WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Eight unanswered runs scored by No. 5-ranked Wake Forest helped lead the Demon Deacons to a 10-3 victory over the Cornell baseball team at David F. Couch Ballpark on Sunday afternoon.

Sophomore left-hander Josh Hartle struck out 12 Cornell batters over his seven-inning outing to aid Wake Forest to its 13th consecutive win to open the 2023 season. Hartle, who improved to 3-0 on the year, yielded just one run on four hits while walking one and hitting one Cornell batter.

Brock Wilken went 2-for-3 with a pair of runs scored and three RBI to pace Wake Forest's potent offense. Tommy Hawke reached base all five times he came up to the plate, going 3-for-3 with three runs scored and two RBI. Bennett Lee also crossed home plate three times in the win.

Freshman infielder TJ Swidorski recorded two of Cornell's five hits on the day, both of which went for doubles. The sophomore trio of John Quinlan, Jakobi Davis, and Max Jensen recorded RBI for the Big Red (0-6).

Junior right-hander Von Baker made his second start of the season for Cornell, giving up six runs on five hits and issuing five walks. Baker fanned three batters over his four-inning outing.

Cornell's first three batters all reached as Quinlan was hit by a pitch and senior outfielder Wils Guy drew a five-pitch walk. Jensen roped the first pitch he saw up the middle, plating Quinlan to give the Big Red an early 1-0 lead.

Wake Forest responded with a four-run first inning to take a 4-1 lead over the Big Red. The first five Demon Deacon batters reached safely, as the top three batters each logged singles, with the latter being an RBI single by Nick Kurtz. 

Wilken extended the Demon Deacons' lead with a two-out, two-run single in the second.

Following a lull in scoring, Wilken added onto the Demon Deacons' lead with a leadoff home run in the fifth. Hawke tacked on an insurance marker in the sixth with an RBI single.

Freshman right-hander Carson Mayfield escaped a sixth-inning jam as he entered the game relieving classmate Beck Urofsky with two runners on base. Mayfield generated a pair of strikeouts against a Wake Forest tandem with a combined 14 home runs on the season.

Of the four batters Mayfield faced on the day, he ended up striking out three and inducing a fly out.

Despite allowing the first three Cornell batters to reach base safely, Hartle settled into a groove for the remainder of the contest, retiring 19 of the final 22 batters he faced – 12 of which were sent down on strikes.

After Wake Forest pulled Hartle, the Big Red snapped Wake Forest's eight unanswered runs with a two-run eighth inning.

Quinlan drove in the first run on a sacrifice fly and Davis brought home Swidorski on a groundout in a pinch-hit situation. Swidorski reached base after logging his second double of the day.

Wake Forest added a pair of runs in the home-half of the eighth on an RBI double by Hawke and a Cornell wild pitch.

Game Notes

• Cornell and Wake Forest met for the 10th time on Sunday afternoon. It was the first meeting between the two programs since March 31, 1949. All 10 meetings have favored the Demon Deacons.

• Jensen's first-inning RBI single marked the fourth time in the Big Red's six games this season in which it has scored the game's first run.

• Junior right-hander pitcher Story Kimura made his collegiate debut, striking out the first batter he faced.

• Sophomore infielder Ryan Porter made his 14th career pitching appearance, also striking out the first batter he faced in Wilken, who is the nation's active Division I career home run leader.

• Cornell turned three double plays on Sunday, marking the first time the Big Red had a trio of twin killings since May 4, 2019, in the opening game of a doubleheader against Dartmouth.

Looking Ahead

Cornell continues its 18-game road trip to open the 2023 campaign when it plays the first of six consecutive games in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

The Big Red will play a three-game series against VCU at the The Diamond in Richmond, Va., with the series opening on Friday, March 10, with a 3 p.m. first pitch. All games of the series will be broadcast on ESPN+.