Wake Forest Hoping to Build Confidence in Midweek vs. Elon

After another series loss — the second in a row — for Wake Forest, this time at the hands of ACC rival Virginia, the Demon Deacons set their sights on righting the ship in the midweek against Elon. While this game is not make-or-break for Tom Walter and company, it would be nice to start the week off right before the team hosts California for another ACC series.

With a lot of these midweek games, the question isn’t if Wake Forest can win but rather if it can lose. Elon has struggled this season, to say the least. At 10-13 and 3-6 in the Coastal Athletic Association, the Phoenix haven’t exactly been the definition of success. Add in the fact that they’re 2-10 away from home — an astronomical figure that feels so strange, especially compared to their 8-3 mark in Elon — and it becomes even less likely that the Phoenix are able to pull off the upset here.

Still, weirder things have happened. This is baseball, after all, the sport that is almost the epitome of randomness. Anything can happen over a given nine innings. For Wake Forest, it hopes that the result is an easygoing victory.

Marsten Gets the Call on the Hill

Wake Forest Baseball — Duncan Marsten (30) delivers a pitch against the Florida State Seminoles, March 15, 2026. | Wake Forest Athletics

If the Demon Deacons are going to leave The Couch on top, then it’ll be up to sophomore right-handed pitcher Duncan Marsten to deliver a good outing. Marsten, a native of Lake Balboa, California, has a 6.27 ERA over the course of 18 2/3 innings of work so far this season. He started the season on fire — he didn’t allow a run through his first three appearances against Indiana State, Siena, and Davidson — but he’s cooled down a ton over the past three weeks versus Stanford and Florida State. Just like his team, he’ll be seeking to make things right against the Phoenix.

Opposite him will be redshirt freshman left-hander Cole Miller. Even though Miller hasn’t racked up a ton of innings so far during the 2026 campaign, it’s clear that he’s a talented arm that could prove to be some trouble for Wake Forest’s offense. In 7 2/3 innings, he’s amassed a 2.35 ERA. Walks have been an issue — he’s issued six free passes compared to just two strikeouts — which certainly plays in the Demon Deacons’ favor. If he can slow that trend down, then he should be set up for success. If not, then watch out for a ton of runs tonight at David F. Couch Ballpark.

Elon has one hitter who really stands out, and it’s not even close. Jackson Alford, a senior infielder from Georgia, is by far the Phoenix’s best hitter. He’s posted a .338/.447/.429 slash line with one home run and eight RBIs through 77 at-bats so far. He leads the team in batting average by almost 80 points, as the next closest hitter, Jake Hajdu, is hitting just .257. Watch out for Alford to make an impact at the top of the order for the Phoenix against the Demon Deacons.

The Trends Point Toward Wake Forest

All the numbers and trends indicate that this contest will result in a Deacs win. Wake Forest is 4-1 in midweek games so far — its only loss came at the hands of a good Coastal Carolina team back on March 10. It’s also 68-41 all-time against Elon and has won four out of the last five. Additionally, the team is 121-28-1 at home since 2022. Losing at The Couch just isn’t what Wake Forest likes to do.

First pitch between Wake Forest and Elon is set for 6 p.m. ET. The game will be available to watch on ACC Network Extra.