April 19, 2012

Game Notes

The Matchup
Notre Dame (19-16, 6-6 BIG EAST) vs. Georgetown (18-18, 5-7 BIG EAST)
Bethesda, Md.
Shirley Povich Field

Probable Pitchers

Friday, Game-1 (4:00 p.m. ET)
RHP Will Hudgins (3-1, 2.30 ERA) vs. RHP Will Harris (4-2, 3.29 ERA)

Friday, Game-2 (7:00 p.m. ET)
RHP Adam Norton (3-2, 3.96 ERA) vs. RHP Neal Dennison (3-1, 4.85 ERA)

Saturday (7:00 p.m. ET)
RHP Pat Connaughton (1-2, 3.46 ERA) vs. RHP Jack Vander Linden (4-1, 4.42 ERA)

Live Game Coverage
Live Video: GUHoyas.com
Live Audio: WHME 103.1 FM (Chuck Freeby, pbp); UND.com
Live Stats: UND.com

IN THE BATTERS BOX — Notre Dame returns to action this weekend for a three-game series with BIG EAST rival Georgetown. First pitch for the series opening doubleheader is at 4 p.m. Friday at Shirley Povich Field in Bethesda, Md. Saturday’s first pitch is also scheduled for 7 p.m. All three games can be heard locally on WHME 103.1 FM and worldwide on UND.com. Each contest can also be viewed at GUHoyas.com.

THIS WEEKEND’S STORY LINES — Notre Dame holds a 35-8 series edge against Georgetown (17-4 on the road), including 34-7 since joining the BIG EAST in 1996 (other games included 1908 and 1914). The Irish had won 24 straight in the series before dropping the first game of a 2005 doubleheader (9-8). u Notre Dame’s 35 victories against Georgetown are the second-most for the Irish against any BIG EAST opponent. The Irish have knocked off West Virginia on 40 different occasions (40-22). Notre Dame and the Hoyas met only twice prior to 1995-96, while the Irish and Mountaineers met 12 times.

Most Victories vs. BIG EAST
West Virginia 40-22
Georgetown 35-8
Villanova 33-7-1
Pittsburgh 32-15
Seton Hall 32-16

• Notre Dame’s all-time winning percetage against the Hoyas is .814, which also is second-best against for the Irish against a BIG EAST foe. Notre Dame owns a .817 winning percentage against Villanova.

Highest Winning Percentage vs. BIG EAST
Villanova .817
Georgetown .814
Pittsburgh .681
Seton Hall .667
West Virginia .645

• Notre Dame has struggled mightily on the road in 2012. The Irish are just 2-10 in true away contests, yet those two wins have come over top-five ranked LSU (No. 1 in the Collegiate Baseball poll) and BIG EAST leading USF.

• Here is an interesting look at Notre Dame’s struggles broken down by the numbers.

u Here is a couple of interesting breakdowns of individuals in home games as opposed to road contests.

Road Home
Frank DeSico .288 .395

Joe Hudson .293 .382

Eric Jagielo .229 .371

Ryan Bull .107 .343

Charlie Markson .296 .310

Trey Mancini .233 .296

Will Hudgins 0-1, 1.93 0-0, 5.40

Adam Norton 0-2, 3.72 1-0, 4.11

Sean Fitzgerald 1-1, 3.43 1-1, 5.59

Dan Slania 1-0, 6.00 1-0, 0.00, 3 svs

Donnie Hissa 0-0, 0.00 1-0, 0.00

Joe Spano 0-2, 3.00 0-0, 5.40

Steve Sabatino 0-0, 2.45 0-0, 6.75

Pat Connaughton 0-2, 7.71 1-0, 1.08

GEORGETOWN INSIDER — The Hoyas, led by 12th-year head coach Pete Wilk, enter the weekend with an overall record of 18-18 and 5-7 in the BIG EAST. Georgetown has won four of its last five contests and holds a 5-4 mark in its last three BIG EAST series, which includes a series win over Villanova.

• The Hoyas average 6.5 runs per game and hit .288 with a .372 on-base percentage. Georgetown has also totaled 54 stolen bases in 75 attempts.

• Georgetown has four everyday players batting over .300.

• Redshirt junior INF Mike Garza leads the team with a .372 batting average. He also leads the Hoyas in the following offensive categories: hits (55), doubles (11), home runs (five), RBI (29) and total bases (85). Garza also has struck out just 16 times and swiped six bases (in 10 attempts). He is only one of two Georgetown players that have played and started all 36 games.

• The other Hoya to play and start in all 36 contests is junior OF Justin Leeson, who is hitting at a .344 clip, which is second among everyday players. Leeson is also leading the team in at-bats (151), runs (32), triples (4), walks (21) and stolen bases (14).

• Junior INF Corbin Blakey has played in 30 contests with 22 starts and is tied for second on the team with three home runs. He has scored 18 runs, collected six doubles and has legged out one of the nine team triples. Blakey is hitting .341.

• Senior INF Rand Ravnaas is the fourth and final Georgetown regular hitting above the .300 mark. Ravnaas is batting .301 with 24 runs scored, eight doubles, two home runs and 28 RBI. He has also swiped 10 bases (in 11 attempts).

• The Hoyas have clubbed 20 home runs with four different Georgetown hitters smacking three or more.

• The Georgetown pitching staff has surrendered 21 home runs and struck out 191, but also walked 122. The Hoyas team ERA is 4.97. Georgetown has allowed 371 hits in 322.1 innings of work as its opponents are batting .292. Junior RHP Will Harris leads the Hoyas in strikeouts with 26, while four others have fanned 20 or more. Two of the Georgetown pitchers have four wins (Harris and senior RHP Jack Vander Linden).

• Harris gets the nod in game one for Hoyas. Harris is 4-2 with a 3.29 ERA and has fanned a team-high 26 in 52 innings. The game two starter is expected to be junior RHP Neal Dennison, who is 3-1 in seven starts. Dennison has a 4.85 ERA, 20 strikeouts and has allowed up just seven extra base hits. Sunday’s starter will be Vander Linden, who is 4-1 with a 4.42 ERA 36.2 innings of work.

• In the bullpen, Georgetown has five saves with three from Charles Steinman, who is 2-3 in 17 appearances. Steinman is also one of six pitchers to have over 25 innings of work (27.0). Steinman has a team-best ERA of 2.67. He also leads the staff in appearances and opponents batting average against (.230).

• Georgetown has committed 60 errors in 36 games and field at a .959 clip.

TALE OF THE TAPE

COMMON FOES

GEORGETOWN SERIES NOTES — Notre Dame holds a 35-8 series edge against Georgetown (17-4 on the road), including 34-7 since joining the BIG EAST in 1996 (other games included 1908 and 1914). The Irish had won 24 straight in the series before dropping the first game of a 2005 doubleheader (9-8).

• Notre Dame dropped the 2006 series opener in Bethesda (8-3) before winning the other two games (12-2, 6-3). Ryan Craft (4-for-5, 2 RBI, 2 R) and Warren Sizemore (7 IP, 3 R, 4 H, BB, 2 Ks) paced the win in the 7-inning opener in 2006 (Jeff Manship took the loss), but the Irish came back to win the second game of the doubleheader, behind Jeff Samardzija (7 IP, 5 H, 2 BB, 3 Ks), Cody Rizzo (3-for-4, 4 RBI, 3 R, HR), Jeremy Barnes (3-for-6 from leadoff spot, 3 RBI, 2 R, HR, 2B) and Ross Brezovsky (3 R, 2 2B). A pair of misplayed double-play balls in the ninth inning prevented Tom Thornton from picking up a shutout in the 2006 series finale (5 H, 2 BB, 8 Ks), with Greg Lopez pacing the Notre Dame offense in that game (3-for-6, 3 RBI). Those two wins over the Hoyas launched Notre Dame on its record-setting 23-game, month long win streak.

• The Irish took two of three from Georgetown at Frank Eck Stadium in 2007. David Phelps struck out eight over 7.0 shutout innings and allowed just six hits as the Irish rolled past the Hoyas, 10-0. Michael Gaggioli did not allow an earned run over 8.0 innings of work as the Hoyas took the second game of the series, 6-1. Brett Lilley and A.J. Pollock each had three hits to account for the entire Notre Dame attack. The Irish took the rubber game of the series, 11-2, thanks in large part to a seven-run third inning. Kyle Weiland and Eric Maust combined to limit the Hoyas to just a pair of unearned runs, while striking out 10.

• Notre Dame plated 38 runs and recorded 46 hits (.380 batting average) in its series sweep of Georgetown in 2008 series. The 38 runs are still tied for the second most ever in BIG EAST series history (also tied for most ever away from Eck Stadium), trailing only the 40 runs the Irish scored against Rutgers in a three-game series at Eck Stadium in 2006.

• Notre Dame also scored 38 runs in a 2004 series at Georgetown. The Irish had 37 runs scored in a 1997 series against Georgetown and 36 runs (twice) against Georgetown (1998) and Pittsburgh (2000).

Most Runs Over BIG EAST Series (3 games)
40 vs. Rutgers 2006
38 at Georgetown 2008
38 at Georgetown 2004
37 vs. Georgetown 1997
36 at Georgetown 1998
36 vs. Pittsburgh 2000

• Notre Dame’s 46 hits from that 2008 series also ranked as one of the best in Irish BIG EAST history. It ranks third-best, trailing only the school record of 50 hits (Georgetown in 1998) and 49 knocks (Rutgers in 2006).

Most Hits Over BIG EAST Series (3 games)
50 at Georgetown 1998
49 vs. Rutgers 2006
46 at Georgetown 2008
42 at Georgetown 2004
42 vs. Georgetown 1997
42 vs. Pittsburgh 2000

LIGHTS OUT — Not only did Notre Dame approach numerous offensive records in the three-game series sweep of Georgetown in 2008, the Irish posted a 0.67 earned run average and limited the Hoyas to a .187 batting average. Georgetown managed just two runs (both earned) the entire weekend. The two runs are tied for the fewest ever allowed by a Notre Dame pitching staff over a three-game BIG EAST series. Even more impressive, all of the previous series marks for fewest runs included a seven-inning game (BIG EAST used to play a seven-inning game as the first game of a doubleheader).

Fewest Runs Allowed Over BIG EAST Series (3 games)
2 at Georgetown 2008
2 vs. Georgetown 1997
3 vs. Seton Hall 1996
4 vs. Villanova 2009
4 vs. Seton Hall 2001
4 vs. Rutgers 2004
4 at Villanova 2006
5 at St. John’s 2001
5 at West Virginia 2004
5 vs. West Virginia 2005

UTTER DOMINATION — Notre Dame outscored the Hoyas, 38-2, over the three-game series. The 36 run differential is the largest in Irish BIG EAST history.

Run Differential Over BIG EAST Series (3 games)
36 at Georgetown 2008
35 vs. Georgetown 1997
29 vs. Seton Hall 1996

IRISH SCORE EARLY, OFTEN, AGAIN, AGAIN — Notre Dame totaled 28 hits and set a new school record for runs in a BIG EAST game in its 25-1 rout of Georgetown on March 20, 2008.

• The 25 runs are the sixth-most by Notre Dame in the 120 year history of the program. It was the largest scoring output since Notre Dame hammered South Alabama, 25-1, in the 2002 NCAA Regional. It also marked the second time the Irish eclipsed 20 runs in a BIG EAST game (the 2005 team defeated Pittsburgh, 21-1).

Team Runs
34 vs. Indiana 1900
28 vs. Albion 1911
28 vs. Northwestern 1962
26 vs. Northwestern 1922
26 vs. Western Michigan 1945
25 at Georgetown 2008
25 vs. Purdue 1901
25 at Indiana State 1993
25 vs. South Alabama (NCAA) 2002

• The 24-run margin of victory was tied for the second largest in school history. Only the 1900 squad’s, 34-7, victory over Indiana had a larger scoring margin.

Scoring Margin
27 (34-7) vs. Indiana 1900
24 (25-1) at Georgetown 2008
24 (24-0) vs. Hillsdale 1903
24 (28-4) vs. Albion 1911
24 (25-1) vs. South Alabama (NCAA) 2002
23 (24-1) vs. Earl 1913

• The 28 hits are the most since Notre Dame had 32 in that victory over South Alabama in 2002.

• Notre Dame’s 28-hit attack and .519 team batting average produced five big innings – nine in the second, three in the third, three in the fourth, five in the fifth and three in the eighth. The Irish recorded 11 extra-base hits, including 10 doubles. A total of 13 different Notre Dame players registered hits, including all nine players in the starting lineup (and did so by the fourth inning).

Notre Dame leads 35-8

LAST HEAD-TO-HEAD SERIES — Notre Dame took two of three from Georgetown in a series in South Bend in 2011. The Irish took the first two games of the series before the Hoyas mananged to salvage the final game of the series.

• Frank DeSico drew a bases loaded walk with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning to give Notre Dame a 3-2 victory over Georgetown in the Eck Stadium and BIG EAST opener of 2011. The Irish snapped the Hoyas’ seven-game winning streak, which was its longest since 1995. Anthony McIver picked up the victory in relief. The southpaw tossed 1.2 scoreless innings of relief. McIver yielded three hits without a walk and struck out one. Georgetown reliever Mike Seander was charged with the loss. He walked a pair, including the eventual winning run, in 0.1 inning of work. Eric Jagielo was the lone Notre Dame player with more than one hit. He went 2-for-4 with a couple singles. DeSico went 1-for-4 with a run scored and RBI, while Herman Petzold went 1-for-3 with a run scored and RBI. Brian Dupra did not allow an earned run in 7.1 innings of work. He struck out nine and walked two. Dupra did scatter eight hits on the night, but kept the Hoyas scoreless until the seventh inning.

• Mick Doyle gave Notre Dame a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth inning with an RBI single and Cole Johnson pretty much did the rest as the Irish shut out Georgetown, 1-0. Johnson limited the Hoyas to five hits, four of which were singles, in 8.0 shutout innings of work. He struck out six and walked one. Dan Slania collected his second save of the season with a scoreless and perfect ninth inning. The rookie struck out one of the three batters he faced. Charles Steinman was charged with the loss for Georgetown. The righty allowed one earned run on three hits in 4.0 innings of work. Steinman issued four walks and struck out two. Johnson worked around trouble in each of the first two innings. The Hoyas had a runner in scoring position in the first and second frames, but Johnson prevented either from scoring. Georgetown then advanced another into scoring position in the third inning, but was unable to score. He retired 15 of the 18 Hoyas between the fourth and eighth innings. The only three Georgetown batters that reached base did so via a hit-by-pitch, infield single and bloop base hit to left field. Johnson, who received only six total runs of support over his last four starts, lowered his season ERA to 2.09. Greg Sherry drew a one-out walk and eventually scored on Doyle’s two-out, RBI single. Sherry walked three times and scored the games only run. Doyle and Matt Grosso each had a pair of hits. Doyle went 2-for-5 with an RBI, while Grosso went 2-for-3.

• Notre Dame loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, but Pablo Vinent struck out Eric Jagielo to end the game and give Georgetown a 4-3 victory and salvage the final game of the BIG EAST series. Vinent picked up the victory in relief for Georgetown. The right-handed hurler allowed six hits in 3.2 innings of work, but limited the Irish to just one run. Vinent struck out three and walked one. Todd Miller was charged with the loss. The starter was charged with four runs, all earned, on five hits in 6.1 innings. Miller fanned three and walked one. He pitched as well as the righty possibly could following a painful first inning, literally.

Miller surrendered a leadoff double to Leeson and Mike Garza followed with a missile back up the box that drilled Miller on the pitching hand. He managed to rebound and still record the out, but the ball left a serious welt on Miller’s right hand. Leeson did advance to third on the liner and scored on Rand Ravnaas’ ensuing sacrifice fly to give the Hoyas an early 1-0 lead. Erick Fernandez followed with a single and Dan Capeless lined another ball off Miller, this time off the leg, but Miller again was able to record the out.

If either line drive hindered Miller, nobody could have noticed. He proceeded to retire the next 14 consecutive Georgetown batters before a meaningless one-out walk in the top of the sixth inning. Jagielo ripped a one-out double down the right field line and Trey Mancini absolutely hammered a 3-2 offering from Baker over the left field wall for a two-run home run to give Notre Dame a 2-1 lead. Miller got Fernandez to ground out to open the Georgetown seventh inning before running into trouble.

Capeless singled and Lamont doubled, both on Miller’s first offering of the at bat, to quickly tie the game, 2-2. Steve Anderson followed with a seeing-eye single to right field to put runners on the corners with one out. Miller’s day was done following Anderson’s base hit. Lentz laid down a sacrifice bunt to put both runners in scoring position for Bello. Norton worked ahead of the Hoyas’ nine-hole hitter and pushed the count to 1-2, but Bello somehow dropped a looping liner just past the diving reach of Doyle in short centerfield for a two-run single, which gave Georgetown a 4-2 advantage. Norton retired the next seven Hoyas and the Irish drew within a run, 4-3, in the bottom of the eighth inning on senior LF Matt Grosso’s RBI double. Norton yielded just one hit in 2.2 scoreless innings of relief. DeSico, Jagielo, Grosso and Norton all had two hits for the Irish. DeSico went 2-for-5, Jagielo went 2-for-5 with two doubles and two runs scored, Grosso went 2-for-4 with an RBI double and Norton went 2-for-3.