No. 23 Demon Deacons Head to UNC Greensboro Tuesday

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GREENSBORO, N.C.- The No. 23 Wake Forest baseball team travels to UNC Greensboro on Tuesday, April 12 to finish their season series against the non-conference foe inside UNCG Baseball Stadium.

Winners of their last four as well as their last two ACC series, the Demon Deacons (25-7, 9-6 ACC) look to claim the season set against the Spartans after a 23-3 win on Feb. 22 at David F. Couch Ballpark. Wake Forest used 21 hits, eight home runs and seven scoreless innings on the mound to defeat UNC Greensboro.

The in-state matchup is set for a 6 p.m. first pitch and can be streamed on ESPN+ with a paid subscription.

Fans can also tune into an audio streaming broadcast through the Wake Forest Athletics app and stay tuned to the Demon Deacons social media accounts (@WakeBaseball) for all in-game updates and information.

Last Time Out
The Wake Forest baseball team capped off the weekend with a 16-11 win inside David F. Couch Ballpark on Sunday to sweep Big Four rival Duke, their third ACC series victory of the season. The Sunday win marked head coach Tom Walter's 350th victory at the helm of the Wake Forest baseball program.

The Demon Deacons used 13 hits and their 12th double-digit scoring game to claim their first sweep over Duke since the 2008 season.

Wake Forest scored runs in six of their eight innings at the plate, highlighted by a six-run third. This marked the Demon Deacons' 16th inning with at least five runs this season. Brock Wilken, Brendan Tinsman, Adam Cecere and Nick Kurtz all homered in the series finale, Wake Forest's 14th game with multi-HRs.

Teddy McGraw kept Duke off the scoreboard for the first five innings of the game as the sophomore fanned a career high seven while allowing just three hits and two earned runs.

Opponent & Series history
Wake Forest holds a 43-16 advantage in the all-time series against UNC Greensboro.

The first matchup between the two programs came in 1992, with the Spartans winning 14-4. In two other matchups that season, the Deacs outscored their in-state foe 17-9 to pick up a pair of victories.

The Demon Deacons defeated the Spartans, 23-3, on Feb. 22 at David F. Couch Ballpark for their fourth win of the 2022 season. The Deacs used 21 hits, eight home runs and seven scoreless innings on the mound to defeat the Spartans.

After a scoreless first frame from Seth Keener on the mound, Wake Forest jumped out to a 6-0 lead. Home runs from Brock Wilken, Adam Cecere and Danny Corona in the bottom half of the inning made sure the Demon Deacons led the rest of the way.

The Deacs used seven arms in the win, led by Keener. In his first collegiate start, the Pilot Mountain, N.C. native earned his first career win, allowing just one earned run and three hits in two innings of work.

Wake Forest's bullpen continued to shut down UNC Greensboro's offense. Gabe Golob, Camden Minacci, Derek Crum, Crawford Wade, Jacob Grzebinski and Reed Mascolo pitched in relief, led by Minacci with a three-strikeout frame in the top of the fifth.

Top Notes

Head coach Tom Walter, the second-winningest coach in program history, won his 350th game at the helm of the Wake Forest baseball program with the 16-11 series finale victory against Duke on Sunday.
The Deacs were ranked No. 23 in Baseball America's latest top-25 poll, their highest ranking of the season.
Wake Forest has won three ACC series this season, taking Friday and Saturday contests at Georgia Tech and Boston College while sweeping Duke this past weekend for their first home conference series win of 2022.
The Deacs sit 14th in the RPI heading into midweek action.
Wake Forest has the second-most wins (25) in the ACC and is tied for the second-most conference victories (9). The Deacs have picked up five wins against top-15 opponents, four coming in ACC play.
Overall, Wake Forest has outscored their opponents 312-153 this season with a team batting average of .321 with a .436 on-base percentage and slugging percentage of .538. Wake Forest's team ERA of 3.88 is fifth in the ACC.
Wake Forest has one of the top offenses in the entire nation and ACC as the Deacs rank in the top five in the conference in every offensive category, highlighted by a conference-high 206 walks and .436 on-base percentage. Additionally, the Deacs rank in the top 10 nationally in on-base percentage (third), walks (third), runs (fifth), slugging percentage (seventh), home runs (ninth) and batting average (seventh).
The Demon Deacon offense has set multiple program records this season:
- In their series-clinching victory this past weekend at Boston College, Wake Forest scored 20 runs to set a new program record for most games in a season with 20 runs or more as well as the most games with 20 or more runs against an ACC opponent:
  - 20 Runs or More in an ACC Game
    - at Boston College (April 2, 2022)- W, 20-8
    - at Georgia Tech (March 19, 2022) - W, 27-7
    - vs. Pitt (April 13, 2019) - W, 20-8
    - vs. Maryland (May 24, 2005) - W, 20-13*
    - vs. Maryland (April 23, 2004) - W, 21-16
    - at Maryland (April 27, 2001) - W, 20-3
    - at Georgia Tech (April 16, 1999) - W, 22-1
    - vs. Maryland (April 9, 1994) - W, 20-6
    - vs. Duke (April 5, 1988) - W, 21-4
    - at Georgia Tech (April 4, 1981) - L, 20-21
    - vs. Clemson (April 24, 1976) - W, 22-9
    - vs. Clemson (May 4, 1962) - W, 20-4*
    - * Denotes in ACC Tournament
  - 2022 Games with 20 runs or more
    - at Boston College (April 2, 2022) - 20 runs
    - at Georgia Tech (March 19, 2022) - 27 runs
    - vs. UNC Greensboro (Feb. 22, 2022) - 23 runs
    - vs. Lafayette (Feb. 18, 2022) - 25 runs
- The Demon Deacons exploded in their second game against Georgia Tech, setting a new program record for most runs (27) and hits (28) in an ACC game.
  - Wake Forest's 28 hits rank tied for third in program history, while their 27 runs stand as the sixth-most runs scored in a single game.
On Sunday against the Blue Devils, Wake Forest scored six runs in the third inning to take an 8-0 lead. The scoring outburst marked the 16th inning this season with at least five runs.
On the mound, Wake Forest's starting pitchers have combined for 137.1 innings with 133 strikeouts and just 67 earned runs allowed.The Demon Deacons have been able to rely on their bullpen as three relievers have given up five runs or less this season.
10 Demon Deacons have notched at least 10 base hits this season, led by freshman Nick Kurtz with 45. Additionally, six Demon Deacons have hit at least five home runs.
Wake Forest has been patient at the plate as the Deacs have been walked 206 times, the most in the ACC and the third most in the entire nation. The Deacs have been walked at least 10 times in five games this season. In all but one of those contests, Wake Forest has notched double-digit hits, while scoring double-digit runs in three of the five instances.
Camden Minacci has been nails coming out of the Wake Forest bullpen.
- Minacci made appearances in three-consecutive games last week, tossing four scoreless and hitless innings with four strikeouts to earn three saves.
- In 25.2 innings, the sophomore has struck out 38 batters while only allowing three earned runs. Minacci's strikeouts rank second on the team, while he sports the lowest ERA (1.05) on the squad.
Brock Wilken has been on a tear since the beginning of April.
- In seven games, Wilken holds an average of .367 with 11 hits while leading the team with four home runs, 16 RBIs and a .800 slugging percentage.
In his last midweek start, Seth Keener found his zone, retiring 11-straight Elon batters through the first and fourth innings.
- In that time frame, Keener struck out a career-high tying six batters.
Nick Kurtz is just one home run away from already entering the top 10 for home runs by a freshman in a single season.
- Overall, Kurtz leads Wake Forest with a .354 average, 45 hits and 42 runs scored.
The Deacs have only conceded 122 earned runs through 32 games (3.81 per game). Their team ERA ranks fifth in the ACC.
Through the first four games, the Deacs gave up just 11 runs, the fewest number of runs the Deacs have allowed in the first four games in head coach Tom Walter's tenure.
Four Wake Forest arms have held opponents to a sub-.100 batting average (at least 10 innings minimum):
- Eric Adler- .143 in 14.0 innings
- Camden Minacci- .138 in 25.2 innings
- Gabe Golob - .193 in 24.1 innings
- Brennen Oxford- .196 in 12.2 innings

On Deck
Wake Forest returns home for another home ACC series against Clemson on April 15-17 at David F. Couch Ballpark.

Friday's series opener is set for 7 p.m. and will be live on ACC Network. Saturday's contest is slated for a 4:30 p.m. first pitch while the teams will wrap up the series on Sunday at 1 p.m.

The final two games of the series will be streamed live on ACC Network Extra.

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Players Mentioned

Eric Adler

Adam Cecere

Danny Corona

Derek Crum

Gabe Golob

Jacob Grzebinski

Seth Keener

Nick Kurtz

Reed Mascolo

Teddy McGraw

Camden Minacci

Brennen Oxford

Brendan Tinsman

Crawford Wade

Brock Wilken

Wake Forest Athletics