NOTRE DAME, Ind. — The 12th-ranked Notre Dame baseball team dropped the opening game of the series with No. 6 Louisville 7-4 Friday night at Frank Eck Stadium.
The Irish (10-4, 9-4 ACC) struck first with a run in the first inning but the Cardinals (16-5, 8-2 ACC) responded with the next five runs to build a 5-1 lead. The Irish clawed back within a run heading into the ninth but the Cardinals tacked on two in the ninth to put the game out of reach.
HOW IT HAPPENED
After a four pitch first inning from Sheridan, the Irish got right to work in the bottom half of the inning. Spencer Myers led the game off with a single through right side and he came home on the next batter. Carter Putz smashed a double to the wall in left which was deep enough for Myers to score from first.
Louisville struck back in the fourth after stringing together a few hits and took advantage of an Irish error. The Cardinals plated three runs in the inning and held a 3-1 lead after four innings of play.
The Cardinals added two more runs in the fifth to increase their lead to 5-1.
Irish began to fight back in the fifth, scoring two runs with two outs. Kavadas stepped to the plate with the bases loaded and worked a walk to score Myers. LaManna followed it up with a walk of his own to score Putz. After five full innings, the Irish cut the deficit to 5-3.
It stayed a two run game until the eighth inning when Kavadas led the inning off with his 10th home run of the season. A solo shot to right center brought the Irish within one at 5-4 heading into the final inning. With the home run, Niko moved into a tie for sixth all-time in Notre Dame history with 34 career home runs.
Louisville added two runs in the top of the ninth to secure the series opening win.
UP NEXT
The Irish will look to bounce back in the second game of the series Saturday afternoon. LHP John Michael Bertrand will be back on the hill as he looks to win his fourth start in a row. Saturday’s game is set for a 2 p.m. ET start and will be aired on ACC Network Extra.
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