April 3, 2010
| BETHESDA, Maryland Â- Notre Dame battled back from an early 7-0 deficit, drew within two runs, 9-7, and brought the tying run to the plate in the seventh inning, but four errors and three unearned runs proved to be too much to overcome as Georgetown held on for a 11-7 victory in BIG EAST Conference baseball action from Shirley Povich Field Saturday afternoon. Notre Dame dropped to 9-17, 1-5 in the conference, while the Hoyas improved to 14-12 and 2-4.
Senior Eric Maust took the loss and dropped to 0-3 on the season. He lasted just 1.1 innings and was roughed up for six runs, four earned, on four hits. Maust walked two and struck out one. The start was the shortest of his career. Maust¹s previous shortest career start came against Michigan on May 13, 2008 when he tossed just 1.2 innings.
Will Harris picked up the victory and upped his record to 3-2. Harris allowed seven runs, six earned, on nine hits in 6.1 innings. He fanned four and walked three.
Senior left fielder Ryan Connolly, freshman third baseman Adam Norton and senior right fielder Brayden Ashdown all had multi-hit games. Connolly went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and two runs scored. Norton went 2-for-4 with a double and run scored, while Ashdown went 2-for-4 with a pair of singles and a run scored. Junior shortstop Mick Doyle belted a three-run home run for the second straight game.
The Irish got right back in the game in the top of the seventh inning. Connolly opened the frame with a solo bomb to cut the Georgetown lead to 9-4. Freshman second baseman Frank Desico reached on an error and senior centerfielder Bill Warrender walked after senior designated hitter David Mills grounded out to the pitcher. Doyle followed with an opposite field, three-run long ball to make the score, 9-7. Norton then doubled to bring the tying run to the plate, but junior catcher Cameron McConnell flew out on the first pitch. Ashdown then ripped a liner into right centerfield, but Georgetown centerfielder Tommy Lee got a great jump and made a nice running catch to end the Irish threat.
Dan Godefroi pushed the Hoyas lead back to three runs, 10-7, with a towering solo home run off Irish reliever Ryan Sharpley in the bottom of the seventh.
Georgetown added another insurance run in the eighth thanks to two more Notre Dame miscues. Tommy Elliott opened the frame with a single and moved into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt. Rand Ranvaas then grounded right back to sophomore Joe Spano. The southpaw relief pitcher turned and had Elliott dead to rights at second base, but chose to turn and get Ranvaas at first. Spano then uncorked a wild pitch on his third offering of an intentional walk to Bill Cupelo. Dan Capeless made the Irish pay with an RBI single to push the score to 11-7.
Notre Dame was retired 1-2-3 in the eighth and ninth inning.
A day after Notre Dame opened the game with three runs; Georgetown plated a trio of runs in the bottom of the first inning to grab a 3-0 lead. Lee opened the game with a double and moved to third when Connolly bobbled the ball in left field. Ravnaas followed with an RBI double. Maust then walked Cupelo to put Hoyas on first and second with no outs. Georgetown then attempted a double steal. McConnell¹s ensuing throw was right on the money to retire Ranvaas, but Norton dropped the throw, allowing Ranvass to not only reach third, but also scamper home for the second run of the inning.
Maust did get a ground ball from Erick Fernandez, but it bounced just over his out-stretched glove to plate Cupelo to give the Hoyas a 3-0 advantage. Both of the final two runs were unearned.
Notre Dame advanced a runner into scoring position with one out in each of the first two innings, but failed to score either time.
Georgetown pushed the lead to 7-0 with four more runs in the second inning. Maust issued a leadoff walk to Chip Malt. Andy Lentz followed with a sacrifice bunt and Elliott singles to put runners on the corners with one out. Maust uncorks back-to-back wild pitches to plate a run before Lee singles home Lentz to make it 5-0.
The hit ended the day for Maust.
Sophomore Ryan Richter came on in relief and promptly threw it away trying to pickoff Lee at first base, which advanced all the way to third. Ranvaas followed with a two-run bomb to make it 7-0. The Georgetown right fielder has homered in all three games of the series.
The Irish did plate a pair of runs on Desico¹s two-run single to cut the deficit to 7-2 and had runners on second and third with no outs following Mills¹ double, but Harris retired the next three Notre Dame batters to keep the Hoyas advantage at five runs.
Georgetown scratched across a run in the bottom of the third inning to take an 8-2 lead on Lee¹s RBI single that just got over Doyle¹s glove at shortstop.
Notre Dame drew within five runs, 8-3, on McConnell¹s RBI ground out in the top of the sixth inning, but Georgetown answered with another unearned run in the bottom half of the frame. With runners on the corners and two outs, Ranvaas tried to steal second base and Richter had him picked off, but his throw sailed over Doyle¹s head into centerfield. Lee, who was at third base, coasted home to make it 9-3.
Notre Dame returns to action Monday evening with the Third Annual Silver vs. Gold exhibition game against the South Bend Silver Hawks. First pitch at Coveleski Stadium is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Notre Dame faculty and staff can purchase tickets for $4. A portion of the proceeds benefits the Ara Parseghian Medical Research Foundation¹s Fight Against Niemann-Pick Type C.