Pitt Heads to Winston-Salem for Penultimate ACC Series

PITTSBURGH - The Panthers travel to Winston-Salem, NC for the first time since 2021 as they get ready to face the Demon Deacons of Wake Forest in their penultimate ACC series of 2025.

Pitt has won their last two games in walk-off fashion after being down to their final three outs.

The Panthers erased a four-run deficit in the bottom of the ninth inning to walk-off No. 12 West Virginia in the Backyard Brawl on Tuesday.

Pitt swept Virginia Tech in dramatic fashion last Sunday, winning their 13-inning marathon on a walk-off single from AJ Nessler. The Panthers played 20 innings of baseball on Sunday afternoon, sweeping the doubleheader and the series.

Notes

In the Backyard Brawl on Tuesday, the Panthers scored five runs in the bottom of the ninth inning as they roared back to walk-off No. 12 West Virginia.

This season, Pitt has eight comeback victories when trailing in the fifth inning or later. Three of which have come when Pitt was down to their final three outs. The Panthers have come back to win in walk-off fashion in each of their last two games.

Pitt has now won five-consecutive games, doing so for the first time since they started the season 5-0. The Panthers have not won six-straight games since the 2021 season.

Pitt's sweep of Virginia Tech last weekend was their first ACC series sweep since 2021 and their first ACC series win of the year.

AJ Nessler had five hits including the walk-off winner in game two of Sunday's doubleheader against the Hokies. He hit .470 with eight hits, seven RBIs, three runs scored, two doubles and a home run in Pitt's four wins last week.

David Pedanou is 16-16 in stolen base attempts this year. It's the most in a season by a Panthers since 2018 when Liam Sabino swiped 18 bags. In the outfield, he has 77 putouts with one outfield assist and has yet to record an error this year.

First baseman Luke Cantwell is hitting .357 with 61 hits, 42 RBI, 18 doubles and a triple this year. Cantwell is third in the ACC in doubles. He is second all-time in program history in hit-by-pitches with 29.

LHP Ethan Firoved ranks second in the ACC in saves with eight. In twenty appearances this year, Firoved has a 2.82 ERA with one win and 60 strikeouts. He now has over 150 strikeouts as a Panther.