Wake Forest Walks Off No. 14 Tennessee, 7-6

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – With the game tied at 6-6 in the ninth, the Wake Forest baseball team walked it off in the ninth to defeat No. 14 Tennessee, 7-6, Sunday night at Lindsey Nelson Stadium in Knoxville Tenn.

After defeating the Vols (45-17), the Demon Deacons (39-21) are set to face Tennessee again Monday in a winner-takes-all game to decide the Knoxville Regional. First pitch will take place at 6 p.m. ET Monday on ESPN2.

This marks the seventh NCAA Regional Final appearance for Wake Forest since the NCAA Tournament expanded to its current Super Regional format in 1999.

With the game tied in the bottom of the ninth, graduate student Matt Scannell walked followed by a pair of singles from junior Marek Houston and sophomore Kade Lewis. With the bases loaded and no outs, junior Jack Winnay worked a four-pitch walk to secure the win for the Deacs.

Houston hit his third home run in the Knoxville Regional in the first inning to give the Deacs the first lead of the game. It tied him for the team lead with 15 home runs on the season alongside fellow junior Winnay.

Three innings later sophomore Javar Williams left the yard for the second time in the NCAA Regional and the fourth time overall this season. It boosted the Deacs' lead to 6-2 going into the fifth.

The Demon Deacons have now hit 14 home runs in the four games played in the Knoxville Regional with an estimated total distance of 5,376 feet or approximately 1.01 miles. Additionally, the 14 long shots rank second in the postseason behind only Oklahoma State (16).

Overall this season, the Deacs have slugged 114 home runs which is the third-highest total in program history and marks the fourth-straight season Wake Forest has had 100 or more home runs, totaling 479 home runs over the last four seasons:

Rank	Home Runs	Year	Games Played
1.	130	2023	66
2.	122	2022	61
3.	114	2025	60
4.	113	2024	60
5.	106	2017	63

The seven Demon Deacons to have 10 or more home runs this season are the most in program history since at least 1999.

Junior Logan Lunceford finished the night with 5.0 innings pitched allowing just two earned runs and was in line for the win when he exited. Lunceford fanned three Vol batters and did not allow a walk while scattering five hits.

Lunceford was backed up by three clutch performances out of the bullpen with the combination of freshman Rhys Bowie, sophomore Josh Gunther and sophomore Haiden Leffew. The trio combined for 4.0 innings, allowing just two runs while fanning nine Tennessee batters. After striking out the side in the ninth, Leffew earned his fourth victory of the season, improving to 4-1.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Starter Logan Lunceford retired Tennessee in order in the top of the first behind a pair of flyouts and a groundout.
Junior Marek Houston put Wake Forest on the board first with his second home run of the day and 15th of the year in the bottom of the first.
- The line drive over the wall in right field left the bat at 102 mph, traveling 366 feet.
A pair of unearned runs gave the Volunteers a 2-1 lead in the top of the third.
Wake Forest responded with three runs in the bottom of the third to grab a 4-2 advantage.
- A four-pitch walk put sophomore Javar Williams on to start the frame.
- A nicely executed drag bunt by right fielder Matt Scannell, followed by a Vol error, put two in scoring position for the Demon Deacons with no outs.
- An RBI groundout by third baseman Kade Lewis evened the game at 2-2.
- First baseman Jack Winnay came up clutch with a two-out double into the gap in left center to plate Scannell and put the Deacs back in front.
- Freshman Dalton Wentz traded places with Winnay a double of his own to push the lead to two through the first three innings.
Lunceford worked around a one-out single for a shutdown inning in the fourth.
The Demon Deacons put up their second-straight crooked number with two runs in the bottom half of the fourth to make it 6-2.
- Catcher Jimmy Keenan battled for a seven-pitch walk to put a runner on with one away.
- Williams sent a missile over the wall in right center for his fourth of the season and second of the Regional.
  - The two-run shot left the bat at 103 mph, traveling 371 feet.
Tennessee got two runs back on a home run in the top of the fifth.
Winnay recorded his 17th multi-hit game of the season with a single to left, but that was all for Wake Forest in the bottom of the fifth.
The Vols tied the game with a two-run homer in the sixth.
With the bases loaded for Tennessee in the seventh, reliever Josh Gunther picked up a huge strikeout to get Wake Forest out of the jam, as the game remained tied at 6-6.
Gunther worked a three-up, three-down eighth inning with a pair of strikeouts to keep the contest knotted.
A two-out triple from Keenan put the go-ahead run 90 feet away, but a strikeout got Tennessee out of the inning.
Sophomore Haiden Leffew entered in the top of the ninth, striking out the side to keep things tied.
In the bottom half of the ninth, Wake Forest loaded the bases for Winnay, who drew a four-pitch walk and kept the Deacs' season alive.
- The Demon Deacons claimed the 7-6 victory over Tennessee.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Junior Marek Houston continued his offensive dominance during his regional appearances with a solo home run to start the Wake Forest scoring off in the first.
- The Nokomis, Fla. native is 7-for-16 with three home runs, a double, a single, and eight total RBIs in the past three games.
- Houston leads the team with 27 multi-hit efforts on the year. In games where Houston has at least two hits, the Demon Deacons are 21-6, as opposed to just 18-15 in games with one hit or less.
  - Throughout his career, Houston has recorded 58 multi-hit efforts, with Wake compiling a 44-14 record.
Starter Logan Lunceford allowed just two earned runs in 5.0 innings for the Deacons, including three scoreless frames.
- He ranks ninth in the nation with 88 total strikeouts.

STAGGERING STATISTICS

Overall this season, the Deacs have slugged 114 home runs which is the third-highest total in program history and marks the fourth-straight season Wake Forest has had 100 or more home runs, totaling 479 home runs over the last four seasons:

Rank	Home Runs	Year	Games Played
1.	130	2023	66
2.	122	2022	61
3.	114	2025	60
4.	113	2024	60
5.	106	2017	63

The Demon Deacons have now hit 14 home runs in the four games played in the Knoxville Regional with an estimated total distance of 5,376 feet or approximately 1.01 miles. Additionally, the 14 long shots rank second in the postseason behind only Oklahoma State (16).
The seven Demon Deacons to have 10 or more home runs this season are the most in program history since at least 1999.

One of the keys to the Deacs' success over the last three years has been scoring first, as Wake Forest has gone 87-24 in games where they got on the board first since the 2023 season. Under Tom Walter, Wake is 320-127-1 when scoring first, including a 25-6 mark during the 2025 campaign.

FROM COACH WALTER
"Both teams played at a really high level. Tennessee threw three really good guys and we expected Arvidson to go as long as he did, and he was fantastic tonight. But our guys matched him, pitch for pitch. Logan Lunceford was probably the difference for us tonight. He got us five innings, he got two shutdown innings. Then Rhys Bowie, he got six big outs, and then obviously Josh Gunther and Haiden Leffew. got the last outs of the night. Then give credit to our guys for great at bats, especially there in the ninth inning off a great walk by Scanny, Marek with two strikes, finds a hole. Lewis with a great bunt and then we had the guy out that we wanted up in those situations in Jack Winnay. And so could be happier for Jack. He deserves that at bat and he came through for us. It was a really well-played game. I am really proud of our guys." - Head Coach Tom Walter

UP NEXT
Wake Forest and Tennessee will return to the field for a winner-take-all matchup Monday. First pitch will take place at 6 p.m. ET Monday on ESPN2.

With a victory, the Demon Deacons will advance to their fourth Super Regional and second in three years.

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Team Stats

Jack Winnay

Marek Houston

Matt Scannell

Kade Lewis

Players Mentioned

Rhys Bowie

Josh Gunther

Marek Houston

Jimmy Keenan

Haiden Leffew

Kade Lewis

Logan Lunceford

Matt Scannell

Dalton Wentz

Javar Williams

Jack Winnay

Wake Forest Athletics