Irish oust No. 1 Volunteers

Freshman Jack Findlay threw five shutout innings in relief and back-to-back home runs by David LaManna and Jack Brannigan in the seventh sparked Notre Dame to a stunning 7-3 victory over No. 1 overall seed Tennessee in the championship game of the Knoxville Super Regional on Sunday.

Notre Dame (40-15) will be playing in just its third College World Series. The Fighting Irish’s other trips came in 1957 and 2002.

Findlay (6-2) worked out of a jam after entering the game in the bottom of the fifth inning with nobody out, a run in and a runner on second, trailing 3-1. Findlay held the Volunteers in check from there, giving up a single and two walks while striking out four. He ended the game with a double play.

Findlay’s efforts on the mound gave Notre Dame the opportunity to rally.

Carter Putz doubled off Volunteers starter Chase Burns (8-2) with one out in the top of the seventh and scored on LaManna’s twoout shot to right field to tie the score at 3-3. Brannigan followed with a go-ahead shot to left-center on a 1and-2 pitch.

Findlay retired the side in order and Notre Dame added three big insurance runs in the eighth.

Mississippi, the last team selected, secured its ticket to the Series, beating Southern Mississippi 5-0. Oklahoma defeated No. 4 Virginia Tech 11-2, and Arkansas eliminated North Carolina 4-3. Texas A&M clinched its bid Saturday.