April 23, 1997
Hard-Luck Irish Pitching Staff Suffers Tough 12-3 Loss to Northwestern
NOTRE DAME, Ind. - Northwestern junior righthander Chris Hargan overcame a bumpy first inning while the injury-riddled Notre Dame pitching staff suffered another blow, as the visiting Wildcats handed the Irish just their second home loss of the season, 12-3, in non-conference baseball action Wednesday at Eck Stadium.
Notre Dame (29-15)--which lost 5-3 to Michigan on Tuesday night--suffered its first consecutive losses of the season since March 23.
The Irish held a 3-2 lead after an action-packed first inning but lost their ace, senior righthander Darin Schmalz, midway through the top of the third inning. With one out and a runner on second base, Keith Haan sent a hard-hit ball that glanced off the front of the mound and hit Schmalz on the left side of his face. The ball bounced towards first baseman Jeff Felker, who was able to force out Haan, but Schmalz fell to his knees and was forced to leave the game (he later received stitches above his left eye).
The freak play brought Notre Dame's injured pitchers total to six, including three of the team's top starters (Schmalz is the only one of those six expected to return to action this weekend). The Irish entered the game hoping for four to five innings from Schmalz and instead were forced to use a total of eight pitchers, including freshman infielder Matt Nussbaum (who pitched the ninth in his first appearance of the year).
The Irish (who are now 17-2 at home this season) staged a patented two-out rally in the bottom of the first, sparked by an infield single from Mike Amrhein. Jeff Wagner followed with a run-scoring single to right-center and Brant Ust slapped an RBI double down the leftfield line before Allen Greene's single to right gave the Irish a 3-2 lead.
Hargan (4-6) allowed the Irish just three hits and a walk over the next four innings before four Wildcats pitchers each logged an inning to close out the win.
Northwestern (14-26) took the lead with four runs in the fifth and broke things open with four more in the seventh. Irish sophomore righthander Alex Shilliday (4-3) opened the fifth in relief of Mike Balicki but could not hold back the visitors, allowing four runs (all earned) on four hits and a walk.
The Wildcats remained within striking distance (6-3) until the seventh, when junior lefthander Pat Davis allowed three runs while recording just one out. Davis registered two walks and a hit batter, also yielding a sacrifice bunt, before freshman lefthander Mark Lapinskas was touched for a bases-loaded walk, a sacrifice fly and a two-run single, pushing Northwestern's lead to 10-3.
All but two of Notre Dame's seven hits came from #3 hitter Wagner (2-for-4) and #5 man Ust (3-for-3), with the #2 and #3 hitters again struggling (Randall Brooks 0-for-4 and Amrhein 1-for-4).
The Irish welcomed back senior rightfielder Justin Scholl, who started in the leadoff spot after missing the last 17 games due to a separated shoulder (he also missed nine earlier games with a ribcage injury). Sophomore Paul Turco got the starting nod at shortstop, just his third start in the last 24 games.
Northwestern 12 Univ. of Notre Dame 3
Name (Pos) AB R H RBI BB SO PO A Name (Pos) AB R H RBI BB SO PO A
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J.P. Williamson 3b........ 4 1 1 1 2 0 0 0 Justin Scholl rf.......... 4 0 0 0 0 1 2 0
Ollie Dunn ss............. 4 2 1 1 1 0 0 5 Randall Brooks cf......... 4 0 0 0 0 1 2 0
Brian Baron lf............ 5 1 2 3 0 0 0 0 Dan Leatherman cf/1b...... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Kyle Sanders ph........... 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 Mike Amrhein c............ 4 1 1 0 0 0 6 1
John Kim lf............... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Mike Knecht c............. 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Patrick Thompson dh....... 4 1 2 1 1 1 0 0 Jeff Wagner dh............ 4 1 2 1 0 0 0 0
Eric Buchanan ph.......... 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 Brant Ust 2b.............. 3 1 3 1 0 0 0 3
Keith Haan 1b............. 5 1 1 0 0 2 8 0 Jeff Perconte ph/2b....... 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Jason Anderson ph......... 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 Allen Greene lf........... 3 0 1 1 0 1 2 0
David Eyman 1b............ 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Larry Zimont ph/lf........ 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
Bob Dainton rf............ 2 2 2 1 2 0 3 0 Jeff Felker 1b............ 2 0 0 0 1 1 7 1
Kevin O'Donnell ph/rf..... 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 John Corbin ph............ 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Chris Pedersen 2b......... 4 2 2 2 0 1 4 1 Pat O'Keefe cf............ 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Mike Adams 2b............. 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Paul Turco ss............. 2 0 0 0 1 0 3 1
Nick Franzese c........... 5 0 0 0 0 1 7 1 Pat Gorman ph............. 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
Kris Musselman cf......... 3 0 2 1 0 0 3 0 J.J. Brock 3b............. 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 4
Andrew Kirsh ph/cf........ 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 Jamie Hay ph.............. 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Chris Hargan p............ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 Darin Schmalz p........... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Dan Padgett p............. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Mike Balicki p............ 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Joshua Levey p............ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Alex Shilliday p.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Ben Dodd p................ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Pat Davis p............... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
John Seaman p............. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Mark Lapinskas p.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Dan Stavisky p............ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Larry Mohs p.............. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Matt Nussbaum p........... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
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Totals.................... 41 12 16 11 8 5 27 11 Totals.................... 33 3 7 3 2 6 27 11
Score by innings: R H E
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Northwestern 200 040 411 - 12 16 0
Univ. of Notre Dame 300 000 000 - 3 7 2
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E - Mike Amrhein, Brant Ust.
LOB - Wildcats 14, Irish 7.
2B - Ollie Dunn, P. Thompson, Brant Ust.
SB - J Williamson, Bob Dainton, K. O'Donnell, C. Pedersen, K. Musselman, Allen Greene, J.J. Brock. CS - Just. Scholl.
SH - N. Franzese.
SF - Ollie Dunn.
Northwestern IP H R ER BB SO AB BF Univ. of Notre Dame IP H R ER BB SO AB BF
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Chris Hargan........ 5.0 7 3 3 1 2 21 24 Darin Schmalz....... 2.2 6 2 2 0 1 14 14
Dan Padgett......... 1.0 0 0 0 1 0 3 4 Mike Balicki........ 1.1 1 0 0 1 0 5 6
Joshua Levey........ 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 3 3 Alex Shilliday...... 2.0 4 4 4 2 3 10 12
Ben Dodd............ 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 3 3 Pat Davis........... 0.1 0 3 3 2 0 0 4
John Seaman......... 1.0 0 0 0 0 2 3 3 Mark Lapinskas...... 0.2 1 1 1 1 0 2 4
Dan Stavisky........ 0.1 1 1 1 1 1 2 3
Larry Mohs.......... 0.2 0 0 0 0 0 2 3
Matt Nussbaum....... 1.0 3 1 1 1 0 6 7
WP - Dan Padgett, D. Stavisky.
PB - Mike Amrhein.
HBP - by Chris Hargan (Just. Scholl), by Chris Hargan (J.J. Brock), by Pat Davis (C. Pedersen), by Larry Mohs (Andrew Kirsh).
Start: 7:00 Time:
Play-by-play
Northwestern inning 1
J Williamson grounded out to 3b. Ollie Dunn doubled down the lf line.
Brian Baron singled to center field, RBI; Ollie Dunn scored. P. Thompson
doubled to center field, RBI; Brian Baron scored. P. Thompson advanced to
third on a passed ball. Keith Haan reached on a fielder's choice; P.
Thompson out at home 3b to c. Bob Dainton singled to right field; Keith
Haan advanced to third. C. Pedersen struck out looking. 2 runs, 4 hits, 0
errors, 2 LOB.
Univ. of Notre Dame inning 1
Just. Scholl hit by pitch. Just. Scholl out at second c to 2b, caught
stealing. Rand. Brooks grounded out to ss. Mike Amrhein singled to
shortstop. Jeff Wagner singled to right center, RBI; Mike Amrhein scored.
Brant Ust doubled down the lf line, advanced to third on the throw, RBI;
Jeff Wagner scored. Allen Greene singled to right field, RBI; Brant Ust
scored. Allen Greene stole second. Jeff Felker walked. Paul Turco reached
on a fielder's choice; Jeff Felker out at second ss to 2b. 3 runs, 4 hits,
0 errors, 2 LOB.
Northwestern inning 2
N. Franzese grounded out to 2b. K. Musselman flied out to cf. J Williamson
singled to center field. Ollie Dunn flied out to rf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0
errors, 1 LOB.
Univ. of Notre Dame inning 2
J.J. Brock grounded out to ss. Just. Scholl popped up to 2b. Rand. Brooks
grounded out to ss. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Northwestern inning 3
Brian Baron flied out to lf. P. Thompson singled to center field. Keith
Haan grounded out to p; P. Thompson advanced to second. M. Balicki to p for
D. Schmalz. Bob Dainton walked. C. Pedersen flied out to lf. 0 runs, 1
hit, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Univ. of Notre Dame inning 3
Mike Amrhein grounded out to 2b. Jeff Wagner singled to right field. Brant
Ust singled to center field; Jeff Wagner advanced to second. Allen Greene
struck out. Jeff Felker struck out. 0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Northwestern inning 4
N. Franzese flied out to cf. K. Musselman singled to right center. J
Williamson out at first 1b to p; K. Musselman advanced to second. Ollie
Dunn grounded out to ss. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Univ. of Notre Dame inning 4
Paul Turco grounded out to p. J.J. Brock hit by pitch. Just. Scholl flied
out to cf. J.J. Brock stole second. Rand. Brooks grounded out to p. 0
runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Northwestern inning 5
A. Shilliday to p for M. Balicki. Brian Baron popped up to ss. P. Thompson
walked. Keith Haan singled down the rf line; P. Thompson advanced to third.
Bob Dainton singled to third base, bunt, RBI; Keith Haan advanced to
second; P. Thompson scored. C. Pedersen singled to right center, RBI; Bob
Dainton advanced to third; Keith Haan scored. C. Pedersen stole second,
advanced to third on an error by 2b; Bob Dainton stole home. N. Franzese
struck out. K. Musselman singled to center field, RBI; C. Pedersen scored.
K. Musselman stole second, advanced to third on an error by c. J Williamson
walked. Ollie Dunn reached on a fielder's choice; J Williamson advanced to
second; K. Musselman out at home 3b to c. 4 runs, 4 hits, 2 errors, 2 LOB.
Univ. of Notre Dame inning 5
Mike Amrhein grounded out to ss. Jeff Wagner flied out to rf. Brant Ust
singled down the rf line. Allen Greene lined out to cf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0
errors, 1 LOB.
Northwestern inning 6
Brian Baron popped up to ss. P. Thompson struck out looking. Keith Haan
struck out. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Univ. of Notre Dame inning 6
Dan Padgett to p for Chris Hargan. Jeff Felker popped up to c. Paul Turco
walked. Paul Turco advanced to second on a wild pitch. J.J. Brock flied
out to cf. Just. Scholl flied out to rf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Northwestern inning 7
Pat Davis to p for A. Shilliday. Bob Dainton walked. C. Pedersen hit by
pitch; Bob Dainton advanced to second. N. Franzese grounded out to c, SAC,
bunt; C. Pedersen advanced to second; Bob Dainton advanced to third. Andrew
Kirsh pinch hit for K. Musselman. Andrew Kirsh walked. M. Lapinskas to p
for Pat Davis. J Williamson walked, RBI; Andrew Kirsh advanced to second;
C. Pedersen advanced to third; Bob Dainton scored. Ollie Dunn flied out to
rf, SF, RBI; Andrew Kirsh advanced to third; C. Pedersen scored. J
Williamson stole second. Brian Baron singled to right center, 2 RBI; J
Williamson scored; Andrew Kirsh scored. P. Thompson grounded out to 2b;
Brian Baron advanced to second. 4 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Univ. of Notre Dame inning 7
Andrew Kirsh to cf. Joshua Levey to p for Dan Padgett. Rand. Brooks struck
out looking. Mike Amrhein popped up to 2b. Jeff Wagner flied out to rf. 0
runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Northwestern inning 8
D. Stavisky to p for M. Lapinskas. Leatherman to cf for Rand. Brooks. Mike
Knecht to c for Mike Amrhein. Keith Haan struck out. K. O'Donnell pinch
hit for Bob Dainton. K. O'Donnell walked. K. O'Donnell stole second. K.
O'Donnell advanced to third on a wild pitch. C. Pedersen singled to right
field, RBI; K. O'Donnell scored. Larry Mohs to p for D. Stavisky. N.
Franzese reached on a fielder's choice; C. Pedersen out at second 2b to ss.
Andrew Kirsh hit by pitch; N. Franzese advanced to second. J Williamson
grounded out to 3b. 1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Univ. of Notre Dame inning 8
K. O'Donnell to rf. Ben Dodd to p for Joshua Levey. Mike Adams to 2b for
C. Pedersen. J. Perconte pinch hit for Brant Ust. J. Perconte grounded out
to p. L. Zimont pinch hit for Allen Greene. L. Zimont struck out looking.
John Corbin pinch hit for Jeff Felker. John Corbin flied out to rf. 0
runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Northwestern inning 9
Leatherman to 1b. J. Perconte to 2b. L. Zimont to lf. Pat O'Keefe to cf
for John Corbin. M. Nussbaum to p for Larry Mohs. Ollie Dunn walked. Kyle
Sanders pinch hit for Brian Baron. Kyle Sanders singled to left field;
Ollie Dunn advanced to second. E. Buchanan pinch hit for P. Thompson. E.
Buchanan singled to left field; Kyle Sanders advanced to second; Ollie Dunn
advanced to third. J. Anderson pinch hit for Keith Haan. J. Anderson
singled to left field, RBI; E. Buchanan advanced to second; Kyle Sanders
advanced to third; Ollie Dunn scored. K. O'Donnell fouled out to 3b. Mike
Adams fouled out to 3b. N. Franzese flied out to cf. 1 run, 3 hits, 0
errors, 3 LOB.
Univ. of Notre Dame inning 9
John Kim to lf for Kyle Sanders. David Eyman to 1b for J. Anderson. John
Seaman to p for Ben Dodd. Pat Gorman pinch hit for Paul Turco. Pat Gorman
struck out. Jamie Hay pinch hit for J.J. Brock. Jamie Hay grounded out to
p. Just. Scholl struck out. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
