The University of Louisville baseball team lost 9-8 in 10 innings to Wake Forest on May 1 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The defeat ended a four-game winning streak for Louisville in Atlantic Coast Conference play.
The close contest saw both teams exchange leads throughout the night. Wake Forest scored two runs in each of the first two innings, while Louisville responded with a run on a passed ball in the third inning. The Demon Deacons extended their lead before Louisville’s offense surged in the fourth inning. Zion Rose singled to drive in two runs, and Tague Davis hit his program-record 27th home run to put Louisville ahead.
Wake Forest quickly regained control by scoring three runs at the bottom of the fourth inning after having five consecutive batters reach base. Relief pitchers from Louisville then held Wake Forest scoreless for five straight innings, allowing their team to remain within striking distance.
Louisville narrowed the gap with a run following an error in the sixth inning but still trailed by one heading into the ninth. Ben Slanker and George Baker combined hits with defensive miscues from Wake Forest, enabling pinch-runner Kyle Campbell to score and tie the game at eight apiece.
After Aaron England struck out a batter with runners on base to send it into extra innings, Louisville was unable to score during its turn at bat. In the bottom of the tenth, Wake Forest loaded runners on first and third before scoring on an infield single that got through against a drawn-in defense for a walk-off win.
Rose, Davis, Slanker, and Baker accounted for eight of Louisville’s nine hits during the game. Relievers Jack Brown, Ty Starke, Zane Stahl, and England each delivered scoreless outings out of the bullpen.
Louisville will face Wake Forest again Friday evening with first pitch scheduled for 6 p.m.
