After dropping two out of three games to ACC bottom-dweller Wake Forest over the weekend, the Blue Devils will look to rebound when they take on North Carolina A&T at 6 p.m. tonight at Jack Coombs Field.
The series with the Demon Deacons—who have the worst record in the conference—gave Duke a prime opportunity to rack up some much-needed ACC wins. The top eight teams in the league receive berths to the ACC tournament, and the Blue Devils are currently 10th in the standings with three more series against league teams remaining.
Although Duke couldn’t take advantage of the favorable matchup with Wake Forest, tonight’s game against the Aggies gives the team a chance to get back on track. The Blue Devils are 16-4 against competition outside of the ACC this season, and they have won 15 of their last 16 games against nonconference opponents.
But North Carolina A&T may not be a pushover. The Aggies have racked up seven victories in their last eight games, scoring double-digit runs in five of those contests. They boast six starters batting over .300, and senior Nick Rogers leads the team with a .378 batting average and 11 home runs.
The Blue Devils will counter these big bats with southpaw Eric Pfisterer, who has a 3-4 record on the year. The sophomore has been solid since switching to the midweek rotation, holding Liberty to just three hits and one run in his last outing April 20.
At the plate, Duke is hoping to heat up after mustering a combined four runs in two losses to the Demon Deacons. Sophomore Will Piwnica-Worms was one of the lone bright spots for the offense over the weekend, as he hit home runs in both of the Blue Devils’ losses. Piwnica-Worms is batting .307 on the season, third-best on the team, and he leads the squad in runs. Senior Jeremy Gould, who has a team-high 52 hits and 14 doubles, will also be eager to turn things around against North Carolina A&T after he went 3-for-14 during the Wake Forest series.
Tonight’s game marks the first time the Blue Devils will play a home contest at Jack Coombs Field this season. Previous home matchups that were scheduled to be played at Duke’s on-campus field were moved to USA National Baseball Complex in Cary, N.C.
—from staff reports
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