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Virginia Tech Baseball: Hokies Drop First Game to Notre Dame

The Hokies' offense falls silent for a second-consecutive game, this time, against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

Taylor Bretl

Virginia Tech Baseball: Hokies Drop First Game to Notre Dame
Virginia Tech Baseball: Hokies Drop First Game to Notre Dame / @HokiesBaseball on X

After riding the momentum of a five-game win streak against ranked opponents (Wake Forest and Louisville), the Hokies have stumbled in their last two outings, managing just three runs combined and falling to Notre Dame on Friday, 7-2.

Entering Friday’s matchup, the Fighting Irish sat last in the ACC standings with a 2-10 conference record.

Opening up the scoring in Friday's contest, Virginia Tech right fielder Jackson Cherry launched a solo home run to set the tone early. Notre Dame quickly countered on a passed ball thrown by Hokies sophomore Brent Renfrow, allowing shortstop Estevan Moreno to score and tie the game at one a piece.

In the third inning, Moreno capitalized again, reaching on a fielder’s choice to bring home centerfielder Jared Zimbardo and give the Fighting Irish a 2-1 lead.

Following a scoreless fourth inning, the Hokies tied the game at 2-2 in the fifth off a sacrifice fly from left fielder Ben Watson. Notre Dame responded immediately in the bottom half of the inning, taking advantage of a throwing error by Hokies second baseman Jared Davis to regain a 3-2 lead.

Notre Dame extended their advantage in the sixth inning, with run-scoring singles from left fielder Jayce Lee and first baseman Parker Brzustewicz pushing their lead to 5-2.

In the seventh, catcher Carson Tinney delivered a two-run homer to put the game away at 7-2.

Notre Dame starter Jack Radel earned his second win of the season with an impressive performance, pitching seven innings and allowing just three hits, two earned runs, and three walks while striking out five.

As it stands, the Hokies are placed eighth in the standings with a near .500 record at 7-6. Heading into game number two tomorrow, Notre Dame sits rock bottom as Friday was just their fifth win in conference play.

The Hokies aim to rebound against Notre Dame on Saturday, with first pitch at Frank Eck Stadium scheduled for 2:00 p.m.

Published
Taylor Bretl
TAYLOR BRETL

Along with covering the Hokies for Virginia Tech On SI, Taylor also writes for Yardbarker covering the NFL, NBA, MLB, and NCAA football and basketball. He also runs his own baseball media company, Around the Globe Baseball, covering the MLB. He is currently a Junior at Virginia Tech and majors in sports media and analytics