NOTRE DAME, Ind. (Interstat) — The Notre Dame offense erupted for eight runs in the first inning and never looked back, cruising to a 14-3 victory over Western Michigan in nonconference baseball Tuesday afternoon at Frank Eck Stadium.

The Fightin’ Irish sent 12 batters to the plate in the bottom of the first, erasing an early 1-0 deficit with a relentless barrage. After Drew Berkland singled, Noah Coy doubled him home. Mark Quatrani then launched a two-run homer to deep left field to give Notre Dame a lead it would not relinquish. Bino Watters followed immediately with a solo shot to left-center, capping a stretch of four consecutive hits to open the frame. The Irish added two more runs on a sacrifice fly and an RBI double before the inning ended, staking starter Kellan Klosterman to an 8-1 lead.

Western Michigan had scratched across a run in the top of the first without a hit, using a walk, a hit batter, a wild pitch and a groundout to take a brief lead. The Broncos added single runs in the third and fourth innings, with Brendan Pilarski scoring both times, but could not mount a sustained threat against the Notre Dame bullpen.

The most decisive sequence came in the bottom of the third inning, when Notre Dame broke the game open with four more runs, all with two outs. After two runs scored on a throwing error and an RBI triple from Berkland, Jayce Lee delivered the crushing blow. With two runners on base via an error and a single, Lee hammered a three-run homer to left field, extending the Irish lead to 12-2.

Watters was the standout performer for Notre Dame, going a perfect 4 for 4 at the plate with a home run, three RBIs and three runs scored. The left fielder’s performance marked a sharp rebound after he was held hitless in two of his previous three games. Quatrani finished 2 for 3 with a homer and three RBIs, while Berkland went 2 for 2 with a triple, an RBI and three runs scored.

Five Notre Dame pitchers combined on the effort. Klosterman earned the win despite allowing two earned runs over 2 1/3 innings. Relievers Aiden Zerr and Garrett Snyder were particularly effective, combining for three scoreless innings of two-hit ball to close out the game.

For Western Michigan, reliever Evan Shapiro provided a bright spot, firing two perfect innings with three strikeouts in the fifth and sixth. The Broncos managed just seven hits as a team and struck out 10 times.

With the win, Notre Dame improved to 15-6 overall, while Western Michigan fell to 10-12. The victory exceeded the projections of Interstat’s game simulator, which had forecast a narrow 7-6 Notre Dame win.

The Fightin’ Irish now turn their attention to a pivotal Atlantic Coast Conference series, hosting North Carolina for three games beginning Friday. Western Michigan returns home to open a three-game set against Massachusetts on Friday.