Deacs Pick up Two Wins on Saturday at Wake Forest Baseball Tournament presented by Hampton Inn and Sleep Inn
Wake Forest piles up 26 runs in two games

Feb. 21, 2009

Box Score

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - The Wake Forest offense continued to show its explosiveness on Saturday, posting 26 runs in two games as the Wake Forest baseball team defeated Akron 16-15 and Old Dominion 10-3 at the Wake Forest Baseball Tournament presented by Hampton Inn and Sleep Inn.

With the two wins, Wake Forest improves to 3-0 on the season, winning its first three games of the year for the second time in the last three seasons.

The Demon Deacon offense has been tough to stop thus far this season, scoring 37 runs in the first three games of the year. The 37 runs scored is the most scored in the first three games of the season since 2003 when Wake also plated 37 runs in the first three games of the season.

In the first game of the day, Wake Forest fell behind 15-7 after the first three and a half innings. The Deacons roared back, scoring nine unanswered runs to claim the come-from-behind victory.

Wake trailed 15-10 entering the final three innings of the game. The Deacs cut the lead to one with four runs in the bottom of the seventh. With one out, Tyler Smith and Dustin Hood had back-to-back singles. Shane Kroker reached on a fielding error by second baseman Phil Bednar to load the bases. Mike Murray followed with a two-RBI single to right field, scoring Smith and Hood to cut the lead to 15-12. After a walk to Evan Ocheltree to load the bases again, Weldon Woodall singled to center to bring home Kroker and Murray and make it a one-run game. The Zips brought in Benjamin Danziger, who got Austin Stadler to ground into a 4-6-3 double play to end the inning and quell the rally.

Wake evened the game in the bottom of the eighth. Carlos Lopez sent the first pitch of the home half of the eighth inning over the left-center field fence for his second homer of the season to square the game at 15.

After holding Akron scoreless in the top of the ninth, the Wake Forest offense went back to work in the bottom half of the inning to seal the victory. Kroker led off the inning with a single to center field and Murray followed with a base hit to right. With runners on first and second, Ocheltree singled through the right side, scoring Kroker and giving Wake a 16-15 win.

The comeback win may not have happened if not for the great work turned in by the Demon Deacon bullpen. Joel Ernst, Ryan Burke and Ryan McGrath combined to hold the Zips to just one run and four hits over the final seven innings to keep Wake in the ball game. Ernst threw five innings, allowing one run on four hits, while striking out three batters. Burke and McGrath each pitched a hitless inning of baseball. McGrath earned the win after throwing the ninth inning.

Six different Wake Forest players had at least two hits against the Zips. Kroker hit his first career home run, a grand slam in the second inning, and finished the game 2-for-5 with four RBIs and four runs scored. Murray had a career-high four hits against the Zips with two runs scored and two RBIs. Woodall had a career-high four hits and four RBIs and Ocheltree went 3-for-5 with his first home run of the season, three RBIs and two runs scored. Lopez also had a multi-hit game with a 2-for-4 performance at the plate and two runs scored.

In the nightcap, the heroics from the first game would not be needed. Senior Brad Kledzik was dominant on the mound, striking out a career-high 10 batters in 6.2 innings. Kledzik allowed just two unearned runs on five hits to pick up the win.

Wake scored the first six runs of the game to cruise to victory. The Deacs opened the scoring in the second. Ocheltree led off the inning with a leadoff walk. After Woodall and Stadler were retired, Ocheltree advanced to third on a wild pitch by ODU pitcher Cory Toth. A fielding error by second baseman Austin Wright allowed Lopez to reach and scored Ocheltree to give the Deacs a 1-0 advantage.

Wake dented the plate three more times in the bottom of the third inning. Ryan Semeniuk led off the inning with a walk and Hood followed with a hit and run double down the right-field line, sending Semeniuk to third. Semeniuk scored on a groundout to the shortstop by Kroker to make the score 2-0. Murray grounded out to the pitcher to give Wake a 3-0 lead. After Ocheltree walked and stole second, Woodall doubled to right center to score Ocheltree and extend the lead to 4-0.

The Demon Deacons added a single run in the fourth and sixth innings. In the fourth, Smith hit a one-out single to left. Semeniuk followed with a double down the left-field line, scoring Smith and making the score 5-0. In the sixth, Semeniuk started a two-out rally with a single to left and promptly stole second base. After a walk to Hood, a balk by Phil McCarthy moved Semeniuk to third and Hood to second. A wild pitch soon thereafter scored Semeniuk to give Wake a 6-0 lead.

After ODU scored its first two runs of the game in the top of the seventh, the Wake offense answered with a run of its own in the bottom half of the inning. Ocheltree singled to right, stole second and advanced to third on a balk. Stadler drove him in on a single to right field to give the Deacs a five-run cushion.

A Jake McAloose homer in the top of the eighth inning trimmed the lead to 7-3. Wake scored three runs of its own in the bottom of the eighth. Hood drew a one-out walk and Kroker singled to center field, advancing Hood to third. A sacrifice fly to center field by Mike Murray made the score 8-3. Ocheltree followed with a two-run home run, his second of the day, to give the Deacs a 10-3 lead.

Phil Negus pitched the final 2.1 innings, allowing one run on two hits and striking out four to pick up his first save of the season.

Wake Forest is back in action on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. (ET) against Marshall in the final game of the Wake Forest Baseball Tournament presented by Hampton Inn and Sleep Inn. Freshman Michael Dimock will take the hill for the Deacs and he will be opposed by Marshall's Dan Straily. Admission to the game is free of charge.