Wake Forest Baseball Splits Fall Doubleheader Against West Virginia

Wake Forest wrapped up its fall with a home scrimmage against West Virginia by playing 18 innings over two games.

Wake Forest plays West Virginia in a fall scrimmage on Oct 26, 2025. | Monty Taylor - Wake Forest On SI

West Virginia took the first game, 5-2 in 10 innings, as the Demon Deacons went 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position. Offensive woes continued for Wake Forest in the second game, but pitching held the Mountaineers scoreless in a 3-0 win.

Game 1 (10 Innings)

The Mountaineers drew first blood off Wake Forest ace Blake Morningstar in the first frame when WVU designated hitter Matthew Graveline delivered a two-out RBI double to left center to score teammate Gavin Kelly. Morningstar wasn’t his usual dominant self as he struggled to throw strikes consistently and ended up allowing one run in two innings of work while walking three batters.

Wake Forest’s offense was stifled for the first two innings as West Virginia ace Chase Meyer carved through the Demon Deacon lineup his first time through, picking up four strikeouts and allowing just two base runners to reach. After getting Ryan Preisano to strikeout leading off the third, Meyer lost control– walking four straight batters before being lifted for reliever Bryson Hoff.

Wake Forest took the lead in the next at-bat when Luke Costello was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. The Deacs were unable to manifest the big inning; however, after Matt Conte popped up and Jackson Miller flew out to end the threat, the score was just 2-1 after three.

West Virginia regained a 3-2 lead in the 5th inning when three of four Mountaineers scorched line drives against Wake veteran reliever Luke Schmolke. The lead was extended to three in the 7th inning after a two-run blast by West Virginia off Zach Johnston made it 5-2. Wake Forest would threaten in each of the final three innings, but never found a way to bring in another run.

The Demon Deacons had just six hits in the first game, with only catcher Matt Conte enjoying a multi-hit game. Outfielder Boston Torres, hitting for the first time in the fall, reached base in four of his five plate appearances, while Dalton Wentz reached base three times.

The standout pitcher for Wake in game one was Matthew Dallas, who made some mechanical adjustments that have resulted in increased velocity. He retired six of the seven batters he faced, generating three weak ground outs and two pop-ups to go along with a swinging strikeout.

Game Two (8 Innings)

Wake Forest Baseball concluded the fall season with a doubleheader against West Virginia. | Wake Forest Athletics

The Wake Forest offense continued to struggle in the second game as the first six batters failed to reach, with four of them striking out. Freshman outfielder Jordan Serrano laid down a perfect bunt to lead off the 3rd inning for Wake’s first hit, but then Cuyler Baxter grounded into a double play.

Fortunately for the Deacs, Cam Bagwell and Duncan Marsten showcased strong performances on the mound over the first four innings. UNC-Wilmington transfer Bagwell started the game and allowed just a walk and a double to Graveline, but kept the Mountaineers off the scoreboard over his two innings of work. Marsten retired all six batters he faced with a pair of strikeouts..

Dalton Wentz had Wake’s first extra base hit on the day– a hard hit double down the left field line– in the 4th inning. It was the Demon Deacons’ only extra-base hit in their first 14 innings. Wentz was left stranded after senior catcher Jimmy Keenan struck out to end the frame. It was deja vu in the 5th as Serrano lined a two-out double off the wall in left and was left stranded when Baxter struck out to end the inning.

The home team finally got on the board in the bottom of the 6th when they loaded the bases with nobody out. A strikeout and a fielder's choice out at home later, and the Deacs were in danger of squandering yet another opportunity. Ryan Preisano drew an RBI walk to give Wake the 1-0 lead before Tyler Figueroa grounded out to end the inning. While they did finally score, the Demon Deacons went 0-for-3 with the bases loaded in that frame and were a staggering 0-for-16 with runners in scoring position over the first 16 innings of the day.

Freshman shortstop JD Stein, who made a number of fabulous defensive plays on the day, finally notched the first hit with a runner in scoring position when he dropped a single into left field in the 7th inning to score Javar Williams from second base. The Deacs added another run to make it 3-0 when Georgetown transfer Blake Schaaf grounded out to first for the second out.

The pitching was the story of game two as Bagwell, Marsten, Troy Dressler, Evan Jones, Tyler Wood, and Grant Nicholson combined for a two-hit shutout over eight innings. The six arms combined for nine strikeouts while walking just two.

The scrimmage against West Virginia marks the end of Wake Forest's fall season. The next time they take the field for scrimmages will be in the 2026 preseason.