Wake Forest Run Rules NC State Again, Wins the Series
The Demon Deacons defeated the Wolfpack on Saturday behind another massive hitting performance. Once again, the Deacs did not have their best stuff on the mound, but their at-bats were able to push them over the top in a big way.
It is great to see guys start to stack good performances at the plate. NC State's pitching was weak coming into the weekend, and Wake has taken full advantage to already lock up the series. Let's go through the highlights.
More Big At-Bats
Is 15 home runs in the last three games any good? 💣 pic.twitter.com/9dmXZG1hWy
— Wake Forest Baseball (@WakeBaseball) April 18, 2026
The Demon Deacons' offense is stagnant no longer. This is their third solid offensive performance in a row. After six home runs Friday night, the Deacs finished this one with five home runs.
The offensive star of the game was Luke Costello. He started the scoring off with a single that allowed Javar Williams to score. In five at-bats, he had four hits, five RBIs, two runs, and a homer. Catcher Matt Conte also had a stellar performance. He hit two home runs in Saturday's game to score four RBIs. His two-run homer in the bottom of the seventh closed the game out by run rule.
Kade Lewis and Javar Williams both also hit home runs in this one to follow up on the homers they hit last night. That is exactly the type of power hitting you want from the top of your lineup. At the bottom of the lineup, both Andrew Costello and JD Stein scored two runs. The consistency from top to bottom this weekend has been very promising.
Another W for Dressler
Despite not having his best stuff today, Troy Dressler battled and got his sixth win of the season, sitting at a 6-1 record. He gave up four runs on five hits in 3.1 innings pitched. He had three strikeouts. Even though we did not get the Dressler we have been seeing recently, the offense backed him up in a big way to secure the W.
Freshman Evan Jones came in for 2.2 innings and gave up two runs on three hits, to go along with three strikeouts. Senior closer Will Ray came in at the top of the seventh inning and gave up three hits, but limited the damage to just a single run, so the Deacs could win it by run rule in the bottom of the inning.
BELT x 2 pic.twitter.com/CQM68enaAr
— Wake Forest Baseball (@WakeBaseball) April 18, 2026
What's Next?
Now the Deacs will look to complete the sweep over the rival Wolfpack. They won both the series over Cal and Pitt, but were unable to complete the sweep on Sunday. This one would be extra sweet to close out in a big way on Sunday. First pitch is scheduled for 1 pm.
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Justin is a student at Wake Forest University. He is from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and aspiring finance major interested everything sports. In his freshman year, Justin completed an internship with the Wake Forest Ticketing Department where he gained some valuable insight into the sales and operations aspects of collegiate athletics. Before working with Wake Forest On SI, Justin was a contributing writer for Wake Forest’s student publication The Old Gold and Black. Currently, Justin serves as a student manager on the Wake Forest Men’s Tennis team. In his free time Justin enjoys spending time with his family and friends on the golf course and traveling.