Wake Forest University
3-2, 1-0
Notre Dame
0-1, 0-1
Deacs Split Doubleheader with Notre Dame to Open ACC Play
2/27/2021 10:07:00 PM | Baseball
Wake Forest looks to clinch the series win on Sunday.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - The No. 16 Deacs opened Atlantic Coast Conference competition by splitting a doubleheader against Notre Dame on Saturday at David F. Couch Ballpark.
In the opening game of the series, Wake Forest (3-3, 1-1) fought back from a 7-2 deficit over the Fighting Irish (1-1, 1-1) to claim their first ACC victory by a tally of 10-8 behind an eighth inning rally. Wake Forest plated five runs in the inning, driven by a quartet of RBI-singles from Lucas Costello, Michael Turconi, Shane Muntz and Brock Wilken.
Additionally, Cole McNamee, Chris Lanzilli and Wilken all hit home runs to contribute to Wake Forest's second-highest scoring game of 2021.
Sophomore Ryan Cusick struck out 12 Irish batters over 5.1 innings in his start, striking out at least 10 batters for the second game in a row to start the season.
McNamee earned the win after stranding an inherited runner on third in the top of the eighth. Freshman Camden Minacci tallied his second save of the year, slamming the door in the top of the ninth with a fly out, strike out, and ground out.
Despite coming from behind to tie the second contest 4-4, the Deacs ultimately fell after Notre Dame plated the winning run in the top of the seventh to earn a 5-4 victory.
Wake Forest produced runs in the second, third and fourth inning, highlighted by RBI-singles from Costello and Lanzilli and an RBI-double from Bobby Seymour.
Junior William Fleming pitched effectively after getting out of the first, setting down eight consecutive batters and not allowing a hit through the next three frames. He finished his start only allowing two hits over his final five innings, striking out six batters in the same time frame.
How It Happened (Game 1)
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Notre Dame gained an early 2-0 advantage over a two-run home run in the first inning.
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Chris Lanzilli walked on base with two outs in the first before the Irish ended the first frame with a fly out.
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In the top of the second, Ryan Cusick retired the first pair of batters to get two quick hits. After walking the third hitters of the frame, Cusick forced an in-field pop up to end the inning.
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A Lucas Cosetllo RBI-single with the bases loaded and two outs plated the Deacs' first run of the game in the bottom of the second.
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Shane Muntz (HBP), Michael Ludowig (single) and Cole McNamee (walk) all reached safely.
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The Fighting Irish added three runs in the top of the third thanks to a homer in the top half of the frame to increase their lead to 5-1.
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Wake Forest put runners on second and third but were unable to capitalize, keeping the game at a 5-1 score.
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Cusick ended the conference opener with 12 strikeouts in 5.1 innings of work.
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The Sudbury, Mass. native made quick work of Notre Dame over the next two innings, striking out five of the six batters.
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Cusick fanned 11 Irish through four innings, including four straight in the third and fourth innings.
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Teddy McGraw received the call to the mound out of the bullpen. After walking the opening batter, he sat down two straight batters to conclude the frame.
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Cole McNamee rocked a solo homer to center field to cut into Notre Dame's lead (5-2) in the bottom of the sixth inning.
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Brennen Oxford hit the mound with two on and no out in the seventh. The Irish added a pair of runs in the inning after loading the bases to extend their advantage to 7-2.
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Wake Forest's offense came alive in the bottom of the seventh, scoring three runs on home runs by Chris Lanzilli and Brock Wilken. Notre Dame held a 7-5 lead heading into the final two innings.
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This marked the third home run of the season for Wilken and the second for Lanzilli.
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ND brought in a run with a sac fly in the top of the eighth, extending their lead to 8-5.
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Wake Forest's hot bats continued into the eighth as the Deacs took their first lead of the game (10-8) after plating five runs behind four hits.
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RBI Singles by Costello (second of game), Turconi, Shane Muntz and Wilken and a wild pitch scored brought home Deacs.
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Camden Minacci closed out the game on the mound, registering his second save of his freshman campaign as Wake Forest took game one by a score of 10-8.
How It Happened (Game 2)
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Notre Dame jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning thanks to four hits, highlighted by a grand slam.
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Wake Forest's bats came to life in the second inning. Costello brought home Shane Muntz (walk) for his third RBI of the day to get the Deacs on the board (4-1).
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Wake Forest doubled the first pair of at-bats of the third inning to plate another run. Bobby Seymour knocked a two-bagger to right field to bring home Chris Lanzilli, who tallied a lead off double.
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After the first inning, William Fleming found his groove. The junior forced eight consecutive Notre Dame batters out while allowing no hits over the next three frames.
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Lanzilli knocked in two runs with two outs in the bottom of fourth as the Deacs once again came from behind to tie the game (4-4).
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Crawford Wade hit the mound in relief after Fleming's start ended after six innings. The Fighting Irish broke the tie in the top of the seventh, scoring on a wild pitch with the bases loaded to grasp a 5-4 advantage.
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After a scoreless seventh for the Deacs, Cole McNamee struck out a Notre Dame batter to end the inning after coming in with a runner on second and first with two outs.
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Hunter Furtado retired two straight Notre Dame batters in his first collegiate appearance to keep the game at 5-4 heading into the bottom of the ninth.
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The Deacs would get the tying runner on with one out in the ninth when Turconi got hit-by-a-pitch, but a double play would end the scoring threat, and the game, as Wake Forest fell 5-4.
In the Spotlight
Right fielder Chris Lanzilli showed out for the Deacs at the plate in the doubleheader, going 4-for-10 with a double, a home run, three RBIs and two runs across the double header. His Game 1 solo-shot off the glove of the center fielder in the bottom of seventh helped sparked the Deacs comeback from a 7-2 deficit.
Words from Walter
"Obviously disappointing to not find a way to win that second game. It's just hard to sweep a doubleheader. We had some chances. Once we got 4-4, we were in great shape to win that game. I liked Crawford Wade as a good matchup against those guys. Obviously, we need to score in those later innings, we just didn't find a way to punch across the tying and/or winning run.
"Really happy with the first game victory. Clutch hit from Shane Muntz, two-out single. Brock Wilken two-out single to give us some insurance there, and Cam Minacci came in and slammed the door, so happy with the game one win coming from behind. We were kind of playing from behind all day today, and that's tough to do in this league."
On Deck
Wake Forest concludes their conference-opening series on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. at David F. Couch Ballpark. The game will be broadcasted on ACC Network Extra.
The Deacs will continue their 11-game homestand on March 3 against Western Carolina. First pitch is slated for 6:00 p.m.
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: McNamee, Cole (1-0)
L: Tanner Kohlhepp (0-1)
S: Minacci, Camden (2)
Batting:
HR: Niko Kavadas 2
RBI: Spencer Myers 1 ; Niko Kavadas 5 ; David LaManna 2
SH: Jared Miller 1
SF: Spencer Myers 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Spencer Myers 1 ; Jared Miller 2 ; Carter Putz 1 ; Niko Kavadas 2 ; Zack Prajzner 1 ; Jack Brannigan 1
SB: Jared Miller 1 ; Jack Zyska 1
HBP: Brooks Coetzee 1
Batting:
HR: Lanzilli, Chris 1 ; Wilken, Brock 1 ; McNamee, Cole 1
RBI: Costello, Lucas 2 ; Turconi, Michael 1 ; Lanzilli, Chris 1 ; Muntz, Shane 1 ; Wilken, Brock 3 ; McNamee, Cole 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Costello, Lucas 1 ; Turconi, Michael 1 ; Lanzilli, Chris 1 ; Muntz, Shane 3 ; Wilken, Brock 1 ; McNamee, Cole 2 ; Broderick, James 1
HBP: Muntz, Shane 1
