April 22, 2015
Midweek Game #8: Chicago State
April 22, 2015
6:05 p.m. (ET)
Frank Eck Stadium (Notre Dame, Ind.)
Team Information:
Notre Dame: 26-13, 11-10 ACC (22-31, 9-21 ACC In 2014)
2014 Postseason: Did not qualify for postseason
Chicago State: 9-28-1, 2-11-1 WAC (17-37, 5-19 WAC In 2014)
2014 Postseason: Did not qualify for postseason
Rankings:
Notre Dame: No. 26 Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Top 30
Projected Pitching Matchup:
RHP Connor Hale (1-0, 3.00 ERA) vs. RHP Ean McNeal (0-0, 6.06 ERA)
Series History:
Notre Dame leads 29-2
First Meeting: W, H, 8-4 (4/1/1986)
Last Meeting: W, A, 6-1 (4/8/2014)
Aoki vs. Chicago State: 1-0 (all at ND)
Game Coverage:
Live Video: WatchND (Link on UND.com
Live Audio: WHME 103.1 FM in South Bend (Chuck Freeby, pbp)
Live Stats: Gametracker (Link on UND.com)
Twitter Reports: @NDBaseball / @NDsidRuss
Weather Report (as of Tuesday, April 21):
Wednesday, April 22: 46 Degrees and Cloudy
NOTRE DAME, Ind. — Looking to get the sting of a tough Tuesday night loss to Indiana out of its mouth, the University of Notre Dame baseball team gets right back to action at 6:05 p.m. (ET) Wednesday night, as Chicago State heads to Frank Eck Stadium for the first time since 2010.
Last year, the Irish beat the Cougars in Chicago, 6-1, behind a complete-game gem from RHP Nick McCarty. The Westfield, Indiana native turned in his best showing of the year by limiting the Cougars to one unearned run and just two hits while walking one and striking out six. The Irish bats finally got going in the sixth inning, plating five runs to pull away for the victory.
The Irish lead the all-time series with the Cougars, 29-2.
Notre Dame (26-13) is looking to get back on the winning track after a tough 6-5 loss to the Hoosiers at Victory Field in Indianapolis Tuesday night. The Irish led Indiana, 5-3, entering the bottom of the ninth, but two critical Irish errors allowed IU to walk off with a win. Notre Dame, which entered the game first in the ACC (8th in DI) in fielding percentage (.979%) ended up with a season-high five errors, which was the most for the Irish in a game since 2013. Only two of Indiana’s six runs were earned.
Since a 5-4 loss to then-No. 12 Virginia March 29, the Irish are 10-3 and have displayed outstanding pitching (1.55 ERA) and steady defense (.985 FLD%) to go along with some impressive showings at the plate. Sophomore catcher Ryan Lidge has a slash line of .385/.513/.529 with five doubles, 12 RBI and 10 walks, while junior first baseman Zak Kutsulis is hitting .311 with a triple, two homers and six runs scored. Senior right fielder Robert Youngdahl has a team-high 11 runs scored during that stretch.
Chicago State (9-28-1) has struggled for much of the year, including a recent 11-game losing streak from March 28 to April 17. This past weekend the Cougars went 1-1-1 at Texas Pan-American. They beat Roosevelt University, 17-6, Tuesday afternoon in Chicago.
The Cougars sport a respectable .265 team batting average, but have a 6.58 team ERA. Freshman catcher Cody Freund leads the team with a .350 average. He also has six doubles, 11 runs scored, 12 walks and a .436 on-base percentage.
Irish junior Connor Hale (1-0, 3.00 ERA) is expected to make just the second start of his career Wednesday, with the first coming in 2013. The Carmel, Indiana native had arguably the best outing of his career in his last appearance, as he went 3.2 innings (3 H, 1 R) against then-No. 7 Florida State to pick up the second win of his career.
CSU will counter with senior RHP Ean McNeal, who is 0-0 with a 6.06 ERA in six appearances (16.1 IP) this year.
Fans can follow the game through WatchND’s free online video feed available through UND.com. Live stats will also be up and running.
Follow the Irish on Facebook (/NDBaseball), Twitter (@NDBaseball) and Instagram (notredamebaseball) for more information on the team.
–Russell Dorn, Assistant Media Relations Director
–ND–