Notre Dame baseball: Previewing the Cambria College Classic against Illinois, Michigan State, Minnesota
No. 3 Notre Dame baseball (5-1) is on the road this weekend to kick off spring break with the Cambria College Classic at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. The Irish are hot — they outscored last weekend’s competition 45-4 and earned three victories — but they will take their competition level up a notch with games against the Big Ten.
Continuing with the strange schedule to start the season, the Irish will play three individual games against three different opponents. They have yet to play a traditional three-game series and will not do so for another week. Next up are games against Illinois (2-4), Michigan State (3-4) and Minnesota (3-7).
Notre Dame kicks off the swing against Illinois at 4 p.m. ET on Friday on B1G+. Left-handed pitcher Aidan Tyrell is likely to get the start for the Irish, and he is coming off of a scoreless seven-inning performance last week against Marist. Tyrell is 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA on the year.
The Illini will have a lefty on the mound themselves in Cole Kirschsieper. The third year player brings a 1-0 record and 2.08 ERA with him to Minneapolis. Junior catcher Jacob Campbell is the top batter for Illinois with a .375 batting average, nine hits and a home run on the year.
Illinois has won six of the seven games they have played at U.S. Bank Stadium, dating back to 2018.
Saturday’s matchup is against a Michigan State team that Notre Dame will see twice more this season in late April and early May. First pitch is at noon ET on B1G+, and the Spartans were just swept by Abilene Christian last weekend.
John Michael Bertrand will get the start on the mound for Notre Dame, and he is coming off of an 11-strikeout performance against Monmouth last weekend. Eleven strikeouts was the most by a Notre Dame pitcher since 2019 and a career high for Bertrand.
Michigan State junior Casey Mayes will be the one to watch for Bertrand and the Irish. The outfielder boasts a .517 batting average (second in the Big Ten and No. 31 nationally) and has 15 hits this year. He is averaging more than two hits per contest, and has yet to have a game without a hit. He also leads the Spartans in extra-base hits.
Michigan State will likely have right-handed pitcher Zach Iverson on the mound. He is 0-1 this season with a 5.62 ERA. Like Bertrand, Iverson is piling up the strikeouts. He has 14 on the season, which leads the Spartans’ pitching group.
Notre Dame closes out the Cambria College Classic with the host team, the Minnesota Golden Gophers, who they have not faced since 2006. The matchup will be an evening affair, beginning at 7 p.m. ET on B1G+.
Right-hander and graduate transfer Austin Temple (1-0, 1.80 ERA) will get the start, his third for the Irish. He has struck out 14 batters in 10 innings pitched and will look to get his second win of the season.
The Golden Gophers will have J.P. Massey on the mound, a right-handed pitcher with a 0-0 record and a 4.82 ERA this year. Minnesota has four players with at least 10 hits, so they certainly know how to get on base. Easton Bertrand, a 6-foot-4, 215-pound outfielder, leads the team with a .469 batting average, 15 hits and three homers this year.
The weekend in Minneapolis is a six-team affair, with Big 12 members No. 25 West Virginia and Kansas also in the mix. A tournament champion and MVP will be named at the conclusion of the event on Sunday.
Notre Dame baseball season stats
Projected Notre Dame batting order
- CF Spencer Myers (.143)
- LF Ryan Cole (.500)
- 2B Jared Miller (.412)
- 1B Carter Putz (.364)
- DH DM Jefferson (.227)
- RF Brooks Coetzee (.304)
- 3B Jack Brannigan (.300)
- SS Zack Prajzner (.316)
- C David LaManna (.538)
