Game Thread | (G2) Notre Dame at Florida State
Notre Dame (11-6, 0-4) at Florida State (16-0, 1-0)
When: March 16
Time: 3:00 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 23-16.
- The Irish hold a record of 7-9 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
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
Fast starts for Notre Damen’s opponents are becoming a trend early into 2024 campaign and on Friday, Florida State’s fast start was too much for Shawn Stiffler’s club to overcome. The Irish actually jumped out 1-0 as Connor Hincks hit a solo shot in the first inning. Florida State quickly answered with five run in the bottom of the first, which was almost expected at this point.
That said, Notre Dame’s bullpen once again stepped up and gave quality innings. Sammy Cooper and David Lally Jr. combined to pitch three innings of one-hit baseball with three strikeouts. Sophomore Rory Fox pitched three innings giving up four hits, one run while striking out two. Freshman DJ Helwig entered in the bottom of the eighth and gave up two hits and the Noles got an insurance run, but the hole was dug in the first inning.
At the plate, Notre Dame struggled for most of the night. The Irish managed seven hits and batted just .212 and .167 with runners in scoring position. Despite cold bats, Notre Dame left the bases loaded in the seventh and then stranded two runners in the eighth.
Notre Dame also struck out 13 times as Florida State starter Cam Leiter finished his night with 10 strikeouts. The Irish need to find patience at the plate and work the count. Notre Dame falls behind 0-2 far too often.
Saturday will be a tough task as Florida State will throw its ace in LHP Jamie Arnold, who is 4-0 on the year with 32 strikeouts in 22.0 innings and boasts a perfect 0.00 ERA. The good news is Notre Dame roughed up Arnold a year ago as he gave up five runs in 1.1 innings last April in South Bend in a relief role.
NOTRE DAME LINEUP
| NAME | POSITION | BATTING AVERAGE |
| TJ Williams | CF | .373 |
| David Glancey | LF | .264 |
| Connor Hincks | 1B | .375 |
| Simon Baumgardt | 3B | .353 |
| Jack Penney | SS | .217 |
| Tito Flores | DH | .261 |
| Brady Gumpf | RF | .292 |
| Estevan Moreno | 2B | .277 |
| Carson Tinney | C | .192 |
FLORIDA STATE LINEUP
| NAME | POSITION | BATTING AVERAGE |
| Max Williams | CF | .296 |
| Cam Smith | 3B | .507 |
| James Tibbs III | RF | .403 |
| Jaime Ferrer | LF | .311 |
| Drew Faurot | 2B | .406 |
| Marco Dinges | DH | .372 |
| Daniel Cantu | 1B | .364 |
| Jaxson West | C | .391 |
| Alex Lodise | SS | .312 |
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 |
Under Armour White Notre Dame Fighting Irish Motivate Half-Zip Jacket
