April 11, 2009

Game One Box Score
Game Two Box Score

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Senior JB MacDonald dominated Wake Forest from the mound and threw 8.0 innings of no-hit baseball in the first game of a doubleheader at the Wake Forest Baseball Park Saturday, leading Boston College to a 23-2 win. The Eagles went on to win the second game as well in come-from-behind fashion, 4-2.

The doubleheader sweep improves Boston College to 22-11 and 9-6 in the ACC this season. The Demon Deacons dropped to 18-15 and 5-12 in the league. The series will wrap up on Sunday with a 1 p.m. game at the Wake Forest Baseball Park.

MacDonald had faced the minimum numbers of batters from the second inning on, but Austin Stadler broke up the no-hitter with a double down the right field line to leadoff the ninth. Wake Forest would eventually score their only two runs of the game in the inning.

MacDonald only allowed five base runners in the game and three of them came in the ninth inning. Four reached second base in the game with three of them coming in the last at-bats. MacDonald's final line through his 9.0 innings was two runs on three hits with four strikeouts and a walk.

A couple of the big plays that kept the no-hitter in tact included an inning-ending 6-4-3 double play in the fourth after a hit batsman started the frame. Sophomore Mickey Wiswall made a great diving play to his glove side in the hole to take away a hit in the fifth inning.

Not only was MacDonald dominant, but so was the offense. Boston College scored 23 runs with four home runs in the game.

Junior Mike Belfiore tied his career high in hits, going 4-for-6 with a double, three RBI and three runs. Wiswall had a career-high five RBI in the game and had a three-run home run in the top of the first. He finished 2-for-5 at the plate.

BC got on the board immediately in the top of the first with three runs. With one out, sophomore Matt Hamlet went opposite field for a single on a 2-1 offering and then junior Tony Sanchez walked to put two men on. Wiswall then drove the first pitch he saw on the day over the wall in right field for a three-run homer to put BC on the board.

The Eagles put up three more runs in the top of the third - all with two outs - to extend the lead to 6-0. Sanchez reached on an error by the third baseman to start the frame and after a fielder's choice, Belfiore roped a single through the middle. After the second out was recorded, sophomore Garret Smith went with the pitch and snuck a double inside the right field line. The ball then got past the right fielder which allowed two runs to score and put BC up, 5-0.

Sophomore Mike Sudol was then hit by a pitch to put runners on the corners and Zapenas sent one back up the middle for a single and the Eagles' sixth run.

BC exploded for eight more in the fourth to put the game out of reach. Sanchez singled through the left side of the infield and after a strikeout, Belfiore walked to put a pair of Eagles on. Butera brought them both home when he blasted a line-drive home run over the right field wall on a 1-0 delivery to put BC up 9-0.

Smith followed up with a walk and then Sudol drove one the other way for a single to put two more on base. A passed ball allowed both to get into scoring position and Zapenas found the hole on the right side of the drawn in infield to plate them to make it 11-0.

The Eagles loaded the bases with two outs following a walk and another Sanchez single, and Wiswall added a couple more RBI when he singled through the right side to put BC up 13-0. Belfiore followed suit with a single through the other side for the Eagles' eighth run of the inning and 14th of the game.

Boston College tacked another run on in the seventh when Smith drove in Belfiore, who had singled, on a sac fly to right.

BC put up two more runs in the eighth inning. Anston walked to start the frame and then senior Harry Darling pulled a single through the left side to put two men on with one out. Belfiore then drove a pitch to the wall in right-center to score both runners to put the lead at 17 runs.

BC added six more in its last inning at the plate in the ninth with the help of a pair of home runs from Spatola and Augustine.

GAME TWO
Boston College was down two runs entering the eighth inning, but the Eagles put up four runs in the frame to take the lead and the win in the second game of the doubleheader.

Sophomore John Leonard started on the bump and had a solid outing, throwing 5.0 innings and allowing two runs on four hits. Classmate Kevin Moran got the win after working 2.0 innings and allowing two hits. He got the Eagles out of first and second and bases loaded jams - both with nobody out - in the seventh and eighth innings.

Belfiore earned his seventh save of the season after tossing 2.0 perfect innings and striking out three.

Sanchez and Belfiore both went 2-for-4 at the plate with a double, RBI and a run. Butera went 1-for-3 with a double and an RBI.

Wake Forest was the first to get on the board in game two with a run in the bottom of the first. Steven Brooks singled to the gap in left to leadoff for Wake and then stole second with one out. After the second out was recorded, Mike Murray took a 2-2 pitch to center for a single to put the Demon Deacons up, 1-0.

Wake tacked on another run in the third inning to push the lead to two. Brooks singled to left for his second hit of the game and then stole second again. He reached third on a groundout to the right side and then Dustin Hood brought him home with a sac fly to center to put Wake up 2-0.

The turning point may have come in the bottom of the seventh when Moran got out of a bases loaded jam with nobody out. Evan Ocheltree led off and singled through the right side and then Stadler walked to put two men on. Brooks then chopped one high over the head of Wiswall at third who knocked it down to keep it in the infield, but the bases were loaded with nobody out.

Moran then forced a 5-2-3 double play to give BC two outs in the inning and then he got Hood to ground out to Smith at shortstop to get out of the inning unscathed.

The offense rewarded the defense with four runs in the top of the eighth for BC's first lead of the game. Anston forced a walk to start the frame and then Hamlet grounded to third base. Carlos Lopez short-hopped the first baseman on the throw and the ball reached the wall behind him. Anston went all the way around to score and Hamlet ended up at third base. Sanchez then ripped a 2-1 offering to the wall in left for a double that tied the game, 2-2.

Wiswall flew out to center but Sanchez tagged up and was able to beat the throw to third. Belfiore stepped to the plate and pulled a double to the gap in left to put BC up for the first time in the game, 3-2. Butera added some insurance with a double of his own down the line in left to put the Eagles up two runs.

Brooks went 3-for-4 with two runs scored for the Demon Deacons (18-15, 5-12 ACC). Garrett Bullock was saddled with the loss for Wake after working 7.0 innings and allowing one earned run on three hits.