Ugh
Notre Dame fell behind 5-1 to Western Michigan as they entered the 9th inning, but despite a strong comeback effort, the Irish couldn’t get the job done and lost 5-4.
From the ND press release:
Ninth-Inning Comeback Stopped Short for Irish
SOUTH BEND, Ind. – A ninth-inning comeback came up just short in a 5-4 setback for the Notre Dame baseball team against Western Michigan on Tuesday evening.
Kellan Klosterman used a strikeout looking in the top of the first and punched out back-to-back batters with strikeouts in the second to take control early on the mound against the Broncos. A trio of grounders fielded cleanly by Estevan Moreno and Noah Coy in the third continued to keep Western Michigan at bay.
The visiting Broncos used a pair of hits in the top of the fourth inning to score the first run of the game. The Irish came right back in the bottom half of the fourth. Bino Watters laced a double over the left fielder’s head, and Estevan Moreno added a double of his own off the left field wall two batters later to knot the game at 1-1.
Western Michigan plated two runs in the top of the fifth with a hit batter, a walk, and a pair of hits for a 3-1 lead. Nick DeMarco was hit by a pitch to start the bottom of the fifth, but the Irish were unable to capitalize on the lead-off runner. Tobey McDonough entered the game in the top of the sixth and recorded back-to-back outs on just three pitches to shut down the Broncos. Western Michigan put a pair of runners on base in the top of the seventh, and the Irish defense again shut the door. McDonough induced a pop up on a sacrifice bunt attempt before back-to-back fly balls were caught in left field by Jayce Lee.
The Irish put a runner on base in both the sixth and seventh but were unable to break through into the scoring column. The Broncos pushed two runs across home in the top of the eighth for a 5-1 lead late. Notre Dame stayed within striking distance as the defense forced Western Michigan into stranding the bases loaded while keeping the Broncos off the scoreboard late.
The Irish nearly mounted the ninth-inning comeback. Davis Johnson was hit by a pitch to begin the inning, and Connor Hincks hit a pinch-hit single to put runners on the corners with one out. Nick DeMarco worked a full count before drawing a walk, and Carson Tinney followed up with a full-count walk in a pinch hitting appearance to drive in Johnson as the momentum swayed toward the home dugout. Jared Zimbardo drew the third-consecutive full-count walk for the Irish as Hincks scored to pull within 5-3. Bino Watters reached on an error with bases loaded as DeMarco scored, and the Irish were within one with bases loaded and just one out. The comeback was stopped there for Notre Dame, however, as a running lane interference call was made by the umpire, which resulted in a game-ending double play.
Kellan Klosterman went 3.0 hitless innings on the mound and struck out three for the Irish after getting the midweek start. Chase Van Ameyde shouldered the loss in 1.2 innings with three strikeouts. Xavier Hirsch and Tobey McDonough teamed up for 2.1 shutout innings. Ricky Reeth struck out a pair in a complete inning of work, and Sammy Cooper went 1.0 with a strikeout.
Bino Watters went 2-for-5 with a double, an RBI, and a run. Estevan Moreno added a double and an RBI. Connor Hincks had a hit and scored a run, and Jared Zimbardo tallied a hit and drove in one. Jayce Lee collected a hit for the Irish. Davis Johnson and Nick DeMarco each scored once, and Carson Tinney had an RBI.
The Irish (14-12) have postponed their Wednesday matchup against Eastern Michigan due to inclement weather in the forecast. The team now looks to their home ACC series against Virginia Tech, which begins on Friday with a 4:30 p.m. game. The Irish will also celebrate Teacher Appreciation on Friday and Somos ND throughout the weekend series. Admission is free for all home regular season Notre Dame baseball contests.