Wake Forest University
Delaware
Pirro's Strong Outing Leads to Season-Opening Win
2/13/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
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By Jay Garneau, Wake Forest Athletic Communications (@WakeBaseball)
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Matt Pirro threw 5.0 innings of one-hit ball, striking out a career-high nine batters as Wake Forest defeated Delaware 3-2 in the 2015 season-opener on Friday night at Gene Hooks Field at Wake Forest Baseball Park.
The Demon Deacons (1-0) also strung together some timely hits, scoring runs in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings to take a 3-0 lead over Delaware (1-1).
Nate Mondou doubled and advanced to third on a balk, scoring on an RBI single by Ben Breazeale for the first run of the year.
A pair of freshmen combined to tally the second run the next inning. Gavin Sheets singled and scored when Justin Yurchak split the right-center gap for an RBI double.
Another freshman, Stuart Fairchild, knocked in what proved to be the game-winner in the seventh. After Will Craig walked, Fairchild doubled to the center-field wall to plate the third run.
Craig struck out four batters in 2.0 hitless innings in relief, before Jon McCarren came on for the save.
McCarren retired the side in order in the eighth, but Delaware pieced together three hits to cut the margin to 3-2. With the tying run 90 feet away, McCarren forced Nick Liggett to fly out to the center-field wall to preserve his first save of 2015.
Fairchild was the only Deacon to post a multi-hit game, going 2-for-4. Yurchak wasn't retired in his three plate appearances, finishing 1-for-1 with an RBI double and two walks.
Wake Forest allowed just four hits as a pitching staff, with Pirro earning the win to improve to 1-0. Chad Martin started for the Blue Hens and threw 4.0 innings of scoreless ball, while Andrew Pechstein took the loss in relief.
NO ROOKIE SLUMP
• The four Wake Forest freshman starters combined to go 4-for-12 with three walks.
• In their first career games, they also tallied two of the three RBIs and a run.
TWO-WAY CRAIG
• Offensively, Will Craig got on base twice and also recorded a run.
• On the mound, he surpassed his previous career-high of three strikeouts in just 2.0 innings of work.
ON DECK
• The Deacons are in action twice tomorrow, taking on Bucknell at 12:30 p.m. and playing VCU at 3:30 p.m.
