SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The Notre Dame baseball team capped off a weekend sweep of No. 19 Clemson with a 7-4 victory on Sunday afternoon at Frank Eck Stadium.
Drew Berkland bounced a double up the middle to lead off the bottom of the first inning. A grounder by Coy to the right side of the infield allowed Berkland to move up to third, and a grounder to shortstop by Mark Quatrani drove in Berkland for the quick 1-0 Irish lead.
Ty Uber forced the Tigers into stranding a runner in each of the first two innings of the contest and registered a strikeout through the first six outs of work. The Tigers, however, used a pair of hits and a sacrifice fly to score a run to knot up the game at 1-1 midway through the third.
Mason Barth hit a high bouncer in the infield and beat out the play for a single to lead off the bottom of the third. Jamie Zee flared a single into short center field as Barth moved to third. Two batters later, Noah Coy added a single to the outfield to drive in Barth from third for the 2-1 Irish advantage. The offense kept it going as an error allowed Zee to score on the play to make it 3-1.
Uber again forced Clemson into stranding a runner on two more occasions as the Tigers left a man on first in the fourth inning and a runner on third in the fifth to preserve the 3-1 lead.
Drew Berkland and Mark Quatrani were both hit by pitches, and Bino Watters drew a walk to load the bases. Davis Johnson drove a single up the middle as Berkland came in to score for a 4-1 advantage. Jayce Lee used a deep sacrifice fly to drive in Quatrani to make it 5-1.
The Tigers loaded the bases in the top of the sixth, but Jamie Zee turned the double play from third to first to close the door on the scoring chance.
The Irish added to the lead in the bottom of the sixth. Jamie Zee walked, and Drew Berkland singled through the right side on a hit-and-run. Noah Coy added a single to drive in Zee as Berkland moved to third on the play. Mark Quatrani was hit by a pitch, and Bino Watters drove in Berkland with a sacrifice fly for a 7-1 score.
Clemson scored a run in the top of the seventh, but Noah Rooney and the Irish defense forced the Tigers into stranding a pair on base. Rooney got out of a jam in the top of the eighth. Clemson put two runners on with just one out gone. Rooney got a strikeout before Jayce Lee tracked down a fly ball in right to end the inning.
Clemson loaded the bases in the top of the ninth with no one out. The Tigers plated a run on a ground out before adding a second run on a sacrifice fly. Eli Thurmond closed out the game and the win with a strikeout for the 7-4 final.
Drew Berkland went 2-for-4 with a double and three runs scored. Noah Coy added two hits and drove in two. Jamie Zee had a hit and scored twice while Mason Barth added a single and scored a run. Davis Johnson and Jayce Lee each had a hit and each drove in one. Mark Quatrani had an RBI and scored once in the win, and Bino Watters posted an RBI.
Ty Uber earned the win on the bump after going 5.0 with six strikeouts and one run allowed. Will Jaisle and Noah Rooney combined for 3.0 innings as Rooney struck out a pair. Eli Thurmond closed out the final 1.0 of the game and recorded a strikeout.
The Irish (14-6, 6-3 ACC) are set to host Western Michigan on Tuesday, March 24 starting at 4:30 p.m. at Frank Eck Stadium.