Irish reach final round

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Stellar pitching performances remained the story for Notre Dame Saturday at the NCAA Regional.

Irish pitchers yielded four hits to blank Valparaiso, 8-0, in five innings and Miami of Ohio, 5-0, in a pair of elimination games.

Notre Dame (43-12) advanced to a final round for the 10th time in program history. Notre Dame and No. 2 seed Michigan are scheduled to meet at 2 p.m. Sunday at Alumni Field on the Big Ten Network. If the Irish win, they will play again at 4:30.

Allie Rhodes (19-6) threw a strong game against Valparaiso, eliminating the Horizon League champions with a one-hit shutout over five full innings.

Rachel Nasland (16-4) followed with a big-time start in a rematch with Mid-American Conference titleholder Miami, spinning a three-hit shutout over seven innings. RedHawk hitters managed to draw three walks against Nasland, while the Notre Dame right-hander struck out four.

Co-captain Karley Wester finished Saturday with four hits, including a double, and added an RBI, stolen base and three runs scored. Micaela Arizmendi chipped in four hits, including two doubles, and drove in a team-high four runs during the pair of games.