April 16, 2004

Box Score

Raleigh, N.C. - The Wake Forest baseball team picked up a 4-1 win against 24th-ranked NC State on Friday night in Raleigh. Deacon junior right-hander Justin Keadle outdueled NC State's All-ACC pitcher Michael Rogers with a dazzling complete game, 10 strikeout performance.

After giving up one run in the bottom of the first, Keadle blanked the Wolfpack for eight consecutive innings.

The game was tied at 1-1 after two innings and remained that way until the top of the eighth.

That's when Casey Sterk blasted a 0-2 fastball over the 15-foot wall in left field for a solo home run, his third round-tripper of the season.

Wake Forest proceeded to add two more insurance runs in that inning. With one out, Matt Antonelli lined a single to left field. Then, Ben Ingold drilled his second triple of the game into right field to score Antonelli. Ingold then came home on an RBI single by Steve LeFaivre.

Keadle would do the rest, striking out a combined four batters in the eighth and ninth innings. Keadle caught NC State's Ryan Johnson to end the game, looking to put the exclamation point on his 10 strikeout effort.

Although he pitched quite well in his two previous outings against Duke and North Carolina, it was Keadle's first victory in a Wake Forest uniform.

Nick Blue had two hits and extended his hitting streak to a career-best 11 games. Ingold's two triples tied a school record originally set by Bob Hely in 1977.

The Wolfpack scored a run in the bottom of the first inning on a sacrifice fly by David Hicks. Wake Forest answered right away in the top of the first when Blue's bases-loaded, infield single scored J.B. Tucker.

Until the eighth, Rogers had been equally impressive for NC State. During one stretch between the second and the eighth innings, Rogers retired 16 straight Deacons with eight strikeouts.

The victory snapped Wake Forest's losing streak at 13 games, which will go down as the second longest string in program history. The win also marked the Deacons' first win over a ranked opponent since beating NC State last year at Hooks Stadium.

Wake Forest improved to 12-21 overall, 2-11 in the ACC. NC State slid to 25-12 overall, 7-6 in the conference.