Feb. 10, 2005

Final Stats

ROCK HILL, S.C. - The Wake Forest baseball team opened with a pair of hits in the first inning, but Winthrop starting pitcher Kevin Slowly then held the Demon Deacons hitless over the next seven innings in a 8-0 defeat Thursday night in the season opener for both teams. The Deacs return to action at the Coca Cola Classic Saturday afternoon against Western Kentucky. First-pitch is scheduled for 4 p.m.

Slowly (1-0) worked 7.2 shutout innings to pick up the victory. The junior limited the Demon Deacons to a pair of singles in the opening frame before retiring 18 of the final 20 batters, including the last 15 he faced. Slowly struckout nine and walked a pair.

Winthrop jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. Wake Forest starting pitcher Tim Morley plunked Chris Carrara to lead off the inning. After Carrara advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt, Morely retired Daniel Carte for the first out of the inning, but Jacob Dempsey blooped a double down the left field line to plate Carrara. Morley then issued a walk, but appeared as though he would get out of the inning with just the one run, but Ryder Mathias bobbled the throw from Grant Achilles to allow the second run to score.

The Eagles added to their lead with an unearned run in the third and two more in the fourth inning. Winthrop put the game out of reach with two more runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, one of which was unearned. All in all, the Deacs committed five errors which allowed five unearned runs in the first six innings.

Morley (0-1) went 4.1 innings and allowed five runs, but only one was earned in a tough-luck loss. The senior southpaw fanned four, walked a pair and scattered seven hits. Sophomore Charlie Mellies relieved Morley and worked 2.2 innings, allowing two earned runs on three hits. Mellies struckout one, but walked three. Kip Byrum made his Wake Forest debut and came on to finish the eighth inning. The lefty allowed a couple hits, but did yield any runs.