April 1, 2016

By Russell Dorn

ACC Series #4:
Wake Forest Demon Deacons
April 1-3, 2016
6:05 p.m. / 4:05 p.m. / 1:05 p.m. (All ET)
Frank Eck Stadium (Notre Dame, Ind.)

Team Information:

Notre Dame: 13-10, 4-5 ACC (37-23, 17-13 ACC In 2015)
2015 Postseason: 1-2 @ ACC Tourney & 1-2 @ NCAA Champaign Regional

Wake Forest: 17-10, 4-5 ACC (27-26, 12-18 ACC In 2015)
2015 Postseason: Did not qualify for ACC or NCAA Tournaments

Rankings: None

Game Coverage (Links on UND.com/NDBaseball)
Live Video: WatchND
Live Audio: WHME 103.1 FM in South Bend (Chuck Freeby, pbp)
Live Stats: Gametracker
Twitter Reports: @NDBaseball

Projected Pitching Matchups:
G1: RHP Ryan Smoyer (2-3, 2.72 ERA) vs. RHP Parker Dunshee (4-2, 3.32 ERA)
G2: LHP Sean Guenther (2-2, 3.05 ERA) vs. RHP Connor Johnstone (1-2, 5.94 ERA)
G3: TBD vs. TBD

Weather Report (as of Friday, April 1):
Friday, April 1: 49/30 & PM Showers
Saturday, April 2: 42/26 & Rain/Snow Showers/Wind
Sunday, April 3: 54/40 & Sunny/Wind

Series History: Wake Forest leads 9-3
In ACC Reg. Season Play: Wake Forest leads 1-5
In ACC Tournament Play: No meetings
Aoki vs. Wake Foret: 10-9 (0-1 @ CU / 9-3 @ BC / 1-5 @ ND)
First Meeting: 6/18/1949: L, 10-7 – Home

Last Four Meetings:
4/26/15: L, 5-4 (11) – Away
4/25/15: L, 4-2 – Away
4/24/15: W, 9-5 – Away
3/30/14: L, 7-5 – Home

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Riding a five-game winning streak that stretches back to March 22, the University of Notre Dame baseball team welcomes Wake Forest this weekend to Frank Eck Stadium for its first home Atlantic Coast Conference series of the 2016 season.

Notre Dame (13-10, 4-5 ACC) is coming off an impressive three-game sweep at Virginia Tech last weekend and a 6-3 win over No. 30 Oregon Thursday night.

Wake Forest (17-10, 4-5 ACC) has won five of its last six contests and claimed a series win against Duke last weekend.

The series could prove to be a critical one in the race for the ACC Tournament, as both teams are tied for fourth in the Atlantic Division but are just a couple of games out of second place.

Tickets for the weekend series are available at UND.com/buytickets or at the Frank Eck Stadium box office on game day. Adult tickets are $5, while a youth/senior ticket is $3. Irish faculty, staff and students are admitted free with a valid ID.

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Here’s what you need to know about this weekend’s series:

1. The Irish enter the weekend series boasting a five-game winning streak, which is their longest since sweeping No. 20 North Carolina and taking the first two games against Boston College last season … during the winning streak, the Irish are batting .344 at the dish while producing a 2.40 ERA on the mound … six different starters are hitting .333 or better including freshman Nick Podkul, who is splitting .538/.647/.692 with two extra-base hits, four RBI, two walks, two hit by pitch and six runs scored while stepping in at third base for injured junior Kyle Fiala … junior Cavan Biggio has been on fire during the stretch with five extra-base hits, 11 RBI, five walks and six runs scored while splitting .476/.577/.857.

2. Notre Dame is in the midst of a 13-game home stand, which is the most games in a row at The Eck since 2005 … the Irish are 3-0 so far on the home stand, with midweek victories over Toledo, UIC and No. 30 Oregon.

3. Irish starting pitchers Ryan Smoyer and Sean Guenther have each been outstanding so far this season with a combined seven quality starts in 12 opportunities … Smoyer has gone at least 6.1 innings in five of six starts and is fifth in the ACC in innings pitched (39.2) … Guenther, meanwhile, has hit 6.2 innings inning or more in four of six starts and is tied for sixth in innings pitched (38.1) … last week Smoyer went eight innings and recorded a career-high seven strikeouts in the win at Virginia Tech.

4. The Demon Deacons bring a tough offense to Frank Eck Stadium this weekend led by reigning ACC Player of the Year Will Craig … the junior is second in the league in homers (9) and tied for third in RBI (30) and total bases 63) despite missing a few games with a minor injury … he enters the series with an active 12-game hitting streak and 17-game on-base streak … on the bump, Friday starter Parker Dunshee is tied for fifth in the ACC in strikeouts (37) and tied for eighth in innings pitched (38.0) … reliever Chris Farish tops the ACC in appearances (16).

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For more information on the Notre Dame baseball, follow the Irish on Facebook (/NDBaseball), Twitter (@NDBaseball) and Instagram (notredamebaseball).

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Russell Dorn, athletics communications assistant director at the University of Notre Dame, has been part of the Fighting Irish athletics communications team since 2011 and coordinates all media efforts for the Notre Dame volleyball, rowing and baseball programs. A native of Greenwood, South Carolina, Dorn graduated from Furman University in 2008 with a bachelor’s degree in history before earning his master’s degree in sports communications from Georgia State University in 2011.

–ND–