Deacons to Battle Seminoles for ACC Lead

April 3, 2003

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THIS WEEKEND'S SCHEDULE

FRI vs. Florida State / 7:00 / Tallahassee, FL
- Radio: WBRF 98.1 FM -
- Gametracker -

WF: Kyle Sleeth (6-0, 1.56 ERA)
FSU: Trent Peterson (5-0, 1.73 ERA)

SAT vs. Florida State / 7:00 / Tallahassee, FL
- Television: Sunshine Network -
- Radio: WBRF 98.1 FM -
- Gametracker -

WF: Tim Morley (2-1, 4.45 ERA)
FSU: Matt Lynch (6-2, 3.74 ERA)

SUN vs. Florida State / 1:00 / Tallahassee, FL
- Radio: WBRF 98.1 FM -
- Gametracker -

WF: TBA
FSU: Daniel?Davidson (4-0, 0.84 ERA)

Wake Forest to Battle Florida State for Early ACC Lead. . .

Ranked 14th by Collegiate Baseball and winners of their last five games, the Demon Deacons (19-7, 6-2 ACC) travel to Tallahassee for a three-game weekend set against the third-ranked Seminoles (28-5, 6-3 ACC).
Wake Forest enters the weekend with a half-game lead over Florida State in the Atlantic Coast Conference standings.
On Wednesday, the Deacons scored in every inning and clobbered Davidson 17-6 to capture their fifth straight win. During that run, Wake Forest has defeated High Point, UNC Greensboro, Duke and Davidson.
The Seminoles have been idle since defeating North Carolina two games to one last weekend at Dick Howser Stadium.
Saturday's game will be televised on the Sunshine Network and all three games can be heard on WBRF 98.1 FM and at wakeforestsports.com.

Deacons, Seminoles Ranks as ACC's Most Successful Programs Since 1998. . .

During the last five-plus seasons, Florida State and Wake Forest have been one and two, respectively, when it comes to wins and losses against league opponents.
The Seminoles have a .762 winning percentage (115-36) in that span compared to Wake Forest's .669 (99-49).
It is the Deacons, however, who have come away with three Atlantic Coast Conference trophies (1998, 1999 and 2001).
In the ACC, only Wake Forest, Florida State and Clemson reached the NCAA Tournament each year.
Since 1998, Wake Forest is 7-14 against FSU including a 3-3 record in the ACC Tournament.

Sleeth Attempts to Tie NCAA Record . . .

Junior Kyle Sleeth, who has won his last 26 decisions, can break the NCAA record for consecutive victories when he takes the hill on Friday at Florida State.
Sleeth has not lost since March 25, 2001 at Hooks Stadium against Clemson during his freshman year. The streak spans 39 appearances and 28 starting assignments.
Although some no-decisions have been sprinkled in, Sleeth has been particularly dominant in the latter stages of the streak. In his last 24 starts -- since the start of his sophomore season -- he has 20 wins and four no-decisions.
Sleeth is listed by Baseball America as the best pitcher in college baseball and has been mentioned by ESPN's Peter Gammons as a possible selection for Tampa Bay, holders of the top pick.
Sleeth has been on fire in his last two starts against North Carolina and Duke. He has gone eight innings in each of the outings. He had 10 strikeouts in Chapel Hill and a career-best 13 strikeouts against the Blue Devils.
In those combined 16 innings, Sleeth has 23 K's and no walks.
For much more on Sleeth, please turn to page four.

Wake Forest and FSU Connections. . .

* Deacon freshman pitcher Kirby Wedekind hails from Jacksonville as does Florida State's junior catcher Tony Richie and freshman pitcher Drew Stilley.

Deacons and Seminoles: Series History. . .

Like most teams in the ACC, the Deacons have not had outstanding success against the conference's southern-most rival.
Since joining the league in 1992, the Seminoles have won 32 of the 42 meetings including 3-12 record in Tallahassee.
In fact, the Deacons lost ten straight in Tallahassee since Feb. 25, 1995. In that contest, a sophomore pitcher for the Deacons named Michael Holmes coaxed J.D. Drew into a game-ending double play. Holmes got the save and starter Sean DePaula got the win for the Deacs.

Blue Shelved for Season; Getz Starts at Second Base. . .

Senior tri-captain Nick Blue, a three-year starter at second base, will miss the rest of the 2003 season.
Blue had shoulder surgery last summer and missed the entire fall with expectations of returning for opening day.
However, the shoulder has been slow to fully heal. He started the second game of the year at Elon as the designated hitter but struck out in the first inning. That was his only action of the year.
Blue plans to redshirt and return in 2004 as a fifth-year senior.
In his place, freshman Chris Getz has started at second base. Getz, a sixth round draft pick of the White Sox last June, is hitting .327 with very solid a .962 fielding percentage.

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 582 wins in his 15-plus seasons, trailing only Bill Wilhelm (1161, Clemson), Mike Roberts (780, North Carolina), and current Florida State coach Mike Martin (599).
Greer coached his 900th game at Wake Forest earlier this year and coached his 1150 collegiate game on Wednesday night.

Deacons Sweep Duke in Rain-Shortened Series. . .

Wake Forest picked up a pair of ACC wins last weekend against Duke. In Friday's series opener at Hooks Stadium, Kyle Sleeth tied an NCAA record with his 26th win. He struck out 13 and walked none. Offensively, the Deacons played long ball with home runs from Jamie D'Antona, Ryan Johnson and Steve LeFaivre as Wake Forest prevailed 11-1.
On Saturday at Ernie Shore Field, Duke struck with three first inning runs. But the Deacons chipped away and earned a 7-4 victory. Tim Morley was solid through six innings and Adam Hanson fired three scoreless innings of relief for his fourth win.
The series finale was cancelled due to cold temperatures and a morning sleet that turned to rain in the afternoon.

Off the Hook: Deacons Dominate at Hooks Stadium

During the last five seasons (including 2003), Wake Forest has been virtually unbeatable at home. Since 1999, the Deacons are 104-17 (.860) at Hooks Stadium.
That mark has been even more impressive against non-conference opponents. Wake Forest is 61-6 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 Charges Up the Wake Forest Career Record Charts. . .

Roughly halfway into his junior season, third baseman Jamie D'Antona continues his assault on the Wake Forest record books. The Trumbull, Conn., native is 5th in home runs with 46, just nine away from the school record held by Jake Austin.
D'Antona has 209 career RBI to his credit, fourth all-time at Wake Forest. He is just 33 RBI away from passing former Deacon All-American and current Georgia Tech assistant Jon Palmieri who holds the Wake Forest record.
If D'Antona is able to match his statistics from 2002 (20 HR, 83 RBI), he would become the school's home run king and all-time leader in RBI. D'Antona needs 10 more home runs and 33 RBI.
He and teammate Ryan Johnson are in a see-saw battle for 10th place on the batting average chart. (see page seven)
D'Antona has a good chance of becoming the school's all-time leader in walks, needing 16 more free passes for first place.

D'Antona Eyes the ACC Single Season Doubles Mark. . .

With 14 doubles in 27 games, better than one double per two games, Jamie D'Antona is on pace to challenge the Atlantic Coast Conference's single season doubles record.
The record is 36 by FSU's Jeremy Morris in 1997. He played in 69 games that season so technically, D'Antona is ahead of pace.
The runners-up in that category are renowned recent hitters in the ACC including a pair of former first round picks -- John-Ford Griffin (FSU) and Khalil Green (CU). Each hit 33 two-baggers in a season and Griffin did it twice.

MacDougal Earns First Major League Saves; Other Former Deacons Assigned in Minor Leagues. . .

Former Deacon pitcher Mike MacDougal has nailed down the closer's role for the Kansas City Royals and he picked up his first major league save on Opening Day in a 3-0 win against the Chicago White Sox.
On Wednesday, MacDougal got the Big Hurt, Frank Thomas, to ground into a game-ending double play.
The Las Vegas native pitched from 1997-99 at Wake Forest and won 25 games with 288 strikeouts in his three seasons before Kansas City took him in the first round of the 1999 draft.
In his three seasons at Wake Forest and in his first three years of professional baseball, MacDougal had been used almost exclusively as a starter after throwing 100 mph several times in a summer league, the Royals opted to convert him to closer.
MacDougal is one of two former Deacons on major league opening day rosters. The other is Kevin Jarvis who is currently on the 15-day disabled list for the San Diego Padres.
Mike Buddie, who has seen time in the big leagues with Milwaukee, will begin the season with Triple-A Indianapolis in the Brewer organization.
Other former Deacons in the minor leagues include: Eric Schmitt, Columbus (AAA - Yankees); Jamie Athas, San Jose (A - Giants); Dave Bush, Dunedin (A - Blue Jays); Cory Sullivan, Visalia (A - Rockies) and Chase Voshell, Peoria (A - Cardinals).
Also, Rocco Baldelli, a 2000 WFU signee, was the opening day center fielder for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

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