CLEMSON, S.C. — Heading into its second rubber match game of the early season, the Notre Dame baseball team shut down the hot Clemson bats for the second straight game to clinch the series with a 3-2 win Sunday afternoon at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.
“Can’t say enough about the grit of our guys,” said head coach Link Jarrett. “(Joe) Sheridan pitched a great three innings to hold the game in check. I was very proud of the way we defended. Dave (LaManna) made a huge block with runners on second and third, (Brooks) Coetzee played the ball in the corner well, and our infield defense was sound.”
The Irish (4-2, 4-2 ACC) went to the bullpen early but Joe Sheridan and Liam Simon were able to stymie the Clemson (5-4, 1-2 ACC) batters at the plate. The pair combined for seven innings of relief and allowed just one run and four hits into the ninth inning.
“Liam (Simon) was outstanding and was a nice compliment after Sheridan in an extended performance, and Liam had many key strikeouts,” said Jarrett. “(Jack) Brannigan helped end the game with the pop up to short. I told our team base-running would be a huge factor and I was proud of some, but not all, of our reads. (Jared) Miller stealing third forcing the infield in was a key momentum swing, and Dave was a tough out all day. (Carter) Putz had a huge two-strike at-bat, double that pushed us ahead to stay.”
The Irish tied the game in the fifth after a David LaManna single and took the lead in the sixth. After being a thorn in Clemson pitcher’s sides all weekend, Carter Putz roped a two-RBI double to left field. With the tying run just 90 feet away and two outs in the ninth, Jack Brannigan took to the mound to secure the final out and clinch the series for the Irish.
“Can’t say enough about the toughness of the team, especially after Friday’s ballgame,” stated Jarrett. “They have worked very hard for their opportunities to play these games, and the in-game grit has shown.”
HOW IT HAPPENED
Clemson jumped out in front in the second inning after loading the bases with nobody out. The Irish got a timely double play to get two quick outs and limit the damage. Sheridan came in from the pen and got a line out to end the inning and the Tigers only got one run on the board.
The Irish offense took a little bit to get going on Sunday but got the wheels turning in the fifth. Miller had a leadoff single, advanced to second on a wild pitch and then proceeded to steal third. On the next pitch after the steal, LaManna singled to left field to score Miller and tie the game.
The very next inning, Notre Dame took its first lead of the game. Zack Prajzner led the inning off and reached after getting hit by a pitch. He made it over to third base after a Spencer Myers single and Putz came to the plate. After battling to a 2-2 count, Putz got a hold of a ball to left field that went off the wall to score both Prajzner and Myers. It was Putz’s sixth hit of the series and the Irish held a 3-1 lead.
On the mound, Sheridan came on in the second and tossed three innings of scoreless relief. He surrendered just two hits and handed the ball over to Simon in the fifth. Simon allowed two hits and one run over a career-high four innings while striking out a career-high seven.
In the ninth, Clemson got runners on the corners with two away and Brannigan moved from third to the mound. He got Ingle to pop up to Prajzner to end the game and win the third-straight ACC series for the Irish dating back to last year.
STATS OF THE GAME
- Notre Dame has won its third straight ACC road series dating back to last season.
- The Irish have won six of their last eight ACC road series back to the 2019 season.
- Liam Simon tallied career-highs with four innings pitched and seven strikeouts.
- Jack Brannigan recorded his first career save when he came on for the final out
UP NEXT
The Irish will finish off the early season road swing with a three-game set with Virginia in Charlottesville. The series kicks off Friday afternoon at 3 p.m. ET and all three games will be broadcast on the ACC Network Extra.
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