The Demon Deacons Take Their Final Regular Season Series

Wake Forest Keeps the Good Times Rolling Against the Blue Devils

Wake Forest right fielder Luke Costello hits a sacrifice fly in Saturday's game against Western Carolina. His at-bat brought Javar Williams to the plate, making the score 7-1 in the bottom of the 7th. | Wake Forest Athletics

Following a commanding win on Thursday, the Demon Deacons hoped to push their win-streak to 10 games and close out the series early against the Duke Blue Devils.

The starting pitchers, Aiden Weaver and Troy Dressler, handled their opponents swiftly in the first inning. Both pitchers allowed zero hits and only one batter to reach first base apiece. After this initial slow start, Matt Conte sent a ball to left field and doubled to put the Demon Deacons in scoring position. Boston Torres sent Conte home with a double to right-center field. With Troy Dressler ending the bottom of the second, the Demon Deacons led 1-0.

Wake Forest continued their strong effort at the top of the fourth. Boston Torres, facing a full count, sent a runner down the left field line. With Torres now on second, Andrew Costello sent Torres home with a single. Costello was able to move all the way to third base through a stolen base and a wild pitch, respectively. Doubles from both Blake Schaaf and JD Stein extended the lead to 4-0 entering the bottom of the fourth.

Duke Fires Back

The Duke centerfielder, Matthew Strand, stepped up to face Troy Dressler at the bottom of the fourth inning. Facing his sixth pitch of the at-bat, Strand sent a ball deep for a home run. To cap off the inning, Colin Anderson scored an unearned run from a single by Michael DiMartini. Top cap off the inning, the Demon Deacons held on to a 4-2 lead.

The Blue Devils found themselves in jam at the top of the sixth. Facing bases loaded with two outs, Dalton Wentz sent JD Stein home with a single to right field. Besides that single run, the Blue Devils were able to get out of the jam and end the sixth.

The Demon Deacons Finish Strong

Wake Forest kept Duke well out of reach the rest of the match. Defensively, the Demon Deacons were stout. Marcello Harsh entered the game for Troy Dressler and put together a strong performance. Through the 3.1 innings he pitched, Harsh did not allow a single hit. The closer, Rhys Bowie, also had himself a day. With just the remaining 1.1 innings left, Bowie tacked on 4 strikeouts.

Never a doubt 💪 pic.twitter.com/rqQ8x7MGXF

— Wake Forest Baseball (@WakeBaseball) May 16, 2026

Offensively, the Demon Deacons kept the bats hot. To keep the good times rolling, Jimmy Keenan sent a ball to deep left field on just his first pitch of the faceoff.

What's Next?

Wake Forest concludes the regular season with the final match of the series against the Duke Blue Devils.