Feb. 26, 2009

Wake Forest Baseball Tournament Notes

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - The unbeaten Wake Forest baseball team continues its 10-game, season-opening home stand this weekend as it hosts the second weekend of the Wake Forest Baseball Tournament presented by Hampton Inn and Sleep Inn. Friday's game at 6 p.m. against Miami (Ohio) will be aired on 98.1 WBRF-FM and WakeForestSports.com.

Miami (Ohio), Fairleigh Dickinson and William & Mary are the other three teams that will compete in this weekend's event.

The tournament opens at 11 a.m. (ET) on Friday when William & Mary faces Miami (Ohio). Fairleigh Dickinson and William & Mary square off at 2:30 p.m. on Friday and the day concludes with Wake's game against Miami (Ohio) at 6 p.m. William & Mary and Fairleigh Dickinson meet in the first game on Saturday at 11 a.m., while the Demon Deacons and Miami (Ohio) meet for the second straight day at 2:30 p.m. The Deacs face Fairleigh Dickinson at 6 p.m. on Saturday. The tournament concludes on Sunday with Miami (Ohio) facing Fairleigh Dickinson at 11 a.m. and William & Mary meeting Wake Forest at 2:30 p.m.

Admission for all games of the Wake Forest Baseball Tournament presented by Hampton Inn and Sleep Inn are free of charge.

Wake Forest enters the second weekend of the season with a 5-0 record, the program's best start to a season since the 1998 season. The Deacs have piled up the runs in the first five games of the season, scoring 59 runs, an average of just under 12 runs a game. As a team, Wake Forest is hitting .372 and slugging .531.

Demon Deacon head coach Rick Rembielak has the chance to reach a career milestone this weekend as he is currently just two wins shy of his 500th career win. His career record currently stands at 498-363-1.

Miami (Ohio) enters the weekend with an 0-3 record after getting swept by College of Charleston last weekend. The RedHawks are led by Jordan Petraitis, who is hitting .500 on the season with two RBIs. Zak Hatfield is batting .417 with two home runs and six RBIs through the first three games of the season.

Fairleigh Dickinson will open its season this weekend after not playing last weekend. The Knights return 21 letterwinners, including six starters, from last year's team, which finished with a record of 15-38 and a 10-16 record in conference play. Matt Maher is the top returner for the Knights after hitting .328 with 27 RBIs, 33 stolen bases and 38 runs scored during 2008.

William & Mary is 3-2 on the season. The Tribe went 3-1 during the first weekend of the season, but lost 11-1 to Virginia on Tuesday. Stephen Arcure leads the team with a .412 batting average and is tied for the team lead with seven runs scored. Rob Nickle has a team-best nine RBIs.

Wake Forest freshman Austin Stadler will get the start on Friday night for the second consecutive week. Stadler threw five innings in his first collegiate start against Akron last Friday and allowed one on five hits in five innings of work. He also went 4-for-5 at the plate with four RBIs and a run scored. The RedHawks are scheduled to pitch lefty Matt Erwood against the Demon Deacons on Friday night. Erwood is 0-1 on the season with a 2.08 ERA.

Senior righthander Brad Kledzik will get the call in Saturday's first game against Miami. Kledzik was dominant in his first outing of the season against Old Dominion, fanning a career-high 10 batters, while only allowing two unearned runs in 6 2/3 innings. Miami counters with junior right-handed pitcher Chase Stewart, who is 0-1 with a 16.20 ERA.

Junior Alex Wiesner will start the nightcap on Saturday for Wake Forest against Fairleigh Dickinson. Wiesner allowed nine runs on seven hits against Akron last weekend in 1 1/3 innings. Freshman righty Ray Courtney will take the bump for Fairleigh Dickinson on Saturday night.

Rookie Michael Dimock will pitch the weekend finale on Sunday against William & Mary. Dimock picked up a no decision in his first start of the year against Marshall, allowing five runs, only two earned, on six hits in 5 1/3 innings. The Tribe will counter with RHP Chris Yates, who is 0-0 on the season with a 5.79 ERA.

Wake Forest and Miami (Ohio) are meeting for the just the second time in series history, with the Demon Deacons holding a 1-0 advantage. The Deacs have a 2-0 lead in the series against Fairleigh Dickinson and a 6-1 edge against William & Mary.

Live stats for each game of the Wake Forest Baseball Tournament presented by Hampton Inn and Sleep Inn will be available on WakeForestSports.com.

Tournament Schedule (All Games at Wake Forest Baseball Park):
Friday, February 27
11 a.m. - William & Mary vs. Miami (Ohio)
2:30 p.m. - Fairleigh Dickinson vs. William & Mary
6 p.m. - Miami (Ohio) vs. Wake Forest

Saturday, February 28
11 a.m. - William & Mary vs. Fairleigh Dickinson
2:30 p.m. - Miami (Ohio) vs. Wake Forest
6 p.m. - Fairleigh Dickinson vs. Wake Forest

Sunday, March 1
11 a.m. - Miami (Ohio) vs. Fairleigh Dickinson
2:30 p.m. - William & Mary vs. Wake Forest

Ticket Information:
Free of charge for all games

Tentative Pitching Matchups:
Friday vs. Miami (Ohio)
LHP Austin Stadler (Fr., 1-0, 1.80) vs. LHP Matt Erwood (R-Sr., 0-1, 2.08)

Saturday vs. Miami (Ohio)
RHP Brad Kledzik (Sr., 1-0, 0.00) vs. RHP Chase Stewart (Jr., 0-1, 16.20)

Saturday vs. Fairleigh Dickinson
LHP Alex Wiesner (Jr., 0-1, 60.75) vs. TBA

Sunday vs. William & Mary
RHP Michael Dimock (Fr., 0-0, 3.38) vs. RHP Chris Yates (Fr., 0-0, 5.79 ERA)

Records:
Wake Forest - 5-0, 0-0 ACC
Miami (Ohio) - 0-3, 0-0 MAC
Fairleigh Dickinson - 0-0, 0-0 NEC
William & Mary - 3-2, 0-0 CAA

Rankings:
Wake Forest - Not Ranked
Miami (Ohio) - Not Ranked
Fairleigh Dickinson - Not Ranked
William & Mary - Not Ranked

Radio (WBRF with Alan York and Brock Bowling)
Friday: WBRF 98.1 FM

Internet Coverage:
Live audio for Friday night's game along with live stats for each game of the tournament.