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OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Bennett Lee drove in the go-ahead run in the eighth inning right after he made a huge defensive play at the plate, leading No. 1 national seed Wake Forest to a 3-2 victory over LSU in the College World Series on Monday night.

The Demon Deacons (54-10) are now in control of their bracket and a win away from the best-of-three finals. Their next game is Wednesday against the winner of a Tuesday elimination game between SEC rivals LSU and Tennessee. The Deacons would have to lose twice to be denied a spot in the finals.

Lee, the Deacons’ catcher, made one of the plays of the CWS in the top of the eighth when he snagged third baseman Brock Wilken’s bouncing throw and tagged out Tre’ Morgan to keep the game tied 2-all.

After Danny Corona lashed Thatcher Hurd’s breaking pitch down the right-field line for a double in the bottom half, Lee followed with a base hit into left that brought Corona home and produced Wake Forest’s second straight come-from-behind win.

Wake Forest closer Camden Minacci (1-1) pitched a 1-2-3 ninth to finish off the Tigers (49-16).

LSU starter Ty Floyd limited the Deacons to two hits and matched his career high with 10 strikeouts before he lost his command in the sixth inning. He walked the first three batters, prompting coach Jay Johnson to call on Hurd (6-3) to face the national home run co-leader in Wilken.

Wilken sent a ball up the middle for an RBI single, and the tying run came home when Justin Johnson hit into a double play.

The Tigers opened the scoring against Wake Forest starter Josh Hartle in the third. Tommy White singled in a run and scored from second when Morgan tripled on a fly ball left fielder Adam Cecere lost in the sun.

Hartle went six innings and struck out nine, running his season total to a Wake Forest-record 140.

The Deacons turned back the Tigers in the eighth when things looked dire. LSU had runners on the corners with none out after Morgan doubled down the line and moved over when Hayden Travinski reached on an error.

Wilken backhanded Cade Beloso’s grounder down the line, double-pumped and bounced a throw home to Lee, who put the tag on Morgan on a close play that stood up on video review. The inning ended when Wilken picked up Gavin Dugas’ grounder to start a double play.

LSU’s Dylan Crews, projected to be the first or second player selected in the amateur draft next month, was 0 for 3 but extended his on-base streak to 69 games when he walked in the seventh.

MORE FROM WAKE FOREST

Head coach Tom Walter Says:

“Those are two really good college baseball teams battling it out. There was a lot of star power in that game and it did not disappoint. I am really proud of Josh Hartle and how he battled as he had some things go against him there with a couple of blocks here and there, and that ball in left field that we should probably make a play on. Then, all of a sudden we’re down 2-0 but he settled in and he got us into the sixth inning, which was huge. It was kind of similar to Rhett Lowder’s outing the other day. It was not a typical Josh Hartle outing, but he battled and kept coming, kept coming and kept making big pitches when it mattered. He was able to keep the score where it was and gave our offense the time to get going. There were some really great defensive plays and the play Bennett Lee made today. Brock Wilken made a great play to get to that ball and then Bennett with an unbelievable pick-and-tag under pressure was a huge play in that ballgame. Of course, then a clutch hit by Bennett after Danny Corona doubled with one out. Once again for the second game in a row, the story was our bullpen. Our bullpen locked it down. Cole Roland came in and got two huge punchouts, Massey came in behind him and got a big out, and then got another out in the next inning. And then Cam gets the last five outs. He came in with a big situation, first and second with one out and a really good hitter up there in Dugas. He executes a first-pitch slider and gets the 5-4-3 and puts the momentum in our dugout. It was a huge shift in the game eight there. It was a really good win and looking forward to playing on Wednesday night.”
 
Wake Forest Side of the Men's College World Series Bracket

• Game One:  No. 1 Wake Forest def. No. 8 Stanford, 3-2 | Saturday, June 17 | 2 p.m. ET | ESPN
• Game Two: No. 5 LSU def. Tennessee, 6-3  | Saturday, June 17 | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN
• Game Three: Tennessee def. Stanford, 6-4 | Monday, June 19 | 2 p.m. ET | ESPN
• Game Four: No. 1 Wake Forest defeated No. 5 LSU, 3-2 | Monday, June 19 | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN
• Game Five: Tennessee vs. No. 5 LSU | Tuesday, June 20 | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN
• Game Six: No. 1 Wake Forest/No. 5 LSU vs. Winner of Game Five | Wednesday, June 21 | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN 

Standout Stats
This is the Deacs' third ever Men’s College World Series appearance, and its first since capturing the program’s first national championship in 1955. 
 
After breaking the program record for wins in its opening game of the Winston-Salem NCAA Regional against George Mason on June 2, Wake Forest has broken the program record for regular season wins, ACC wins, ACC series wins and overall wins this season. Additionally, the Deacs became the first team in Wake Forest history to have 50 or more wins in a single season in the NCAA Regional Final on June 4. Additionally, this year’s ballclub is just the second team in program history to win at least seven postseason games (1999).  \
 
Wake Forest Baseball 40-Win Seasons

• 2023- 54 overall wins (45 regular season, eight postseason)
• 2002 - 47 overall wins (42 regular season, five postseason) 
• 1999 - 47 overall wins (39 regular season, eight postseason)
• 2001- 44 overall wins (37 regular season, seven postseason)
• 2017 - 43 overall wins (38 regular season wins, five postseason) 
• 1998- 43 overall wins (36 regular season, seven postseason)
• 2000 - 42 overall wins, (38 regular season, three postseason) 
• 2022 - 41 overall wins (39 regular season, two postseason) 

Additionally, this year’s Demon Deacons squad became the 13th ACC team since 2010 to reach the 50-win mark and the 28th to do so since 2000. Additionally, the 54 wins this season marks the first 50-win season by an ACC team since 2019, the most wins by an ACC team since 2013 and is the third highest win total since 2010: 

• North Carolina - 2013 - 59
• Virginia - 2011 - 56
• Wake Forest - 2023 - 54
• Louisville - 2017 - 53
• Virginia - 2014 - 53
• Louisville - 2019 - 51
• North Carolina 2011 - 51
• Virginia - 2010 - 51
• Louisville - 2016 - 50
• Florida State - 2012 - 50
• Miami - 2016 - 50
• Miami - 2015 - 50
• NC State - 2013 - 50
• Virginia - 2013 - 50 

This year’s squad became the fastest team in program history and the first team in the nation this year to reach the 40-win mark with its 14-4 win against UNC Greensboro on May 9. 
 
Wake Forest Fastest to 40 Wins

• 2023: 47 games
• 2002: 49 games
• 1999: 53 games
• 2001: 55 games
• 2022: 58 games
• 2017: 58 games
• 2000: 59 games
• 1998: 61 games 

The Demon Deacons continue to lead the nation in wins (54) while having the least amount of losses among Division I teams (10). Additionally, the 54 wins are tied for the most in the ACC since 2013 and is tied for the third highest total since 2010:

• North Carolina - 2013 - 59
• Virginia - 2011 - 56
• Wake Forest - 2023 - 54
• Louisville - 2017 - 53
• Virginia - 2014 - 53 

The Demon Deacons strikeout numbers have been historic, ranking fifth in NCAA history in single-season strikeouts:
 
Mississippi St. 2021 68 603.2 817 
Vanderbilt 2021 67 598.0 790 
Ole Miss 2021 67 586.1 765 
Vanderbilt 2019 71 633.2 765 
Wake Forest 2023 63 545.2 761
Southern Miss. 2022 66 596.1 746 
Arizona St. 1972 72 625.0 732 
Mississippi St. 2019 67 600.0 718 
Florida St. 1986 74 637.0 718
 
In The Spotlight
Josh Hartle has accumulated a 11-2 record with a 2.81 ERA through 102.1 innings to go along with 140 strikeouts, a new career high. The lefthander has allowed just 32 earned runs and has only walked 24 batters. 
 
With his eighth strikeout of the game in the top of the fifth inning, Josh Hartle broke the program record for single season strikeouts. Overall, Hartle finished with nine strikeouts on Monday and has fanned 140 + tonight’s strikeouts batters this season. 

• Wake Forest Single Season Strikeouts
  • 1. Josh Hartle 2023 140
  • 2. Mike Buddie 1992 138
  • 3. Rhett Lowder 2023 137
  • 3. Griffin Roberts 2018 130
  • 5. Mike MacDougal 1999 117
  • 6. Kyle Sleeth 2002 113
  • 7. Parker Dunshee 2017 111
  •     John Hendricks 1998 111
  • 9. Mark Seaver 1996 109
  • 10. Sean Sullivan 2023 108
  •      Ryan Cusick 2021 108

 On Deck
With the win, the No. 1 Wake Forest baseball team will now await the winner of LSU/Tennessee on Wednesday at 7 p.m. on ESPN.
 
The Deacs are making the program’s third ever Men’s College World Series appearance, and its first since capturing the program’s first national championship in 1955. 
 
Stay tuned to Wake Forest's social media accounts (@WakeBaseball) for the latest scheduling updates and information