Game Thread | Notre Dame at Virginia Tech
Notre Dame (9-2) at Virginia Tech (8-3)
When: March 8th
Time: 2:00 PM ET
Where: English Field at Atlantic Union Bank Park | Blacksburg, Va.
Watch: ACCNX
QUICK FACTS
- Notre Dame leads the all-time series 18-10, including a record of 6-3 at Virginia Tech
- The Irish enter the series No. 4 in the nation in home runs with 32 and No. 2 in home runs per game at 2.91
- INF Estevan Moreno has hit six home runs in the last three games with hat tricks last Saturday at Tennessee Tech and on Tuesday against Purdue
- Notre Dame has combined for five savers entering the weekend, which is tied for No. 1 in the ACC
- The Irish lead the ACC in fielding percentage at .990
PROBABLE STARTERS
FRIDAY
| SCHOOL | NAME | RECORD (APPEARANCES) | ERA | IP | STRIKEOUTS |
| Notre Dame | RHP Ricky Reeth | 0-0 (3) | 2.35 | 7.2 | 11 |
| Virginia Tech | RHP Brett Renfrow | 3-0 (3) | 1.69 | 16.0 | 19 |
SATURDAY
| SCHOOL | NAME | RECORD (APPEARANCES) | ERA | IP | STRIKEOUTS |
| Notre Dame | RHP Tobey McDonough | 1-0 (3) | 1.69 | 5.1 | 6 |
| Virginia Tech | TBA | - | - | - | - |
SUNDAY
| SCHOOL | NAME | RECORD (APPEARANCES) | ERA | IP | STRIKEOUTS |
| Notre Dame | RHP Matt Bedford | 1-1 (4) | 3.46 | 13.0 | 7 |
| Virginia Tech | TBA | - | - | - | - |
NOTRE DAME LINEUP
| NAME | POSITION | BATTING AVERAGE |
| Jack Penney | SS | .214 |
| David Glancey | DH | .276 |
| Connor Hincks | 1B | .341 |
| Tito Flores | RF | .255 |
| Simon Baumgardt | 3B | .348 |
| Estevan Moreno | 2B | .321 |
| Brady Grumpf | LF | .269 |
| Joey Spence | C | .333 |
| TJ Williams | CF | .457 |
VIRGINIA TECH LINEUP
| NAME | POSITION | BATTING AVERAGE |
| Christian Martin | 2B | .324 |
| Carson DeMartini | 3B | .268 |
| Chris Cannizzaro | LF | .452 |
| Eddie Michelett Jr. | RF | .270 |
| Sam Tackett | 1B | .286 |
| Ben Watson | CF | .375 |
| David McCann | DH | .300 |
| Henry Cooke | C | .348 |
| Clay Grady | SS | .306 |
- Notre Dame has found its offense in the last week as the Irish have scored 54 runs in the last four games, including 11 in an impressive win over Purdue on Tuesday night. It’s no secret the home run has been a huge part of the hot streak with the Irish going yard 18 times in those games, including six from Estevan Moreno.
The Irish also have seven players hitting .255 or higher and four are over .300. TJ Williams leads the team with a batting average of .457 with 16 hits in 35 at-bats. That said, Notre Dame sit last in batting average in the ACC at .278. Virginia Tech enters the weekend No. 6 at .330.
- Shawn Stiffler’s team has raised its offensive game and now Notre Dame will need to do the same on the mound. Notre Dame currently has the second-worst ERA in the ACC at 6.03 and have recorded just 88 strikeouts in 11 games.
Starters Caden Spivey (18.00 ERA) and Jackson Dennies (15.58 ERA) have struggled early and will need to find a rhythm as ACC play begins. Both showed they were more than capable of pitching well last against conference competition, so it could be just a matter of time before both get rolling.
RHP Matt Bedford has found a groove as a starter as he enters the weekend with an ERA at 3.46 and opponents are hitting just .213 against him.
The bright side on the mound for the Irish has been the relief pitching. RHP Bennett Flynn leads the Irish in strikeouts with 19 in 11.2 innings and he boats an ERA of 1.54 in six appearances. RHP Rickey Reeth has been a nice surprise as he’s struck out 11 in 7.2 innings and Radek Birkholz has been solid striking out 11 in 10.1 innings. Birkholz’s ERA jumped up a bit last weekend, but he’s been consistent dating back to last year.
Virginia Tech is led by RHP Brett Renfrow (3-0) as he’s struck out 19 in 16.0 innings and holds an impressive 1.69 ERA. Opponents are hitting just .203 against Renford and he’s also just three batters this season.
- Notre Dame will need to get better production on the mound to have a chance at getting out of Blacksburg with a series win. The Irish pitchers need to throw strikes and go from there. Notre Dame leads the ACC in fielding percentage, so they have the defense to let the ball get in play, but they can’t continue to allow free baserunners.
At the plate, Notre Dame needs to continue to be patient. It’s clear they have embraced the coaching and it’s led to being top five in the country in home runs. If they can continue to get on base and move runners, Notre Dame should be in good shape. They just need to cut down the strikeouts to give themselves a shot.
This weekend will be a big measuring stick for the Irish and Hokies as six ACC teams enter this weekend ranked in D1Baseball’s Top 25.
Under Armour Steel Notre Dame Fighting Irish Game Day Camo Raglan Quarter-Zip
