Wake Forest Athletics
Wake Forest Opens 2010 Season Against Army & Dayton
2/18/2010 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 18, 2010
Game Notes 
| Coach Walter Previews Army | Coach Walter Previews Dayton
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - The Wake Forest baseball team officially opens the Tom Walter era this weekend as it hosts Army and Dayton at Gene Hooks Field at Wake Forest Baseball Park.
The Deacs will play a pair of games against both the Black Knights and the Flyers. Wake opens the season at 4 p.m. on Friday against Army. The Demon Deacons will play a split doubleheader on Saturday, meeting Dayton at Noon and Army at 4 p.m. The weekend closes on Sunday with a game against Dayton at 1 p.m.
Army and Dayton will open the weekend with a game on Friday at Noon.
Wake Forest returns 20 letterwinners, including five position starters, from the 2009 squad, which finished the season with a 22-30 record and a 6-24 mark in Atlantic Coast Conference play. The Demon Deacons, who were picked fifth in the ACC preseason poll, also boast 10 newcomers on the 2010 roster.
Sophomore lefty Austin Stadler (4-5, 4.13) will get the nod on the mound in the season lid-lifter against Army. On Saturday, freshman southpaw Tim Cooney will start against Dayton, while junior righty Brandon Johnson (0-0, 6.06) will toe the rubber against Army. Freshman left-handed pitcher Niko Spezial will start the weekend finale on Sunday against Dayton.
Army returns 16 letterwinners, including five position starters and five starting pitchers, from the 2009 team that finished the season with a 36-21 record and advanced to the regional final of the Austin, Texas, regional. The Black Knights, who claimed the Patriot League crown in 2009 and are picked to repeat as conference champs in 2010, are receiving votes in the preseason National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association poll.
At the plate, Army is led by junior shortstop Clint Moore. Moore, a native of Greensboro, N.C., led the Black Knights with a .395 batting average in 2009 and finished second on the team with 11 home runs and 63 RBIs. Junior Kevin McKague hit .389 with six round-trippers and 44 RBIs in 2009.
McKague, who also closes for the Black Knights, leads Army on the mound. Recently named to the watch list for the NCBWA Stopper of the Year award, McKague recorded seven saves in 2009 and had a 4.57 ERA. Junior righty Kirk Porter, who posted a 6-3 record and a 4.18 ERA in 2009, will start Friday against Wake Forest, while fellow junior right-handed pitcher Ben Koenigsfeld tied for the team high in wins in 2009 with an 8-4 record and a 4.89 ERA. Koenigsfeld is slated to get the Saturday start against the Demon Deacons.
Dayton, the 2009 Atlantic 10 regular season champions, returns 17 letterwinners from a team that finished the '09 season with a 38-19 overall record. The Flyers, who were picked first in the preseason Atlantic 10 coaches poll, are receiving votes in the preseason NCBWA poll.
Offensively, junior infielder Jimmy Roesinger led Dayton with a .401 batting average, along with three homers and 38 RBIs. Roesinger also had a team-high 14 doubles. Senior infielder Cole Tyrell hit a team-leading 12 home runs in 2009 and added 60 RBIs, while hitting .295 at the plate. The Flyers belted a school-record 77 home runs in 2009.
Sophomore southpaw Cameron Hobson paces the Flyers on the mound. Hobson went 7-1 with 3.43 ERA in 2009 and struck out a school record 83 batters. Redshirt sophomore righty Burny Mitchem, who is scheduled to start Saturday against Wake, missed much of 2009 with a torn ACL. The Flyers have not named a starter for the game against the Deacs on Sunday.
This weekend will mark the first time that Wake has faced either Army or Dayton in baseball.
Wake has fared well in season openers, posting a 32-21 record in season lid lifters since the 1957 season. The Deacs downed Akron 11-2 in the opener last season.
Live stats and a recap of all four games this weekend will be available on WakeForestSports.com. Fans can also get in-game updates by following the Wake Forest baseball Twitter feed at www.twitter.com/WFUBaseball.
Weekend Schedule (Times Eastern and Subject to Change)
Friday, February 19
Army vs. Dayton, 12 p.m.
Wake Forest vs. Army, 4 p.m.
Saturday, February 20
Wake Forest vs. Dayton, 12 p.m.
Wake Forest vs. Army, 4 p.m.
Sunday, February 21
Wake Forest vs. Dayton, 1 p.m.
Ticket Information
Admission for this weekend's games is free.
Probable Pitching Matchups
Friday vs. Army
LHP Austin Stadler (So., 4-5, 4.13) vs. RHP Kirk Porter (Jr., 6-3, 4.18)
Saturday vs. Dayton
LHP Tim Cooney (Fr., 0-0, 0.00) vs. RHP Burny Mitchem (R-So., 1-0, 0.55)
Saturday vs. Army
RHP Brandon Johnson (Jr., 0-0, 6.06) vs. RHP Ben Koenigsfeld (Jr., 8-4, 4.89)
Sunday vs. Dayton
LHP Niko Spezial (Fr., 0-0, 0.00) vs. TBA
Rankings
Wake Forest - Not Ranked
Army - Receiving Votes (NCBWA)
Dayton - Receiving Votes (NCBWA)
Live Game Coverage
Television - None
Radio - None
Live Stats - WakeForestSports.com
Twitter - www.twitter.com/WFUBaseball
