The rain didn't quite hold off long enough, and the second game of Notre Dame's doubleheader with Loyola-Chicago was called in the bottom of the seventh of the second game with the score tied at two apiece. Notre Dame won the first tilt 4-3 in extra innings.
Despite the win and tie, Notre Dame coach Deanna Gumpf was not happy with the result.
"We played with a team we should have dominated," Gumpf said. "We made this day a lot harder than it should have been."
Notre Dame 4, Loyola-Chicago 3
The Irish overcame four errors, three by freshman shortstop Katie Fleury, to beat Loyola in eight innings in game one.
Notre Dame got on the board first against the Ramblers, scoring in the bottom of the first inning when senior left fielder Sarah Smith, who had doubled to left-center, scored on a Christine Lux single.
Loyola came back to tie the game at one in the fourth inning, and struck again in the fifth.
The Ramblers used two hits and two Irish errors to plate two more runs and take a 3-1 lead.
"It's always tough to give up runs," Bargar said. "Whether they're earned or unearned. I've just got to keep doing what I've got to do to make this team win."
Notre Dame bounced right back with two runs of their own in the bottom of the inning. Amy Solava entered the game for Krista Crosson to pitch for the Ramblers, and struggled immediately. With Fleury on second and Smith on first, senior second baseman Katie Laing hit a long fly ball to center field. Schober caught the ball, but promptly dropped it on the exchange, allowing Fleury to score and Smith to advance to third. Two batters later, Ellis beat out a weak dribbler down the third baseline, and Smith scored on the play.
Neither team could push across a run in the sixth or seventh inning, and the game advanced to extra innings.
Playing under international tie-breaker rules, each team started with a runner on second in the added frame.
After holding Loyola-Chicago scoreless, Kohan started at second for the Irish in the bottom of the inning, and moved over to third on a wild pitch. Ellis then hit a grounder to shortstop Haley Ambrosch, but Ambrosch fell while trying to make the throw to the plate, and Kohan slid home to give Notre Dame the win in extras.
Bargar pitched all eight innings for the Irish, allowing no earned runs and striking out three with 115 pitches.
Notre Dame 2, Loyola-Chicago 2
Loyola got on the board first in the bottom half of the twin-billing, putting up an early run in the top of the first inning.
Loyola scratched out another run in the second inning. After a single, bunt single, and walk loaded the bases, freshman pitcher Jody Valdivia just barely nicked Loyola's Kristen Melrud to push across the run. Valdivia struck out the next batter, but was then pulled by Gumpf, and Bargar went back in to pitch. Valdivia finished having pitched one and two-thirds innings, giving up three hits and two earned runs.
While the Ramblers had scored their runs playing small ball, the Irish came back with some clout of their own in the bottom of the second. Leading of the inning, Lux blasted an opposite field shot over the fence in left and Notre Dame had cut the lead to 2-1. The Irish kept threatening, but couldn't score, leaving the bases full in both the second and the third.
"We were in position to score a lot of runs," Gumpf said. "And we need people to step up and take care of that."
In the bottom of the sixth the Irish came up with another clutch hit when they needed it most. With Marrone on first, freshman right fielder Brianna Jorgensborg ripped a shot to the left-centerfield gap, just past the outstretched fielder's glove. Marrone came around to score easily on the play, but Jorgensborg was called out trying to stretch it to a triple on a close call at third.
Rain started falling in the bottom of the seventh inning and, with Fleury on first, the umpires spotted lightning and called the game, ending it in a 2-2 tie.
Bargar finished five and one-thirds innings pitched and gave up only three hits and no runs, while striking out four.
The Irish next take on Providence in a doubleheader at Melissa Cook Stadium on April 26.
