NCAA Starkville Super Regional: Notre Dame Quotes (June 12, 2021)

NCAA Starkville Super Regional
Postgame Press Conference – Game 1
Notre Dame
June 12, 2021

Notre Dame Head Coach Link Jarrett

Q: What happened to the defense today?
LJ: "The surface plays completely different than ours. We knew that the way it reacts off the turf on the plate affected us a little bit. The dirt plays hard and fast. We did not handle it well. We were a little bit out of sorts with some balls in the outfield and line drives that kicked away from our guys. You can't make the kind of mistakes we made defensively and on the mound. We didn't execute pitches at a high enough quip to hold it in check. It's hard to win when you make those kinds of mistakes. It's not impossible. We were on the verge of doing it. It definitely wasn't the normal style of baseball that we play. The ball was in play. I thought [John] Bertrand threw well. I thought [Tanner] Kohlhepp threw okay. We just didn't have a lot of defensive support. It was tough. We'll get back to the hotel immediately and break this down. Some of these guys are still learning. It's a tough learning environment at this point. Some of our guys haven't been through the atmosphere and a field that plays like that. That combination led to a lot of mistakes. Their guys battled. It's a very good team, obviously playing with a lot of energy at home."

Q: How was Mississippi State able to come back and take the lead?
LJ: "Our guys were ready to play and engaged in the game. We just didn't play solid, sound defense. We rushed the ball at shortstop. I think [Zach] Prajzner had a great game, a beautiful game offensively. The one double play we turned there up the middle was phenomenal. We just had too many mistakes. When you're in collect out mode, that's exactly what you have to do. We did not collect some of the outs that were presented to us. It's hard. You can overcome it, but it's extremely challenging in this setting with those caliber arms that they're running out there to overcome those non-collected outs. We almost did it. I love the atmosphere and the way our guys play. I think we needed to settle and experience a ball game on this field to handle it better tomorrow."

Q: You've lost the first game of a series and bounced back to win the series multiple times this season, what is that mentality like and how do you look to pull that off again?
LJ: "We better pull it off or that's it. I don't think our team has lost back-to-back games in two years. That's hard to do. I could be wrong with that stat. We have to regroup ourselves, figure our pitching out for tomorrow and go. These guys are resilient. We've been through a lot of tough baseball with a number of games we played in the ACC is a grinder. Minus the atmosphere that exists here, we've been in this grinder before. The guys will respond. You can tell when you watch our guys at game, and they play the game hard. That's really all that we ask. At the end of the day, we have to execute better. They'll bounce back."

Q: What was the velocity going on and did you peg Will Bednar accurately?
LJ: "Yes, exactly. We knew going in what we were trying to do, and we did it. We talked about the ebbs and flows of the game, absorbing some of the blows and delivering blows. We had a chance to do more. These guys are in the position they're in because they can navigate and sometimes damage control it a little bit. Bednar was good, Chase Patrick, Preston Johnson. They're all good in their own right. Our guys know what they're trying to do. I was overall pleased with the at bats. There were moments it could have been better, but I have no complaints. They were ready to go, and I thought they had it secured fairly well."

Q: Landon Sims is a handful, but if you see him again, what do you think your guys may have taken from their at bats?
LJ: "Visually trying to track it. The guys who saw him have to communicate to the other guys to figure out what this thing looks like that appears to climb on him. It's a very effective pitch. He's a tough kid out there and he makes critical pitches for his team. Our guys do a great job of communicating about what this stuff looks like. You can communicate and watch all the video you want, but until you've seen some pitches in that box live, it's tough to simulate or share on that type of climbing fastball. They'll communicate, and we'll do our best to adapt a little bit."

Q: What is the message that you give to your team after a loss like this?
LJ: "It is a three-game series for a reason. They have to beat us twice and we have to win two games in a row. I think that our guys are okay as far as trying to relax them. I did not sense any frustration to the point of being able to perform. I am not worried about that. On this stage, mistakes are very humbling and hard to learn from. That is what they have to do. They have to learn from some of the things that happened in this game and have to learn to apply it next time. Some of the things are very difficult to simulate in practice. We have to freelance it a little better. I am not worried about the frustration. These guys are competitive. It is okay to be disappointed, upset, and mad. Sometimes that focuses you."

Q: What direction are you going in for pitching tomorrow?
LJ: "We have some options to open the game and then we will figure it out. We have had guys who have pitched in all sorts of roles this year. That is one of the strengths of our team. The flexibility of our staff on the mound. We will figure it out. That is probably it for Tanner [Kohlhepp] for tomorrow. We will see how he feels on Monday. It is a lot to ask of him. He is a tough kid and is learning. If you look at the inning workload of some of these guys, he is still in the early stages of pitching on this level. He is a competitive and athletic kid. We will see how he responds and see if he is available."

Q: What did you see from Preston Johnson that allowed Mississippi State to come back?
LJ: "His breaking balls were effective, and he kept them down. I do not know if we hit him much. [Zack] Prajzner may have hit one into the corner and [Jack] Brannigan may have hit one, but it was sporadic contact. It was low quality contact on the ball. It looked like the velocity added and subtracted with the breaking pitch. He may have thrown a curveball and a slider. He pitched it very well. I think [Spencer] Myers may have hit him, but he was still able to pick it up and make the play for an out. All of their guys that they ran out there to pitch were good. They all have a variety of different arms. I was proud of the way that we were able to match the variety of arms that they ran out there. His breaking ball was exceptional today and was located very well."

Q: Did it feel like the heavyweight fight that it looked like from our point of view?
LJ: "Championship quality. It felt like a national championship game. Point blank. The atmosphere, personnel, strategy, talent, everything. That is what is like at the highest amateur levels, and we got to see that today. We did not play at the highest level of defense like our team has played, but that was a turning point in the ball game. Make no mistake, it does not get any more intense or exciting than that. It is tough to be on the wrong side of that. Everybody that was here, all 14,385, that is why they show up. They made this what it is. These fans are great, and they add to the excitement and energy for this game. It was great.

Q: What did you see with how they approached Niko Kavadas at the plate?
LJ: "He grounded out twice, walked, and was punched out. It is hard for me to sit here with those at-bats to base it off of. It was a little tricky for me to say how they attacked him. They mixed a little bit and doubled up on things. That is a hard one for me to dissect with all of this just occurring. He looked like he was on. He had laid off some good pitches."

Zack Prajzner | Shortstop

Q: What was it like on the field and in the dugout today?
ZP: "We have always heard a lot about this field's atmosphere. It absolutely lived up to it. I think that they set the record for attendance at a Super Regional. You definitely heard them. It was definitely a great atmosphere. It was what a Super Regional should look like.

Q: What was making Mississippi State so effective in the later innings?
ZP: "I think it was just locating multiple pitches for strikes. They were able to locate off-speed and the fastball. The curveballs from both guys were really good late. They were able to get ahead in the count and then locate pitches."

Q: Talk about the hits that you were able to get today against Mississippi State?
ZP: "I have been working a lot on my approach lately. I have been nice and easy with it. Singles up the middle. I have been trying to develop more power as I go. I guess that is what happened today. I was just trying to put the ball in play hard, and I hit it a little harder than I thought I did."

Q: How much do the errors in this game linger in your mind?
ZP: "Those are going to hurt for a while. Especially the ones that I committed in big spots. Those were on me. I sped up those plays a little bit. I know that I am better than that. We will be stronger tomorrow and play the defense and baseball we have been playing all year."

Q: What was the message in the locker room after the game?
ZP: "We haven't talked as a team yet. We will probably do that when we get back to the hotel. I do not want to attribute it to one thing in particular. The errors were bad, and they are magnified in a place like this and in a time like this. I think it was just errors at unfortunate times."

Q: What were you seeing in particular when you guys were able to make Will Bednar leave the game early?
ZP: "We have worked all week, and we were ready to face him first. We were able to lay off of the fastball and slider. He was not really able to locate the fastball early, and we were able to take control a little bit."

Q: How does being only one game away from elimination feel?
ZP: "This one hurt, but I think we showed these fans and the world that we are not a joke. We are definitely as good or better than this team. I think we are super confident and will be able to win the next two. We have done it before. We have lost the first game in the series to come back and win the next two. We are excited and hope that it turns out in our favor."

Mississippi State University Athletics