Clemson Baseball is no stranger to heart-stopping action, but Friday’s game against Notre Dame was nothing short of a theatrical sports masterpiece. The No. 2 Tigers staged an electrifying comeback to take down the Fighting Irish 7-3 at Frank Eck Stadium.
From the onset, Clemson was in for a challenge. Notre Dame established a lead early on, with David Glancy’s first-inning home run rippling through the stadium and setting an intense pace for the game. The adrenaline was palpable as Estevan Moreno doubled down on that lead with a sharp two-run double in the second inning. The Fighting Irish, firmly in control, led 3-0 and it seemed like it would be their day.
Clemson, however, had a different story to write.
With 2 outs the Tigers showed their claws in the sixth inning, as Will Taylor sliced a crucial single and Mathes scored Clemson’s first run, signaling the beginning of an awe-inspiring reversal.
“We got down early as usual,” said Coach Bakich said with a chuckle. “Matthew Marchal settled down after a rough first inning and gave us 4 shut down innings. We had a game-defining moment when Drew Titsworth came in and got two outs with bases loaded.”
Coach Erik Bakich
The eighth inning transformed into a thrilling battleground for dominance. The Tigers’ Blake Wright and Jacob Hinderleider brought out their best, hitting run-scoring doubles with a ferocity that tied the score. With the battle lines drawn at 3-3, it was Taylor once again, who delivered a masterstroke – a go-ahead two-run homer that will surely be a feature on highlight reels for seasons to come.
“We needed to come up big in the 8th inning and piece a couple of runs together and we did it,” Taylor stated later, capturing the spirit of the team.
And just when you thought the Tigers had peaked, Jimmy Obertop stepped up to the plate in the ninth and dispatched the ball for a two-run homer, painting the perfect ending to a dramatic triumph.
The pitching by Drew Titsworth (3-0), who earned the win with critical strikeouts in a high-pressure seventh inning, was a showcase of clutch performance. And Austin Gordon, who came on for the last 1.2 innings, secured his third save of the year in a fashion that further ratified the team’s incredible depth and mental fortitude.
Ricky Reeth (1-4), while showing commendable effort for the Fighting Irish, ultimately shouldered the loss in a game where the finest of margins defined the outcome.
With Saturday’s game set to air at 5:30 p.m. on ESPN2, the stage is already set for another spellbinding encounter.
