May 6, 2007
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Seton Hall opened the game by scoring seven times on just two hits and went on to add eight more runs, giving righthander Keith Cantwell plenty of cushion to take Sunday’s BIG EAST baseball series finale at Notre Dame, 15-1. Notre Dame (27-21, 10-10 BIG EAST) brought home just one of its 15 baserunners in the game but the Irish still managed to remain fifth in the BIG EAST standings, percentage points ahead of idle South Florida (10-11), followed by 7th-place Villanova (9-12) and 8th-place Cincinnati (8-12). Seton Hall (20-22, 6-12) kept alive its hopes to qualify for the eight-team BIG EAST Tournament, with two weekends still left to play (SHU’s first series of the season was lost to a rainout).
The host team was in a giving mood right from the start, racking up nine “freebies” in the opening inning by way of four walks, a hit batter and four wild pitches – with that quick series of freebies representing two more than the Irish totaled in the first two games of the series combined (7). The only two hits in the sequence were big ones, as Robbie Hine sent a two-run single up the middle and Matt Smedberg laced a three-run triple into the right-center gap.
Cantwell (2-1) – who owns the best overall statistics among a talented group of SHU starting pitchers – gave up an early unearned run and ultimately scattered eight hits and three walks over 6.1 innings, with five strikeouts in the sophomore’s 118-pitch outing. Sophomore lefthander Sam Elam (0-2) suffered the loss in his first career BIG EAST start, with six others going on to pitch in relief for the Irish.
SHU shuffled its lineup for the second straight day and saw new leadoff batter Dan Lopez go 0-for-6 (dropping his season average to .177) while 2-hole batter Mark Pappas was the polar opposite, reaching base six times and scoring four runs on a 5-for-5 day that included a walk and two leadoff home runs. Chris Affinito added a two-run blast while the 9-hole hitter Smedberg (who batted in the leadoff spot earlier in the series) went 2-for-5 and was involved in five of his team’s runs (4 RBI, R, 3B, 2B).
The Irish put four leadoff men on base and had their chances to surge back into the game, ultimately batting just 3-for-18 with runners on base, 2-for-12 with men in scoring position and 2-for-10 with 2-outs. Notre Dame finished the day allowing 16 freebies, with seven walks, the hit batter, seven wild pitches (by five different players) and an error.
Junior shortstop and leadoff batter Brett Lilley (3-for-4, R, BB) moved back atop the team batting charts (.379), just ahead of freshman third baseman and 2-hole hitter A.J. Pollock (.376; 1-for-4, BB). Lilley’s season on-base percentage remains at a lofty .520, tops among BIG EAST players and 8th-best in the nation behind an impressive group that includes the likes of Florida’s Matt Laporta (.580, entering Sunday’s games), Florida State’s Tony Thomas (.533), Clemson’s Brad Chalk (.531) and Arizona State’s Petey Paramore (.523), plus James Madison’s Kellen Kulbacki (.537), Centenary’s Matt Webb (.536) and Yale’s Ryan Lavarnway (.531).
Lilley’s .520 on-base pct. would rank 6th-best in the Notre Dame record book, just behind the marks posted by Eric Danapilis (.522, in ’93), former teammate Craig Cooper (.522, in ’06) and Matt Haas (.521, in ’92). Cooper is the only Irish player since 1993 to post a season on-base pct. better than Lilley’s current mark, which includes 64 hits and 51 total free passes (26 walks and a nation-leading 25 times hit-by-pitch).
Notre Dame just completed another stretch of five games in six days but now shifts its focus to final exams, with five days off from competition for the first time since early March. The team’s final two regular-season series will include games at 3rd-place Louisville (14-7) and at home against 10th-place Connecticut (6-12). In order to remain ahead of South Florida, the Irish must at least match the Bulls results over the next two weeks (USF next plays at SHU and then will play host to league-leading St. John’s). Other teams within striking distance of Notre Dame include Villanova (series remaining at 12th-place Georgetown and at home vs. co-leader Rutgers), Cincinnati (at SJU, vs. UL) and West Virginia (7-13; at UConn, vs. GU).
The Irish likely can finish no higher than 5th-place, with Pittsburgh (13-7) currently occupying the #4 spot right behind Louisville. The Panthers hold the head-to-head tiebreaker on ND and would need to lose at least four of their six remaining games to fall behind the Irish (Pitt closes at home vs. the New Jersey schools, RU and SHU). In the best case scenario of Notre Dame closing with wins in its final six BIG EAST games, the Irish then still would have a chance to pass Louisville if the Cardinals also lost a game at Cincinnati on the final weekend. Rutgers and St. John’s (both 16-5) essentially have clinched higher finishes than ND (both of those teams would have to go 0-6 over the final two weekends for the Irish to have any chance of moving past them).
St. John’s (which holds the tiebreaker vs. RU) finishes up with series vs. Cincinnati and at USF while Rutgers will play at Pitt and at Villanova. UConn will play host to WVU next week before heading to Eck Stadium while SHU will be looking to rally into the postseason with strong results vs. USF and at Pitt. Georgetown’s fading hopes could get a boost since the Hoyas (6-15) still have series left versus teams close to GU in the standings (VU and at WVU).
Seton Hall (20-22, 6-12 BIG EAST) 7-2-0 1-0-0 0-4-1 – 15 15 2
Notre Dame (27-21, 10-10 BIG EAST) 1-0-0 0-0-0 0-0-0 – 1 8 1
Sam Elam (L, 0-2), Brett Graffy (1), Wade Korpi (2), Kyle Weiland (5), Tony Langford (8), Jess Stewart (8), Mike Dury (9) and Ryan Smith, Chris Soriano (6), Ryan Smith (8).
Keith Cantwell (W, 2-1), Luis Fernandez (7), Dan McDonald (8) and Chris Affinito.
Home Runs: Affinito, SHU (1 on in 2nd; 5th of season); Mark Pappas, SHU (leadoff in 4th; 1st of season); Pappas, SHU (leadoff in 9th; 2nd of season).
Triple: Matt Smedberg (SHU).
Doubles: Brett Lilley (ND), Mike Dury (ND), Mike Morano (SHU), Smedberg (SHU).