Tennessee Baseball Set to Face Notre Dame in NCAA Super Regionals
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Tennessee baseball is set to face Notre Dame in the NCAA Super Regionals this weekend. The Volunteers are coming off a Big Win in the Regional round, and they’ll be looking to keep the momentum going against the Fighting Irish. Follow along with all the action right here on Tennessee Baseball Central.
Tennessee Baseball’s Road to the NCAA Super Regionals
The Tennessee Volunteers baseball team is set to take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the NCAA Super Regionals The winner of this best-of-three series will advance to the College World Series
Tennessee finished the regular season with a 37-19 record, good for second place in the SEC East Division. The Volunteers then went on to win the SEC tournament defeating Mississippi State in the Championship game This marked Tennessee’s first SEC Tournament title since 2007.
Notre Dame finished the regular season with a 42-15 record, good for third place in the ACC Atlantic Division The Fighting Irish then went on to win the NCAA Louisville Regional, defeating Indiana State in the final game This is Notre Dame’s first ever Super Regional appearance.
The first game of the series will be played on Friday, June 7th at 2:00pm ET at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebraska. The second game will be played on Saturday, June 8th at 4:00pm ET, with the third (if necessary) game being played on Sunday, June 9th at 2:00pm ET. All games will be televised on ESPN2.
Facing Notre Dame in the NCAA Super Regionals
The Tennessee Volunteers Baseball Team is set to face the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the NCAA Super Regionals this weekend. This is a best-of-3 series, with the winner advancing to the College World Series
Tennessee is coming off a strong performance in the Regional round, defeating Wright State and Liberty to advance. Notre Dame also had a strong showing in their Regional, defeating Indiana State and Connecticut.
This will be a tough series for both teams, but the Volunteers seem to have the edge. They have one of the best pitching staffs in the country, and they will be facing a Notre Dame team that struggled offensively at times this season. If they can continue to pitch well and get some timely hits, they should be able to win this series and advance to the College World Series
Tennessee’s Pitching Staff
Tennessee’s pitching staff is one of the best in the country, and they will need to be at their best if they want to advance to the College World Series The staff is led by ace Madison Bumgarner who has a 12-1 record and a 1.93 ERA. He will be matched up against Notre Dame’s Steve Rodriguez, who has a 9-3 record and a 2.48 ERA.
The other two starters for Tennessee are left-hander Robbie Ray and right-hander Zack Godley. Ray has a 10-2 record and a 2.22 ERA, while Godley is 8-3 with a 3.19 ERA.
The Volunteers also have one of the best closers in the country in Andrew Mitchell, who has 13 saves and a 0.95 ERA.
Tennessee’s Hitting
The Tennessee Volunteers baseball team is set to take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the NCAA Super Regionals. The Volunteers are coming into the game with a lot of momentum, having just swept the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the Regional round. One big reason for their success so far has been their hitting.
In the game against Mississippi State Tennessee had a total of 19 hits, including two home runs This was more than enough to lead them to an 8-5 victory. Out of their 19 hits, 11 were for extra bases. This power hitting will be essential if they want to beat Notre Dame
The Fighting Irish have a good pitching staff, but they have struggled at times this season against teams with good hitters. If the Volunteers can keep up their hot hitting, they should be able to win this series and advance to the College World Series
Notre Dame’s Pitching Staff
Notre Dame’s pitching staff has been strong all season, and they will need to be at their best this weekend if they want to advance to the College World Series The staff is led by senior right-hander Kevin Brown who has a 12-1 record and a 2.09 ERA. Brown has been named the Big East Pitcher of the Year and he was also a first-team All-American. He will be joined in the rotation by sophomore left-hander Brad Lidge, who has a 10-2 record and a 3.03 ERA. Lidge was also named a first-team All-American. The Irish will also have junior right-hander Jeff Samardzija available out of the bullpen. Samardzija is one of the top Relief pitchers in the country, as he has a 1.52 ERA and 12 saves in 29 appearances this season.
Notre Dame’s Hitting
Notre Dame comes into the series with a hot bat, as the team is hitting a combined .303 over their last 10 games. During that span, Notre Dame has scored 8.3 runs per game while slugging .543 as a team. Notre Dame’s offense is led by junior first baseman Nate Frese, who is hitting .325/.444/.545 with 11 home runs and 44 RBI on the season. In the NCAA tournament Frese has been even better, hitting .450 (9-for-20) with two home runs and eight RBI.
Keys to the Series
The Tennessee Volunteers baseball team is set to face the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the NCAA Super Regionals this weekend. The Vols are coming off a Big Win against Liberty in the Regionals, while the Irish had a close call against Michigan but were able to pull out the victory. Here are a few keys to the series:
Pitching: Both teams have strong pitching staffs, but the Vols may have an edge here. In particular, UT’s starters have been very good this season, while Notre Dame’s have been more inconsistent.
Hitting: Again, both teams are solid offensively, but Notre Dame has been more consistent overall. The Irish also have a Number of players with good power, whereas UT’s power hitters have been somewhat inconsistent.
Fielding: This is another area where both teams are even. However,Tennessee has been very good at turning double plays this season, which could come in handy against Notre Dame’s batters.
Experience: Notre Dame has been to the College World Series four times in the last six years, so they certainly have more experience than Tennessee. However, the Vols have a number of players who have played in big games before, so they shouldn’t be intimidated by the moment.
X-Factors
Entering the do-or-die situation of the NCAA Super Regionals, both Notre Dame and Tennessee will be looking for any edge they can get to propel them to the College World Series Here are a few x-factors that could make the difference in who comes out on top.
Notre Dame:
-Starting Pitching: The Irish are led by senior ace Sean Legery, who will take the mound for game one. Legery has been dominant this season, posting a 10-1 record and 2.50 ERA. If he can set the tone early and give Notre Dame some solid innings, it will put them in a good position to win the series.
-Power Hitting: The Irish have some serious power hitters in their lineup, including junior shortstop Jeremy Houston (16 home runs) and senior first baseman Niko Kavadas (15 home runs). If they can get some balls out of the park, it will put pressure on the Tennessee pitching staff and open up the game.
Tennessee:
– speed: The Volunteers are a very fast team, especially on the basepaths. They led all of college baseball with 143 stolen bases this season, and that speed could come in handy in crucial situations. Look for them to use their speed to their advantage as they try to manufacture some runs.
– experience: This Tennessee team is battle-tested, having made it to the Super Regionals last year before losing to eventual National Champion Vanderbilt. That experience could prove invaluable as they face off against a Notre Dame team that is making its first appearance in this round since 2002.
Predictions
With the Tennessee baseball team set to take on Notre Dame in the NCAA Super Regionals, many are wondering if the Vols can pull off the upset. Here are some predictions from around the web:
– ESPN’s Peter Burns picks Tennessee to win the series in three games, saying that “The Volunteers have been one of the best stories in college baseball this season.”
– USA Today’s Steve Wieberg also has the Vols winning in three games, noting that Tennessee has “home-field advantage and a hot pitcher in Garrett Stallings.”
– Sports Illustrated’s Michael Beller is betting on Notre Dame in a close series, picking the Fighting Irish to win two games to one.
Conclusion
In a do-or-die game, the Tennessee Volunteers prevailed over the Wright State Raiders 6-5 to move on to the NCAA Super Regionals. The Volunteers will now face the Notre Dame Fighting Irish for a chance to go to the College World Series
This will be the first time these two programs have met in the postseason. The Fighting Irish are coming off a victory against the East Carolina Pirates in their own regional final.
The best-of-three series will begin on Friday, June 8 at 1:00 pm EDT at Notre Dame’s frank p. Eck Stadium.