Notre Dame baseball: Irish take three games from Marist, Monmouth

Safe to say Marist and Monmouth were no match for Notre Dame.

Fresh off earning a No. 2 ranking in the Baseball America poll early last week, the Fighting Irish went down to Greenville, S.C., for a schedule four-game set against the Red Foxes and Hawks. The final game against the former was canceled due to inclement weather, but Notre Dame still returned to South Bend with three victories.

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The Irish outscored opponents by a combined score of 45-4 in those wins.

Notre Dame routs Marist 20-2

Notre Dame (5-1) got the weekend started with a thrashing of Marist (4-1). The Irish plated eight runs in the bottom of the first inning, all of which crossed home with two outs. Errors accounted for three of the Irish runs, and another scored on a wild pitch. But none of that would have happened without designated hitter DM Jefferson’s two-RBI single that kept the two-out rally alive and put the Irish on the board first.

Fifteen different Notre Dame players recorded at least one hit. The Irish finished with a team total of 20 to match the run production. Jefferson led the Irish with three RBI, and three others (TJ Williams, Jack Zyska and Nick Juaire) had at least two. That trio all came out of the dugout to get in on the action; none of those players were in the starting lineup. How’s that for depth?

On the mound, senior lefty Aidan Tyrell faced the minimum through three innings. He didn’t allow a hit until the fourth. His day was done after seven scoreless innings. He struck out five, walked one and gave up three hits on 88 pitches to push his record to 2-0 while maintaining a perfect 0.00 ERA. Sophomore righty Sammy Cooper mopped up the last two innings. It wasn’t his finest work. He walked two, gave up three hits and two runs while needing 52 pitches to get the game across the finish line. Cooper made his first career appearance after missing the 2021 season with an injury.

Notre Dame easily handles Monmouth doubleheader

It took a little longer for Notre Dame to get going offensively Saturday. The Irish didn’t score until the fourth inning, and it was only one run. Then the Irish scored at least three in every inning from the fifth through the eighth. The hit of the game in a 16-2 victory was a grand slam from graduate student left fielder Ryan Cole in the sixth. Graduate student John Michael Bertrand earned his second win of the season while striking out a career-high 11 batters. He walked one, gave up three hits and just one earned run.

For the third time in as many games on the weekend, Notre Dame matched its run and hit totals in the second leg of Saturday’s doubleheader. Nine hits, nine runs. The middle of the Irish batting order did the damage. The No. 3 through No. 6 spots in the lineup combined for six of the nine hits. Second baseman Jared Miller and center fielder TJ Williams had two each. Shortstop Zack Prajzner and catcher Danny Neri drove in three runs apiece. First baseman Carter Putz had two RBI.

Austin Temple started on the mound for the second time in a Notre Dame uniform. He pitched five scoreless innings. Three relievers — Ryan McLinskey, Alex Rao and Jack Brannigan — came out of the pen to keep the shutout, Notre Dame’s first of the season, intact. Brannigan also started at third base. He recorded one hit and two runs scored.

Notre Dame baseball season stats

College baseball rankings update

Here is where Notre Dame ranks in various college baseball polls.

D1Baseball.com: No. 12

Baseball America: No. 3

Collegiate Baseball Newspaper: No. 9