Wake Forest jumped out to leads of 11-1 and 15-3, cruising to a victory behind homers from Gavin Sheets, Keegan Maronpot and Jake Mueller.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Wake Forest jumped out to an early lead and held on in a 17-8 victory over Georgia Tech to even the series at a game apiece at David F. Couch Ballpark on Saturday evening.
The Demon Deacons (17-7, 5-3 ACC) put up three innings of four-plus runs en route to the victory over the Yellow Jackets (13-8, 3-5 ACC).
Gavin Sheets finished the day 3-for-4 with a home run, his eighth, and four RBIs, while Jake Mueller added a 2-for-3 effort with a three-run blast and three walks.
Keegan Maronpot added a two-run shot and Jonathan Pryor finished the day 3-for-5, while Ben Breazeale went 2-for-5 with two RBIs.
On the mound, Donnie Sellers (3-1) earned the win by tossing 6.0 innings, allowing three runs (two earned) on eight hits and one walk with five strikeouts. Chris Farish and Carter Bach also had scoreless outings out of the pen.
The Deacs started the scoring in the first with a Breazeale RBI single, then plated five in the second. After back-to-back run-scoring wild pitches made the margin 3-0, the Deacs received three-straight RBI singles from Sheets, Breazeale and Johnny Aielloto increase the lead to 6-0.
Kel Johnson led Georgia Tech with a 4-for-5 effort, beginning with an RBI double in the fourth, making the score 6-1.
Sheets added a 424-foot three-run blast and Maronpot drilled a 403-foot shot in the fourth as Wake Forest pushed the margin to 11-1.
After GT plated two in the top of the sixth, a wild pitch and Mueller's first-career homer increased the lead back to 15-3.
The Yellow Jackets stayed in the game with five runs in the eighth to cut it to 15-8, but a Pryor RBI double and Mueller RBI groundout put it out of reach for good.
TEN TIMES TEN
• Just 24 games into the season, Wake Forest has already had 10 double-digit scoring games, including the 17-run outburst on Saturday.
• Wake Forest leads the ACC and ranks in the top five in the nation in scoring, averaging 9.3 runs per game.
PRYOR KEEPS REACHING
• Jonathan Pryor continues to be the table-setter at the top of the Deacon lineup, as he reached base four more times on Saturday.
• He has now reached base safely via hit, walk, or hit by pitch in 32 consecutive games dating back to last year. • Only one other Deacon has a reached-base streak dating back to 2016 - Stuart Fairchild (25 games)
IN THE HUNT FOR THREE STRAIGHT
• The Demon Deacons and Yellow Jackets will play the rubber game of the series on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m.
• If Wake Forest wins, it will be the first time winning the first three ACC series of the year since 2002, which was also the last time the Deacs hosted an NCAA Regional.--
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Wake Forest jumped out to an early lead and held on in a 17-8 victory over Georgia Tech to even the series at a game apiece at David F. Couch Ballpark on Saturday evening.
The Demon Deacons (17-7, 5-3 ACC) put up three innings of four-plus runs en route to the victory over the Yellow Jackets (13-8, 3-5 ACC).
Gavin Sheets finished the day 3-for-4 with a home run, his eighth, and four RBIs, while Jake Mueller added a 2-for-3 effort with a three-run blast and three walks.
Keegan Maronpot added a two-run shot and Jonathan Pryor finished the day 3-for-5, while Ben Breazeale went 2-for-5 with two RBIs.
On the mound, Donnie Sellers (3-1) earned the win by tossing 6.0 innings, allowing three runs (two earned) on eight hits and one walk with five strikeouts. Chris Farish and Carter Bach also had scoreless outings out of the pen.
The Deacs started the scoring in the first with a Breazeale RBI single, then plated five in the second. After back-to-back run-scoring wild pitches made the margin 3-0, the Deacs received three-straight RBI singles from Sheets, Breazeale and Johnny Aielloto increase the lead to 6-0.
Kel Johnson led Georgia Tech with a 4-for-5 effort, beginning with an RBI double in the fourth, making the score 6-1.
Sheets added a 424-foot three-run blast and Maronpot drilled a 403-foot shot in the fourth as Wake Forest pushed the margin to 11-1.
After GT plated two in the top of the sixth, a wild pitch and Mueller's first-career homer increased the lead back to 15-3.
The Yellow Jackets stayed in the game with five runs in the eighth to cut it to 15-8, but a Pryor RBI double and Mueller RBI groundout put it out of reach for good.
TEN TIMES TEN
• Just 24 games into the season, Wake Forest has already had 10 double-digit scoring games, including the 17-run outburst on Saturday.
• Wake Forest leads the ACC and ranks in the top five in the nation in scoring, averaging 9.3 runs per game.
PRYOR KEEPS REACHING
• Jonathan Pryor continues to be the table-setter at the top of the Deacon lineup, as he reached base four more times on Saturday.
• He has now reached base safely via hit, walk, or hit by pitch in 32 consecutive games dating back to last year. • Only one other Deacon has a reached-base streak dating back to 2016 - Stuart Fairchild (25 games)
IN THE HUNT FOR THREE STRAIGHT
• The Demon Deacons and Yellow Jackets will play the rubber game of the series on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m.
• If Wake Forest wins, it will be the first time winning the first three ACC series of the year since 2002, which was also the last time the Deacs hosted an NCAA Regional.--
