NOTRE DAME, Indiana — University of Notre Dame baseball coach Mik Aoki has announced the slate for his eighth season with the Irish, starting with the 2018 season opener at LSU on Friday, Feb. 16.
The schedule includes 20 games with NCAA tournament teams from a year ago, as well as nine games versus 2017 College World Series qualifiers. In addition to the season-opening three-game set at LSU, highlights include the return of the Alamo Irish Classic in San Antonio, Texas, an exhibition with the minor league South Bend Cubs, and the return of the series with Indiana to Victory Field in Indianapolis.
The home slate opens Wednesday, March 21, with a visit from Northern Illinois. In Atlantic Coast Conference play, Wake Forest, Clemson, Virginia Tech, Boston College and Pittsburgh will visit Frank Eck Stadium. The Saturday, April 28, showdown with Boston College will serve as the team’s annual Strikeout ALS game.
Non-Conference Weekends
at LSU | February 16-18
The Irish open by traveling to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, for three games against the Tigers and former Notre Dame head coach Paul Mainieri. LSU reached the College World Series finals a season ago, getting swept by Florida in the best-of-three showdown to determine the national champion. The Tigers led the nation in attendance a season ago, as 418,291 fans attended 39 contests at Alex Box Stadium.
Alamo Irish Classic | February 22-25
Notre Dame will be joined by Purdue, Saint Louis and Incarnate Word for the annual rite of spring at San Antonio’s Nelson Wolff Stadium. It will mark the 20th season since 1995 the Irish will play in San Antonio, with Mik Aoki having taken his club in all but one season during his tenure. Last year, Saint Louis captured the tournament title.
Kissimmee Irish Classic | March 2-4
Replacing the USA Baseball-Irish Classic on this year’s schedule is the Kissimmee Irish Classic. Notre Dame will play host to Seton Hall, Youngstown State and Seattle University at Osceola County Stadium, the spring training home of the Houston Astros and full-time home of the Florida Fire Frogs, the high class-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves.
ACC Home Series
Wake Forest | March 23-25
Wake Forest, an NCAA Super Regional participant a season ago, will be the league home-opener for the Irish in 2016. The Demon Deacons lead the all-time series with the Irish, 5-13, following a three-game sweep last season in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Clemson | April 6-7
The Tigers make their third trip to Frank Eck Stadium in April, holding an 8-5 edge in the all-time series. After joining the ACC for the 2014 season, the Irish won the series with the Tigers the first two seasons, with Clemson taking the series each of the last two years.
Virginia Tech | April 20-22
Virginia Tech will play at Frank Eck Stadium for the first time since 2004 when both teams were in the BIG EAST. The Hokies and Irish met in 2014 as members of the ACC, but the games were played at Coveleski Stadium and in Westfield, Indiana, due to delays in the installation of a new playing surface at The Eck. The most recent meeting between the clubs came in 2016, when the Irish went to Blacksburg, Virginia, and swept a three-game set by a combined score of 27-8.
Boston College | April 27-29
The Eagles visit in late April last year to follow-up a three-game series of close battles in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, a season ago. Aoki’s former club was swept in its last visit to Frank Eck Stadium in 2016. The Saturday contest will be Notre Dame’s annual Strikeout ALS Game, as the team supports the Pete Frates #3 Fund. Frates played for Aoki at Boston College and has become a leading advocate in the fight against ALS since being diagnosed in 2012.
Pitt | May 4-6
The home schedule will conclude with a three-game series against the Pitt Panthers. The Irish lead the all-time series with Pitt, 43-21, after winning two-of-three in Pittsburgh a season ago.The Panthers took two-of-three in their last visit to Frank Eck Stadium in 2016.
ACC Road Series
Miami | March 9-11
The Irish will make their first trip to Miami since 2014 when the Hurricanes took two-of-three. Since then, the teams have played once in the 2015 ACC Championship and one game in 2016, as inclement weather in Northern Indiana resulted in just one of the three games being played. Miami leads the all-time series, 18-6.
Florida State | March 16-18
After staying in Florida for a pair of midweek games over spring break, the Irish conclude their longest road trip of the year with a three-game set in Tallahassee.
Duke | March 20-April 1
Notre Dame and Duke will meet for just the third time in ACC play, with the Irish making their first trip to Durham, North Carolina, for a series with Duke since 2014. In that ACC debut season, the Blue Devils swept a series of close games (4-3 in 10 innings, 4-1 and 1-0). Last year, Notre Dame took two-of-three from Duke at The Eck, splitting a weather-induced doubleheader before a 3-2 win in the rubber match.
NC State | April 13-15
The Irish and Wolfpack have traded series victories since Notre Dame joined in the ACC in 2014, a trend the Irish will look to end in 2018. Last year at Frank Eck Stadium, the Irish won by scores of 4-1 and 2-1 before the Wolfpack took the series finale, 9-2. The last series in Raleigh in 2016 saw the Wolfpack win two-of-three.
Louisville | May 17-19
Notre Dame will cap the regular season in the Commonwealth of Kentucky against Louisville. The Cardinals and Irish met four times last season, with Louisville sweeping a three-game set at Frank Eck Stadium in early May before a 10-3 Cardinal win ended the 2017 Irish campaign at the ACC Championship.
Midweek Match-Ups
Saint Joseph’s | March 13-14
Notre Dame will take advantage of its spring break between ACC series at Miami and Florida State with a pair of games in Port Charlotte, Florida. The Irish will take on Saint Joseph’s (Pa.) at North Charlotte Regional Park. It will be the first-ever meetings in baseball between the Irish and Hawks.
at UIC & NIU | March 20-21
The first midweek games back in the midwest will see Notre Dame visit UIC in Chicago on Tuesday, March 20, before the home-opener with Northern Illinois on Wednesday, March 21. Notre Dame leads the all-time series with the Flames, 31-10, and the Huskies, 7-2.
Kent State | March 27-28
Notre Dame and Kent State meet for the first time since 2013, when they squared off at the USS Steel Yard in Gary, Indiana. It will be the Golden Flashes’ first visit to Frank Eck Stadium since the 2004 NCAA Regional hosted by Notre Dame. Kent upset the Irish, 2-1, in the opener, before the Irish knocked out the Flashes with a 7-1 in the next day.
Chicago State & South Bend Cubs | April 3-4
The Irish host Chicago State for the 35th meeting between the schools, with Notre Dame having won 32 of those games. The following day, the Irish take the quick drive to downtown South Bend for an exhibition game with the Single-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs at Four Winds Field.
at Michigan State & Northwestern | April 10-11
The Irish split the week with a pair of Big Ten opponents, two of the most common foes in school history. First will be a trip to East Lansing to face a Spartan team Notre Dame has defeated by one run each of the last two years. Then Northwestern travels to Frank Eck Stadium for the first of two meetings between the Irish and Wildcats this season.
Indiana | April 17
The lone midweek contest this week will come on Tuesday as the Indiana Hoosiers and a showdown at Victory Field in Indianapolis return to the schedule. Notre Dame and IU met at the home of the Triple-A Indianapolis Indians in 2014 and ’15, plaiting a pair of games. Those were the first meetings between the Irish and Hooisers since 1998.
Valparaiso & Western Michigan | April 24 & May 1
The one non-conference game per week schedule continues the final month of the season as the Irish host Valparaiso on Tuesday, April 24 and Western Michigan on Tuesday, May 1. The Irish and Crusaders will meet for the 100th time, with Notre Dame having won 78 of those games after a 10-3 win last year. It will be the 138th meeting with Western Michigan after a 10-2 victory in 2016 gave the Irish a 70-66-1 edge in the series.
at Northwestern | May 15
Notre Dame will play its final nonconference game of the year on Tuesday, May 15, with a trip to Evanston, Illinois, to face Northwestern for the second time on the season. It will cap an eight-day stretch without a game that includes the University’s final exams and Notre Dame’s ACC bye week (May 11-13).
