorded a base hit followed by a Prajzner double to put both of the Irish runners in scoring position. Williams scored on an RBI groundout from Putz, bringing Notre Dame within two at 6-4 heading into the top of the fifth.
Pitt put up one more run in the fifth before recording two solo home runs in the seventh to take the advantage at 9-4 heading into the eighth inning. Casey Kmet and Estevan Moreno each picked up their first hits of the day as they started the frame with back-to-back base hits. Putz was back at it again as he launched a ball into deep left center for an RBI double to score Kmet and make it a 9-5 ballgame. The Irish recorded one more hit in the ninth as Coetzee singled to center field but Notre Dame’s efforts would not be enough to overcome the four run deficit.
Aidan Tyrell dropped to 8-3 on the season after throwing 4.0 innings before he was relieved by Radek Birkholz. Birkholz pitched 3.0 innings before Caden Spivey took the mound in the eighth and ninth inning. The staff recorded four strikeouts on the day.
UP NEXT
The Irish will face the top-seeded Wake Forest Demon Deacons on Friday night at 7:00 p.m. in the second game of pool play.