Wake Forest University
13-1, 0
Florida State
8-5, 0
Wake Forest Claims ACC Opener with 9-3 Win Against No. 8 Florida State
3/11/2022 7:13:00 PM | Baseball
Freshman Danny Corona finished with two home runs and six RBIs while Rhett Lowder picked up his fourth win of the season on the mound.
WINSTON-SALEM, NC. -- Behind two home runs and six RBIs from Danny Corona as well as strong pitching from three arms, the Wake Forest baseball team posted a 9-3 victory in their Atlantic Coast Conference opener versus No. 8 Florida State on Friday afternoon at David F. Couch Ballpark.
The Demon Deacons remain a perfect 13-0 in home games this season. They have outscored their opponents 157-40 in those outings.
Additionally to open the new campaign, the Deacs hold an overall team batting average of .356 with a .467 on-base percentage and team ERA of just 2.63. Wake Forest entered the game as the nation's leader in total hits.
Danny Corona got Wake Forest on the board with a solo home run in the bottom of the fifth inning before lifting a three-run long fly over the right field wall, increasing Wake Forest's lead to 7-2 in the bottom of the sixth.
The freshman came up clutch again in the eighth inning. With bases loaded, Corona took advantage of the drawn-in infield, splitting the second and first basemen for a two-RBI single. It was the third hit of the day for the No. 9 hole hitter as he tallied his fifth and sixth RBIs of the afternoon. The base knock pushed the lead to 9-2.
The six RBIs mark a career-best for Corona while the two home runs and three hits tie career-bests in first collegiate season.
After another strong performance from the Demon Deacon Friday starter, Rhett Lowder remained perfect on the season as he is now 4-0 with a 1.93 season ERA. His 6.0 innings pitched mark the third-consecutive game he has gone through the sixth inning. He fanned four batters, allowing just two earned runs.
Camden Minacci threw a strong 2.0 innings to bridge the gap to the ninth. Minacci fanned three Seminoles while only allowing two runners to reach base. Derek Crum closed the door in the ninth, striking out the final batter to claim the first game of the series.
How It Happened
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Rhett Lowder started on the mound and tossed a perfect 1-2-3 inning, setting the tone with a strikeout to open his outing.
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The Deacs placed runners on first and second after a leadoff double from Pierce Bennett as well as a walk to Michael Turconi, but Wake Forest was unable to capitalize as the game remained scoreless after one full inning.
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Florida State took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second as a walk with the bases loaded plated the first run of the game.
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Lowder induced a fly out to Pierce Bennett in center field to get out of the bases loaded jam.
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The Seminoles extended their lead to 2-0 with an RBI double in the top of the third.
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On the double, Danny Corona threw out a Florida State base runner trying to score from first for the second out of the inning.
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Lowder fanned a Seminole for the third and final out.
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After back-to-back scoreless innings from Lowder on the mound, Wake Forest took hold of a 3-2 advantage with three runs on three hits in the bottom of the fifth.
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Corona launched a ball 403 feet to right centerfield for Wake Forest's first run of the game.
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Bennett reached base for the third time of the game with a walk, followed by a single to center field. Both were scored on a 2-RBI single from Adam Cecere.
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After allowing a leadoff single, Lowder retired the next three Florida State batters to preserve Wake Forest's one-run lead.
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Lowder induced a pair of fly outs as well as his fourth strikeout of the game.
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A three-run home run from Corona and an RBI-single from Reinisch pushed Wake Forest's lead to 7-2 after six full innings.
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Brendan Tinsman was plated on Reinisch's base knock, while Nick Kurtz (single) and Reinisch were brought home on Corona's second long fly of the game.
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Camden Minacci took over the pitching duties in the seventh, tossing a perfect frame that included a strikeout and two fly outs.
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After the Deacs were sent down in the order in the bottom of the seventh, Minacci carried his momentum in the top of the eighth, striking out a Seminole with runners on first and second to end the inning and keep Wake Forest's 7-2 lead safe.
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Corona continued his career game in the eighth. With the bases loaded and no outs, he found the hole between second and first, plating a pair.
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This was the career-best fifth and sixth RBIs of the day for the freshman left-handed hitter.
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After a strong 2.0 innings from Minacci, Derek Crum hit the bump for the ninth. Florida State led off the inning with a home run, the final run of the game.
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Crum then worked himself out of a bases loaded jam with two outs, striking out the Seminoles' final batter of the game to secure the 9-3 victory.
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Standout Stat
The Demon Deacons remain a perfect 13-0 in home games this season. They have outscored their opponents 157-40 in those outings.
The Deacs continue to get strong performances from their pitchers as Wake Forest's opponents have yet to score more than five runs in a single game this season and have allowed opponents to plate more than three runs just four times.
Overall, Wake Forest is outscoring their opponents by an average of 8.3 runs per game.
Danny Corona paced Wake Forest at the plate as the Brooklyn, N.Y. native became the first freshman to notch six RBIs in a single game since Brock Wilken did so against the Seminoles in Tallahassee last season.
Wake Forest continued to lean on Rhett Lowder for quality starts on Friday night as the sophomore earned his fourth win of the season, matching his career high from a season ago. This was also the right-hander's third consecutive quality start.
Words from Walter
"Tonight was a great team win. It's always a good feeling to get off to a good start in league play. Rhett Lowder came out amped up, but he eventually settled down and gave us another quality start. I'm happy with how Cam Minacci threw the ball tonight. He gave us multiple solid innings and helped us keep the momentum. Adam Cecere came through for us when we needed him in the fifth. Danny Corona had a career day today. It was really nice to see Danny have a couple great at-bats. Overall, it was a great team win and we're excited to get back out here tomorrow."
On Deck
Wake Forest and the Seminoles square off on Saturday at The Couch at 1 p.m. on the Regional Sports Networks.
The series finale is slated for 1 p.m. on Sunday and will also air live on the Regional Sports Networks.
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Lowder, Rhett (4-0)
L: Parker Messick (2-1)
Batting:
2B: Logan Lacey 2
HR: Brock Mathis 1
RBI: Logan Lacey 1 ; Colton Vincent 1 ; Brock Mathis 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Brett Roberts 1 ; Logan Lacey 1 ; Brock Mathis 1
SB: Brett Roberts 1
HBP: Jaime Ferrer 1 ; Jackson Greene 1
Batting:
2B: Bennett, Pierce 1
HR: Corona, Danny 2
RBI: Cecere, Adam 2 ; Reinisch, Jake 1 ; Corona, Danny 6
Base Running:
RUNS: Bennett, Pierce 1 ; Turconi, Michael 1 ; Tinsman, Brendan 1 ; Kurtz, Nick 2 ; Hawke, Tommy 1 ; Reinisch, Jake 1 ; Corona, Danny 2
SB: Turconi, Michael 1
CS: Cecere, Adam 1
HBP: Kurtz, Nick 1
