Carter Putz knocks walk-off single as No. 13 Notre Dame baseball sweeps Wake Forest

It wasn’t looking good. While they had already won the series, it seemed the final game was out of reach for Notre Dame baseball.

But don’t count out the Irish bats.

On a cloudy Sunday morning in South Bend, first pitch of Game 3 between No. 13 Notre Dame (26-8, 11-7 ACC) and Wake Forest (28-12, 10-11 ACC) was thrown out just after 11 a.m. ET. The game was moved up ahead of severe storms moving into the area. More on that in a minute.

It was a bullpen game for Notre Dame, who had already beaten the Demon Deacons 8-3 on Friday night and 21-3 on Saturday afternoon. Will Mercer got the nod on the mound, his third start of the season, but he lasted just two innings. From there the Irish bullpen spiraled, as they have a few times this season. Over the next four innings, five pitchers were used. Jack Brannigan was the steadiest arm, lasting 2.1 innings and allowing just one earned run.

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It was 8-2 in favor of Wake Forest in the 5th inning. But a veteran Irish offense, who struggled to get going early, stepped it up. Catcher Danny Neri got it going with a two-run home run to start the second wave of scoring. From there, the floodgates opened. The Irish posted five runs in the fifth, one in the sixth and four in the seventh.

Aidan Tyrell, who has a wealth of experience as a senior and team captain, came on and steadied the Wake Forest bats, allowing just one hit and no runs in relief over three innings. He ultimately got the win, improving to 5-0 on the year. Amidst the madness, head coach Link Jarrett was ejected from the game, likely in response to what seemed to be an inconsistent strike zone throughout the game.

Heading into the bottom of the ninth, the contest was tied at 12.

With outfielder Brooks Coetzee on second base as a result of a hit and an error, first baseman Carter Putz stepped up to the plate for Notre Dame. You could not have scripted this better for the Irish.

Unsurprisingly, Putz knocked a hit up the middle, his first of the day but 48th of the year. Notre Dame won 13-12.

When the Irish needed it most, their most reliable player got it done. As the team celebrated the conclusion of a game that was pushed up due to storms, it began pouring rain. A storybook ending for the nation’s No. 13 team.

Can the Irish maintain the offensive consistency?

The knock on Notre Dame this year is they do not have one big hitter. But they do have several very solid batsmen. It was certainly a team effort this weekend, although it ended with the spotlight on Putz.

Over the three games against a difficult Wake Forest team, the Irish scored 42 runs on 43 hits. It was the most runs scored by Notre Dame in an ACC three-game series since joining the conference in 2014. It was the most total since 1993.

Jack Zyska had six hits, six RBIs and two home runs. Every member of the starting lineup had a hit on Sunday except for Jared Miller, although he walked twice and scored twice. Coetzee, outfielder Ryan Cole and shortstop Zack Prajzner each posted three hits in the final game of the series.

It’s an incredibly deep lineup, and they are rolling. The question is can they maintain the production down the stretch?

Next on the schedule for the Irish is a neutral site contest against Michigan State on Tuesday at Comerica Park, home of the Detroit Tigers. Notre Dame topped the Spartans 2-1 earlier this year on March 5 at U.S. Bank Stadium as part of the Cambria College Classic. They will also host them May 10 at Frank Eck Stadium.

First pitch of Tuesday’s game is at 6:35 p.m. ET.