No. 1 Notre Dame tops Valparaiso 12-1 in home opener, Brooks Coetzee launches fifth home run
On Tuesday, a No. 1-ranked Notre Dame baseball team (12-1) took the field for the first time since 2001. They did not disappoint.
The Irish hosted regional foe Valparaiso (5-7) for their Frank Eck Field opener, and they topped the Beacons 12-1 thanks to 16 hits, including a pair of home runs from right fielder Brooks Coetzee and pinch hitter Jack Zyska. It was the team’s 10th consecutive win.
Notre Dame’s Jack Findlay (2-0) got the win in his second career start and maintained his perfect ERA, while Valparaiso’s Zach Fricke fell to 0-2 on the year with an ERA of 20.77.
Valparaiso-Notre Dame Box Score
Here are three observations from Tuesday’s game:
Bats come alive early and late
The Irish were hitting the ball hard on Tuesday. Really hard.
“There were some balls that were absolutely stepped on,” Irish head coach Link Jarrett said after the game.
Notre Dame posted two runs in each of the first three innings but went scoreless in innings four through seven. They scored six runs in the second-to-last inning, including five driven in by pinch hitters Zyska, Nick Juaire and Brady Gumpf.
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The 12-run performance was Notre Dame’s sixth double-digit run total of the year. Eight of the team’s nine starters recorded a hit.
“You want the opponent to feel like they can never come up for air,” Jarrett said. “By the time the game’s over, you just want to stifle them with everything you have, so the lineup being what it is is good.”
Coetzee has another dominant performance
If there was a star of the game, it was Coetzee. Again.
The outfielder has been clutch for the Irish this year, leading the team with five home runs and posting a .380 batting average. He was just a triple shy of hitting for the cycle on Tuesday.
Entering 2022, there were concerns about how to replace former Irish standout Niko Kavadas, who hit a whopping 22 home runs in 2021. While Coetzee may not have the raw power that Kavadas did, he has certainly stepped up and had his fair share of big-time at bats this year.
Inexperienced pitchers get a shot
Thanks to the early offensive production, Jarrett was able to go deep into his pitching room and utilize several players who have seen little playing time this season. A stark contrast from Sunday’s outing in Raleigh in which Notre Dame only used starters John Michael Bertrand and Austin Temple, Notre Dame used six pitchers on Tuesday. In addition to Findlay, Alex Rao, Caden Aoki, Roman Kimball, Liam Simon and Radek Birkholz pitched at least an inning. Aoki led the group of relievers with two innings pitched.
The sole run allowed was a home run by Valparaiso’s Kyle Schmack while Liam Simon was on the mound. In total, the mid-week group allowed five hits, walked five batters and struck out 12.
Notre Dame heads to Louisville (12-4) on Friday for a three-game series. It will be the Cardinals ACC opener, and the first contest will begin at 7:00 p.m. ET on the ACC Network.
