ACC BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP – First Round

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (Interstat) — The Atlantic Coast Conference Baseball Championship opens Tuesday with a first-round matchup pitting seed Clemson against seed Notre Dame at Truist Field.

First pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m. The weather forecast calls for clear skies.

Clemson (31-25) enters the tournament having won its regular-season finale Saturday, 10-8 at Virginia Tech. The Tigers dropped two of three in that series but finished the regular season with a .500 record over their final 10 games (5-5).

Notre Dame (30-21) closed the regular season with a 21-10 rout at Pittsburgh on Saturday, winning two of three against the Panthers. The Fighting Irish are 7-3 in their last 10 games.

The teams met in a three-game series March 20-22 in South Bend, Indiana, with Notre Dame sweeping. The Irish won 6-0, 8-7 and 7-4.

Notre Dame center fielder Drew Berkland is the ACC’s hottest hitter entering the tournament. The senior is 20-for-43 (.465) over his last 10 games with seven home runs and 20 RBIs. In Saturday’s win at Pittsburgh, Berkland went 4-for-6 with two homers and four RBIs. He has multiple hits in six of his last eight games and has homered in five of his last eight.

Clemson right fielder Jack Crighton has been inconsistent but showed power down the stretch. The junior is 15-for-39 (.385) over his last 10 games with one home run and six RBIs. He went 3-for-5 with a homer and two RBIs in Saturday’s win at Virginia Tech. Crighton had a four-hit game May 5 at Coastal Carolina, going 4-for-5 with an RBI.

Clemson’s pitching staff struggled in the regular season’s final weeks. The Tigers allowed at least six runs in five of their last seven games. Talan Bell threw 1 2/3 scoreless innings of relief in Saturday’s win, striking out one.

Notre Dame’s offense is averaging 10.3 runs over its last 10 games. The Irish have scored at least nine runs in seven of those contests.

The ACC tournament uses a pool-play format. Tuesday’s winner will advance to face the seed in the next round of the double-elimination bracket.

Interstat’s game simulator projects Notre Dame 7, Clemson 5.