Game Thread | (G1) Notre Dame at Florida State
Notre Dame (11-5, 0-3) at Florida State (15-0, 0-0)
When: March 15
Time: 6:00 PM ET
Where: Mike Martin Field at Dick Howser Stadium | Tallahassee, Fla.
Watch: ACC Network Extra (ESPN+)
QUICK FACTS
- Florida State leads the all-time series 16-22.
- The Irish hold a record of 7-8 in Tallahassee.
- Notre Dame enters the weekend No. 5 in the nation with 38 home runs.
- 11 players have hit home runs for Notre Dame this season.
- INF Estevan Moreno is the only player in Division I baseball to hit three home runs in two separate games this season.
- Notre Dame’s .982 fielding percentage ranks No. 3 in the ACC and No. 14 nationally.
PROBABLE STARTERS
FRIDAY
| SCHOOL | NAME | RECORD (APPEARANCES) | ERA | IP | STRIKEOUTS |
| Notre Dame | RHP Tobey McDonough | 1-1 (4) | 5.62 | 8.0 | 8 |
| Florida State | RHP Cam Leiter | 3-0 (4) | 2.70 | 20.0 | 31 |
SATURDAY
| SCHOOL | NAME | RECORD (APPEARANCES) | ERA | IP | STRIKEOUTS |
| Notre Dame | RHP Matt Bedford | 1-0 (5) | 5.28 | 15.1 | 8 |
| Florida State | LHP Jamie Arnold | 4-0 | 0.00 | 22.0 | 32 |
SUNDAY
| SCHOOL | NAME | RECORD (APPEARANCES) | ERA | IP | STRIKEOUTS |
| Notre Dame | TBA | - | - | - | - |
| Florida State | RHP Conner Whittaker | 2-0 (3) | 3.63 | 17.1 | 23 |
WHAT TO WATCH
Notre Dame rebounded with two wins against Radford during the week after getting swept by Virginia Tech on the opening weekend of ACC play, but life isn’t getting easier for the Irish.
The Irish will start a three-game series against Florida State this weekend and the Noles enter the series with a perfect 15-0 record, which is the third-best start in program history in Link Jarrett’s second season in Tallahassee.
It’s worth noting that similar to Notre Dame, Florida State has only played three programs from major conferences (Michigan State, Illinois and Florida), but holds a perfect 3-0 record in those games, including an impressive 12-8 win in Gainesville on Tuesday.
To put it nicely, Notre Dame’s pitching has struggled to start the season as the Irish have failed to keep runs off the board and get stops at key moments. Facing the Seminoles will be a tough task as Florida State is ranked in the Top 10 nationally in eight offensive categories, including No. 2 in batting average (.376) and No. 4 in scoring (12.0 runs per game).
Shawn Stiffler and Seth Voltz will need Notre Dame’s starters to get off to strong starts as Virginia Tech scored in the first inning in all three games last weekend. That’s not a recipe for success in any game much less an ACC game on the road.
At the plate, Notre Dame will need to be patient and work the count from the first at-bat. The Irish have been a little too aggressive at times and it’s led to strikeouts. Florida State enters the series No. 2 in the country with 13.5 strikeouts per game, so the Irish need to avoid spiraling at the plate.
The Seminoles have given up just eight home runs on the year, so it will be crucial to get the ball in play this weekend and that’s something the Irish haven’t done consistently. Notre Dame’s home runs have allowed them to win games and hang around against Virginia Tech, but finding gaps is important.
As it relates to Notre Dame facing Jarrett, the Irish will surely have some emotions as several players were recruited or played for him, but it also won’t be anything like a year ago when Florida State came to South Bend.
NOTRE DAME LINEUP
| NAME | POSITION | BATTING AVERAGE |
| TJ Williams | CF | .396 |
| David Glancey | LF | .280 |
| Connor Hincks | 1B | .367 |
| Simon Baumgardt | 3B | .365 |
| Jack Penney | SS | .215 |
| Brady Gumpf | RF | .273 |
| DM Jefferson | DH | .182 |
| Estevan Moreno | 2B | .270 |
| Tony Lindwedel | C | .071 |
FLORIDA STATE LINEUP
| NAME | POSITION | BATTING AVERAGE |
| DeAmez Ross | CF | .321 |
| Cam Smith | 3B | .485 |
| James Tibbs III | RF | .387 |
| Jaime Ferrer | LF | .310 |
| Drew Faurot | 2B | .406 |
| Marco Dinges | DH | .395 |
| Daniel Cantu | 1B | .373 |
| McGwire Holbrook | C | .407 |
| Alex Lodise | SS | .341 |
OFFENSIVE STATS (Entering the series)
| STAT | NOTRE DAME | FLORIDA STATE |
| Batting Avg. | .277 | .376 |
| Runs | 145 | 180 |
| Hits | 157 | 207 |
| 2B | 29 | 41 |
| 3B | 4 | 8 |
| Home Runs | 38 | 27 |
| RBI | 131 | 154 |
| SLG% | .543 | .627 |
| Walks | 72 | 96 |
| Hit by Pitch | 25 | 15 |
| Strikeouts | 143 | 99 |
| OB% | .379 | .468 |
PITCHING STATS (Entering the series)
| STAT | NOTRE DAME | FLORIDA STATE |
| ERA | 6.73 | 2.93 |
| Hits | 143 | 108 |
| Runs | 109 | 56 |
| ER | 104 | 44 |
| Walks | 70 | 74 |
| Strikeouts | 128 | 202 |
| Opponent Batting Avg. | .268 | .218 |
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