NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The California baseball team opened a three-game ACC series with an 8-1 road loss at Notre Dame on Friday at Frank Eck Stadium. The Golden Bears' lone run came on
Carl Schmidt's solo homer in the top of the fourth inning.
Cal was able to load the bases with no outs in the top of the ninth but Notre Dame reliever Oisin Lee came on in relief of Kellan Klosterman and retired all three Bears he faced to stem the rally.
Jacob French (2-4) and
Seth Gwynn (2-4) produced four of Cal's six hits with Schmidt (1-3, R, HR, RBI) and
PJ Moutzouridis (1-4) picking up the other two.
Three Notre Dame pitchers – Jack Radel (7.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 12 SO), Klosterman (1.0 IP, 2 H, 3 B, 1 SO) and Lee (1.0 IP, 2 SO) – combined to strikeout 15 Cal batters that were tied for the most strikeouts by the Bears this season. Radel earned the victory to improve to 7-3.
Davis Johnson (2-4, 2 R, 2 HR, 5 RBI) homered twice and drive in five runs to lead the Notre Dame offense, while Estevan Moreno (1-4, R, HR, 2 RBI) also went deep, and Bino Waters (2-4, 2B) and Connor Hincks (2-4, R) also had two hits apiece.
Johnson homered with two outs in the bottom of the first to give the Irish an early 2-0 lead then DM Jefferson (1-3, 2B, RBI) answered Schmidt's homer in the top of the fourth by doubling home Parker Brzustewicz with two out in the Irish half to get the run back.
The score remained 3-1 in favor of Notre Dame until the bottom of the sixth when Cal starter
Austin Turkington (5.1 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 7 SO) left the game with one out and the Irish scored five runs off reliever
Logan Piper over the next two frames on a two-run homer by Moreno in the sixth and a three-run shot by Johnson in the seventh. Turkington was charged with the loss to fall to 4-5.
Cal (18-23, 6-16 ACC) and Notre Dame (22-17, 8-14 ACC) continue the series Saturday (11 am PT) before concluding the first games between the teams since 1961 and the first at Notre Dame since 1941 on Sunday (10 am PT). A live steam of both contests will be available on ACCNX/ESPN+.
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