It was the first time all year that the Notre Dame baseball team faced a midweek opponent, Valparaiso, and after their 7-game winning streak was snapped on Sunday, the Irish got back to their winning ways today.
FINAL: No. 12 Notre Dame 6, Valpo 3
Irish get back on track after not 1️⃣ but 2️⃣ home runs from @nikkavadas22!! #GoIrish x #Rally pic.twitter.com/U19dISN2gY
— Notre Dame Baseball (@NDBaseball) March 23, 2021
The 6-3 defeat of Valpo saw the Irish’s biggest star shinning bright. First baseman Niko Kavadas hit two homers, upping his season total to 9 on the year. His first long ball gave the Irish the lead in the bottom of the 4th inning.
BOT 4 | NIKO IS AT IT AGAIN!!
He goes the other way for his 8️⃣th home run of the season!!
ND 1, VALPO 0
📹 https://t.co/xiYi1kNoXH
📊 https://t.co/8MpWx7cUiI#GoIrish x #Rally pic.twitter.com/QvOTPuG3Qt— Notre Dame Baseball (@NDBaseball) March 23, 2021
Kavadas’ second blast was in the bottom of the 7th, to extend the Irish lead to 5-3.
BOT 7 | DOUBLE ORDER OF OPPO-🌮 TUESDAY FOR KAVADAS!!@nikkavadas22 hits his second home run of the game to extend the Irish lead!!
ND 5, VALPO 3
📹 https://t.co/xiYi1kNoXH
📊 https://t.co/8MpWx7cUiI#GoIrish x #Rally pic.twitter.com/D0NLOcZ3xT— Notre Dame Baseball (@NDBaseball) March 23, 2021
It was a back an forth battle for the Irish, as they jumped out to a 2-0 lead after four innings then Valpo answered with three runs in the top of the 5th to take a 3-2 advantage heading into the sixth. Link Jarrett’s team then played small ball in the bottom of the frame, with Jack Brannigan dropping a sacrifice bunt to bring Ryan Cole in to score to tie the game.
https://twitter.com/ndbaseball/status/1374496594075082752?s=21
Carter Putz singled home Brooks Coetzee to give the Irish the lead later in the inning.
BOT 6 | Irish jump back in front!!@CarterPutz singles to right and scores @br00ks23 from second!!
ND 4, VALPO 3
📹 https://t.co/xiYi1kNoXH
📊 https://t.co/8MpWx7cUiI#GoIrish x #Rally pic.twitter.com/0Uq0OjTVat— Notre Dame Baseball (@NDBaseball) March 23, 2021
The second Kavadas homer and a Cole sac-fly would cap the scoring as Notre Dame’s bullpen would close out the rest of the game. The win improves their record to 10-3. Even though it’s not as impressive as their start last year, 11-2, it’s still good enough for the Irish to get national recognition coming into the game.
Moving 🆙
The Irish moved up in all 6️⃣ polls this week!
The No. 1️⃣2️⃣ ranking is the highest for the Irish since 2006!#GoIrish x #Rally pic.twitter.com/g9TRcmyzWC
— Notre Dame Baseball (@NDBaseball) March 23, 2021
The Irish next hit the diamond this weekend, as they welcome in Louisville for a three-game series that begins on Friday afternoon.
