Wake Forest Athletics
Demon Deacons to Host Virginia Tech This Weekend
4/10/2008 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 10, 2008
Complete Release in PDF Format 
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Wake Forest returns to ACC play this weekend, hosting Virginia Tech in a three-game series at Hooks Stadium. The Demon Deacons enter the weekend at 12-19 overall and 5-9 in conference play. Wake is coming off a 12-8 setback to Triad-rival High Point on Wednesday. The contest was the Deacons' only action during the mid-week. Virginia Tech comes to Winston-Salem with a record of 13-20 overall and 1-14 in the ACC. The Hokies, who have won five of their past seven, are coming off home mid-week wins against Davidson and VCU. Virginia Tech picked up its first ACC victory of the season last Friday against Maryland. Wake Forest has won five of the past six meetings with Virginia Tech.
Quickie Notes
Dustin Hood is hitting .417 in conference games, which is the sixth-best mark in the league ... Hood is also ranked seventh with an on-base percentage of .491 in conference games only ... Willy Fox enters the weekend riding a team-best six-game hitting streak ... Fox is hitting .364 during the six-game stretch ... Hood is right behind Fox with a five-game hitting streak ... Ben Hunter has not allowed a run in his last 6.2 innings pitched ... Wake Forest is ranked second nationally in Strength of Schedule, according to WarrenNolan.com.
Virginia Tech Insider
Virginia Tech enters the weekend having won five of its past seven games. The stretch comes on the heels of a period that saw the Hokies lose 15 of 16 contests (March 7-30). VT has won just once in conference play, an 8-7 defeat of Maryland last Friday in Blacksburg. As a team, the Hokies are hitting .301, which ranks sixth in the ACC. Austin Wates is the team's top hitter with a .333 average. Anthony Sosnoskie leads the Hokies with four home runs and 28 RBIs. Wates has stolen 11 bases in 14 attempts. Virginia Tech has a team ERA of 6.31, ranking 11th in the ACC. Rhett Ballard has struck out 38 batters in 31.2 innings pitched. Ballard, scheduled to start Friday's game for VT, has made just one start in 18 appearances this season.
On Deck
Wake Forest will play twice during the upcoming mid-week. The Deacons will be at Davidson on Tuesday at 6 p.m. before hosting Winthrop on Wednesday at 3 p.m. Wake will travel to Virginia for a three-game ACC series next weekend.
Wake-VT in 2007
Wake Forest took two of three games at Virginia Tech May 17-19. The wins gave the Deacons a berth in the ACC Tournament. In the rubber game on Saturday, the Deacons rallied early and took a 9-2 lead into the ninth. Wake had to hold on late as the Hokies rallied for six runs and put the winning run on base before closer Josh Ellis could get the final out. The 9-8 win one of 11 one-run victories for the Deacs last season.
The Deacons got strong starts from Garrett Bullock and Ben Hunter. Bullock went eight innings on Thursday to lead Wake Forest to a 5-2 victory. The lefty allowed two runs on five hits. He did not allow a hit after the fourth, retiring the final 11 batters he faced. Hunter was equally as impressive on Saturday, earning the win with 6.2 innings of work. Hunter gave up two runs on five hits while striking out eight.
Willy Fox and Andy Goff led Wake at the plate. Fox hit a team-best .500 (6-for-12) in the series, while Goff hit .400 (4-for-10). Goff hit a three-run homer on Saturday and finished with a team-high four RBIs in the series. Dustin Hood also drove in three runs for the Deacs.
Wake Forest players and coaches wore maroon t-shirts with the Virginia Tech "VT" logo for batting practice on Thursday and Friday, in remembrance of the tragedy of April 16, 2007.
Hokies' Previous Appearance at Hooks
Wake Forest swept Virginia Tech in three games March 31 - April 2, 2006, in Winston-Salem. The Deacs rolled the Hokies, 12-1, on Friday. Allan Dykstra was 4-for-4 with a homer and two RBIs, while Evan Ocheltree had three hits. Starter Brad Kledzik got the win with six scoreless innings. On Saturday, Wake got past Virginia Tech 7-3. Eric Niesen started and allowed two runs in four innings. Ben Hunter earned a two-inning save. The Deacs completed the sweep with a 13-5 win on Sunday. Dykstra went 3-for-3 with a home run and three RBIs, and Ocheltree and Austin Jones had two hits apiece.
Individual Career Stats vs. VT
Allan Dykstra is hitting a robust .529 (9-17) in six career games against the Hokies ... Dykstra has hit three homers and driven in seven runs while slugging 1.235 and reaching base at a .704 clip ... Andy Goff has seven RBIs in nine games against Virginia Tech ... Ben Hunter has a 1.86 ERA in three appearances in the series ... Hunter has struck out 12 in 9.2 innings pitched ... The Hokies are hitting just .167 against Hunter ... Austin Jones has hit .333 (4-12) and has an OBP of .438 in six games against VT ... Brad Kledzik has a 2.25 ERA in two starts against the Hokies ... Evan Ocheltree is hitting .350 (7-20) in six games against Virginia Tech ... Ocheltree has slugged .550 in the series.
Deacons' Last Time Out
High Point rallied for eight runs over the final three innings to hand Wake Forest a 12-8 loss on Wednesday at Hooks Stadium. The Deacons fell behind early but rallied to take a 6-4 lead after four innings, only to see the advantage evaporate late in the game. High Point rallied for four runs in the seventh to take an 8-6 lead. The Panthers then pushed two runs across in each the eighth and ninth innings to seal the win.
The Deacons wasted a solid relief outing from Ben Hunter. Hunter held the Panthers scoreless over 4 2/3 innings, allowing just two hits while striking out four and walking two. He came on with the bases loaded and one out in the second and got out of the jam with a double play. On the day, Hunter only allowed one runner to reach scoring position.
Reliever Phil Negus (2-2) suffered the loss for Wake Forest. The righthander came on in relief of Hunter to start the seventh inning. He surrendered four runs on four hits in 2/3 of an inning.
Wake Forest finished with nine hits on the day but only two of which came after the Deacons' three-run rally in the fourth. Dustin Hood and Mike Murray had two hits apiece, while Ben Terry drove in two and scored twice.
High Point reliever R.J. Chlebnikow (1-0) picked up the win. The lefty stymied the Deacs over 3 2/3 innings, holding them hitless during the stretch.
Deacon starter Mark Adzick received a no-decision. The freshman lefty lasted 1 1/3 innings, allowing four runs on three hits and four walks.
