NOTRE DAME, Ind. — University of Notre Dame sophomore pitcher Alexis Holloway limited Georgia Tech to just one hit in 6.0 innings and the Irish pounded out 13 more hits in a 7-0 rout of the Jackets Saturday afternoon at Melissa Cook Stadium.
It was the eighth straight win for the Irish (34-15, 17-6 ACC), who stay one game behind Florida State (47-8, 18-5) in the Atlantic Division standings heading into the last day of the regular season.
Holloway kept Georgia Tech off-balance all afternoon. She took a no-hitter into the sixth inning. Holloway, who had a no-no last season, allowed a clean single with one out in the top of the sixth inning.
She worked around the base hit and leadoff walk in the sixth to keep the shutout intact. Holloway fanned six. The shutout was the eighth of her career. She upped her record to 10-7 on the season.
Cait Brooks and Abby Sweet paced the Notre Dame offense for the second straight day. Brooks went 3-for-4 with an RBI single and two runs scored. Sweet went 2-for-3 with a two-run triple and three RBI. Brooks and Sweet have combined for 10 hits in the series.
Melissa Rochford and Katie Marino added two hits apiece. Rochford went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and a mammoth two-run home run. Marino went 2-for-4 with a run scored and a pair of doubles.
Key Innings
Bottom 1 | The Irish jumped out to an early lead for the second consecutive day. Marino doubled and scampered to third on Brooks’ single. Sweet came up two batters later and laced a two-run triple to the right-field wall.
Bottom 3 | Brooks opened the frame with a single and cruised home on Rochford’s two-run blast. The tape measure shot caromed off the scoreboard in left centerfield. The round-tripper was Rochford’s fourth of the season. Sweet’s legs added another run. After reaching on an infield single, stealing second and moving to third on MK Bonamy’s single, Sweet raced home on a perfectly executed double steal to give the Irish a 5-0 lead.
Bottom 4 | Ali Wester opened the frame with a bunt single and Marino followed with a double. Wester coasted home on Brooks’ RBI base knock and Marino did the same on Sweet’s sacrifice fly.
Game Notes
- Notre Dame has outscored Georgia Tech, 23-0, over the first two games of the series
- The Irish have out-hit the Yellow Jackets, 28-3
- Notre Dame is batting .500 (28-for-56) in the series
- Sweet and Brooks are hitting .833 (5-for-6) and .625 (5-for-8), respectively
- Notre Dame’s quartet of pitchers (Holloway, Payton Tied, Brooks and Morgan Ryan) have registered an opponents’ batting against of .077 (3-for-39) in the series
- The Irish have not allowed a run over their last 15.0 innings of work
Up Next
The Irish and Georgia Tech close the regular season at Noon ET Sunday at Melissa Cook Stadium. The game will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra via the WatchESPN app or WatchESPN.com.