Sunday, April 4
Louisville, KY
12:30 PM
Wake Forest University
at
Louisville
Photo by: Florida State Athletics
Wake Forest Takes Three-Game Win Streak to No. 5 Louisville for ACC Road Series
4/1/2021 2:14:00 PM | Baseball
The Deacs and Cardinals open the series on Friday at 6:00 p.m.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Demon Deacon baseball team is back on the road, taking their three-game win streak to No. 5 Louisville for a three-game Atlantic Coast Conference set at Jim Patterson Stadium on April 2-4.
Wake Forest (9-9, 4-7 ACC) heads into their fourth series against a nationally-ranked opponent following an explosive 15-7 win on Tuesday against Appalachian State and their first ACC series victory against Florida State (March 26-28), while Louisville (16-7, 8-3 ACC) will be looking to rebound from a 13-12 extra innings loss against Cincinnati after splitting a pair of games at Notre Dame last weekend.
The trio of games will be shown entirely on ACC Network Extra, with Friday's first pitch slated for 6:00 p.m. ET. Saturday's game is scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m. ET, while the teams will hit the diamond at 12:30 p.m. ET live on ESPN2 for the series finale.
Stay tuned to the Demon Deacons social media accounts (@WakeBaseball) for all in-game updates and information.
Uptick in Offensive Production
The Deacs are 4-1 in their last five games thanks to an increase in production at the plate, which bodes well as the team continues to be consistent on the mound.
Last five games (4-1)
• .263 batting average
• 14 HRs
• 45 hits
• 40 runs
• 36 RBIs
• .550 slg %
First six games after pause (2-4)
• .163 batting average
• 4 HRs
• 30 hits (5 a game)
• 15 runs
• 14 RBI
• .288 slg %
Rake Forest Returns?
Wake Forest heads into the weekend series off a historic performance at the plate against Appalachian State on March 30.
Brock Wilken, Michael Ludowig and Shane Muntz hit back-to-back-to-back solo home runs in the fourth inning, the first time the Deacs hit three consecutive home runs since Wake Forest accomplished this feat against Division II C.W. Post on March 26, 1991.
Adding in an additional home run from Wilken and roundtrippers from Adam Cecere and Lucas Costello, the Deacs hit six home runs in a game for the first time since Wake Forest raked six balls out of the park against USC on February 24, 2017.
In total, the Deacs totaled a season-high 15 runs on 12 hits during Tuesday's game.
Milestone Watch- Ryan Cusick
Ryan Cusick is just nine strikeouts away from recording his 150th career strikeout as the right-hander from Sudbury, Mass. has fanned 141 batters in 27 career appearances, including six double-digit performances in 8 starts over the last two seasons.
Cusick has already matched his strikeout total from last year and is only 12 away from tying his career-high of 55 set in his freshman season in 2019.
Cusick has posted dominating performances in his last two starts, striking out a combined 22 batters and giving up zero runs in back-to-back appearances.
On Friday night against the red-hot Seminoles, the sophomore gave up a season-low two hits in his five scoreless innings of work while fanning double-digit batters for their third-straight start. Cusick struck out seven of the first 12 Seminoles he faced. Additionally, the sophomore was electric against No. 11 Georgia Tech on March 19, striking out 10 batters in six frames. Cusick only gave up three hits and two walks across his entire start to help Wake Forest post their first win against a ranked opponent since the Deacs defeated No. 12 Louisville 3-2 on March 7, 2020.
Wilken Off To Historic Freshman Start
Through his first 18 career games, freshman Brock Wilken has smashed eight home runs to lead the Wake Forest bats.
His total ties the most home runs by a freshman in their first 18 collegiate games since Carlos Lopez also hit eight homers in his first 18 contests for Wake Forest.
The Valrico, Fla. native needs 10 more home runs in the Deacs' 27 remaining games to set the freshman record held by Jamie D'Antona in 2001.
Six of his eight home runs have come in Wake Forest's nine wins. Additionally, he has posted a pair of two-home run games in the last three games.
100-Hit Club
Wake Forest is just one of two teams in the nation with four active players that have tallied at least 100 hits during their collegiate careers:
• Bobby Seymour- 184
• Chris Lanzilli- 165
• Michael Ludowig- 120
• Shane Muntz- 117
Seymour is set to become the 28th player in Wake Forest history to join the 200-Hit club as the junior is just 16 base hits away from the mark.
Jake Mueller (2016-19) was the last Deac to reach the mark with 203 base hits.
Michael Turconi is currently 12 hits from joining the 100-hit crew, as the sophomore has recorded 88 hits through 80 career games.
Last Time Out
Wake Forest posted its third-straight win, and fourth victory in their last five games, against Appalachian State on Tuesday, March 30 at David F. Couch Ballpark.
The Deacs posted one of the best performances in recent memory in the 15-7 win over the Mountaineers, scoring a season-high 15 runs behind six home runs, the most since 2017.
Additionally, the Deacs tallied 12 hits and 12 walks, while reaping the benefits of scoreless frames from a trio of relief arms.
Opponent & Series History
The Deacs trail the all-time series by a tally of 16-4 as the two teams first met in 2015 in Louisville.
The first Wake Forest series win came in 2018 against the No. 11 Cardinals. In their freshman seasons, Bobby Seymour, Michael Ludowig, and Chris Lanzilli registered impactful performances in the series victory. In game one, Ludowig hit a huge pinch-hit double and Lanzilli knocked in a couple singles. Seymour hit the first of his xx career home runs in the series. Chase Mascolo, brother of current Freshman pitcher Reed Mascolo, had multiple hits in the series as well.
Cardinals Preview
The No. 5 Cardinals opened the season winning four straight and five of their first six games before dropping their first game of 2021 to Western Illinois. The Cardinals notably swept ACC opponents Boston College and NC State.
The team will look to rebound from a 13-12 extra innings to Cincinnati on Tuesday.
On Deck
Wake Forest will head back on the road for a midweek contest at Liberty on April 7 before welcoming Virginia Tech to The Couch on April 9-11 for a home ACC Series.
The Deacs will then embark on an eight-game road trip, including a pair of series at Duke (April 16-18) and Clemson (April 23-25).
Follow The Deacs:
Wake Forest (9-9, 4-7 ACC) heads into their fourth series against a nationally-ranked opponent following an explosive 15-7 win on Tuesday against Appalachian State and their first ACC series victory against Florida State (March 26-28), while Louisville (16-7, 8-3 ACC) will be looking to rebound from a 13-12 extra innings loss against Cincinnati after splitting a pair of games at Notre Dame last weekend.
The trio of games will be shown entirely on ACC Network Extra, with Friday's first pitch slated for 6:00 p.m. ET. Saturday's game is scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m. ET, while the teams will hit the diamond at 12:30 p.m. ET live on ESPN2 for the series finale.
Stay tuned to the Demon Deacons social media accounts (@WakeBaseball) for all in-game updates and information.
Uptick in Offensive Production
The Deacs are 4-1 in their last five games thanks to an increase in production at the plate, which bodes well as the team continues to be consistent on the mound.
Last five games (4-1)
• .263 batting average
• 14 HRs
• 45 hits
• 40 runs
• 36 RBIs
• .550 slg %
First six games after pause (2-4)
• .163 batting average
• 4 HRs
• 30 hits (5 a game)
• 15 runs
• 14 RBI
• .288 slg %
Rake Forest Returns?
Wake Forest heads into the weekend series off a historic performance at the plate against Appalachian State on March 30.
Brock Wilken, Michael Ludowig and Shane Muntz hit back-to-back-to-back solo home runs in the fourth inning, the first time the Deacs hit three consecutive home runs since Wake Forest accomplished this feat against Division II C.W. Post on March 26, 1991.
Adding in an additional home run from Wilken and roundtrippers from Adam Cecere and Lucas Costello, the Deacs hit six home runs in a game for the first time since Wake Forest raked six balls out of the park against USC on February 24, 2017.
In total, the Deacs totaled a season-high 15 runs on 12 hits during Tuesday's game.
Milestone Watch- Ryan Cusick
Ryan Cusick is just nine strikeouts away from recording his 150th career strikeout as the right-hander from Sudbury, Mass. has fanned 141 batters in 27 career appearances, including six double-digit performances in 8 starts over the last two seasons.
Cusick has already matched his strikeout total from last year and is only 12 away from tying his career-high of 55 set in his freshman season in 2019.
Cusick has posted dominating performances in his last two starts, striking out a combined 22 batters and giving up zero runs in back-to-back appearances.
On Friday night against the red-hot Seminoles, the sophomore gave up a season-low two hits in his five scoreless innings of work while fanning double-digit batters for their third-straight start. Cusick struck out seven of the first 12 Seminoles he faced. Additionally, the sophomore was electric against No. 11 Georgia Tech on March 19, striking out 10 batters in six frames. Cusick only gave up three hits and two walks across his entire start to help Wake Forest post their first win against a ranked opponent since the Deacs defeated No. 12 Louisville 3-2 on March 7, 2020.
Wilken Off To Historic Freshman Start
Through his first 18 career games, freshman Brock Wilken has smashed eight home runs to lead the Wake Forest bats.
His total ties the most home runs by a freshman in their first 18 collegiate games since Carlos Lopez also hit eight homers in his first 18 contests for Wake Forest.
The Valrico, Fla. native needs 10 more home runs in the Deacs' 27 remaining games to set the freshman record held by Jamie D'Antona in 2001.
Six of his eight home runs have come in Wake Forest's nine wins. Additionally, he has posted a pair of two-home run games in the last three games.
100-Hit Club
Wake Forest is just one of two teams in the nation with four active players that have tallied at least 100 hits during their collegiate careers:
• Bobby Seymour- 184
• Chris Lanzilli- 165
• Michael Ludowig- 120
• Shane Muntz- 117
Seymour is set to become the 28th player in Wake Forest history to join the 200-Hit club as the junior is just 16 base hits away from the mark.
Jake Mueller (2016-19) was the last Deac to reach the mark with 203 base hits.
Michael Turconi is currently 12 hits from joining the 100-hit crew, as the sophomore has recorded 88 hits through 80 career games.
Last Time Out
Wake Forest posted its third-straight win, and fourth victory in their last five games, against Appalachian State on Tuesday, March 30 at David F. Couch Ballpark.
The Deacs posted one of the best performances in recent memory in the 15-7 win over the Mountaineers, scoring a season-high 15 runs behind six home runs, the most since 2017.
Additionally, the Deacs tallied 12 hits and 12 walks, while reaping the benefits of scoreless frames from a trio of relief arms.
Opponent & Series History
The Deacs trail the all-time series by a tally of 16-4 as the two teams first met in 2015 in Louisville.
The first Wake Forest series win came in 2018 against the No. 11 Cardinals. In their freshman seasons, Bobby Seymour, Michael Ludowig, and Chris Lanzilli registered impactful performances in the series victory. In game one, Ludowig hit a huge pinch-hit double and Lanzilli knocked in a couple singles. Seymour hit the first of his xx career home runs in the series. Chase Mascolo, brother of current Freshman pitcher Reed Mascolo, had multiple hits in the series as well.
Cardinals Preview
The No. 5 Cardinals opened the season winning four straight and five of their first six games before dropping their first game of 2021 to Western Illinois. The Cardinals notably swept ACC opponents Boston College and NC State.
The team will look to rebound from a 13-12 extra innings to Cincinnati on Tuesday.
On Deck
Wake Forest will head back on the road for a midweek contest at Liberty on April 7 before welcoming Virginia Tech to The Couch on April 9-11 for a home ACC Series.
The Deacs will then embark on an eight-game road trip, including a pair of series at Duke (April 16-18) and Clemson (April 23-25).
Follow The Deacs:
GoDeacs.com | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook |
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