Buck Fichter-John Stokoe
Deacons Break 9th Inning Tie, Advance in NCAA Baseball Tournament
5/31/2020 5:32:00 PM | Baseball
Wake Forest 6, West Virginia 5
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – John Stokoe almost single-handedly led Wake Forest to victory over West Virginia in the deciding game of the NCAA District 3 baseball playoff semifinals. The Deacons defeated the Mountaineers 6-5 and will advance to play Rollins College at Winter Park, Fla. next week.
Stokoe was not only the winning pitcher but he scored the game-winning run in the ninth inning to provide the margin of victory.
Stokoe came on to pitch in relief of starter Buck Fichter with two men on base in the fourth inning. Stokoe allowed just three hits and one run the rest of the way. The lefty then drove in the tying run and scored the winning run in the ninth.
Sharing star status with Stokoe on this day was centerfielder Luke McKeel. McKeel's ninth inning double drove home Stokoe with the go-ahead run. McKeel also made a brilliant running catch to turn a potential triple into an out in the bottom of the ninth.
Wake Forest opened the scoring in the second inning when Tommy Cole walked and moved to second on an infield out by Frank McRae. Bill Barnes then doubled to score Cole and give the Deacons a 1-0 lead. Jack Bryant reached on an error with Barnes moving to third. Bob Waggoner's ground out scored Barnes with the second run before Fichter blooped a single over second to score Bryant and give the Deacons a 3-0 lead.
West Virginia put a couple of runners on base in the bottom of the first but the Deacons escaped trouble when Bryant threw out a stealing baserunner at home with a perfect throw to catcher Linwood Holt.
The Mountaineers scored a pair of runs in the second on a Fichter walk to Bill Franko and three consecutive singles by Ronnie Laneve, Glenn Higgins and Chris Kaltenecker.
Frank McRae gave the Deacons a 4-2 lead in the fourth when he beat out an infield hit and scored on Bill Barnes' double off the leftfield fence.
West Virginia tied the game in the bottom of the fourth when Fichter walked the leadoff man followed by back-to-back singles by Laneve and Higgins to load the bases. After a strikeout, two runs scored on a wild pitch.
That's when head coach Taylor Sanford brought in Stokoe who got Charley McKown to hit a comebacker. After an intentional walk to Mountaineer slugger Vic Rabbits, Ed Lenart grounded out to end the threat and left the game tied at 4-4.
The Mountaineers took a 5-4 lead in the fifth when Ronnie Laneve scored on an error.
Wake Forest tied the game in the sixth when McRae led off with a single and scored on an infield single.
The game remained tied until the top of the ninth. Stokoe led off the ninth with a single and Harold Moore was safe on an error. Stokoe then scored on a controversial ground rule double by McKeel.
"The hit down the right field line angled out and hit the rolled-up tarpaulin, parked against the fence, that is used to protect the infield," wrote Tony Augustine in the Raleigh News and Observer. "McKeel went all the way home on the blow behind Stokoe and Hal Moore, who had reached first on an error. But the umpires called it a ground rule double, waving two runners back to base."
The win improved the Deacons' record to 22-6. The Deacons will play the NCAA District 3 championship best-of-three series at Rollins. Rollins won a coin toss to determine the site of the championship round. The winner of that series will advance to the College World Series in Omaha, Neb. Which begins on June 10.
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – John Stokoe almost single-handedly led Wake Forest to victory over West Virginia in the deciding game of the NCAA District 3 baseball playoff semifinals. The Deacons defeated the Mountaineers 6-5 and will advance to play Rollins College at Winter Park, Fla. next week.
Stokoe was not only the winning pitcher but he scored the game-winning run in the ninth inning to provide the margin of victory.
Stokoe came on to pitch in relief of starter Buck Fichter with two men on base in the fourth inning. Stokoe allowed just three hits and one run the rest of the way. The lefty then drove in the tying run and scored the winning run in the ninth.
Sharing star status with Stokoe on this day was centerfielder Luke McKeel. McKeel's ninth inning double drove home Stokoe with the go-ahead run. McKeel also made a brilliant running catch to turn a potential triple into an out in the bottom of the ninth.
Wake Forest opened the scoring in the second inning when Tommy Cole walked and moved to second on an infield out by Frank McRae. Bill Barnes then doubled to score Cole and give the Deacons a 1-0 lead. Jack Bryant reached on an error with Barnes moving to third. Bob Waggoner's ground out scored Barnes with the second run before Fichter blooped a single over second to score Bryant and give the Deacons a 3-0 lead.
West Virginia put a couple of runners on base in the bottom of the first but the Deacons escaped trouble when Bryant threw out a stealing baserunner at home with a perfect throw to catcher Linwood Holt.
The Mountaineers scored a pair of runs in the second on a Fichter walk to Bill Franko and three consecutive singles by Ronnie Laneve, Glenn Higgins and Chris Kaltenecker.
Frank McRae gave the Deacons a 4-2 lead in the fourth when he beat out an infield hit and scored on Bill Barnes' double off the leftfield fence.
West Virginia tied the game in the bottom of the fourth when Fichter walked the leadoff man followed by back-to-back singles by Laneve and Higgins to load the bases. After a strikeout, two runs scored on a wild pitch.
That's when head coach Taylor Sanford brought in Stokoe who got Charley McKown to hit a comebacker. After an intentional walk to Mountaineer slugger Vic Rabbits, Ed Lenart grounded out to end the threat and left the game tied at 4-4.
The Mountaineers took a 5-4 lead in the fifth when Ronnie Laneve scored on an error.
Wake Forest tied the game in the sixth when McRae led off with a single and scored on an infield single.
The game remained tied until the top of the ninth. Stokoe led off the ninth with a single and Harold Moore was safe on an error. Stokoe then scored on a controversial ground rule double by McKeel.
"The hit down the right field line angled out and hit the rolled-up tarpaulin, parked against the fence, that is used to protect the infield," wrote Tony Augustine in the Raleigh News and Observer. "McKeel went all the way home on the blow behind Stokoe and Hal Moore, who had reached first on an error. But the umpires called it a ground rule double, waving two runners back to base."
The win improved the Deacons' record to 22-6. The Deacons will play the NCAA District 3 championship best-of-three series at Rollins. Rollins won a coin toss to determine the site of the championship round. The winner of that series will advance to the College World Series in Omaha, Neb. Which begins on June 10.
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