Notre Dame downs Stetson for a perfect weekend

Good times in Florida

The Notre Dame baseball team had a good time this weekend in Florida. On Sunday, the Irish beat Stetson to go 3-0 over the last three days as they come back home for the week.

From the ND press release:

Irish Prevail Against Hatters

DeLAND, Fla. – The Notre Dame baseball team closed out a 3-0 weekend with an 8-2 victory over host Stetson on Sunday afternoon.

Bino Watters laced a one-out single in the first and moved into scoring position on an infield groundout, but the Irish were unable to punch in the run early. Rory Fox, meanwhile, retired the side in order with a strikeout and a pair of grounders to get Notre Dame back up to bat quickly.

Parker Brzustewicz drew a leadoff walk, and Connor Hincks went the opposite way with a single to left field to put a pair aboard in the top of the second for the Irish. A diving play by the Hatters’ third baseman got the first out of the inning before Brady Gumpf won his at-bat with a single through the left side of the infield to load the bases. Jared Zimbardo delivered a big punch for the Irish with a two-out, two RBI single to right field to put Notre Dame into the scoring column. Bino Watters kept the inning alive with a walk, and Carson Tinney laced a double down the left field line to drive in Gumpf and Zimbardo for the 4-0 advantage.

Fox again retired the side in order in the bottom half of the inning to flip the game to the third. Brady Gumpf collected a frozen rope line drive in right field before Connor Hincks smothered a ground ball at second for two quick outs. Fox then dialed up a strikeout to close the second stanza.

The third inning opened up with a Parker Brzustewicz leadoff single before a fielder’s choice on a grounder by Connor Hincks saw Hincks beat the throw to first. A wild pitch moved Hincks to second base, but a pair of outs ended the chance for the Irish. Fox used a pair of strikeouts to bookend a groundout in the third to move the game ahead to the fourth.

DM Jefferson led off the fourth with a single through the right side before Jared Zimbardo drew a walk. Bino Watters had his bat get broken on a grounder to put runners on the corners with the force out play at second, but back-to-back outs ended the offensive half of the inning.

Dylan Heine came on in relief in the bottom of the fourth. The Hatters used a single and a double to get on the scoreboard, and a fielder’s choice with a runner on third made it a 4-2 game before a groundout to Estevan Moreno ended the inning. In the bottom of the fifth, the Hatters led off with a single before the Irish defense came up big. Brady Gumpf tracked a tailing fly ball into foul territory before collecting the catch at the fence. DM Jefferson then laid out in shallow left-center field for a diving catch to record the second out. Heine rung up a strikeout to end the inning to force the Hatters into stranding the runner on first.

Jefferson then made an immediate impact on the offensive side as the senior reached on an error before advancing to second on a groundout. Bino Watters drove a single up the middle to drive in Jefferson to make it a 5-2 game. Chase Van Ameyde came on in the bottom of the sixth and delivered a strikeout to the first batter he faced. The freshman induced a flyout to center field two batters later, and Carson Tinney cut down a runner trying to steal second to end the inning.

Kellan Klosterman took over the pitching responsibilities in the bottom of the seventh inning for the Irish. The freshman induced a 6-4-3 double play to record the first two outs of the stanza before a groundout to Estevan Moreno two batters later ended the inning. DM Jefferson drew a leadoff walk in the top of the eighth and stole second to get into scoring position. Bino Watters drove in Jefferson for a second time in the game with an RBI single to right field to extend the lead to 6-2 midway through the eighth.

The Hatters put their first two batters on base in the bottom half of the eighth with a single and a walk. Tobey McDonough came on in relief with two on and no outs. The next batter flew out to DM Jefferson in center field, and McDonough retired the next batter with a strikeout looking. A walk loaded the bases for Stetson. McDonough induced a bouncer to Parker Brzustewicz, and Brzustewicz smothered the ball before flipping it to McDonough at the bag for the force out to end the inning.

Brzustewicz led off the top of the ninth with a double down the left field line for the Irish. Connor Hincks added a double of his own to right-center field to plate Brzustewicz. A pair of wild pitches allowed Hincks to come in and score for an 8-2 lead for the Irish.

The Hatters got their leadoff hitter on in the bottom of the ninth with a single through the right side. Parker Brzustewicz snagged a grounder for a force out at first, and the next Stetson batter flew out to right field to put the Irish an out away from the victory. McDonough then closed things out with a strikeout for the 8-2 win.

Rory Fox retired all nine batters he faced through 3.0 innings of work with four strikeouts. Dylan Heine went two complete with a strikeout. Chase Van Ameyde and Kellan Klosterman each went one complete inning, and Tobey McDonough closed out the final two innings of work and struck out a pair.

Bino Watters went 3-for-4 at the dish with two RBI and a walk. Connor Hincks added a 3-for-5 effort with an RBI double and two runs scored. Parker Brzustewicz posted a 2-for-4 showing with a double, a walk, and two runs scored. Jared Zimbardo and Brady Gumpf each tallied a hit and scored a run, and DM Jefferson had a hit and scored twice.

The Irish (5-1) are set to travel to Belmont University for a three-game series against the Bruins beginning on Friday, February 28 at 5:00 p.m. ET.