Morningstar’s Gem Leads No. 15 Wake Forest to ACC-Opening Victory over Stanford

Friday, March 6

Winston-Salem, N.C.

6 p.m.

Wake Forest University

13-1, 1-0

Stanford

5-8, 0-1

Stanford

Wake Forest

Morningstar’s Gem Leads No. 15 Wake Forest to ACC-Opening Victory over Stanford

3/6/2026 9:48:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score Photo Gallery

Junior starting pitcher Blake Morningstar recorded a career-high 11 strikeouts over the course of 6.0 innings pitched, allowing just one run on two hits, including no hits over the final 17 batters he faced.

By: KJ Smith

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Behind a career-high 11 strikeouts by starting pitcher Blake Morningstar, the No. 15 Wake Forest baseball team (13-1, 1-0 ACC) opened ACC play with a 7-4 win over Stanford (5-8, 0-1 ACC) on Friday afternoon at David F. Couch Ballpark.

Morningstar allowed just two hits over the course of 6.0 one-run innings to pick up his second-straight win on the mound. The Wyalusing, Pa., native has now punched out 20 opposing batters in his last two starts, marking the most strikeouts over a two-game stretch in his career.

Offensively, five different Demon Deacons recorded multi-hit performances, led by junior first baseman Kade Lewis. The Sartell, Minn., native finished the game going 3-for-5 with a pair of doubles, two RBIs, two runs scored and a stolen base.

After his performance on Friday, Lewis has now gone 12-for-25 (.480) over the last six games with 10 runs scored and seven RBIs. Lewis has also hit safely in each of the last eight games, recording multiple hits in four consecutive contests.

Junior outfielder Javar Williams also tallied three hits, matching his career high that he set against the Cardinal on April 26, 2025.

Sophomore Jackson Miller continued his hot hitting to start the season as he went 2-for-4 with an RBI single in the fifth inning and a run scored. The Palm Beach, Fla., native is currently leading the team with a .462 batting average and ranks second with 15 RBIs on the season.

Junior second baseman Blake Schaaf recorded his second multi-hit game in a Wake Forest uniform, going 2-for-4 with an RBI single. Meanwhile, sophomore catcher Matt Conte logged two hits and a run scored.

Senior right-hander Will Ray earned his first save of the season, closing out the ninth with a pair of strikeouts in his third outing of the season.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Stanford grabbed the lead on a solo home run in the top of the first.
Sophomore Luke Costello immediately got the run back for the Demon Deacons, beating out an RBI fielder's choice to score Kade Lewis from third.
Junior starting pitcher Blake Morningstar got out of a jam in the top of the second, picking up his third strikeout to strand a Stanford runner at third.
Morningstar recorded a pair of strikeouts in the third, bringing his total to five for the evening.
- The Wyalusing, Pa., native added two more punchouts to keep Stanford off the board in the top of the fourth.
The Deacs took a 4-1 lead in the home half of the fourth.
- Wake Forest loaded the bases off back-to-back singles by sophomores Matt Conte and Jackson Miller, as well as a walk by senior Austin Hawke.
- Junior second baseman Blake Schaaf broke the tie with an RBI single to score Conte.
- The Demon Deacons tacked on two more runs on a throwing error by the shortstop.
Wake Forest logged a shutdown frame in the top of the fifth, as Morningstar logged another punchout.
The Deacs plated a pair of runs in the fifth to extend their lead to 6-1.
- Following a leadoff double by junior outfielder Javar Williams, Lewis recorded an RBI single into center field.
- Miller added an RBI single through the left side later in the inning to plate Lewis from second.
Morningstar struck out the side to log another shutdown frame in the sixth.
- The final strikeout of the inning gave Morningstar his career-high 11th strikeout of the evening.
Sophomore reliever Rhys Bowie notched two strikeouts in a scoreless frame in the seventh.
- Bowie tacked on another strikeout in a clean eighth inning.
The Deacs added another run in the bottom of the eighth as Schaaf scored on a fielder's choice.
Stanford plated three runs in the top of the ninth.
Senior Will Ray closed the game with a pair of strikeouts as the Demon Deacons secured the 7-4 win to open ACC play.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Junior right-hander Blake Morningstar recorded the best outing of his career against the Cardinal, registering a career-high 11 strikeouts. Overall, Morningstar allowed just two hits and a run over the course of six innings pitched.
- Over his last two starts, the Wyalusing, Pa., native has punched out 20 batters, the most in a two-game stretch in his career.
- This marked the second time in his career that he has gone six innings or more in back-to-back starts.
- Additionally, Morningstar did not relinquish a hit over the final 17 batters he faced.

STAGGERING STATISTICS

With the win on Friday night, the Demon Deacons have now won 13 consecutive games, the longest since also winning 13 straight during the historic 2023 season.
- The Demon Deacons hold the longest win streak in the country and are one of just three teams in all of Division I with a streak of 10 or more games.
- Under head coach Tom Walter, the Demon Deacons have had five streaks of 10 or more wins.

Win Streaks Under Tom Walter

Rank	Year	Wins in a Row
1.	2012	15
*T2.*	*2026*	13
T2.	2023	13
4.	2022	11
5.	2025	10

FROM COACH WALTER
"We played a really good baseball game today. We played pretty clean baseball defensively. We were good on the mound for eight innings. We only walked two on the day, and we got two outs after those walks. We were 5-for-5 in our situational at-bats. We had 15 hits and probably seven or eight other barrels, so we could have easily scored 12 or 13 runs today. I am really happy with how we played a complete game. I'm obviously thrilled with Blake Morningstar's performance. Just pumped for him. He got better and better as the game went on. We got six clean innings out of him. We also got his pitch count up to about 100, which is kind of what we wanted. We needed to continue to drive pitch counts up. You never want to play a doubleheader, but it is what it is. We have two good starters going tomorrow in [Chris] Levonas and [Duncan] Marsten, and we've got a relatively rested bullpen. I am excited to get back to baseball tomorrow, but really pleased with our effort today." - Head Coach Tom Walter

UP NEXT
Due to anticipated inclement weather conditions, the schedule for this weekend's series against Stanford has changed, with the two squads concluding the series with a doubleheader tomorrow set to begin at 2 p.m. ET.

Previously purchased tickets for the weekend will be honored for the rescheduled matchups. Fans with tickets to Sunday's originally scheduled 1:00 p.m. matchup are welcome to attend both games on Saturday. Those who choose to attend the first game but have not purchased a reserved seat for Saturday's originally scheduled 2:00 p.m. game should relocate to general admission seating.

For further questions or concerns, please contact the Wake Forest ticket office from Monday - Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at tix@wfu.edu or (336) 758-3322 ext 2.

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