Wake Forest University
Duke
Wake Forest Welcomes Duke For Big Four Series at The Couch
4/7/2022 3:50:00 PM | Baseball
Fresh off their 22nd win, the Deacs square off against the Blue Devils in their fifth ACC series of the season.
Game Notes | Stream (Friday) | Stream (Saturday) | Stream (Sunday) | Live Stats (Friday) | Live Stats (Saturday) | Live Stats (Sunday)
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Wake Forest welcomes Big Four rival Duke this weekend to David F. Couch Ballpark for a three-game ACC series on April 8-10.
The Demon Deacons (22-7, 6-6 ACC) head into their fifth conference series of the season fresh off their 16th non-conference victory as Wake Forest defeated Elon, 6-4, on Wednesday to claim the season series.
Wake Forest currently sits ninth in the RPI and is off to their best start through 29 games since 2006.
The series opener on Friday is set for a 6 p.m. start while Saturday's contest will begin at 4 p.m. The series finale on Sunday is slated for a 1 p.m. first pitch.
All three games can be streamed on ACC Network Extra.
Fans can tune into an audio streaming broadcast through the Wake Forest Athletics app for all three games.
Stay tuned to the Demon Deacons social media accounts (@WakeBaseball) for all in-game updates and information.
Tickets and Promotions
With ticket demand at an all-time high this season, avoid the lines and purchase your tickets in advance at GoDeacs.com/tickets.
Admission starts at only $10 for general admission access, while reserved seats are available for as low as $15 for adults and $8 for youth. A limited number of other premium options are also available and can be purchased online. Fans may upgrade their experience by purchasing single-game access to the All-American Club for only $15 per ticket.
Promotions
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Friday - Deacon Brew Night at The Couch & The First Student Tailgate Experience
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The first 200 fans will receive a Deacon Brew koozie.
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Free Food and Soft Drinks for First 150 students
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Saturday - Country Day at The Couch. Pre-game country concert featuring Jason Michael Carroll starting at 2:30 PM. Gates will open at 2:00 PM.
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Admission to the concert is free with a purchase of a game ticket
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Sunday - A Baseball Game Unlike Any Other.
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The first 500 fans will receive a Wake Forest Baseball Frosted Cup
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Last Time Out
Wake Forest claimed the season series over non-conference foe Elon with a 6-4 victory Tuesday inside Latham Park, marking their 22nd win of the season.
After the Phoenix took a 1-0 lead in the first, sophomore 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.
Offensively, the Demon Deacons pushed across four runs in the third inning thanks to a trio of RBI-singles from Brock Wilken, Michael Turconi and Adam Cecere to take their first lead. Kyle Joye's second home run of the season increased their lead to 5-1 in the fourth.
After Elon plated a run in the bottom of the fifth, the Deacs pushed their lead back to four with an RBI-double from Chris Katz.
Camden Minacci registered the final six outs of the game on the mound, securing the midweek victory and his second save of the season. The Tampa, Fla. native kept Wake Forest's lead at two after a pair of Elon runs came across in the eighth.
Opponent & Series history
The Demon Deacons and Blue Devils are longtime rivals, facing off on the diamond 173 times since their first meeting in 1954. Wake Forest owns a 111-62 advantage over Duke.
Wake Forest claimed the conference series the last time the teams faced off in Winston-Salem, posting victories on Saturday and Sunday after falling in the series opener.
Top Notes
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Head coach Tom Walter, the second-winningest coach in program history, heads into the weekend series just three victories shy of 350 career wins at the helm of the Wake Forest baseball program.
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Rhett Lowder heads into the weekend as the only pitcher in the ACC with six wins (just one of 12 in the nation) as the Friday night starter holds an ERA of 2.25 with 47 strikeouts compared to just 16 walks.
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After tallying the third-most strikeouts by a freshman (78) in Wake Forest history, Lowder needs just 25 more punchouts to reach 150 career Ks
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Michael Turconi led Wake Forest at the plate during their 3-1 week with a team-high batting average of .588 with a team-high 10 hits, two doubles, one triple, eight RBIs and a team-high tying seven runs scored. The shortstop posted a slugging percentage of .824 with an on-base percentage of .571.
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Turconi has driven in a run in each of Wake Forest's last three games.
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After becoming the youngest Cape Cod MVP in league history this past summer, Brock Wilken returned to the New England area and put together a great weekend performance in both victories against the Eagles.
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Wilken tallied a career-high seven RBIs in Friday's victory with a grand slam and a three-run home run, the fourth multi-home run performance of his career.
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The sophomore heads into the weekend with a team-high 36 RBIs and nine doubles, while tying for the team lead in home runs (nine).
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Camden Minacci has been nails coming out of the Wake Forest bullpen. In 23.2 innings, the sophomore has struck out 35 batters while only allowing three earned runs. Minacci's strikeouts rank second on the team, while he sports the lowest ERA (1.14) on the squad.
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The Deacs sit 9th in the RPI heading into weekend action.
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Wake Forest has been patient at the plate as the Deacs have been walked 190 times, the most in the ACC and the fourth 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.
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Wake Forest has won two ACC series on the road this season, taking Friday and Saturday contests at Georgia Tech and Boston College.
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Wake Forest holds a 22-7 record, the program's best start through 29 games since 2006.
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Best Starts since 2000:
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2002: 24-5
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2022: 22-7
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2006: 22-7
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2017: 21-8
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2003: 20-9
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Five of Wake Forest's wins have come against top-15 opponents with victories against then-No. 8 Florida State, then-No. 6 Georgia Tech twice, then-No. 15 Liberty and then-No. 10 Virginia.
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The Demon Deacon offense has set multiple program records this season:
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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:
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20 Runs or More in an ACC Game
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at Boston College (April 2, 2022)- W, 20-8
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at Georgia Tech (March 19, 2022) - W, 27-7
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vs. Pitt (April 13, 2019) - W, 20-8
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vs. Maryland (May 24, 2005) - W, 20-13*
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vs. Maryland (April 23, 2004) - W, 21-16
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at Maryland (April 27, 2001) - W, 20-3
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at Georgia Tech (April 16, 1999) - W, 22-1
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vs. Maryland (April 9, 1994) - W, 20-6
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vs. Duke (April 5, 1988) - W, 21-4
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at Georgia Tech (April 4, 1981) - L, 20-21
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vs. Clemson (April 24, 1976) - W, 22-9
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vs. Clemson (May 4, 1962) - W, 20-4*
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* Denotes in ACC Tournament
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2022 Games with 20 runs or more
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at Boston College (April 2, 2022) - 20 runs
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at Georgia Tech (March 19, 2022) - 27 runs
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vs. UNC Greensboro (Feb. 22, 2022) - 23 runs
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vs. Lafayette (Feb. 18, 2022) - 25 runs
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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.
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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.
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Overall, Wake Forest has outscored their opponents 285-137 this season with a team batting average of .322 with a .437 on-base percentage and slugging percentage of .538. Wake Forest's team ERA of 3.76 is fifth in the ACC.
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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, while ranking in the top 10 in the nation in on-base percentage (third), walks (fourth), runs (fifth), slugging percentage (ninth), home runs (ninth) and batting average (seventh).
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On the mound, Wake Forest's starting pitchers have combined for 120 innings with 120 strikeouts and just 61 earned runs allowed.
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The Demon Deacons have been able to rely on their bullpen as four relievers have given up five runs or less this season.
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4- Gabe Golob
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5- Derek Crum
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Four Wake Forest arms have held opponents to a sub- .100 batting average (at least 10 innings minimum):
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Eric Adler- .146 in 13.2 innings
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Camden Minacci- .148 in 23.2 innings
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Gabe Golob - .189 in 22.0 innings
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Brennen Oxford- .190 in 11.2 innings
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10 Demon Deacons have notched at least 10 base hits this season, led by redshirt juniors Brendan Tinsman and Michael Turconi with 39. Additionally, five Demon Deacons have hit at least five home runs.
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Wake Forest's offense has been successful from the jump as the 2022 squad posted two games of at least 20 runs for just the second time in program history. Wake Forest plated 29 runs against Argentina and 23 runs against Brazil as the United States representative in the 1951 Pan-American Games.
On Deck
The Deacs will take on UNC Greensboro on Tuesday, April 12 at First National Bank Park, the home of the Greensboro Grasshoppers. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.
Wake Forest returns home for their second-straight home ACC series on April 15-17, welcoming Clemson for their sixth conference set of the season.
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