Tennessee entered Friday night’s NCAA tournament super regional with a nation-leading 2.38 earned run average and with 12 consecutive postseason victories inside Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
Notre Dame didn’t care.
The Fighting Irish (39-14) homered in each of the first four innings to grab a stunning 8-1 lead over the nation’s top-ranked team before hanging on for an 8-6 triumph that has placed the Volunteers (56-8) just one loss away from their magical season ending. Tennessee must now defeat Notre Dame on Saturday afternoon (2 on ESPN) and again Sunday to reach a second straight College World Series.
“These guys have waited for this opportunity,” Notre Dame coach Link Jarrett said on the ESPN2 broadcast. “We went through this last year in Starkville, and we knew this atmosphere was going to be very similar. I’m so happy for our guys and their preparation and grinding through this.
“These guys chomp at the bit to compete, and they engage with everything we ask them to engage with.”