Nice start boys
The Notre Dame baseball team continued its winning ways on Sunday with a 6-2 win over Bellmont to sweep the 3 game weekend series.
From the ND press release:
Late-Inning Rally Lifts Irish to Sweep of Bruins
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – A three-run home run by Brady Gumpf in the eighth inning broke a 1-1 tie, and the Notre Dame baseball team completed the sweep of Belmont University on the road with a 6-2 Sunday victory over the Bruins.
The Irish defense got out of a jam in the bottom of the first inning. The Bruins loaded the bases with two outs after an error kept the inning alive. Rory Fox induced a pop up to Estevan Moreno, and the junior collected the catch to force Belmont into stranding three runners in the first frame.
Fox sat down a pair of batters on strikeouts in the second to leave a runner on first for Belmont to end the inning. With one out gone, Jayce Lee tallied the first hit of the game for the Irish in the top of the third. Lee moved into scoring position on an infield groundout, but the Irish were unable to get the timely hit to drop as a deep flyout ended the at-bats for Notre Dame.
Belmont plated the first run of the game – an unearned run – in the bottom of the third to break the stalemate. The Irish looked to respond immediately in the top of the fourth. Parker Brzustewicz drew a leadoff walk, and Bino Watters laced a single to put runners on the corners. A flyout was not deep enough for Brzustewicz to tag up, and a double play by the Bruins defense halted the scoring chance short for the Irish.
Rory Fox retired the side in order in the bottom half of the fourth thanks to a pair of strikeouts and a fly out. Connor Hincks then hit a one-out single before advancing to second on a wild pitch to get into scoring position. The timely hit, however, was elusive as Hincks was unable to advance any further.
Fox recorded the first two outs of the fifth with a strikeout – his eighth of the game – and a ground out. DJ Helwig came on in relief two batters later, and Helwig needed just two pitches to induce a flyout and close the door on the fifth inning.
Helwig retired the side in order in the sixth, and the Irish broke through in the top of the seventh inning. Connor Hincks hit a two-out single before Noah Coy came in to pinch run. Jayce Lee then drilled the first pitch of his at-bat to the right-center gap for a double to drive in Coy. Helwig again made quick work of the Bruins with another 1-2-3- inning on the defensive side to push the game to the eighth.
The Irish bats continued to provide in the top of the eighth. Bino Watters drew a one-out walk, and Carson Tinney was hit by a pitch to put a pair on base. Brady Gumpf came in to pinch hit, and the team captain blasted a full-count offering over the right field fence to put the Irish ahead 4-1.
Belmont got a run back in the bottom of the eighth to cut the margin to two runs. Notre Dame came right back in the top of the ninth. Bino Watters punched a ground out to the right side of the infield to drive in DM Jefferson. Carson Tinney then kept things rolling with a single to the outfield to plate Parker Brzustewicz for a 6-2 lead. The Bruins put one base runner aboard in the bottom of the ninth before Helwig closed out the game with back-to-back strikeouts for the 6-2 final.
Rory Fox had a no-decision on the bump after going 4.2 innings of work and striking out a career-high eight batters. DJ Helwig picked up the win in relief for the Irish with 4.1 innings on the mound and a career-best four strikeouts.
Brady Gumpf’s first home run of the season shifted the momentum of the game for good as the graduate student captain went 1-for-2 at the dish with a three-run blast. Jayce Lee was 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI, and Connor Hincks added a 2-for-3 effort at the plate. Bino Watters and Carson Tinney each had a hit, a run, and an RBI in the win. DM Jefferson and Noah Coy each scored a run for the Irish, and Parker Brzustewicz had a hit and scored a run.
The Irish (8-1) are scheduled to have their home opener on Wednesday, March 5 as Eastern Michigan is set to make the trip to Frank Eck Stadium for a 4:30 p.m. contest. Admission is free for all home regular season baseball contests.
