Notre Dame opened up the fourth annual Strike Out Cancer series this weekend against Maryland at Melissa Cook Stadium, setting a strong tone for the rest of the series with a convincing doubleheader sweep.
The Irish (33-10, 12-5 ACC) grabbed their fourth ACC series victory by defeating the Terrapins (8-34, 4-15) and, with the victories, move into second place in the conference standings.
In the five-inning first game Saturday, senior starting pitcher Laura Winter (22-4) went the distance, allowing only four hits and struck out seven Maryland batters in a shutout 9-0 victory. In the second game, Winter pitched two-and-two-thirds innings of relief to record the victory.
After a relatively easy victory in the first game of the doubleheader, the Irish ran into stiff resistance during the nightcap. Maryland took an early lead in the first inning, though Haus would knock in an RBI to tie up the score at 1-1 in the bottom of the inning. Both teams traded runs back and forth until the score sat at 5-3 in the fifth inning, favoring Maryland.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Irish junior centerfielder Emilee Koerner reached base on an error, Haus singled, and Arizmendi walked to load up the bases. Winter then cleared them with an RBI single to tie the game at 5. Winter scored on an RBI single from Saganowich to make the score 6-5, which ultimately proved to be enough even though the Irish added two more runs to make the final score 8-5.
The Irish close the series against Maryland on Monday at Melissa Cook Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m.
