April 17, 2006 WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - The Wake Forest baseball team returns to Hooks Stadium this week with a non-conference game against Davidson and three-game weekend series with Maryland. First pitch is scheduled for 3 pm. Tuesday's game with the Wildcats will conclude a stretch of 14 games in 19 days. Wake Forest (28-12, 12-6 ACC) will send freshman Tyler Smith to the mound against Davidson. The right-handed hurler is 1-2 with a 3.08 ERA in 13 appearances and four starts. Smith has allowed 17 hits over his 26.1 innings -- good for a .175 opponent's batting average. He has struck out 13, but also walked 15. In his last start, Smith tossed 6.0 hitless innings in a 17-2 rout of UNC Greensboro on April 12. He did not allow an earned run en route to his first career victory. Smith only allowed one Spartan to reach second base after the second inning. Davidson (13-23) dropped two of three this past weekend at UNC Greensboro. Wake Forest hammered the Wildcats, 14-6, back on March 28. Davidson will send senior right-hander Matt Meade to the hill. Meade is 1-1 with an 11.31 ERA in 14 appearances and two starts. He tossed 1.0 inning of relief in this season's earlier meeting and was knocked around for five earned runs on four hits. INJURY UPDATE -- Freshman starting pitcher Garrett Bullock returned from his bout with pneumonia against Virginia Tech on April 2, but injured his left tricep in the outing and is questionable this week... junior starting pitcher Charlie Mellies underwent Tommy John surgery on April 14 and will miss the season... sophomore pitcher Matt Hammond is out for the year after breaking his right hand... freshman Cory Hindel will redshirt the season following elbow surgery last fall. ON DECK -- After this week's non-conference game against Davidson, Wake Forest will host Maryland for a three-game series this weekend. RANKINGS -- Wake Forest climbed back into the Rosenblatt Report and Collegiate Baseball polls this week at No. 24 in both. The Deacons are still receiving votes in the ESPN/Sports Weekly and NCBWA polls. Despite the sweep of Duke, Wake Forest slipped to 15th in the Warren Nolan and Boyd's World RPI. Davidson is unranked. HITTING STREAKS -- Entering this week, seven players have a hitting streak of at least four games. Player Statistics During Streak Matt Antonelli (7) .286 (8-for-28), 9 R, 2 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 3 SB Allan Dykstra (5) .529 (9-for-17), 6 R, 2 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 12 RBI Evan Ocheltree (5) .565 (13-for-23), 10 R, 1 2B, 5 HR, 9 RBI Casey Sterk (5) .533 (8-for-15), 8 R, 2 2B, 1 RBI, 3 SB Dan Rosaia (5) .278 (5-for-18), 3 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 6 RBI Andy Goff (4) .313 (5-for-16), 4 R, 2 2B, 2 RBI Dustin Hood (4) .471 (8-for-17), 4 R, 3 2B, 1 3B, 2 RBIDEACON TIDBITS -- THE DEACONS 1-2 PUNCH IN THE ACC RANKINGS -- Allan Dykstra Matt Antonelli Slugging % .791, 1st .652, 5th On-Base % .503, 3rd .455, 12th Runs Scored -- 54, t-1st RBI 49, t-3rd -- Doubles 14, t-2nd 12, t-10th Home Runs 14, 1st 11, 3rd Total Bases 106, 1st 101, 3rd Walks 40, 1st 32, 5th Sacrifice Flies 8, 1st -- Stolen Bases -- 13, 8th DYKSTRA NAMED NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK -- Freshman Allan Dykstra was named Collegiate Baseball National Player of the Week on April 3. The first baseman batted .786 (11-for-14) with five home runs and 11 RBI the previous week. He also added three doubles, eight runs scored and drew five walks. Dykstra recorded an absurd slugging percentage of 2.071 and on-base percentage of .850. Dykstra opened the week with a school-record tying three home runs against Davidson on March 28. DYKSTRA ENTERS THE RECORD BOOKS - Wake Forest freshman Allan Dykstra entered the Demon Deacon all-time record books on March 28 in a 14-6 rout of Davidson. Dykstra became the ninth player in WFU history to hit three homers in a game and finished with a career-high five RBI. The first baseman joined a prestigious list that includes the likes of Jamie D'Antona and Bill Merrifield -- both former ACC Player of the Year winners and All-Americans. D'Antona was the last player to hit three homers in a game on May 26, 2001 versus Tennessee Tech in the NCAA Regional. Dykstra leads the ACC with 11 homers. KINGS OF THE MOUND -- Wake Forest's pitching staff is vastly improved from each of the past two years. The Deacons might have the deepest and most talented staff in recent memory, including any staff of the three ACC Tournament Championship teams (1998, 1999, 2001). Wake Forest has posted a 3.99 ERA to this point of the season, well down from 6.21 in 2005 and 7.12 in 2004. In fact, the team ERA for the 1998, 1999 and 2001 clubs was 4.87 (2001), 4.82 (1999) and 4.26 (1998). The 3.99 ERA would be the lowest single-season ERA since 1980. HOW DO THE 2006 DEMON DEACONS COMPARE TO THE BEST TEAMS OF THE PAST -- At 28-12 overall and 12-6 in the ACC, Wake Forest is off to its best start since 2002. The key to the early success, without question, has been the Deacons pitching. Wake Forest enters this week sporting a 3.99 ERA -- better than the ERA from all five Wake Forest teams that reached the NCAA Regionals (1998-02). The team ERA for the 1998, 1999 and 2001 ACC Tournament championship clubs was 4.26 (1998), 4.82 (1999) and 4.87 (2001). The 2000 team posted a 4.03 ERA and the 2002 club had a 4.34 ERA. MAKING AN IMPACT -- The impact of a freshman class normally takes some time to discover, but SS Dustin Hood, 1B Allan Dykstra, OF Evan Ocheltree, OF/RHP Tyler Smith, LHP Garrett Bullock and RHP Brad Kledzik have yielded immediate results. Hood hits second in the lineup and is batting .333 with 18 RBI. Dykstra bats cleanup and leads ACC in home runs (14), slugging percentage (.797), totals bases (106), sacrifice flies (8) and walks (40). He also ranks among the top 10 in on-base percentage (3rd), RBI (3rd), doubles (t-2nd) and on-base percentage (3rd). Kledzik has not only moved into the ACC weekend rotation, but has served as the Friday night starter each of the past five ACC series. Kledzik is 2-2 with a 3.86 ERA in 35.0 innings in ACC action. He has struck out 23 and walked 12. Ocheltree has exploded the past three weeks. The outfielder is hitting .394 (.28-for-71) with six home runs and 21 RBI in the last 20 games. He was named ACC Player of the Week on April 17 after homering in four straight games. Smith is 1-2 with a 3.08 ERA in 26.1 innings, including 6.0 no-hit innings against UNCG on April 12. He is also batting .310 with a couple RBI. Bullock, who has missed over a month with pneumonia, is 1-0 with a save and a 6.10 ERA. Bullock picked up the victory against Ohio State and struck out seven Buckeyes in the outing. MR. DURABLE -- Junior All-American Matt Antonelli takes the term "everyday player" to another level. Antonelli has started all 148 games in his entire Demon Deacon career. He started 145 consecutive games at the hot corner before starting each of the past three games at second base. TRIO OF GOOSE EGGS -- The Deacons blanked High Point, 7-0, on March 22 for their third shutout of 2006. Wake Forest did not register a single shutout in 2004 or 2005. In fact, the Deacons have not had three shutouts in a single season since 2000. ANTONELLI AND YOUNG MOVING UP ALL-TIME CHARTS -- Junior Matt Antonelli walked a school-record 57 times in 2005 and has recorded 32 already this season. The third baseman has drawn 121 walks over his career, eclipsing Jamie D'Antona's school record of 113. Senior pitcher Kyle Young led Wake Forest with 33 appearances in 2005 and has pitched in 20 more games in 2006. Young has appeared in 78 games over his career which ranks sixth all-time. Young has a decent chance to climb as high as second on the chart (Frank Humber, 86), but Dave Bush's ACC record of 142 games is not in danger. The 142 appearances for Bush is the second most in NCAA history. DEACONS AT THEIR BEST AGAINST THE BEST -- With Wake Forest's 11- victory over No. 12 NC State on April 8, the Deacons picked up their fifth against a team in the top 25 this season. Wake Forest had also defeated two top five and three top 10 teams in the same season for the first time since 2002. DEACONS AT THEIR BEST AGAINST THE BEST -- With Wake Forest's 11- victory over No. 12 NC State on April 8, the Deacons picked up their fifth against a team in the top 25 this season. Wake Forest had also defeated two top five and three top 10 teams in the same season for the first time since 2002. INSIDE THE 11-GAME WINNING STREAK -- ENICK NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK -- Collegiate Baseball named Wake Forest redshirt junior Brendan Enick their National Player of the Week on March 6. Enick finished the previous week with a .786 (11-for-14) batting average, two home runs and 12 RBI in just three games. He led Wake Forest for the week in batting average (.786), slugging percentage (1.429), on-base percentage (.765), hits (11), RBI (12) and doubles (3). ACC PITCHER OF THE WEEK -- Wake Forest junior Charlie Mellies was named ACC Pitcher of the Week on February 27. The junior tossed a five-hit, complete game shutout of No. 1 Florida. Mellies is the first Demon Deacon to receive ACC Pitcher of the Week since Kyle Sleeth earned the award on March 24, 2003. He was also the first Deacon to toss a complete-game shutout since Sleeth. DEACONS RECOGNIZED -- After sweeping through the 2006 Pepsi Baseball Classic, including a 4-0 shutout of top-ranked Florida, Wake Forest was named Team of the Week by Rosenblatt Report.com and CollegeBaseballInsider.com. RECAP FROM THE PEPSI BASEBALL CLASSIC -- HOME OPENERS -- Wake Forest slipped past Charlotte, 4-3, in 10 innings on February 21. The Demon Deacons have won their home opener 19 of the past 20 years. OPENING WEEKENDS -- Wake Forest has now dropped three consecutive season openers. The Deacons lost to Rice to open 2004, Winthrop in 2005 and now Charlotte. Dating back to the 1958 season (the last 50 years), Wake Forest is 30-20 on opening day. The Demon Deacons are 0-2 under Rick Rembielak on opening day and Rembielak is 6-7 all-time in his career. AFTER FURTHER REVIEW -- Wake Forest freshman Dustin Hood had quite a debut for the Demon Deacons against Charlotte. The shortstop had seven hits in the twin bill, including five in the nightcap. Hood, who went 5-for-5 with an RBI double and two runs scored, became the first Deacon rookie to record five hits in a single game since Bill Merrifield went 5-for-8 against Georgia Tech on April 4, 1981. YOUTH SERVING THE DEACONS WELL -- Wake Forest started three true freshman in its season opener against Charlotte on February 12 -- first basemen Allan Dykstra, left fielder Evan Ocheltree and shortstop Dustin Hood. The Deacons also used a pair of rookies out of the bullpen as well in southpaw Garrett Bullock and right-hander Brad Kledzik. IN THE BOOKS -- Wake Forest had a number of players that recorded firsts in the season-opening doubleheader against Charlotte. In addition to the Demon Deacon debuts of five true freshman and two transfers (So., Ben Hunter, So., Austin Jones and R-So., Eric Williams), Allan Dykstra, Dustin Hood, Jones and Williams each picked up their first career hits. Dykstra, Hood and Williams also had RBI. Hunter, who made 13 starts last season for Furman, registered his first career save, while junior Brian Shust smacked his first career home run. NATIONAL FLAVOR -- As is usually the case, the Demon Deacon baseball roster is made up from players across the United States. This year, however, it's even more apparent as 30 of the 32 players on the roster are from outside the state of North Carolina. In fact, 15 different states, including North Carolina, are represented. The only North Carolinians on the team are pitchers Kip Byrum (Sr., Greenville, N.C.) and Garrett Bullock (Fr., Greenville, N.C.) -- both of whom attended J.H. Rose HS. ANTONELLI PRESEASON ALL-AMERICAN -- Wake Forest junior third basemen Matt Antonelli was named second team Preseason All-American by Baseball America. Antonelli, who has already been named to the Wallace Award Watch List, is the first Demon Deacon to garner Preseason All-American status since 2003. A native of Peabody, Mass., Antonelli led Wake Forest in batting average (.332), walks (57), on-base percentage (.475) and runs scored (68) in 2005. The 57 walks set a new single-season school record surpassing the previous mark of 55 held by Billy Masse (1988). Antonelli also tied Dave Lardieri for 10th all-time in single-season school history for runs scored. He was second on the squad in hits (77) and doubles (22). ANTONELLI, DYKSTRA NAMED TO FAB 50 -- Wake Forest junior Matt Antonelli was named to Baseball America's Fab 50: Juniors. Antonelli, a third basemen, was listed as the No. 27 junior prospect in the country. Allan Dykstra was named to the same list for freshman. Dykstra was rated as the No. 41 freshman in the country.
|
In The Polls |
