SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Clemson opened the game with two runs in the top of the first inning, and then turned it over to starter Clate Schmidt. The senior matched his career high in innings pitched as the 18th-ranked Tigers beat Notre Dame, 11-1, on Friday at Frank Eck Stadium in South Bend, Ind.
The win clinched the series for the Tigers, who will close the regular season with four straight series wins. Clemson has now won 11 of its last 15 games, and needs a win tomorrow or a Georgia Tech and Duke loss to secure one of the top six seeds in next week’s ACC Tournament.
Clemson improved to 15-14 in the ACC with the win, which guarantees the Tigers will finish with at least a .500 record in ACC play for the 43rd time in the last 44 years.
Schmidt (7-4) opened the game by retiring the first 16 batters he faced. It was an efficient night for the righty as he allowed just one run on three hits, while fanning six and walking none in 8 1/3 innings of work. That matched his career-high in innings worked as he did the same against Georgia Tech on May 23, 2014. In that game, however, he gave up two runs off eight hits.
“Today was all about Clate Schmidt,” Clemson head coach Monte Lee said. “He gave us an unbelievable start. We took him out there in the ninth inning because we wanted to keep him under 100 pitches because we anticipate him starting for us, at some point, next week.
“He threw a heck of a ballgame for us today.”
Schmidt threw 96 pitches in his 8 1/3 innings of work, 63 went for strikes.
At the plate Chase Pinder had two hits, a double and a run driven in, while Eli White had an RBI, scored twice, had three hits, including a double and a triple. Catcher Chris Okey also had two RBIs, while Reed Rohlman drove in three runs and had a double. Right fielder Seth Beer also brought two runs home and reached base for a 53 straight game.
“We put together some really good at-bats, defensively we played well, and then Clate Schmidt pitched a well of a ballgame,” Lee said. “It’s good to get this series win today and hopefully we can find a way to win tomorrow.”
Clemson (37-18, 15-14 ACC) wasted little time getting on the scoreboard as Beer and Okey each drove in a run with infield grounders to short in the top of the first inning. Pinder, who opened the game with a single to right field, scored on Beer’s grounder, while White made the score 2-0 as he scored from third on Okey’s grounder.
White doubled to left field to move Pinder to third after Pinder’s base hit.
The Tigers’ two runs in the first inning where the most allowed by Notre Dame starter Michael Hearne in the last nine games he has pitched. Heare (8-2) suffered the loss for the Irish, just his second of the year. He had a 1.93 ERA coming in 13 games, including 12 starts.
Clemson extended its lead to 3-0 in the top of the sixth inning when Okey hit a ball to centerfield allowing White to come home from second base. White led off the inning with a base hit up the middle.
Notre Dame (27-26, 11-16 ACC) finally got something going on Schmidt in the bottom of the sixth inning, but it was short lived. After Schmidt sat down the first 16 batters he faced, third baseman Kyle Fiala hit a ball to right centerfield which just beat a diving Pinder.
Fiala moved to third with a triple and then went home when Weston Wilson’s throw was errant and got past Chris Williams at third base.
The Irish then got runners on first and second with one out after a Connor Slutts’ hit and a fielding error by Williams on Cavan Biggio grounder to third. But Schmidt induced a grounder to shortstop off Nick Podkul’s bat, which White and Wilson turned into a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning.
The Tigers quickly answered back in the top of the seventh inning as Andrew Cox scored on passed ball after reaching base on an error from pitcher Peter Solomon. Cox then stole second base and advanced to third base on a Pinder grounder to first.
With two outs, and the bases loaded, Rohlman singled to centerfield allowing Beer and Okey to come home. That made the score 6-1.
“We played really well offensively in the second half of the ballgame, and I really liked the way we swung the bats today,” Lee said.
Clemson got three more runs in the top of the eighth inning, highlighted by White’s triple to left centerfield to score Pinder, who doubled down the left field line earlier in the inning to score Cox. Beer brought White home for the final run of the inning with a grounder to short.
The Tigers will play Notre Dame at 1 p.m. on Saturday in Game 3 of the series as they go for their first three-game sweep since sweeping Boston College to open ACC play on March 18-20.