Strong pitching helps Notre Dame take St. John's in series
By NOAH AMSTADTER
Sports Writer
In a series that featured some of the best pitching in the Big East, outstanding crowds and a walk-off home run, the Irish baseball team took two of three games over the Red Storm of St. John's this weekend.
In what was seemingly a mismatch on the mound Sunday afternoon, freshman J.P Gagne took the mound against St. John's pitcher Kevin McGeery. MeGeery, who brought in a 5-2 record, is rated as one of the top collegiate pitchers in the country.
Instead of giving in, Gagne held his own, giving up three runs in six-plus innings. Meanwhile, the Irish offense clicked against McGeery, scoring seven runs in seven innings.
Notre Dame opened up the game in the seventh inning. After the Red Storm scored three runs off Gagne and sophomore reliever Matt Buchmaier, the Irish scored four runs to take a 7-5 lead. Three of those runs came on a tremendous home run by freshman right-fielder Brian Stavisky.
In the eighth inning, each team scored one run. The Irish scored on a homer by designated hitter Ken Meyer, who had a tremendous weekend at the plate, cracking out eight hits, six of which went for extra bases.
Unfortunately, the Irish could not hold the two-run lead in the top of the ninth. Buchmaier gave up two hits to begin the inning before head coach Paul Mainieri brought in senior closer John Corbin to try to stop the bleeding. Corbin kept the St. John's hitters from hitting the ball hard, but still allowed two runners to score on ground balls as the Red Storm tied the game at eight runs apiece.
The Irish provided the most exciting moment in the eventful game in the bottom of the ninth inning as senior first baseman Jeff Felker hit a the ball over the fence to win the game for the Irish by a score of 9-8.
"[Sunday's] game was a tremendous victory," said head coach Paul Mainieri. "There were about 1500 people there today — just hearing the crowd was nice."
The game had been heavily advertised on campus all week as the "Breast Cancer Awareness Game," a project of former Irish catcher Chuck Lennon's management class. One of the main planners from the class was sophomore Paul O'Toole, who got two hits to go along with two diving catches in left field on Sunday.
"It was really an exciting event, the class did a great job," said Mainieri. "The crowd was great and I feel everybody benefited from the knowledge they provided. It was a fun day at the ballpark."
The two squads split a doubleheader Saturday afternoon, with junior All-American Aaron Heilman pitching yet another gem in the opener. In collecting his ninth consecutive win in the 8-3 Irish victory, Heilman recorded nine strikeouts in seven innings for his conference-leading seventh complete game.
"It was another typical performance for Heilman," said Mainieri.
Meyer led the offense in the opener, collecting a triple and two doubles. "This weekend was great. I was really seeing the ball well," said a modest Meyer.
In the second game, senior righthander Scott Cavey pitched well, but ended up with a no-decision as the Red Storm rallied late to win the game 6-4.
Junior shortstop Alec Porzel lead off the game with a home run, his fourth of the season. Also contributing in game one were Felker and sophomore third baseman Andrew Bushey, who each had three hits.
With the Irish up 2-1 in the top of the eighth inning, Cavey loaded the bases with one out before Mainieri brought in Corbin to close the game. After giving up a game-tying groundout, Corbin allowed a single by Eric Potts which put the Red Storm up 3-2.
In the bottom of the eighth, the Irish regained the lead on a leadoff triple by Meyer, followed by a double by center-fielder Steve Stanley and a single by Bushey.
Corbin, however, could not hold the 4-3 lead in the bottom of the ninth, as the previously unbeaten closer gave up three runs. The Irish were not able to muster a comeback in the bottom frame, and fell by the final of 6-4.
"That game was a heartbreaker," said Mainieri, "It was seemingly in our hand, then we lost it."
The Irish host Northwestern at 6:05 p.m. on Tuesday.
All Sports Stories for Monday, May 1, 2000
