April 10, 2002

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2 0 0 2 N o t r e D a m e B a s e b a l l

vs. Pittsburgh (April 11)

The Notre Dame baseball team (19-11, 5-5 BIG EAST) continues its 14-game homestand with a rare Thursday afternoon BIG EAST doubleheader vs. Pittsburgh (12:05 EST) … the Irish then will play host to Virginia Tech in a twilight pair on Friday, April 12 (5:05) … the unique schedule is due to the uneven number of BIG EAST teams (11), with five doubleheaders played on Friday and five on Sunday … ND has won nine of its last 10 and will be looking to move up in the BIG EAST logjam that includes two teams at 7-3, three at 6-4 and three at 5-5 (plus 3-4 Pittsburgh, which is 20-7-1 overall) … since being swept at UConn, ND’s last 11 games include a .331 team batting average, a 2.43 team ERA and a .977 fielding pct. (with just 9 errors).

BEST-vs.-BEST: Notre Dame owns the best team ERA in the BIG EAST (3.52) – led by a deep core of starters and a surging bullpen (2 earned runs in last 11 games) – while Pittsburgh’s .319 team batting average leads the BIG EAST, with Brant Colamarino (.798, 10 HR) and Brad Rea (.741, 10 RBI) ranking as the league’s leaders in slugging pct. (see www.pittsburghpanthers.com).

MATCHUPS: Notre Dame is slated to start freshman RHPs Grant Johnson and John Axford vs. Pitt, which will counter with fifth-year RHP Scott Schultz -who has made five previous appearances vs. ND – and senior LHP Eric Ackerman … ND then will send freshman Chris Niesel and junior RHP Peter Ogilvie vs. Virginia Tech, which is slated to start junior LHP Joe Saunders (the nation’s top LHP prospect, according to Baseball America) and senior RHP Jason Bush.

RADIO COVERAGE: South Bend’s ESPN Radio 1620 AM (WDND) and its sister station WHLY 1580 AM are slated to broadcast every Notre Dame game in 2002 … a real-audio link to internet broadcasts may be accessed at www.und.com while real-time stats for home games – including updated play-by-play – likewise can be accessed at und.com … all remaining ND baseball games in 2002 are slated to air on WDND 1620.

ND-Pitt Series Notes

Series: ND leads 18-2 (13-2 in BIG EAST)

First Meeting: April 27, 1951 (5-3 ND win @Pitt)

At Notre Dame: ND leads 9-1 (7-1 @Eck)

Streak: ND has won 10 of last 11 (since ’98)

Series Highlights

* ND posted a pair of 3-0 shutouts at Pitt to open the 2001 BIG EAST season, led by Danny Tamayo (7 IP, 4 H, 10 Ks, 6 GOs, 24 BF, 89 p.) and Aaron Heilman (9 IP, 2 H, 4 BB, 2 HB, 8 Ks, 16 GOs, 32 BF, 108 p.) … Paul O’Toole had a 2-run double in the opener, as did Alec Porzel in the nightcap … ND tied an 85-year-old team record with three straight shutouts (earlier 3-0 vs. Cleveland State).

* The teams played a wild 22-18 game at ND on May 7, 2000 – with Pitt answering ND’s 13 straight runs from the 6th-8th by scoring 10 in the 9th for the win … the teams combined for 49 hits, 65 baserunners, 85 total bases (a BIG EAST record), 8 HRs, 38 players used, just one error and 4:06 of game time, while the 40 combined runs were the most in an ND game since 1900 (first time in an ND game that both teams scored 17-plus runs).

* ND’s Alec Porzel hit for the cycle in the 22-18 game, with traditional and inside-the-park home runs (he also became the first ND player with six hits in a game, going 6-for-6) … one day earlier, Porzel’s 3-run shot had given ND an 11-8 win in 10 innings … his grand slam then keyed ND’s 11-run 8th inning to rally past Pitt in a BIG EAST Tournament elimination game (15-7).

* Top Pitt hitters in the 22-18 game included Stuart Rykaceski (4-for-8, RBI, 2 R) and Brant Colamarino (4-for-5, 6 RBI, 3 R, 3B, BB, 2 HR in the 9th).

* The ’99 series saw ND post three narrow wins at Eck (4-1, 3-2, 9-8) while ND swept a pair from Pitt in ’98 at Three Rivers Stadium (11-1, 12-7), led by Alex Shilliday (7 IP, H, BB, HB, 9 Ks, 8 GOs, 23 BF) and Brad Lidge (7 IP, 2 H, 3 BB, 12 Ks, 8 GOs, 25 BF).

Series Stats (1998-2001)

Bok … .667 (2-for-3) RBI, 2 R, BB

Strickroth … .600 (6-for-10) 5 RBI, 2 R, HR-2B, BB/K

Billmaier … .400 (6-for-15) 6 RBI, 7 R, HR-2 2B, 2 BB/K

O’Toole … .389 (10-for-36) 13 RBI, 10 R, 3 HR-3 2B, 3 BB/6 K, 2 SB

Meyer … .346 (9-for-26) 5 RBI, 4 R, HR-3 2B, BB/4 K

Bushey … .333 (7-for-21) 4 RBI, 5 R, HR-2 2B, 4 BB, SB

Stanley … .313 (10-for-32) 5 RBI, 7 R, 2 2B, 8 BB/K, 4-6 SB

Stavisky … .261 (6-for-23) 5 RBI, 6 R, HR-2 2B, 1 BB/2 K, 2-2 SB

Sollmann … .200 (1-for-5) 2 R, 2 BB/K, 2-2 SB

Thaman … .143 (1-for-7) 2 K

Viloria … GP, 0.1 IP, H, BB (0.00)

Buchmeier … GP, 2.1 IP, 2 H, R, 2 K/BB (3.86)

Duff … 3 GP, 1-0, 4.1 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 7 K/2 BB, 2 WP, HB (8.31)

Gagne … GS, 2.1 IP, 10 H, 7 R, 3 K/2 BB (27.0)

(Pitt)

Rykaceski … .360 (9-for-25) 3 RBI, 3 R, 2 2B, 3 K

Colamarino … .316 (6-for-19) 6 RBI, 4 R, 2 HR, 3B, 2 BB, 6 K

Folmar … .211 (4-for-19) RBI, 3 R, 2 2B, 9 K

Rea … .207 (6-for-29) 5 RBI, 5 R, HR, 2B, 4 BB, 8 K

Railing … 2-for-7 2 K

Spamer … 1-for-5 K

Bello … 0-for-6 BB, K

Paest … 0-for-2 2 K

Papciak … 0-for-1 K

Schultz … 5 GP/GS, 9 IP, 11 H, 7 R/6 ER, 3 K/5 BB, 2 HB (6.00, 0-3)

Gornati … 1 GP, 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 3 K/3 BB (3.60)

Ackerman … 1 GP, 1 IP, 2 H, 2 R

Engel … GS, 7 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 4 K/4 BB (3.86, 0-1)

Probable ND Starting Pitchers

Grant Johnson, Fr., RHP (relief vs. Missouri and St. John’s)

(7 GP/5 GS, 3.57, 2-3, 40.1 IP, 40 H, 35 K/15 BB, .258 opp. avg., 1 HB)

vs. Missouri, at UNO (2/22, 7-6 in 10) win, 6 IP, 6 H, 2 R, K

vs. Florida International, in Homestead (3/2, 4-13) 5.1 IP, 9 H, 4 R/2 ER, BB, 7 K

vs. TCU, in Round Rock (3/8, 3-7) loss, 8.2 IP, 7 H, 6 R, BB, HB, 8 K

vs. Southern Illinois, in San Antonio (3/14, 5-3) win, 8 IP, 5 H, UER, 6 K

at Connecticut (3/23, 3-4) loss, 5 IP, 4 H, 4 R/3 ER, 5 BB, 7 K

at West Virginia (3/28, 2-4) loss, 4.1 IP, 9 H, 3 R, 5 BB, 5 K

St. John’s (4/6, 3-4) 3 IP, 3 BB, K

Situationally: 10-of-42 leadoff batters reached (.238), 16-for-53 opp. batting with 2 outs (.302), .303 with runners on base (20-for-66), 49 groundouts, 34 flyouts

John Axford, Fr., RHP (last four games are starts)

(7 GP/4 GS, 3.09, 3-2, 32.0 IP, 28 H, 27 K/21 BB, .231 opp. avg., 3 WP, 1 HB)

at New Orleans (2/23, 7-8) 4 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 6 BB, K, WP

vs. Florida International, in Homestead (3/2, 4-13) loss, 2.1 IP, 5 H, 8 R/2 ER, 3 BB, K, WP

vs. Texas-Pan American, in Round Rock (3/10, 5-6) 1.1 IP, 2 H, R/UER, 2 K

vs. Creighton, in San Antonio (3/13, 6-2) win, 7 IP, 4 H, 2 R/UER, 6 K, WP

at Connecticut (3/24, 6-13) loss, 5 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 3 BB, 3 K, HB

vs. Georgetown (3/30, 12-3) win, 6 IP, 4 H, 2 R/UER, 3 BB, 9 K, BK

St. John’s (4/6, 4-1) win, 6.1 IP, 3 H, R, 6 BB, 5 K

Situationally: 17-of-33 leadoff batters reached (.515), 9-for-38 opp. batting with 2 outs (.237), .239 with runners on base (16-for-67), 44 groundouts, 16 flyouts

Notre Dame’s Probable Starting Lineup * – lefthanded hitter, # – switch hitter

CF – *Steve Stanley Sr. 5-8/155 Upper Arlington, OH

.449, 14 RBI, 24 R, 19-23 SB, 3B-7 2B, 13 BB/3 K

ND records: consec. starts (217), H (319), SB (103)

2B – Steve Sollmann So. 5-10/190 Cincinnati, OH

.277, 9 RBI, 12 R, 2 2B, 7 BB

Hitting .333 (7-for-21, 5 RBI) in homestand

LF – *Brian Stavisky Jr. 6-3/220 Port Allegany, PA

.359, 10 RBI, 7 R, 3 HR-2 3B, 8 BB

Missed 18 games due to injury

C – *Paul O’Toole Sr. 6-1/205 Lakewood, OH

.291, 22 RBI, 22 R, 5 HR-3 3B-5 2B, 11 BB, 5-8 SB

Hitting .421 in BIG EAST play (3 HR, 14 RBI))

RF – Kris Billmaier Jr. 5-10/200 Woodinville, WA

.260, 12 RBI, 12 R, 3 2B, 6 BB, 2-2 SB

Hit 9-for-24 in last 7 games (7 RBI, 2 2B)

3B – *Andrew Bushey Sr. 5-10/190 Boardman, OH

.379, 24 RBI, 20 R, 3 HR-10 2B, 10 BB, 0-2 SB

.598 slugging pct. (7th in BIG EAST)

SS – Javier Sanchez So. 6-2/200 Miami, FL

.263, 11 RBI, 20 R, HR-3B-5 2B, 11 BB

Just 3 Es in last 11 games, GW-hit @WVU

DH – #Matt Bok Sr. 5-10/190 Akron, Ohio

.313, 11 RBI, 14 R, HR-8 2B, 4 BB, 0-1 SB

Game-winning hit vs. WMU

or Ken Meyer Sr. 6-0/205 Fort Myers, FL

.292, 7 RBI, 19 R, HR-3B-5 2B, 6 BB

Career vs. Pitt: .346 (9-for-26, 5 RBI, HR, 3 2B)

1B – *Joe Thaman So. 6-4/210 St. Louis, MO

.275, 11 RBI, 13 R, HR-4 2B, 8 BB

Batting .381 (8-for-21, 3 RBI, 6 R) at Eck

TURNING THE CORNER: In addition to early-season injury woes, Notre Dame’s 9-9 start also could be traced to other factors, including:

Batting With Runners In Scoring Position – First 18 games (.272), Last 11 games (.366)

Two-Out Batting Average – First 18 games (.235), Last 11 games (.269)

Batting With Bases Loaded – First 18 games (.167, 3-for-18), Last 11 games (.412, 8-for-17)

Fielding Percentage (Errors) – First 18 games (.964, 40, 2.2/gm), Last 11 games (.977, 9, 0.8/gm)

Opponent Unearned Runs – First 18 games (32, 1.8/gm), Last 11 games (7, 0.6/gm)

Bullpen ERA – First 18 games (4.42), Last 11 games (0.48, 2 ER, 37.2 IP)

Bullpen Opponent Batting Average – First 18 games (.329), Last 11 games (.182, 22-for-121)

First-Inning Scoring Margin – First 18 games (2-11), Last 11 games (16-9)

First-Inning Batting Average – First 18 games (.177), Last 11 games (.403)

RBI Margin Via Home Runs – First 18 games (18, on 12 HRs – 20, on 8), Last 11 games – (12, on 5 – 2, on 1)

Big Innings (5-Plus Runs) – First 18 games (2), Last 11 games (5)

HEAD COACH PAUL MAINIERI: Eighth-year ND head coach Paul Mainieri owns a 654-414-1 (.612) record in 19-plus college seasons … in addition to his 322-135-1 (.704) mark at ND, Mainieri’s teams were 180-121 in six seasons at St. Thomas (Fla.) and 152-158 in six seasons at Air Force … his 322 wins now rank 2nd all-time at ND, behind Jake Kline (558, ’34-’75), with Pat Murphy posting a 318-116-1 record from 1988-94 … Mainieri has seen 27 of his Irish players go on to pro baseball (19 via the draft), with RHP Christian Parker being the first to reach the Majors (as the N.Y. Yankees No. 5 starter, making his debut vs. Toronto on April 6 at Yankees Stadium – with Mainieri and others from ND on hand) … 15 of his players at St. Thomas went on to pro ball, including three – Joe Klink, Dane Johnson and Dan Rohrmeier – who have played in the Majors … Mainieri and his father Demie are the only known father-son combo in college baseball history to top 500 wins … Demie won 1,018 in 30 years at Miami-Dade North CC.

BACK TOGETHER: Junior leftfielder Brian Stavisky returned to action in Tuesday’s 5-4 win over Western Michigan, after missing nine games due to a facial fracture (he was hit by a pitch early in the March 28 doubleheader at West Virginia, suffering two broken bones on the left side of his face) … the WMU game marked just the third game this season that ND’s three preseason All-Americans – Stavisky, senior CF Steve Stanley and sophomore 2B Steve Sollmann – have started in the same game (the others were the opener vs. Missouri, when Sollmann left with a 4th-inning quad injury, and March 13 vs. Creighton).

POISE IN THE ‘PEN: The Notre Dame bullpen has yielded just two earned runs in the last 11 games (spanning nearly 38 innings), with an 0.48 ERA and .182 opponent batting average for the bullpen during that 11-game stretch … the ND relievers have not yielded a run in the last seven games (spanning 19 innings) while allowing just one of 10 inherited baserunners to score (compared to 14 of 23 that scored in the 22 games that preceded the homestand) … the bullpen’s overall season ERA is 2.91, with a .277 opponent batting average and just three home runs allowed (in 89.2 IP) … ND’ s last two wins have included strong relief outings from junior Brandon Viloria (2.2 IP, H, 9 BF) in the 5-2 win over St. John’s and senior Drew Duff (3.1 IP, 3 H, BB, 4 K) and winner Ryan Kalita (3 IP, 2 H, 3 K) in the 5-4 win over Western Michigan.

TAKING TURNS: Notre Dame’s ERA charts having featured a new leader after virtually every game in recent weeks, with various pitchers turning in strong outings to take over the top spot … eight different pitchers have combined for the teams 18 wins, including three wins three Ws, four two-time winners and junior Ryan Kalita (who posted his first win earlier this week vs. WMU) … ND’s 3.52 team ERA – impressively close to ND’s 3.22 mark that ranked 6th in the nation last season – includes seven of 10 “regulars” (10-plus innings) with ERAs of 3.60 or lower, with the other three under 4.60.

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION: The ND pitching staff once again owns an impressive strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.28, 201/88), which would rank 4th in team history … the low walk total (3.19/9 IP) would rank 5th in ND history … ND starting pitchers have posted a 2.77 K-to-walk ratio (141/51) in 2002 starts, led by juniors J.P. Gagne (27/8) and Peter Ogilvie (14/3) and freshmen Chris Niesel (35/10), John Axford (23/12), Grant Johnson (33/12) and Martin Vergara (9/6).

FRESHMAN FORCE: Notre Dame’s six freshman pitchers have combined for a 10-6 record in 31 appearances and 18 starts, plus a 3.83 combined ERA in 138.2 innings (59 earned runs), with 122 strikeouts, just 60 walks and 132 hits allowed.

BOUNCE BACK: Several Irish players have recovered from early-season slumps to post solid offensive numbers during the past 14 games, most notably: senior C Paul O’Toole (.365, 19-for-52, 15 RBI), sophomore 2B Steve Sollmann (.364, 12-for-33, 7 RBI), junior RF Kris Billmaier (.340, 16-for-47, 8 RBI) and sophomore 1B Joe Thaman (.318, 14-for-44, 6 RBI) … in the first 15 games, those players’ stats were as follows: Sollmann (.188, 2 RBI), O’Toole (.216, 7 RBI) and Billmaier (.184, 4 RBI) and Thaman (.200, 5 RBI).

SERIES SUCCESS: Notre Dame has won its last 15 BIG EAST series at Eck Stadium, since dropping 2-of-3 to St. John’s late in the 1998 season … in seven seasons of BIG EAST play, the Irish own a 120-50 overall record in BIG EAST games (.706), winning 45 of 58 BIG EAST series (with seven splits and just six series losses) … ND has played 56 all-time BIG EAST doubleheaders, sweeping 32 (with 20 splits and just four sweeps by the opponent) … Seton Hall (’97) and UConn (’02) are the only BIG EAST teams ever to sweep a three-game series from the Irish.

MILESTONE WATCH: Several Notre Dame players are approaching (or recently reached) career milestones. Here’s their current stats that are approaching noteworthy milestones:

Senior CF Steve Stanley – 203 runs scored, 103 stolen bases, 101 walks, 99 RBI

Senior 3B Andrew Bushey – 196 hits, 100 runs scored, 101 RBI, 45 doubles

Senior DH Matt Bok – 104 hits

Sophomore 2B Steve Sollmann – 98 hits

Senior C Paul O’Toole – 201 games played, 192 games started, 48 stolen bases

Junior RF Kris Billmaier – 101 hits

BIG EAST BUGGER: Two major BIG EAST career records also are within the grasp of senior CF Steve Stanley, as he ranks 3rd in conference hits (128) and 4th in runs (87) – needing three hits and four runs to move into 2nd (he needs 11 hits and seven runs to claim the records) … former Rutgers players Darren Fenster (138 hits) and David DeJesus (93 runs) currently hold those BIG EAST records … Stanley’s six career triples in BIG EAST play rank 9th in the league record book, four shy of the shared record … former Rutgers player Pete Zoccolillo (130, ’96-’99) ranks 2nd on the BIG EAST hits list … others ahead of Stanley on the BIG EAST runs list include Fenster (90) and Brian Fili (88, Villanova, ’94-’97).

BROKEN RECORDS: Stanley – a leading contender for national player-of-the-year honors – already has claimed three ND career records, for consecutive starts (now 217), hits (319) and stolen bases (103) … he also has moved into 3rd on the ND career at-bats list (850), ranks 5th in runs scored (203, ’92 grad. Craig Counsell is 4th with 204) and has pushed his career batting average to .375, which would rank 3rd in ND history.

GREAT EYE: Stanley has struck out just three times in 118 at-bats this season (with 13 walks), for a ratio of 39.33 ABs per K … that would rank as the 2nd-best ratio in the ND record book (since 1969, min. 90 ABs), with Rick Pullano holding the record with 3 Ks in 132 ABs (44.00) … 2nd place on the list currently belongs to Dan Szajko’s 1982 total of 4 Ks in 137 ABs (34.25) … the top 10 on that list include just one player since 1982 – as current senior 3B Andrew Bushey averaged 17.58 ABs per K in 2000 (211/12, good for 10th on the list) … Stanley owns a career average of 14.91 ABs per K (850/57, with 101 walks), with near-identical strikeouts totals (18, 19, 17) in his previous three seasons).

STREAKS FOR ALL SEASONS: Stanley opened the season with a 13-game hitting streak (the 5th double-digit streak of his career, 2nd-longest overall) before adding a 10-game streak that ended in a short stint vs. Valparaiso (0-for-2) … Stanley – who closed 2001 by batting 14-for-23 in the NCAAs – has four-hit games this season vs. Fairfield, Sacred Heart and Creighton (bringing his career total to 10 four-hit games, plus 5-for-5 vs. Wisconsin-Milwaukee in the ’01 NCAAs) … his career-best hitting streak lasted 16 games in 2000 (he had a 12-game hitting streak in ’99 and 10-game streaks in ’00 and ’01) … Stanley’s team-best .449 season batting average includes 13 walks, five sacrifice bunts and just three Ks … he has hits in 27 of 29 games in 2002 (34 of the last 36, including the final seven of 2001).

AN SB A DAY: Stanley has swiped 19 stolen bases this season and could challenge the ND season record set by Scott Sollmann in 1996 (52, in 62 GP) … ironically, Sollmann’s brother Steve typically bats with Stanley on base (as the Irish No. 2 hitter) … Stanley’s 103 career SBs rank first in ND history, besting Sollmann’s record total of 101 (from ’94-’96).

PENCIL HIM IN, OR USE PEN: Stanley has started all 217 games of his ND career (all in CF) while logging all but 20 innings in CF since ’99 (he played every inning of 60 straight games, before yielding to George Howard late in the 6th inning of both 7-inning Valparaiso games) … the familiar #2 – who has just seven errors in 496 career fielding chances (.986) – has patrolled CF in 98.92% of the innings (1,835.2 of 1,855.2) – including a span of 764.2 consecutive innings in CF during the 1999 and 2000 seasons … in addition to Howard, only four other players have briefly replaced Stanley in CF: Paul O’Toole (’99), Ben Cooke (’00-’01), Mike Naumann (’01) and John Heintz (’01).