Feb. 20, 2005
ORLANDO, Fla. – Jess Stewart logged 5.1 strong innings to beat Central Florida for the second straight season while Craig Cooper factored into three of the Irish runs, as 20th-ranked Notre Dame closed its opening weekend with a 4-2 win over homestanding Central Florida at Bergman Field.
(Note: see Friday and Saturday recaps for additional gameday photos of the Irish players.)
Notre Dame (3-1) opened the game minus three of its junior starters – DH Matt Bransfield (hand injury in season opener), shortstop Greg Lopez (hamstring) and junior leftfielder Steve Andres (coach’s decision) – but Cooper and others picked up the slack.
Junior leftfielder Craig Cooper factored into three of the Irish runs in the 4-2 win at UCF (all photos by Pete LaFleur).
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Stewart (1-0; 8-1 career) yielded an unearned run in the 4th while scattering five hits and three walks in his 93-pitch stint, with one strikeout and seven groundball outs. Fellow sophomore righthander Dan Kapala (who served up a solo shot in the 7th by Dan Probst) and second-year lefty Mike Dury then held the lead before junior All-America closer Ryan Doherty recorded the final five outs for his first save of the season and 14th of his Irish career. Doherty retired five of the seven batters he faced, striking out three while allowing one hit and hitting a batter.
Notre Dame opened the scoring in the 4th, sparked by Cooper’s 2-out, first-pitch single into center field. Cooper then stole second and came around to score when sophomore DH Danny Dressman sent a 2-2 pitch into center.
Central Florida (7-2) tied the game moments later when Matt Horvath ripped a single off Stewart’s foot and advanced on an infield error before coming around on a John-Michael Howell single and Drew Butera’s sacrifice fly.
Sophomore righthander Tim Bascom (1-1) suffered the loss after allowing four runs (three earned) on six hits and a walk in 6.2 innings pitched.
Notre Dame’s big inning came in the 6th, as three hits, a hit batter and an error brought home three runs. Freshman second baseman Brett Lilley reached with one out (on his third of four times hit-by-pitch) before motoring to third when senior first baseman Matt Edwards launched the next pitch into the left-center gap for a stand-up double. Cooper, who went 2-for-3, then delivered a clutch single on an 0-2 pitch, sending an RBI single into right field. Dressman’s rightside groundball then plated Edwards for the 3-1 lead. Cooper advanced on that play when the first baseman threw errantly to second base and junior rightfielder Cody Rizzo later capped the inning with a 2-out single into left field, scoring Cooper for the three-run cushion.
Freshman Brett Lilley helped turn three key double plays and was hit by a pitch four times in the win over UCF.
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NOTES: Lilley’s four HBP were one shy of the NCAA record … junior Alex Nettey, who again drew the start in center field, also was hit by a pitch – giving ND 17 HBPs in four games this season (well on pace to challenge the team record of 106 set in ’04, a total that ranks 5th in the NCAA record book) … junior transfer Eddie Smith started in Lopez’s spot at SS and redeemed an early error by starting a key double play in the 6th … Lopez then entered in the 7th and added his own impressive start to another rally-killing 6-4-3 DP … the Irish now have totaled 10 double plays this season (3 on Sunday) … ND now leads the series with UCF 4-3 (3-1 in ’04 and ’05 series) … the Irish have scored 11 runs in the 6th inning this season but once again have struggled with early run production (no 1st-inning runs, 3 in the 2nd) … ND is 15-3 in its past 18 games played in the state of Florida … the Irish extended the program’s 2nd-longest scoring streak to 153 games.
Notre Dame (3-1) 0-0-0 1-0-3 0-0-0 – 4 7 1
Central Florida (7-2) 0-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 – 2 10 2
Jess Stewart (W, 1-0), Dan Kapala (6), Mike Dury (8), Ryan Doherty (8) and Sean Gaston.
Tim Bascom (L, 1-1), Ray Rodriguez (7), Drake Wade (9), Jeremy Thorne (9) and Drew Butera.
Home Runs: Dan Probst (UCF; solo in 7th, 1st of season).
Doubles: Matt Edwards (ND).
Junior centerfielder Alex Nettey hit 4-for-7 on the season-opening trip (1-for-2, HBP on Sunday vs. UCF).
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