LYNCHBURG, Virginia — Notre Dame Softball (3-4) will travel to Lynchburg this week to participate in the Liberty Classic, playing RV Liberty (6-4) and Villanova.
Notre Dame enters the third week of the season with a 3-4 record following the Alabama State Stinger Classic and ACC Pod Play. The ACC weekend was highlighted by a 5-3 win over No. 18 Duke, the program’s 94th win over a ranked team since 1994.
Outfielder Abby Sweet leads all Notre Dame batters with a .455 average, also boasting a 23-game on-base streak. Irish pitchers have combined for a 2.17 ERA, the third-best ERA in the ACC.
Weekend Schedule
Friday, Feb. 26
- vs. Villanova: 9 a.m. ET (ESPN+)
- at RV Liberty: 11:30 a.m. ET (ESPN+)
Saturday, Feb. 27
- vs. Villanova: Noon ET (ESPN+)
- at RV Liberty: 5:30 p.m. ET (ESPN+)
Sunday, Feb. 28
- vs. Villanova: 9 a.m. ET
Live Stats: und.com/mediastats
By The Numbers
0: Ps Alexis Holloway, Payton Tidd and Morgan Ryan combined for a no-hitter in the 13-0 win at Alabama State. Tidd earned the win, as Ryan started. Tidd and Ryan each pitched two innings, while Holloway entered to pitch the fifth and final inning.
1: IF Karina Gaskins ranks tied for first in the ACC with four doubles on the season, a figure which racks 12th nationally.
2: OF Emma Clark owns seven stolen bases on the season, ranked T-second in the ACC. At 1.0 stolen bases per game, Clark ranks 11th in the nation.
2.17: The Notre Dame pitching staff has combined for a 2.17 ERA through seven games, a figure which ranks third in the conference.
3: Notre Dame came in at No. 3 in the preseason ACC Coaches poll, with IF Katie Marino on the preseason All-ACC team. Of the top six teams in the ACC, Notre Dame is one, and will face the other five in the regular season.
3: Deanna Gumpf announced the selection of three captains for the 2021 season: Seniors IF Sarah Genz, P Alexis Holloway and OF Abby Sweet. Holloway and Sweet are the eighth and ninth two-time team captains in program history.
4: OF Emma Clark wrote her name in the history books against North Alabama, stealing four bases to match a single-game program record. She joined Ruth Kmak as the only two players in Irish history to steal four bases in a game. Kmak’s record came vs. Loyola-Chicago (April 16, 1990). Clark batted 1.000 in her three at-bats, also notching an RBI.
5: IF Karina Gaskins racked up five RBI in the 13-0 win over Alabama State, the first Irish player to achieve the feat since All-American Cait Brooks at Pitt (April 27, 2019). Gaskins hit her first-career home run in the game, the first home run of the season for Notre Dame, scoring three runs on the play.
6: As the schedule stands for 2021, Notre Dame has faced or will face six teams that were ranked or receiving votes in the initial USA TODAY/NFCA poll: No. 8 Alabama, RV Liberty, No. 25 Duke, RV Clemson, No. 12 Florida State and No. 15 Virginia Tech (initial rankings).
7: The Irish totaled seven stolen bases in the 13-0 combined no-hitter at Alabama State, the most in program records since at least 2012.The last time Notre Dame posted four or more steals was in 2019 vs. Seattle (Feb. 21, Mary Nutter Classic).
10: P Alexis Holloway is striking out batters at a clip of 10 per every 7.0 innings. That rate ranks third in the ACC.
16: The Irish return 16 veterans in 2021, including every starter from the 2019-20 season. They are joined by six freshmen.
23: OF Abby Sweet has compiled a 23-game on-base streak, which began on Feb. 15, 2020 and has extended into this season. Sweet is tied for fourth in the ACC in batting avg.
750: Notre Dame head coach Deanna Gumpf posted her 750th career win on Feb. 28, 2020, in a 6-2 victory over Duke. Gumpf joined former Notre Dame women’s basketball head coach Muffet McGraw as the only coaches in Notre Dame history to achieve the feat.