Deacs Secure Second ACC Sweep of the Season Against Louisville

Saturday, May 2

Winston-Salem, N.C.

1 p.m.

Wake Forest University

32-17, 14-13

Louisville

26-22, 10-14

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Louisville	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	5	9	1
Wake Forest	2	0	2	2	0	1	0	0	X	7	8	2

Deacs Secure Second ACC Sweep of the Season Against Louisville

5/2/2026 5:08:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

The Demon Deacons have altered their schedule for next weekend and will now play a traditional three-game series against Western Carolina, starting on Friday, May 8.

By: Grant Keith and KJ Smith

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – The Wake Forest baseball team (32-17, 14-13 ACC) secured its second ACC sweep of the season as they defeated Louisville (26-22, 10-14 ACC) by a score of 7-5 on Saturday afternoon at David F. Couch Ballpark. Additionally, this marked the first sweep over the Cardinals in program history.

Junior center fielder Javar Williams led the way offensively as he finished the game 3-for-5 at the plate with a double and two runs scored. Williams was unstoppable in the final two games of the series, going a combined 7-for-9 (.778) with two doubles, an RBI and five runs scored.

Sophomore right fielder Luke Costello turned in another impressive performance, recording his 10th multi-hit game of the season. The Erie, Pa., native finished the game with two hits, including a two-run double in the bottom of the fourth.

Junior left fielder Boston Torres continued his stellar series by blasting his fourth home run of the season off the scoreboard in right field to give the Deacs the lead in the third inning. Meanwhile, sophomore first baseman Dalton Wentz notched a pair of RBIs as he roped an RBI single in the home half of the first, as well as an RBI groundout in the third.

Senior reliever Zach Johnston recorded one of his best outings on the mound in his Wake Forest career, matching his career-high with five strikeouts over the course of a career-best 3.0 scoreless innings.

Elsewhere, sophomore Troy Dressler tossed 1.2 scoreless innings with a pair of strikeouts, while fellow sophomore Rhys Bowie recorded his first save of the season after fanning a pair of batters in 1.1 scoreless frames.

Overall, the Wake Forest bullpen was dominant in the final two games of the series, logging a combined 19 strikeouts while allowing just three runs in 12.1 innings.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Cardinals took a 3-0 lead in the first.
Wake Forest responded with two runs of its own in the bottom of the first.
- Junior Javar Williams and sophomore Luke Costello led off the frame with back-to-back singles.
- Junior Kade Lewis put the Deacs on the board as he drove in Williams on a sacrifice fly.
- After catcher Matt Conte reached on an error, sophomore Dalton Wentz roped a 109-mph RBI single to right field to score Costello.
Starting pitcher Cameron Bagwell and senior left-hander Zach Johnston combined for a scoreless second inning, with Johnston striking out the final two batters of the frame.
- Johnston added a pair of strikeouts to strand a pair of base runners in the third.
The Deacs took a 4-3 lead in the home half of the third.
- Conte blooped a double into shallow right field before advancing to third base on a wild pitch.
- Wentz logged his second RBI of the game as he plated Conte on a groundout.
- On the next pitch, junior left fielder Boston Torres blasted his fourth home run of the season off the scoreboard to put the Demon Deacons in front.
Johnston continued to deal on the mound as he logged a shutdown frame in the top of the fourth.
Wake Forest extended its lead in the bottom of the fourth as Costello launched a two-run double off the wall in deep center field.
Johnston and sophomore reliever Troy Dressler combined for another shutdown frame in the top of the fifth.
Dressler kept the Cardinals off the board once again in the sixth.
The Demon Deacons pushed another run across in the bottom of the sixth, as Lewis drew a bases-loaded walk to score freshman JD Stein.
Sophomore right-hander Duncan Marsten punched out the final batter of a shutdown seventh inning.
The Cardinals got a run back in the eighth.
- Sophomore left-hander Rhys Bowie recorded the final two outs of the inning with the bases loaded, limiting the damage.
Despite Louisville plating a run in the top of the ninth, the Demon Deacons preserved the 7-5 win to secure the sweep over the Cardinals.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Junior center fielder Javar Williams closed out an impressive series with three hits and a pair of runs scored on Saturday afternoon.
- In the final two games, Williams went a combined 7-for-9 at the plate with two doubles, an RBI and five runs scored.
Senior left-hander Zach Johnston logged one of his best outings in a Wake Forest uniform as he matched his career-high with five strikeouts in a career-best 3.0 scoreless innings.

STAGGERING STATISTICS

The Demon Deacons have used the first inning to their advantage, having now scored at least one in each of its last nine ACC games this season.
- Wake Forest has scored 19 runs in the opening frame during that stretch, including five in the series against the Cardinals.
Additionally, the Deacs improved to 19-5 when scoring in the first inning this season.

Date	Opponent	First Inning Runs
May 2, 2026	Louisville	2
May 1, 2026	Louisville	1
Apr. 30, 2026	Louisville	2
Apr. 26, 2026	No. 3 Georgia Tech	1
Apr. 25, 2026	No. 3 Georgia Tech	6
Apr. 24, 2026	No. 3 Georgia Tech	3
Apr. 19, 2026	NC State	2
Apr. 18, 2026	NC State	1
Apr. 17, 2026	NC State	1

FROM COACH WALTER
"What a great weekend and what a win that was for our program. I'm just so proud of our guys. Everybody who pitched today pitched on short rest. They took the ball without question and gave their all for their team. I'm just beyond proud of our guys with how they battled all weekend and found ways to win. Our defense got a little shaky there in the eighth and the ninth unfortunately, but Rhys Bowie came in and made big pitch after big pitch. After they doubled down the line and they had the right hander up, I was in between on bringing Will Ray back in, but Rhys had been throwing the ball so well, and his stuff was every bit as good as it was two nights ago, so I just stuck with Rhys, and he delivered for us. [Duncan] Marsten took it on short rest. [Troy] Dressler took it on short rest, and [Zach] Johnston did as well. Quite honestly, Slim Johnston's probably the guy that won the game for us. He came in and threw three innings and got a couple of really big punch outs in big spots. Overall, it was a good team win." - Head Coach Tom Walter

UP NEXT
The Demon Deacons have altered their schedule for next weekend and will now play a traditional three-game series against Western Carolina. The opening game of the series against the Catamounts is now set for Friday, May 8, with first pitch scheduled for 6 p.m. on ACC Network Extra.

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