Game Thread | (G3) No. 8 Notre Dame at No. 9 Miami

No. 8 Notre Dame (33-12, 16-10) at No. 9 Miami (36-18, 19-10)

When: May 21

Time: 1:00 PM ET 

Where: Alex Rodriguez Park | Coral Gables, Fla.

Watch: ACC NETWORK EXTRA 

QUICK FACTS

(Entering the weekend)

- The Irish own a 33-13 record (.717) on the road under head coach Link Jarrett.

- Notre Dame is 12th in the NCAA and first in the ACC in fielding percentage with a .981 mark this season. The Irish have committed 31 errors in 1,157 putout opportunities this season.

- The Irish rank 13th nationally and are second in the ACC in team ERA with 3.78. They have given up 158 earned runs in 385.2 innings this season.

- Notre Dame is 12th in the NCAA and second in the ACC with a 1.26 WHIP this season. They have surrendered 319 hits and 166 walks in 385.2 innings pitched.

- The Irish rank sixth in the NCAA and second in the ACC in strikeouts per nine innings with 10.9. The Irish pitching staff has struck out 468 batters in 385.2 innings this season.

- Notre Dame is 19-3-1 all-time in regular-season series under Jarrett. The Irish are 10-2 in ACC series on the road and are 17-3-1 in ACC series over the past two-plus seasons.

- The Hurricanes lead the all-time series with a 21-7 mark and this will be the first time the two teams have played each other since the 2018 season.

- The two teams also have the best records in the ACC since the start of the 2020 season. The Irish have a league-best 43-19 (.694) record in ACC games in that span and the Hurricanes are second with a 41-24 (.631) record in conference games.

PROBABLE STARTERS
 

WHAT TO WATCH 

- Miami and Notre Dame enter the weekend as division leaders. The Irish (.625) hold a slim percentage lead over Louisville (.611) in the Atlantic Division and still have an opportunity to win the league outright. The Irish trail the Hurricanes (.667) and Hokies (.640) in the overall league standings.

- Pitching is a strong suit for both programs as Miami and Notre Dame rank in the top five of the ACC in ERA, opponent batting average, strikeouts per game and walks allowed. 

- Thursday’s game started scoreless before both teams hit home runs in the fourth inning. The Canes then scored six unanswered runs before Ryan Cole hit his second home run of the game for the Irish in the ninth. 

- Gaby Gutierrez hit two home runs and finished with 5 RBI for the Canes, while Yohandy Morales also went deep. Austin Temple and the bullpen will need to control the long ball on Friday if the Irish want to even the series. 

- Friday’s game was all about the curveball as Miami couldn’t hit Austin Temple as he threw six innings of one-hit baseball, which allowed Notre Dame to build a 3-0 lead heading into the eighth inning. 

- Notre Dame hit three home runs on Friday, but the Irish also missed multiple opportunities to blow the game open and couldn’t drive score with runners in scoring position or the bases loaded. The Irish will need to get timely hits on Saturday as living off the long ball is risky for a team that doesn’t have a ton of power. 

- The Irish bullpen will be fresh and ready to go today as LHP Will Mercer is the only reliever to throw more than one inning this weekend. 

Notre Dame Lineup

Miami Lineup

Notre Dame Fighting Irish HOVR Sonic 4 Running Shoe