March 16, 2009

Wake Forest Game Notes | Follow Live Updates on Twitter

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - The Wake Forest baseball team continues its non-conference schedule this week with a pair of midweek games. The Demon Deacons open the week on the road against Appalachian State on Wednesday at 3 p.m., before returning home to face High Point at 6 p.m. on Wednesday. An audio broadcast of the game against High Point will be available on WakeForestSports.com.

Wake Forest is 7-8 on the season after dropping three games at Clemson over the weekend. The Deacs are led by Carlos Lopez, who is hitting .404 on the season with seven home runs and 17 RBIs. Catcher Mike Murray has come on strong as of late, posting a .409 batting average with two home runs and three RBIs over Wake's last five games.

Appalachian State is 6-10 on the season. The Mountaineers dropped two of three games to The Citadel last weekend. After winning the series opener on Friday, ASU dropped both games of a doubleheader on Sunday.

Isaac Harrow leads the Mountaineers in the three major offensive categories with a .375 batting average, five home runs and 21 RBIs. ASU has five players hitting over .300 on the season and as a team, the Mountaineers are hitting .271. The Appalachian State pitching staff has posted a 7.16 ERA through the first 16 games of the season.

High Point enters the week with a 5-8 record. The Panthers have a game against Western Carolina on Tuesday before facing the Demon Deacons on Wednesday. High Point is 1-4 in its last five games, with its only win coming against Radford this past weekend.

Billy Alvino and Bill Manion lead the Panthers offensively. Alvino is hitting .353 on the season with six RBIs, while Manion has a .351 batting average with a home run and a team-high 14 RBIs. High Point is hitting .290 as a team, while the Panther pitching staff has compiled a 5.87 ERA on the season.

Wake Forest freshman Michael Dimock will make his third start of the season on Tuesday at Appalachian State. Dimock is 0-1 on the season with an 11.37 ERA. He last pitched on Friday, March 13, in the second game of a doubleheader against Clemson. Dimock allowed two runs, only one earned, on two hits in 2/3 of an inning against the Tigers.

ASU will counter with freshman righty Seth Grant. Grant will be making his first collegiate start and fifth appearance of his rookie season. Grant is 0-0 on the season and has a 10.57 ERA. His last appearance came on Sunday, March 15, in the second game of a doubleheader against The Citadel. Grant allowed two runs on five hits in 1 2/3 innings against The Citadel.

Senior southpaw Garrett Bullock will start Wednesday against High Point. Bullock, who will be making his second start of the season, is 0-0 with a 9.64 ERA on the season. He started against Elon on Wednesday, March 11, earning a no decision after throwing three innings and allowing one run on two hits.

High Point is expected to start either Mike Caldwell or Mikel Rodenberg. Caldwell is 2-2 on the season with a 5.40 ERA, while Rodenberg has no record on the season with a 4.70 ERA.

Admission for Wednesday's game against High Point is free of charge.

Live stats and recaps of both games will be available on WakeForestSports.com. Fans can also follow live updates of the games at Wake Forest's Twitter page at www.twitter.com/wakeforestsport.

Midweek Schedule
Tuesday, March 17 at Appalachian State - 3 p.m.
Wednesday, March 18 vs. High Point - 6 p.m.

Ticket Information
Tickets for all midweek games, including Wednesday's game against High Point, are free of charge.

Tentative Pitching Matchups
Tuesday, March 17 at Appalachian State
RHP Michael Dimock (Fr., 0-1, 11.37) vs. RHP Seth Grant (Fr., 0-0, 10.57)

Wednesday, March 18 vs. High Point
LHP Garrett Bullock (Sr., 0-0, 9.64) vs. RHP Mike Caldwell OR RHP Mikel Rodenberg

Records
Wake Forest - 7-8, 0-6 ACC
Appalachian State - 6-10, 1-7 SoCon
High Point - 5-8, 1-3 Big South

Rankings
Wake Forest - Not Ranked
Appalachian State - Not Ranked
High Point - Not Ranked

Internet Coverage
Live stats for both games available at WakeForestSports.com. An audio broadcast of Wednesday's game against High Point will also be available at WakeForestSports.com.