A four-run fourth inning was too much for the Notre Dame baseball team to overcome in a 7-2 loss to UC Santa Barbara Tuesday in Santa Barbara. The seven runs the Irish (10-4) allowed to the Gauchos (9-7) are the most they have given-up through 14 games in 2013.
Notre Dame is in the middle of its extended spring break trip and just finished three games over the weekend at the Dodgertown Classic in Los Angles. Nick McCarty (2-3), who had a 0.55 ERA in six relief appearances, suffered the loss in his first career start. The freshman allowed four earned runs on five hits in 3.2 innings. He had walked just two batters in 16.1 relief innings, but issued four free passes in the start.
UCSB knocked McCarty from the game in the ill fated fourth. He was relieved by Donnie Hissa, who promptly gave-up a two-run triple to Tyler Kuresa. The Gaucho first baseman finished with a team-high three hits. Hissa allowed two runs on three hits.
Irish two-way player Zak Kutsulis finished the game by pitching the last 3.1 innings. He faced 12 batters and allowed just one hit.
The Fighting Irish scored their only runs in the sixth inning on back-to-back RBI singles by Ryan Bull and Eric Jagielo. ND managed seven hits, with three of them coming from designated hitter Phil Mosey. The Irish stranded seven.
Six Santa Barbara pitchers combined to strikeout 13 Irish batters in the win. Greg Mahle was the third Gaucho pitcher to come out of the bullpen. He fanned six in 4.0 innings of work.
Notre Dame is off on Wednesday and concludes its spring break trip with a three-game series at Cal Poly Thursday-Saturday.
