Wake Forest Athletics Year in Review
The 2024-25 collegiate athletic calendar has come to a close, and it was yet another exciting year in Demon Deacon athletics. A new football coaching staff, two National Championships for Men’s Tennis, and a whole lot of NCAA tournament appearances kept Deacon fans entertained throughout the year.
Wake Forest - Men's Tennis
The only proper way to start the Wake Forest athletics review from 2024-25 is to start with the Men’s Tennis team. The team became one of the greatest in Wake Forest history, posting a 40-1 record throughout the year. Their only loss came to the 6th-ranked Virginia Cavaliers in the ACC Championship this past spring. Coach Tony Bresky won ITA National Coach of the Year honors for this record-breaking season.
The team was led by Graduate Transfer Stefan Dostanic, who transferred into Deactown for his last year of college tennis. Dostanic represented the Deacs on line 1 singles, where he won 12 of his 15 matches. Dostanic sealed the deal for the ITA Indoor Championship with a third-set victory over TCU’s Jack Pinnington. Dostanic recently qualified for the US Open in Queens, New York, in late August.
Dostanic's doubles partner, DK Suresh, also played a pivotal role as the line two singles player, winning 20 of 28 singles matches. The 6 '5' Junior put an exclamation point on the Deacons' season when he completed the Deacons' 40th win of the year by taking down Pedro Vives in a third set.
The young sophomore, Luca Pow, had an incredible year on the court for the Deacons. The Englishman completed the year with an impressive 31-3 record in singles. Pow primarily played on the sixth court in singles.
Wake Forest - Women's Soccer
From the court to the field, the Wake Forest women’s soccer team fell just short to in-state rival North Carolina in an All-ACC National Championship game. Tony da Luz’s squad finished the year with 16 wins, 4 draws, and 4 losses with historic wins over USC, Ohio State, Stanford, and Virginia.
Junior forward Caiya Hanks led the Deacs in total points with 11 goals and 12 assists. Hanks, the Hawaiian native, tallied an impressive 1,887 minutes on the year and was a pivotal piece in the team’s success this year. After leaving Wake Forest, Hanks earned a spot on the Portland Thorns of the NWSL.
The same can be said about two North Carolina transfers, Emily Murphy and Emily Colton. Murphy, a forward from England, had a breakout year for the Demon Deacons as she totaled seven goals and eight assists. This breakout year helped her earn a spot on the Women’s Championship side Newcastle United in northern England. Colton, on the other hand, was one of four Deacs who started each of the 24 games throughout the year. Colton played in the midfield and earned a spot on DC Power FC in the USL Super League following her final year of college soccer.
Wake Forest - Men's Soccer
The Men’s Soccer team had an impressive season in their own right as they brought home their fourth ACC Championship title and their first since 2017. Bobby Muuss and company defeated the Clemson Tigers in the ACC Championship final on Penalty Kicks by a score of 7-6. Jose Perez slotted in a penalty to win the shootout for the Deacs.
Muuss’ team took down the Maryland Terrapins and the Clemson Tigers in the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament en route to the Round of 16. The Deacons eventually fell to the #1 ranked Ohio State Buckeyes in Columbus, ending an incredible year for the Deacs. Bo Cummins, Travis Smith Jr, and Liam O’Gara were all drafted in the Major League Soccer SuperDraft following their impressive seasons, respectively.
Wake Forest - Baseball
Tom Walter’s Diamond Deacs finished the year with a 39-22 overall record and made a fourth consecutive regional appearance. After dropping their first game against the Cincinnati Bearkats, Rake Forest rallied back and won three straight against Miami (OH), Cincinnati, and region hosts Tennessee to force a Game 7 in Knoxville. The battle tested Deacs dropped Game 7 to the Volunteers ending their season.
Junior shortstop, Marek Houston, had yet another impressive year in the field and at the plate. Houston batted .354 with 15 home runs and a team leading 66 RBIs. Houston is a projected first round pick in the upcoming MLB Draft.
Breakout stars Kade Lewis and Dalton Wentz impressed in their first year in Deactown. Lewis, a Butler transfer, led the team in batting average from the left side of the plate with an average of .376 in his first year in the ACC. Wentz, a freshman from Madison Heights, Virginia, brought the juice for the Deacs all year long with 13 homers and a .314 average.
The Diamond Deacs picked up a new pitching coach in former Deacon and former Houston Astro, Eric Niesen, as Corey Muscara departed to become the head coach of in-state rival Duke. Niesen joins his alma mater after spending his last four years as the director of pitching for the Astros.
Wake Forest - New Coaches
The Diamond Deacs weren’t the only team with coaching changes this athletic year. In December, Wake Forest football hired former Washington State head coach, Jake Dickert, after Dave Clawson stepped down after an incredible career as Wake Forest’s 32nd head football coach. Dickert brought along an exciting staff with a new style of play that will excite Winston-Salem this fall. Finally, in January, Wake Forest volleyball hired Jeff Hulsmeyer as its new head coach. Hulsmeyer brings expertise from his previous coaching spells at Florida State and Kansas State. Hulsmeyer became the 13th head coach in Wake Forest volleyball history.
As another athletic year comes to a close, Demon Deacon fans had many moments to celebrate. Many exciting times are ahead here in Winston-Salem. Deacon fans ought to be hopeful for the upcoming athletic year.
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Ryder is a Junior at Wake Forest University in North Carolina. He is studying Accountancy but has a passion for college athletics. He serves as the Treasurer of the Old Gold and Black, Wake Forest’s Student-Run newspaper. He has also served as a play-by-play analyst for his high school’s football and basketball games.