Irish Breakdown

Notre Dame Meat Loafs Florida Atlantic to Start Baseball Season

Notre Dame rallied to win two-straight after dropping the opener in Boca Raton over the weekend
Nick Shepkowski|
Meat Loaf in Los Angeles in October 1999 Meat Loaf - USAT - 1999
Meat Loaf in Los Angeles in October 1999 Meat Loaf - USAT - 1999 | Robert Hanashiro / USA TODAY NETWORK

It may only be February but college baseball season is upon us. The year got started this past weekend and Notre Dame began play with a three-game series at Florida Atlantic in Boca Raton, Florida.

Here's how opening weekend 2026 went for Notre Dame.

Notre Dame Drops Game 1 at Florida Atlantic

Notre Dame's 2026 baseball season started with a dud Friday night, falling at Florida Atlantic 7-1.

The Fighting Irish scored first in the contest, plating a run in the top of the second inning, as a Jamie Zee single scored Noah Coy.

However, that was it for the Irish offensively as the bats soon came alive for the host Owls, and things quickly got away.

John Martinez hit a three-run home run for the hosts in the bottom of the second inning, giving Florida Atlantic a 3-1 lead. It would add four more runs on the night, earning a 7-1 victory, and securing an Opening Day victory.

Jack Radel (0-1) was hit with the loss for Notre Dame after giving up three runs in four innings of work.

Notre Dame Erupts Saturday, Evens Series at Florida Atlantic

Notre Dame made quick work of the Owls in Saturday, evening up the series at 1-1 with a dominating 14-1 victory.

After Florida Atlantic loaded the bases in the bottom of the first inning, Caden Crowell struck out Jayden Harriel to leave the game scoreless.

Dylan Passo got the Irish scoring started in the second inning when his sacrafice fly plated Davis Johnson for the game's first run.

A Bino Watters RBI single in the second inning doubled the lead. A pair of Florida Atlantic errors in the inning would prove costly as Notre Dame put up a four-spot, expanding the lead to 5-0.

Coy would have three RBI on the night while Jayce Lee and Watters and reserve left fielder Caleb Ricks would add two each, with Lee and Watters both hitting solo home runs in the contest.

Xavier Hirsch recorded the win for Notre Dame, going four innings and allowing Florida Atlantic's only run of the game.

Notre Dame Dominates Florida Atlantic for Series Win

For the second day in a row, Notre Dame put up a big number in beating Florida Atlantic, this time in earning a series victory.

Things remained scoreless in South Florida until a Watters single scored Mason Barth in the fifth inning for Notre Dame. Mark Quatrani then had a sacrafice fly to score Drew Berkland and stretch the Notre Dame lead to 2-0.

The Irish would add four runs in the eighth, stretching the lead to 6-0 before ultimately winning the game 7-1 and taking the season opening series.

Watters recorded three hits for Notre Dame while Ty Uber got things started right on the mound, not allowing an Owls run in his four innings of work.

Next Up for Notre Dame Baseball

Friday night might have been frustrating for the Fighting Irish, but as the great philosopher Meat Loaf once said, "Don't feel bad, two out of three ain't bad."

Notre Dame will head back to Florida this coming weekend when it takes part in the Live Like Lou Jax College Baseball Classic. Notre Dame opens the weekend on Friday with a 6:00 p.m. ET game against UCF in Jacksonville, Fla. It is set to take on traditional baseball powerhouse LSU on Saturday and in-state rival Indiana on Sunday.

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Nick Shepkowski
NICK SHEPKOWSKI

Managing Editor for Notre Dame On SI. Started covering Chicago sports teams for WSCR the Score, and over the years worked with CBS Radio, Audacy, NBC Sports, and FOX Sports as a contributor before running the Notre Dame wire site for USA TODAY.

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