The No. 2 ranked Wake Forest Demon Deacons came into Tuesday’s baseball game riding an eight-game winning streak. That came to a screeching halt against an unlikely foe in Elon.
The two teams faced off earlier this season. Wake Forest easily handled Elon in a dominant 20-0 victory. Tuesday’s game looked like there were two entirely different teams on the field.
Wake Forest came out of the gates strong, scoring three runs in the first inning. However, Elon would battle all the way back to tie the game up in the bottom of the fifth inning on an RBI single from designated hitter Ryan Sprock.
AND WE ARE TIED!!!!!!! #PhoenixRising pic.twitter.com/OLPOidtMDa
— Elon Baseball (@ElonBaseball) April 4, 2023
Elon would then take the lead later in the inning on another RBI single from catcher Luke Stevenson.
ELON IS IN THE LEAD!!!!!!!! #PhoenixRising pic.twitter.com/86HP5AmsDH
— Elon Baseball (@ElonBaseball) April 4, 2023
The Phoenix would later score again in the fifth to take a 5-3 lead. This would be a lead that they wouldn’t relinquish, coming away with a 5-3 victory to stun Wake Forest.
Elon stuns No. 2 Wake Forest in college baseball! ⚾️ pic.twitter.com/x1eSj5bnxu
— The Comeback (@thecomeback) April 5, 2023
This result certainly comes as a shock considering how the first game between these two teams went. Many took to social media to praise Elon for their massive win.
DOWN GOES #2 WAKE FOREST 🚨
Elon completed the upset after trailing 3-0. The Phoenix are for real this year ‼️ pic.twitter.com/fB9NBcl1Lw
— 11Point7 College Baseball (@11point7) April 5, 2023
Elon takes down No. 2 Wake Forest! https://t.co/hvLaIFX3VT
— Preston Willett (@PrestonWillett) April 5, 2023
Elon takes down #2 Wake Forest!!! Huge team win. Now have wins over Kentucky , NC State and now Wake Forest. https://t.co/v6bzKhynDp
— JeffCoolahan (@JeffCoolahan) April 5, 2023
Congrats to @ElonBaseball for knocking off #2 Wake Forest, 5-3. Seven wins for CAA teams over nationally ranked foes in the last four weeks. https://t.co/bBUJGE0ySm
— Coastal Athletic Association (@CAASports) April 5, 2023
FINAL (UPSET AT LATHAM): Elon 5, Wake Forest 3
Mascolo: 4.1 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 5 K
Wilken: 1-4, RBI, 2B
Bennett: 1-4, RBI, 2B
10 WF strikeoutsDeacs back in action Friday at 6pm to open a big in-state series against NC State. Broadcast on ACCNX.
— Essex Thayer (@essexthayer7) April 5, 2023
Oh man, what a bad night for the ranked teams. 5 teams have been upset so far this evening and the night is still young! The biggest one so far this evening, Elon stuns #2 Wake Forest 5-3.
Midweeks……..
— Famously Garnet Sports (@FamouslyGarnet) April 5, 2023
Elon quietly has a very impressive season going themselves, previously defeating ranked teams including Kentucky and NC State earlier this year.
It is certainly impressive to see this level of performance from Elon coming out of the Colonial Athletic Conference, a league not typically known to have much college baseball talent.
The Phoenix will look to keep their momentum going against UNC Wilmington on Friday, while Wake Forest will look to rebound against NC State later this week.
[The Comeback on Twitter, Elon Baseball on Twitter] Photo Credit: Elon Sports Vision
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.