Baseball Southern Conference

SoCon Baseball Results, Thursday, April 17, 2003

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Adam Bourassa went 4-for-5 and Brian Bach went the distance on the mound to lead Wake Forest (23-12) to a 10-3 win over the visiting Davidson Wildcats (13-19) on Thursday afternoon at Gene Hooks Stadium.

Bach (5-1) threw 118 pitches in his route-going performance, allowing three runs on eight hits and five walks while striking out three.

Davidson took an early lead in the first inning, loading the bases with nobody out. But a double-play grounder and a grounder to third allowed just one run to score in the inning for a 1-0 Wildcat lead.

The Demon Deacons answered in the bottom half with a run of their own. Bourassa singled to start the inning and stole second and third. A sacrifice fly off the bat of Ryan Johnson tied the score at one.

In the fourth, Wake Forest put three runs on the board to take the lead for good. Catcher Ryder Mathias hit the first pitch of the inning over the fence in left center for his first home run of the season. Consecutive singles by Bourassa, Ryan Hubbard and Johnson brought home another run, and Jamie D'Antona got his 61st RBI of the season on a grounder to short.

Four walks in the fifth, including one with the bases loaded to Ben Ingold, made the score 5-1.

But the Wildcats wouldn't roll over, scoring twice in the sixth. A lead-off walk to freshman Jay Heafner and a single by fellow freshman Adam Entrekin started the Davidson rally. Senior D.J. Dailey hit a grounder to third, forcing Entrekin at second. The relay throw was wild, however, allowing Heafner to score. Junior Brett Peiffer followed with a double down the left-field line which scored Dailey from first.

Wake Forest put the game away in the seventh with five runs. Another bases-loaded walk to Ingold gave the Demon Deacons a three-run lead, 6-3. Mathias and Bourassa each had RBI singles, then Hubbard drove home two with a single to complete the scoring on the afternoon.

Wildcat senior Derrik Wolpert (2-5) took the loss, going 4.1 innings and surrendering five runs on six hits and four walks while striking out five. Sophomore Matt Hanson made his first appearance on the mound this season for Davidson, retiring all five batters he faced.

Davidson has the weekend off before returning to the diamond next Tuesday for a night game at Wildcat Park against Charlotte. It will be the first game between the two schools in five years. Wake Forest travels to Atlanta, Ga., for a three-game series with fifth-ranked Georgia Tech, starting on Friday evening.