Wake Forest University
13-0
Cornell
0-6
Hartle’s Career Day and Early Offense Helps No. 2 Wake Forest Earn 13th Win of 2023
3/5/2023 5:02:00 PM | Baseball
Josh Hartle struck out a career-high 12 batters in a career-high tying seven innings on the mound, while the Deacs pushed across six runs in the opening innings to take command of its final non-conference weekend game of the regular season.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Behind a career start from Josh Hartle and early offense, the No. 2 Demon Deacons remained perfect with a 10-3 win against Cornell on Sunday afternoon at David F. Couch Ballpark.
Wake Forest has now started 13-0 for just the second time in program history, joining the 1949 Deacs, who hold the program's best open to a campaign at 20-0, as the only teams in school history to win its first 13 games.
Additionally, Wake Forest is 38-4 against non-ACC competition over the last two seasons, outscoring opponents 419-142 in those games.
The Deacs continued to use all-around team performances to fuel its perfect start, outscoring opponents 158-27 to open the new campaign. Wake Forest is batting .348 as a team and holds a team ERA of just 1.80 with 178 strikeouts and 27 walks in 13 games.
Coming into weekend competition, the Demon Deacon pitching staff led the nation in strikeout-to-walk ratio and the ACC in WHIP, ERA, hits per nine and strikeouts per nine.
Additionally, Wake Forest has now fanned double-digit batters in 10 of its first 13 games, averaging 13.7 strikeouts per game while walking just 2.1 batters per game.
Wake Forest's offense has been on a tear to open the new season as the Deacs led the nation in walks, hits, on-base percentage, scoring and runs per game prior to the weekend slate. Additionally, Wake Forest was the conference leader in home runs, batting average and slugging percentage.
The Demon Deacons are equally as impressive to start ball games, as they extended their first inning advantage to 33-5 after scoring four runs in the first frame Sunday afternoon.
Three-straight singles from Tommy Hawke, Jake Reinisch and Nick Kurtz opened the scoring for the Deacs as Kurtz's 16th RBI of the season plated Hawke to tie the game at one.
A Brock Wilken base-on-balls loaded the bases for Adam Cecere, who was subsequently hit by a pitch to plate Reinisch. Kurtz and Wilken recorded the final runs of the inning, scoring on a ground ball double-play and a passed ball, respectively.
The Demon Deacons loaded the bases again in the bottom of the second. With Bennett Lee, Hawke and Reinisch standing on the bags, Wilken tallied two RBIs on a single through the left side, increasing the Wake Forest lead to 6-1.
Wilken added to his RBI total as he sent the second pitch of the bottom of the fifth over the wall. The junior from Valrico, Florida now has nine round-trippers this season and 49 in his collegiate career, which is the most among active players in Division I baseball.
The lead inflated to 7-0 in the sixth frame as Lee walked, stole second, advanced to third on a groundout and scored on a Hawke single.
Hawke's super Sunday did not end there. After his RBI-double scored Lee, Hawke added the 10th run for the Demon Deacons on a wild pitch. Hawke finished the day 3-for-3 with three runs scored, two RBIs, and two stolen bases.
Hartle earned the third win of his sophomore year in the final game of the weekend on Sunday with a career-high 12 strikeouts in a career-high tying seven innings.
After the first inning, the King, N.C. native settled in as the lefthander struckout multiple batters in the four innings, highlighted by seven of his punchouts across his final three frames.
The outing marked the sixth time in his last nine starts the lefthander has allowed one run or less.
Chase Walter made his fourth appearance of the season out of the bullpen in relief of Hartle, striking out a batter in the eighth.
Michael Massey recorded the opening outs in the final frame with two strikeouts before Will Ray induced the final out of the game with a flyout to right field to secure the victory.
How It Happened
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Cornell scored the game's first run with an RBI-single up the middle. Josh Hartle responded, retiring the next two batters to end the inning and strand a runner in scoring position.
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After the Big Red's run, Hartle induced a double play as Danny Corona made a fantastic play on a high grounder tipped by Hartle's glove before Nick Kurtz picked the throw at first.
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Hartle fanned the next batter to end the inning.
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Wake Forest's offense quickly responded with four runs in the bottom half to take its first lead (4-1) of the ballgame.
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Tommy Hawke and Jake Reinisch opened the frame with back-to-back singles to place runners on the corners. Nick Kurtz roped an RBI-single down the right field line to tie the game at 1.
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Brock Wilken tallied a walk to load the bases before Adam Cecere was hit by a pitch, scoring Reinisch and giving the Deacs an early lead.
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A double play with the bases loaded and a passed ball gave Wake Forest a 4-1 lead after one.
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Hartle settled in and tossed a scoreless inning to open the second with a pair of groundouts and his second punchout of his start.
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The Deacs extended its lead to 6-1 as Wilken fired a two-RBI single with the bases loaded past Cornell's diving shortstop to score Hawke (walk) and Lee (leadoff single).
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Wake Forest loaded the bases for the second time of the game after Lee's base knock and walks to Hawke and Reinisch.
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Hartle pitched a shutdown frame in the third, retiring the Big Red in order with a pair of strikeouts.
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Chris Katz walked and advanced to second after a wild pitch in the bottom of the inning, a pair of flyouts ended the offensive opportunity for the Deacs.
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After a leadoff single to open the fourth, Hartle induced a 6-4-3 double play before striking out his fifth Cornell batter of the game to end the inning.
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On the Big Red's base knock, Hawke made a sliding play to hold the Big Red to just a single.
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After the Deacs were held off the scoreboard in the bottom of the fourth, Hartle struckout the side, working around a two-out double with his eighth K of his start.
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A Brock Wilken solo shot to left center field increased Wake Forest's lead in the bottom of the fifth to 7-1.
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This marked the ninth homer for Wilken this season as well as the 49th HR of his career.
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Hartle sent the Big Red down in order with a groundout to open the inning before striking out back-to-back batters as the Deacs held onto its six-run lead.
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This marked the second-straight outing from Hartle with double-digit strikeouts. Last week against Mount St. Mary's, Hartle struckout a then-career high 11 batters.
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The Deacs found the scoreboard and extended its lead to 8-1 as Hawke found the gap through the infield to tally an RBI-single which scored Lee, who walked and stole second before a groundout moved him to third.
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Hartle didn't slow down in the seventh, tossing another three-up, three-down frame with another pair of punchouts.
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This marked Hartle's new career high in strikeouts and tied the longest outing of his career.
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Cornell added two runs in the eighth with a sacrifice fly and groundout to first.
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Chase Walter entered to start the eighth on the mound and ended the top of the inning with a strikeout.
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The Deacs matched Cornell's eighth inning scores with two runs of their own, increasing its lead to 10-3.
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Tommy Hawke doubled down the left field line to score Lee before later reaching home on a wild pitch.
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Michael Massey and Will Ray combined to pitch a 1-2-3 inning in the top of the ninth to clinch the 10-3 victory.
Words From Walter
"Good team win. Josh Hartle was kind of shaky early. In the first couple innings he did not have his best stuff. I thought he got stronger as the game went on. I really liked the way he was throwing the ball in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings. So I was happy about that.
"Tommy Hawke was on base all day today. He had a really great day. Brock Wilken had a big two-out RBI and then a solo home run later, so also a good day from him. We played clean defense today so that is always a good thing. It was a good win. We now have five games on the road. We have a tough schedule coming up at Coastal Carolina, three games at Duke, and then at Liberty. We will have to play our best baseball of the year this week."
Standout Stat
Wake Forest has now started 13-0 for just the second time in program history, joining the 1949 Deacs, who hold the program's best start at 20-0, as the only teams in program history to win its first 13 games.
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Best Starts in Program History:
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13-0: 2023, 1949
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14-0: 1949
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15-0: 1949
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16-0: 1949
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17-0: 1949
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18-0: 1949
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19-0: 1949
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20-0: 1949
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Additionally, Wake Forest is 38-4 against non-ACC competition over the last two seasons, outscoring opponents 419-142 in those games.
The Deacs continued to use all-around team performances to fuel its perfect start, outscoring opponents 158-27 to open the new campaign. Wake Forest is batting .348 as a team and holds a team ERA of just 1.80 with 178 strikeouts and 27 walks in 13 games.
Wake Forest has outscored opponents by double-digits in six innings this season. The Deacs have only had an offensive opportunity in the ninth against UNC Greensboro on Tuesday, Feb. 21.
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Wake Forest Scoring Summary by Inning (Wake Forest-Opponent)
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First Inning: 33-5
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Second Inning: 18-1
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Third Inning: 20-3
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Fourth Inning: 27-3
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Fifth Inning: 24-5
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Sixth Inning: 10-1
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Seventh Inning: 8-1
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Eighth Inning: 17-5
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Ninth Inning: 1-2
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In The Spotlight
Josh Hartle earned the third win of his sophomore year in the final game of the weekend against Cornell on Sunday with a career-high 12 strikeouts in a career-high tying seven innings.
After the first inning, the King, N.C. native settled in as the lefthander struckout multiple batters in the four innings, highlighted by seven of his punchouts across his final three frames.
The outing marked the sixth time in his last nine starts the lefthander has allowed one run or less.
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March 5 vs. Cornell- 7IP, 1ER, 12Ks and 1BBs
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Feb. 26 vs. Mount St. Mary's - 6IP, 0ER, 11Ks and 0BBs
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Feb. 19 vs. Illinois - 5 IP, 1ER, 8Ks and 0BBs
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June 6, 2022 vs. Long Island (NCAA Regional) - 7IP, 1ER, 5Ks and 2BBs
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May 20, 2022 vs. NC State - 5IP, 1ER, 0Ks and 2BBs
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April 30, 2022 vs. Longwood - 4IP, 1ER, 5Ks and 0BBs
Last Sunday, Hartle fanned a then-career high 11 batters in six innings while allowing no earned runs and no walks for his second victory of 2023. Hartle struckout multiple batters in his last four innings, highlighted by a trio of punchouts in the fourth and sixth.
Hartle became just the second pitcher in Wake Forest history to make 14 starts as a freshman in 2022 as well as the sixth freshman Deac in program history to earn seven victories in a season (second most on the 2022 squad).
This season, Hartle has accumulated a 1.00 ERA through 18 innings to go along with 31 strikeouts . The lefthander has allowed just two earned runs and has only walked one batter.
Wake Forest's recent weekend rotation of Rhett Lowder, Sean Sullivan and Hartle have been nails all season, earning eight wins with a combined ERA of 1.03 in 52 innings. The trio has struck out 88 batters while allowing just six earned runs and walking just seven batters.
After leading the team with the fourth-highest batting average by a freshman in program history (.380) last year, Tommy Hawke has continued to be impactful at the top of Wake Forest's lineup. Through 13 games, Hawke leads the Deacs with a .531 batting average and 26 hits.
Dating back to last season, Hawke has a 44-game reached base streak and 12-game hit streak after going 3-3 with two singles, a double, three runs scored and two stolen bases today against the Big Red.
After setting career highs in hits (69). home runs (23), RBIs (77) and doubles (13) in 2022, Brock Wilken looks to cement himself as one of the best hitters in Wake Forest history this season.
With his ninth home run of the season on Sunday, Wilken has launched a long fly in seven of Wake Forest's last nine games. The Valrico, Fla. native is second nationally in home runs and the career home runs among active players in Division I baseball.
After hitting the most home runs by a Demon Deacon in their first two seasons ever, Wilken has hit 49 home runs in his career, which moved the junior into a tie for the third-most career home runs by a Demon Deacon ever with Allan Dykstra.
Wake Forest Career Home Runs
1. Jamie D'Antona 2001-03 58
2. Jake Austin 1989-92 55
3. Brock Wilken 2021-Pres. 49
Allan Dykstra 2006-08 49
5. Chris Kowilcik 1989-92 47
Kevin Bunn 1981-84 47
Brick Smith 1978-81 47
8. Bill Merrifield 1981-83 45
9. Dave Lardieri 1994-97 42
On Deck
After playing 12 of its first 13 games of the season inside The Couch, the Deacs head out on the road for five-straight games.
Wake Forest will take on Coastal Carolina in Conway, S.C. on Tuesday, March 7 at 4 p.m. live on ESPN+ (paid subscription required).
The Deacs then open conference play with a three-game series against Big-Four rival Duke inside Durham Bulls Athletic Park in Durham on March 10-12. All three games are slated to be live on ACC Network Extra.
A midweek matchup in Lynchburg, Va. against Liberty on Tuesday, March 14 concludes the five-game streak away from Winston-Salem, N.C.
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Hartle, Josh (3-0)
L: Von Baker (0-1)
Batting:
2B: TJ Swidorski 2
RBI: John Quinlan 1 ; Jakobi Davis 1 ; Max Jensen 1
SF: John Quinlan 1
Base Running:
RUNS: John Quinlan 1 ; Ryan Porter 1 ; TJ Swidorski 1
HBP: John Quinlan 1 ; Ryan Porter 1
Batting:
2B: Hawke, Tommy 1
HR: Wilken, Brock 1
RBI: Hawke, Tommy 2 ; Kurtz, Nick 1 ; Wilken, Brock 3 ; Cecere, Adam 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Hawke, Tommy 3 ; Reinisch, Jake 1 ; Kurtz, Nick 1 ; Wilken, Brock 2 ; Lee, Bennett 3
SB: Hawke, Tommy 2 ; Lee, Bennett 1
HBP: Cecere, Adam 1
