Wake Forest Athletics
Deacons Get Final Midweek Tuneups Before ACC Play
3/10/2003 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 10, 2003
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Upcoming Schedule
- Tuesday 2:30 at Liberty
- Coverage: Gametracker on WakeForestSports.com
- Wednesday 2:30 vs. Wofford
- Coverage: Gametracker on WakeForestSports.com
- Friday 7:00 at Maryland
- Coverage: Radio at WMUCSports.com
Gametracker on WakeForestSports.com
Deacons Get Final Midweek Tuneup Before Conference Play Opens. . .
- Wake Forest hits the road for a Tuesday game at Liberty and plays Wofford at home on Wednesday before embarking on its Atlantic Coast Conference voyage.
- The Demon Deacons (9-4) had their four-game winning streak snapped on Sunday at home against Le Moyne, just the fifth non-conference home loss at Hooks Stadium in the last five years.
- Liberty (3-7) returns home after dropping a pair of games over the weekend at the University of Georgia in Athens.
- Wofford (2-11) was swept by the College of Charleston in the opening weekend of Southern Conference play. The Terriers will come into Winston-Salem on a seven-game losing streak, hungry for a win.
The Deacons, Flames and T-Dogs. . .
- Wake Forest and Liberty will get together for the 23rd time on the diamond on Tuesday. The Deacons lead the all-time series 16-4-2 including a bizarre 11-11 tie last year in Lynchburg. In that game, Wake Forest blew a 10-2 third inning lead and ending up tying in a seven-inning, rain-shortened contest. With a howling wind blowing out and a thunderstorm bearing down on Lynchburg, the teams combined for six home runs, three by Wake Forest players including Jamie D'Antona, Ryan Johnson and Brad Scioletti.
- The Deacons own a perfect 7-0 record all-time against Wofford, including a 2-0 mark at home, but have not squared off since 1987.
Grand Theft Larceny. . .
- The Deacons are on a torrid base stealing pace, having swiped 30 bases in 35 attempts in just 13 games. That's an average of 2.3 per game. The school record for stolen bases in 90, set in 2001, with an average of "only" 1.45.
- It helps that Adam Bourassa and Ryan Hubbard each have 13 thefts to lead the Atlantic Coast Conference. Starting on the Right Foot. . .
- Wake Forest continues to get great production out of its starting pitchers. Kyle Sleeth, Tim Morley, Brian Bach and Seth Hill have combined for a 9-2 record and a 2.38 ERA in their 13 starts.
- On average, the Deacons have been getting better than 6 2/3 innings each day from their starter. That includes a complete game last Friday by Sleeth.
- The starters have combined for 76 strikeouts in 87 innings with 19 walks. Perhaps more impressively, those four pitchers have allowed just 18 extra base hits, or an average of one per five innings.
Putting Out the Fire. . .
- Success on the mound hasn't been limited to the starters, however.
- Over the last nine games, the Deacon bullpen led by Adam Hanson and Daniel Davidson but also including Brian Bach, Indy Wilkinson, Kirby Wedekind and Kyle Young have combined to throw 25 1/3 innings out of the bullpen for an ERA of 1.07 with 19 strikeouts. Opposing batters are hitting just .178 against Deacon relievers in that span.
Young to Make First Wake Forest Start on Wednesday. . .
- Freshman righty Kyle Young will get the ball on Wednesday against Wofford College. It will be Young's first collegiate start.
- The Southlake, Texas native has made three appearances out of the bullpen to this point, each outing lasting one inning.
- In those three innings, Young has not given up a run, allowed three hits with four stirkeouts and one walk.
- Here is a look at notable first career starts by recent Deacons:
Starter Opp. Date Dec. IP H R ER BB KBach Georgia 3/19/02 W 6.2 8 5 4 2 8Davidson App. State 3/5/02 W 5.0 6 2 2 3 5Morley New Mex. 2/16/02 ND 6.0 4 2 2 3 4Sleeth Penn St. 2/10/01 W 6.0 2 0 0 0 4
Hooks Stadium: A House of Horrors for Opponents. . .
- During the last six seasons (including 2003), Wake Forest has been virtually unbeatable at home. Since 1998, the Deacons are 119-27 (.815) at Hooks Stadium.
- That mark has been even more impressive against non-conference opponents. Wake Forest is 59-6 against non-ACC teams in that span including 13-1 records in each of the last three seasons.
- The only non-conference teams to beat Wake Forest at Hooks Stadium in recent years are Le Moyne (2003), Georgia (2002), Liberty (2001), East Carolina (1999, 2000) and Evansville (1999).
D'Antona Climbs the Wake Forest Record Charts. . .
- Roughly a quarter of the way into his junior season, third baseman Jamie D'Antona continues his assault on the Wake Forest record books.
- The Trumbull, Conn., native cracked the top ten in home runs last season and stands 7th in that category with 41, just four away from making the top five.
- Over the weekend, D'Antona moved into the top five in RBI and currently resides in a tie for 5th place with 182, 13 behind former teammate Corey Slavik.
- If D'Antona is able to duplicate his statistics from his sophomore year (20 HR, 83 RBI), he would become the school's home run king and all-time leader in RBI. D'Antona needs 19 home runs and 82 RBI this season to accomplish the feat.
- He and teammate Ryan Johnson are in a see-saw battle for 10th place on the batting average chart. (see page six)
- D'Antona has a good chance of becoming the school's all-time leader in walks, needing 24 more free passes for first place.
Coach George Greer Ranks Fourth All-Time in ACC Wins. . .
- Now in his 16th year at Wake Forest, head coach George Greer has moved into the top four in overall wins while a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
- Greer has 571 wins in his 15-plus seasons, trailing only Bill Wilhelm (1161, Clemson), Mike Roberts (780, North Carolina), and current Florida State coach Mike Martin (584).
- Greer coached his 900th game at Wake Forest last Tuesday against Charlotte.
Sleeth Closing In on NCAA Record. . .
- Junior All-American Kyle Sleeth is just two wins away from tying the NCAA record for consecutive wins.
- The NCAA record is 26, set by Scott Neilsen of Brigham Young during the 1978, 1982-83 seasons.
- Each of his last 24 straight decisions in a Deacon uniform have been wins, good for a new ACC record. His last loss for Wake Forest came in March 2001 against Clemson.
- Since that time, Sleeth has defeated 19 different teams including Appalachian State, Davidson, Georgia Tech, NC State and UNC Greensboro twice.
- Of the 24 wins, 21 have come as a starter. Sleeth came out the bullpen to beat the Jackets, the Wolfpack and the UNCG Spartans during his freshman year.
- Sleeth is already a two-time ACC Pitcher of the Week. The consensus preseason All-American also claimed NCBWA National Pitcher of the Week honors on Feb. 24.
- For more on the Sleeth record watch, see page three.
Players Mentioned
RHP
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