Wake smokes #Clemson out of Tobacco Country 13-3 (8 innings)

Before land is suitable for planting tobacco, the soil must be broken, smoothed and pulverized. After this series, Clemson knows the feeling. Wake Forest treated the Tigers like a North Carolina tobacco seedbed, Sunday, pulverizing Clemson pitching and finishing off a sweep with a 13-3 victory in 8 innings.

The Demon Deacons got out to a 4-0 lead thanks to a second-inning grand slam from shortstop Marek Houston. The Tigers clawed their way back in it on Tristan Bissetta’s three-run homer in the fourth, but the wheels came off shortly, thereafter.

Homer-happy Wake went deep again in the fifth, the sixth, the seventh and the eighth to send Clemson packing. The Tigers’ lineup managed just five hits and fanned 11 times. The Deacons, on the other hand, had traffic on the basepaths all afternoon. Wake Forest drew nine walks and rapped out a dozen hits, including five homers.

Winners of nine straight, the 12th-ranked Deacons are making a case for top-8 national seed consideration. The Tigers, meanwhile, who entered the weekend swinging hot bats and carrying a no. 2 national ranking, have some issues to address with its pitching staff before returning to their lofty status.

Clemson (37-13, 17-10) will next hit the road to face Coastal Carolina in Conway at 6 p.m., Tuesday

Box Score