April 9, 2007

IN THE BATTERS BOX -- Fresh off a three game sweep of Maryland, Wake Forest is looking to pick up a couple of mid-week wins against UNC Greensboro and Coastal Carolina this week. On Tuesday, the Demon Deacons play host to their Triad-rival Spartans at 3 p.m. Wake will then travel to Conway, S.C., to face the No. 20-ranked Chanticleers at 6 p.m. Wake Forest enters the mid-week 18-16 overall and 7-8 in ACC play. The Deacs have won four of their last five and are playing their first home game since March 28.

PITCHING MATCHUPS:
Tuesday (3:00 p.m.) - vs. UNC Greensboro
RHP Joel Ernst (0-2, 6.32) vs. TBA
Wednesday (6:00 p.m.) - at Coastal Carolina
RHP Ben Hunter (3-5, 6.49) vs. RHP Nick McCully (2-0, 2.37)

LIVE GAME COVERAGE:
Television: None
Radio: 98.1 WBRF (Tues.)
Gametracker: www.WakeForestSports.com

UNCG INSIDER -- UNC Greensboro is 17-15 overall after winning two of three games at Furman last weekend. The Spartans won, 11-3, on Friday and then split a doubleheader, 3-7 and 9-4, on Saturday. The series win moved UNCG to 5-4 in Southern Conference play and 4-10 on the road this season. As a team, the Spartans are hitting .281 with 24 home runs. Greg Feltes is UNCG's leading hitter with a .408 batting average in 29 games. Feltes also leads the team with 26 RBIs. Tim Carrier is tops for the Spartans in both home runs (four) and stolen bases (10-for-13). The pitching staff has a 4.55 team ERA. Clinton McKinney has posted a team-low 2.20 ERA in 17 relief appearances this spring. Ryan Falcon has 40 strikeouts in a 52.0 innings pitched, both of which are team-highs.

COASTAL CAROLINA INSIDER -- Coastal Carolina enters Wednesday's game with a 28-5 overall mark. The Chanticleers dropped two of three games at non-conference foe Troy last weekend. Coastal Carolina lost each of the final two games of the series in the ninth inning. Coastal has played 26 of its 33 games at home this season, compiling a 25-1 record. The Chanticleers are hitting .329 as a team and have belted 39 home runs. David Sappelt (.414) and Tommy Baldridge (.413) are Coastal Carolina's two leading hitters. Chris Raber has hit a team-leading 12 home runs and has also driven in a Chanticleer-best 37 runs. Adam Vrable leads Coastal on the basepaths with 10 stolen bases in 11 attempts. The Chanticleers have a team ERA of 3.02 and are led by Andy De La Garza with a 1.81 ERA in nine starts. Bobby Gagg leads CCU with 50 strikeouts in 56.2 innings pitched. Wednesday's starter Nick McCully will be making his fifth start of the season.

ON DECK -- Wake Forest is home for a three-game series against ACC-rival Clemson this weekend. The series kicks off on Friday at 3 p.m. Next week, the Deacs travel to High Point on Tuesday, and Coastal Carolina pays a visit to Hooks Stadium on Wednesday.

RANKINGS -- Both Wake Forest and UNC Greensboro are unranked. Coastal Carolina is ranked in the top 25 of all four major polls. The Chanticleers are ranked No. 20 by Baseball America, No. 16 by USA Today/ESPN, No. 23 by Collegiate Baseball and No. 18 by the NCBWA.