PITTSBURGH, PA – The Notre Dame baseball team (16-11) took home their sixth ACC win of the season as they defeated the Pittsburgh Panthers (13-14) on the road at Charles L. Cost Field on Thursday, April 6. The Irish take on Pitt in game two of the three-game series tomorrow at 3:00 p.m.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Irish offense was rolling early as Notre Dame posted a 6-0 lead after the first frame. Carter Putz got the party started with a double to left center and advanced to third on a passed ball with Brooks Coetzee up to the plate. Coetzee reached via a walk and after stealing second, the Irish had runners on both second and third with Vinny Martinez up.
A single from Martinez scored the first two runs of the day, as Putz and Coetzee were sent home on the base hit. DM Jefferson and Estevan Moreno recorded back-to-back singles as Moreno tallied his first RBI of the day as he scored Martinez to take the 3-0 lead.
Danny Neri would cap off the offensive outing as he sent it deep over the right field fence for his fourth home run of the year and the first homer of the day to make it a 6-0 ballgame heading into the bottom of the first.
Jack Penney led off the second with his seventh home run of the season as he homered to right center to tack on another run for Notre Dame to make it a score of 7-2.
It was a scoreless third for both the Irish and the Panthers, as Blake Hely recorded two more strikeouts in the bottom of the third.
Neri and Williams both recorded base hits to start off the fourth frame. Penney scored Neri on a sac fly to center field and Williams was sent home shortly after as Prajzner launched it out to left field for his third home run of the season and the third Irish home run of the game.
Notre Dame led 10-3 heading into the fifth inning as Radek Birkholz relieved Hely in the bottom of the fifth. Hely finished the day with five strikeouts across 4.0 innings pitched, allowing three runs on five hits.
Birkholz recorded two strikeouts in the bottom of the sixth as the Irish maintained the 10-3 lead heading into the seventh. Birkholz was relieved by Ryan Lynch in the bottom of the seventh after pitching 2.1 innings and recording three strikeouts. Despite the seven run deficit, the Panthers weren’t going anywhere as they closed the gap to three in the bottom of the seventh after a double, an RBI single, and a three-run home run. Will Mercer relieved Lynch to close the inning as it was a 10-7 ballgame heading into the eighth.
After a scoreless eighth for the Irish, Mercer was heating up on the mound as he struck out the side and recorded four strikeouts across 1.2 innings.
Notre Dame would finish their last offensive opportunity in the top of the ninth with another scoreless frame. Mercer started the bottom of the ninth with his fifth strikeout before the Panthers were able record a base hit and reach on an Irish fielding error. With runners on first and second, Pitt reached again via a walk to make it bases loaded with one out.
A hit by pitch scored another Panther to cut it to two at 10-8 with bases loaded again. Sammy Cooper would come in to close for the Irish. Pitt chopped a ground ball to Penney at third who turned a double play to preserve the Irish lead. Cooper picked up his second save of the season as Notre Dame took home the 10-8 victory to open the series.