Deacons Get Ready for George Washington

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May 29, 2002

Wake Forest (44-11-1) / Sub-Regional
Dates: May 31 - June 2
Stadium: Ernie Shore Field
Radio: 98.1 FM (WBRF)
Live Stats: WakeForestSports.com

Probable Pitching Matchups

Friday / 7:00 / Ernie Shore Field

WF: #20 Kyle Sleeth, So., RHP (13-0, 2.80 ERA)
GW: #32 Greg Conden, Jr., RHP (11-2, 3.69 ERA)

Let's Dance... Wake Makes 5th Straight NCAA Tourney

The Demon Deacons (44-11-1) earned an unprecendented fifth straight NCAA Tournament berth. Wake Forest which previously appeared in the NCAA Tournament in 1949, 1955, 1962, 1963 and 1977, will host a subregional for the second time in four seasons.
The Deacons are the number one seed in the Winston-Salem regional to be played at Ernie Shore Field, home of the Winston-Salem Warthogs, Single-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox.
Wake Forest is joined by two-seed Richmond (49-10), three-seed Navy (22-23) and four-seed George Washington (42-21). The Midshipmen and Colonials won their respective conferences.

Deacons Set New Standards of Excellence

The 2002 season has been one for the record books in a number of ways.
The team's 17 ACC wins during the regular season set a new Wake Forest record, breaking the old mark of 16 held by the 1999 and 2001 squads.
Last week, Wake was second nationally, the best ranking in recorded school history. Although the Deacons won a national championship in 1955, a national poll did not exist until 1959 when Collegiate Baseball began its rankings.
Wake Forest has a good chance of breaking the single season record for wins, 47, set in 1999.

Deacons in the Polls...

As of May 27, Wake Forest ranks anywhere from fourth to eighth in the three major national polls. In Collegiate Baseball, the Deacons are ranked fourth, the seventh straight week in the top five, the 11th week in a row in the top ten and the 27th straight week in the top 25.

Greer Named ACC Coach of the Year

In his 15th season at Wake Forest, head coach George Greer earned the Atlantic Coast Conference's Coach of the Year award, the league announced on Monday.
Wake Forest saw the departure of seven starters to graduation from last year's ACC Championship team, including five All-ACC players. Greer, however, has led the Demon Deacons to a 44-11-1 mark heading into the NCAA Tournament. Under his guidance, Wake Forest set new records for most ACC wins in a season (17), highest ranking in school history (2nd) and has the school record for most wins in a season within reach.
Also on Monday, the ACC named Clemson's Khalil Greene as Player of the Year and Florida State's Stephen Drew the Rookie of the Year. Five Deacons Earn All-ACC Honors
Five Wake Forest baseball players were named to the All-ACC team last Saturday at the conference tournament in St. Petersburg, Fla.
The teams were determined by a vote of the league's nine coaches. Senior closer Dave Bush, sophomore pitcher Kyle Sleeth, centerfielder Adam Bourassa and designated hitter Ryan Johnson were selected to the first team. Junior second baseman Nick Blue earned second team honors.
Bush, who makes his second consecutive appearance on the first team, put up impressive numbers. Bush is 7-1 with a 1.69 ERA, an ACC-leading 13 saves and an NCAA-leading 38 appearances. The senior from Devon, Pa., allowed just one earned run in 26.1 regular season innings against conference opponents. The next time Bush comes in from the bullpen will be his 141st career appearance, tying for the ACC record.
Sleeth, the ace of the Deacon rotation, has a perfect 13-0 record with a 2.80 ERA and 99 strikeouts. A sophomore from Westminster, Colo., Sleeth leads the conference in wins and strikeouts and is second in ERA. He has two complete games, 1.5 shutouts to his credit and has defeated four nationally-ranked teams.
Bourassa, a junior from Apple Valley, Minn., leads the Deacons in most offensive categories including batting average (.422), runs (64), hits (97), triples (4), on-base percentage (.502) and stolen bases (25). Bourassa, in his first season at Wake Forest, has started in all 56 games in center field for the Deacons and finished third in the league in hitting.
Johnson, a junior from Laguna Hills, Calif., is the team's second-leading hitter with a .373 batting average, 13 home runs and 69 RBI. Johnson finished the season on a tear, batting .519 over the last 12 games with five home runs and 23 RBI. In the ACC Tournament, Johnson was 9-for-17 with two home runs and seven RBI.

Wake Forest in the NCAA Tournament

The Demon Deacons make their 10th overall appearance in the NCAA Tournament and enter the field for the fifth straight season.
Wake Forest owns a 30-19 overall record in NCAA play, including the ACC's only national championship in 1955.
Under George Greer, the Deacons are 9-9 overall.
The Deacons have played four games in postseason play at Ernie Shore Field, all coming in the 1999 Subregional. In that event, Wake Forest hammered Siena 22-4 before beating Richmond two of three to advance to a super-regional at Miami, Florida.

Deacons vs. the Winston-Salem Regional

The history between Wake Forest and George Washington is pretty short. The Deacons won the only meeting on March 25, 1970, a 10-5 victory at Ernie Shore Field.
The history between Wake Forest and Navy is even shorter. The teams have never met on the diamond.

Deacons and Spiders are Frequent Foes

The Deacons drew a familiar opponent as a number two seed in Richmond. The Spiders and Deacons have squared off in three of the last five NCAA Tournaments. In Gainesville in 1998, Wake Forest won 6-5. In 1999 at Ernie Shore Field, the Deacons took two of three. In the first of those games, a 12-1 victory, current Wake Forest administrative assistant Scott Daeley homered for the Deacs.
Wake Forest owns the all-time series lead, 6-4 overall and 3-1 in NCAA Tournament action.

Bush Eyes ACC Record Books

The next time Wake Forest senior All-American closer Dave Bush comes out of the bullpen, he will tie the ACC appearances record.
He would tie Thad Chrismon of UNC for the ACC's all-time record in appearances at 141. Bush is also chasing Chrismon in the saves department where he needs three to tie at 41.
Bush has been quite successful in the NCAA Tournament with a 2.88 ERA in nine games, spanning 25 innings pitched. The longest outing of Bush's career came in the 1999 Sub-Regional at Ernie Shore Field against Richmond. Bush went 5.2 innings against the Spiders on that day.

Deacons Get 5th Straight 40-Win Season

Wake Forest's win last Wednesday was the team's 40th of the season, the fifth straight year the Deacons have won 40 or more contests. The Deacons had never accomplished the feat prior to 1998.
If the Deacons advance to a super-regional, they will tie the school record for victories at 47.

Year    Overall ACC (Place) NCAA1998    43-23   13-10 (Champs)  Sub-Regional1999    47-16   16-7 (Champs)   Super-Regional2000    41-20-1 14-10 (4th) Sub-Regional2001    44-18   16-8 (Champs)   Sub-Regional2002    44-11-1 17-6 (2nd)  ???

Daeley Joins Coaching Staff

On May 12, Scott Daeley joined the Wake Forest coaching staff as an administrative assistant. Daeley was the everyday centerfielder for the 1998 and 1999 ACC Championship teams.
Daeley earned second team All-ACC honors in 1999 with 27 doubles and scored 83 runs, the second most in a single season in Wake Forest history.

Sleeth, Bush Named Howser Semifinalists

Deacon pitchers Kyle Sleeth and Dave Bush have been selected as semifinalists for the Dick Howser Award, presented to college baseball's top player as determined by the membership of the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.
Sleeth, a sophomore, and Bush, a senior, are two of 40 semifinalists. It is the second straight year Wake has had a player in contention. Last year, Cory Sullivan was among the 20 finalists.

Medical Report

As the season goes along, the injuries continue to pile up. Nick Blue, Kyle Sleeth and Ryan Hubbard are all nursing injuries of varying degrees.
Blue, a second team All-ACC second baseman, will play this weekend but still may not be ready to play second base due to a separated shoulder, originially suffered on April 23 at Charlotte. Blue re-injured the shoulder on April 27 at Clemson and has not played second base since. It didn't bother him too much at St. Petersburg, where he was the designated hitter and made the All-Tournament team.
Sleeth, a first team All-ACC selection, tore the fingernail on the middle finger of his throwing hand during the NC State game last week. He showed no ill effects this week and is ready to go.
Ryan Hubbard tweaked his back at Duke and has played sparingly since. He started the first game of the ACC Tournament but left the game in fourth inning and did not return all week. He is day-to-day.

Sleeth Makes Push for All-America Honors

At 13-0, nobody has a better record in the ACC than Kyle Sleeth. In fact, only two pitchers -- Justin Simmons of Texas (14-1) and Tim Stauffer of Richmond (14-2) -- have more victories. Sleeth continues to make his case for All-America honors.
The Friday starter in each ACC series for the Deacons this year, Sleeth has made 16 starts. In 15 of those appearances, the sophomore from Westminster, Colo., has gone at least six innings.
At the ACC Tournament, Sleeth beat NC State for his 13th victory, tying the school record for wins in a season. A win Friday would catapult Sleeth past John Hendricks (1998) and Mike MacDougal (1999).
Against top-ranked Clemson, Sleeth went seven innings and allowed just one earned run with six strikeouts. It was his fifth win against ACC teams.
Sleeth won the Triple Crown of ACC pitching, leading the league in wins (13), first in strikeouts (99) and first in ERA (2.80). With those numbers, Sleeth should receive consideration for All-American.
After a Freshman All-America campaign in 2001 and an All-Star season for Cotuit in the Cape League this past summer, Sleeth is a premier pitcher in the premier league in the country.
Sleeth has defeated four ranked teams -- Nebraska, Florida State, UNC and Clemson.
In its season preview, Baseball America identified Sleeth as the seventh-best sophomore nationally.
Sleeth earned the ACC Player of the Week award on Feb. 18 after leading Wake past No. 8 Nebraska and fanning a career-high ten batters at Davidson.
At New Orleans on March 9, Sleeth carried a perfect game into the fifth inning before a 67-minute rain delay. He eventually lost the perfect game but did combine for a shutout of the Privateers, allowing just three hits in eight innings with seven K's.
In one-plus seasons as a Demon Deacon, Sleeth has a career record of 23-3. Last season, he lead the team with 10 wins and defeated four NCAA Tournament teams.
Sleeth was selected as one of 19 preliminary invitees to the 2002 USA Baseball National Team Trials to be held in Tucson, Ariz., June 18-23. The USA National Team will be selected from a pool of 35-40 college players, of which an additional 16-21 have not been chosen.
Louisville's Lelo Prado will serve as the head coach. One of the assistant coaches for the team is Maryland's second year coach, Terry Rupp. Rupp played one season for George Greer at Davidson. The official roster will be announced on June 24.

To Be the Best, You Have to Beat the Best

One of the reasons the Decaons will be a tough team to beat in the postseason is their strength of schedule.
Wake Forest played eight different teams that qualified for the NCAA Tournament, posting a combined record of 11-9 (FSU, Rice, Clemson, Elon, Nebraska, VCU, UNC and Georgia Tech). Nine of Wake Forest's 11 losses, have come against teams in the NCAA Tournament.
The Deacons are 5-5 against teams ranked in the top five and 9-7 against teams ranked in the top 25.

If the Deacons Advance...

Wake Forest would earn a place in a super regional for the first time since 1999. The Deacons have submitted a bid for a super regional to host the event at Greensboro's War Memorial Stadium.

The Big Run Machine

After a sensational rookie campaign that netted National Rookie of the Year honors from Collegiate Basball, sophomore third baseman Jamie D'Antona had a lot of expectations to live up to.
The preseason All-American has lived up to those expectations, continuing to drive in runs at a record-breaking pace, ranking seventh nationally in RBI at 1.42 per game (73 overall) with 17 home runs. He is moving up the Wake Forest single season RBI charts, currently ranked fifth.
Of D'Antona's 17 home runs, ten came against ACC teams. D'Antona has homered against three nationally ranked teams including North Carolina (three times), Florida State and Nebraska.
D'Antona, who moved across the diamond to his natural position of third base before the season, was named the NCBWA National Hitter of the Week for the period ending April 7th.

Bourassa Sets the Table

One of the biggest reasons for the huge RBI numbers of Jamie D'Antona and Ryan Johnson is Adam Bourassa, the junior college transfer from Kishwaukee CC in Illinois.
Bourassa had some awfully big shoes to fill, taking over in centerfield and the leadoff spot for first team All-American Cory Sullivan.
All Bourassa has done is start every game this season in center field for the Deacons while reaching base in 55 of 56 games, picking up first team All-ACC honors.
The model of consistency, Bourassa has kept his batting average above .355 at all times this season. He ranks third in the ACC in batting average, third in triples, third in on-base percentage, fifth in hits and fifth in stolen bases.
Bourassa is batting .449 vs. ACC pitching and has multi-hit games against Clemson, Rice, Georgia Tech, Florida State, North Carolina and Nebraska.
All are impressive figures, but stats don't tell the entire story on Bourassa who is a tremendous defensive center fielder. He possesses great speed and gets a great jump on the ball.

A Dose of Random Stats

Ryan Johnson is 7-for-12 with the bases loaded (.583)... Adam Bourassa is hitting .547 with runners in scoring position (41-of-75)... Ben Ingold is currently tied for fourth on the single season hit-by-pitch chart, sitting at 11... Ryan Hubbard is hitting .462 (6-for-13) since May 12, the end of semester exams... Bourassa carries a 14-game hit streak into NCAAs.

Greer Picks Up Career Win #650

On April 16 against High Point, head coach George Greer earned career victory number 650.
Greer, the fifth winningest coach in ACC history, has 559 wins in 14-plus seasons at Wake Forest. A complete Greer bio is available in this release on pages eight and nine.
Here is a historical perspective on what Greer has accomplished at Wake Forest.

Before Greer        Since 1988    89        Seasons       14+     4      NCAA Berths      5     4      ACC Titles       3     3    10-wins in ACC     11     3    30-win seasons     14     0    40-win seasons      5

Greer Begins 15th Season At Wake Forest

For the last 14 seasons, George Greer has built the Wake Forest baseball program into a consistent winner. In recent years, Greer has molded the Demon Deacons into a power in the country's toughest conference, the ACC.
By capturing the 2001 ACC Championship, Greer and Wake Forest earned its third league title in four years. No other current coach in the league has won three rings.
Greer's accomplishments at Wake Forest have been numerous. The year 2001 was a banner year for the program but especially for Greer. During the course of the season, he picked up career win number 600 and also his 500th win as the Wake Forest skipper.
As a team last year, the Deacons won 44 games, the second-most in Wake history and earned a fourth straight NCAA Tournament berth.

ACC's All-Time Coaching Leaders

1. Bill Wilhelm (CU) - 1161
2. Mike Roberts (NC) - 780
3. Dennis Womack (VA) - 565 *
4. Mike Martin (FS) - 569 *
5. George Greer (WF) - 559 *
* While a member of the ACC
* Entering the NCAA Tournament

Greer By The Numbers

3 ACC Championships
5 NCAA Tournament appearances
11 Freshman All-Americans
14 Seasons with 30+ wins at Wake Forest
24 All-Americans in 14 seasons at WFU
26 Former players that made the big leagues
45 Former players that played professionally
559 Wins in 14-plus season at Wake Forest
665 Victories at the Division I Level
entering the NCAA Tournament

Deacons in the NCAA Statistics

statistics through May 27

Victories

T-3. Kyle Sleeth, Wake Forest 13-0

Saves

5. Dave Bush, Wake Forest 13

Runs Batted In

7. Jamie D'Antona, Wake Forest 1.42
18. Ryan Johnson, Wake Forest 1.30

Earned Run Average

8. Dave Bush, Wake Forest 1.69

Batting Average

18. Adam Bourassa, Wake Forest .422

Team Winning Pct.

3. Wake Forest .795

Team Runs Per Game

18. Wake Forest 8.4

Team Batting Average

29. Wake Forest .323

Everyone Loves Bush

In a recent issue of Sports Illustrated, Deacon closer Dave Bush was profiled by writer Albert Chen. The feature chronicles Bush's decision to return for his senior season after getting drafted in the fourth round by Tampa Bay last June, the discovery of a life-threatening blood clot in his hip and finally, Bush's return to dominance on the mound.
The piece was part of the publication's preview of several NCAA Championships and can be found in the clippings section of this postseason media guide.
Media outlets that have run feature stories on Bush this year include Sports Illustrated, Baseball America, Winston-Salem Journal, ACC Live, the Old Gold and Black, Gold Rush, Tampa Tribune, St. Petersburg Times and most recently, the Philadelphia Inquirer.

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