Mascolo bounces back, bullpen dominates for 4-0 Wake Forest win

WILMINGTON, NC – In his last three starts, Reed Mascolo had not gone longer than 3.2 innings, and had seven runs counted against him in those games. Head coach Tom Walter even said he didn’t think Mascolo had been “sharp” just weeks ago. But, in a critical midweek game, with Wake Forest down the majority of its bullpen, Mascolo shined, pitching five scoreless innings and leading the Deacs to a 4-0 win over UNC Wilmington.

In those five innings of near flawless work, Mascolo allowed just four hits and walked one batter.

To nab the final 12 outs, the Wake Forest bullpen was near-perfect. The combination of Derek Crum, Will Ray, Cole Roland, Michael Massey and Cam Minacci allowed just two hits.

Behind the stellar pitching performance, the Deacs’ bats did enough to get the job done. Bennett Lee knocked home Danny Corona to open the scoring in the second inning, and Brock Wilken broke the game open with a two-run blast in the sixth. For insurance, Nick Kurtz singled home Tommy Hawke in the ninth.

With a midweek game — one that could’ve been a let down, all things considered — complete with a victory, Wake Forest now turns its attention to one final regular season test. Virginia Tech comes to town for a Thursday-Sunday conference series. First pitch for game one is set for 6pm on ACCNX.