March 31, 2006

Winston-Salem, N.C. - Wake Forest banged out 16 hits, including four by freshman Allan Dykstra, to win game one of a three-game Atlantic Coast Conference baseball series with Virginia Tech, 12-1, at Hooks Stadium on Friday.

First baseman Dykstra had a big day for the Demon Deacons, picking up two doubles, a home run and a single. He drove in two runs and scored three as Wake Forest improved to 21-7 overall and 6-4 in the ACC. Tech, which finished the contest with five hits, is now 10-15 on the season and 1-9 in conference play

Wake Forest used a string of extra-base hits to build a 4-0 lead over the first three innings. The Demon Deacons picked up a run-scoring double from Dykstra in the first inning. Wake third baseman Matt Antonelli homered with one out in the third for the second run and Dykstra and center fielder Brian Shust followed with RBI-doubles to build the four-run advantage.

It took the Hokies 3 2/3 innings to get their first hit against WFU starting pitcher Brad Kledzik. Shortstop Warren Schaeffer (Vandergrift, Pa.) delivered that hit with a hard single to left field.

Tech mounted a threat in the top of the fifth. Right fielder Jose Cueto (Miami, Fla.) led off the inning with a single, but was erased when left fielder Billy Marn (Yorktown, Va.) hit into a fielder's choice. Kledzik then walked second baseman Matt Hacker (Richmond, Va.) and first baseman Sean O'Brien (Chappaqua, N.Y.), loading the bases with one out.

The Wake Forest right-hander got himself out of the jam when he coaxed Tech third baseman Bryan Thomas (Wilmington, N.C.) to pop out to shortstop and struck out center fielder Sheldon Adams (Big Stone Gap, Va.).

The Hokies finally got on the board in the seventh when Cueto opened the inning with a double, moved to third on a groundout by Marn and scored on a groundout by Hacker.

Dykstra got the run back in the bottom of the inning with a solo home run, his 10^th homer of the season. The Demon Deacons went on to load the bases in the inning with one out before freshman reliever Rhett Ballard (High Point, N.C.) took over for starter Greg Fryman (Gibsonia, Pa.) and ended the threat without another run scoring.

Tech loaded the bases again in the eighth inning, this time against reliever Josh Ellis. Adams reached on an infield single. Ellis then issued back-to-back walks to catcher Matt Foley (Lansdowne, Va.) and Cueto with two outs before getting Marn to bounce out to first base.

The Demon Deacons broke the game open in the eighth with seven runs, four of which were unearned. Wake designated hitter Brendan Enick had a two-run single in the inning, while Antonelli contributed a two-run double.

Fryman pitched 6 1/3 innings for the Hokies, allowing five runs on 12 hits. He is now 2-3 on the season. Cueto accounted for two of Tech's five hits and scored the only run.

Kledzik pitched six innings and improved to 4-2 with the victory. Antonelli finished the game with three hits, three RBIs and three runs scored.

The two teams are scheduled to continue the series on Saturday afternoon at 1.