March 20, 2015
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – For fans that like quality pitching, Friday night was an ideal time to be at Frank Eck Stadium on the campus of the University of Notre Dame, as Louisville righty Kyle Funkhouser out-dueled Irish righty Scott Kerrigan in a 2-0 Cardinal victory over Notre Dame to open a three-game Atlantic Coast Conference series.
Funkhouser (2-2), who is a projected first round draft pick in the 2015 Major League Baseball Draft, certainly pitched like it Friday, as he scattered four hits and three walks over seven innings of shutout ball. He struck out eight batters and hurled 114 pitches before giving way to lefty Drew Harrington, who threw two perfect innings to earn his third save of the season.
Meanwhile, Kerrigan twirled a gem of his own in notching his first career complete game and his third quality start of the year. After a rocky beginning led to two runs in the second inning, he was near perfect the rest of the way. The Saugus, California native gave up seven hits and didn’t walk a batter in a start that lasted 1.2 innings or more for the first time since April 16 of last year (at Toledo). He struck out six batters and threw 116 pitches.
After the second inning, Kerrigan allowed just four hits and totaled three 1-2-3 innings.
The game-winning runs came in the second inning on a Mike White single up the middle that plated Blake Tiberi and Will Smith. White finished with two hits, while third baseman Zach Lucas also had a pair of base knocks.
Funkhouser kept the Irish bats at bay for much of the night, as Notre Dame only reached second base four times and never reached third. The shutout was the first for the Notre Dame offense this season. The Irish didn’t record more than one hit in any inning.
Sophomore Kyle Fiala notched a pair of hits, including a double, while junior Lane Richards and freshman designated hitter Brandon Bielak each tallied a hit. The single was Bielak’s first hit of his career.
Elsewhere, sophomore Cavan Biggio had two walks and a stolen base.
The Irish (15-5, 3-4 ACC) and the Cardinals (16-6, 6-1 ACC) continue their three-game series at 2:05 p.m. (ET) Saturday. Fans that can’t make it out to “The Eck” can follow along through WatchND’s free online video stream or by listening to WHME 103.1 FM in South Bend.
–Russell Dorn, Assistant Media Relations Director
–ND–