For lack of a better expression, the baseball team is in the middle of an identity crisis.
The pre-conference schedule was basically a disappointment. Then Duke (11-24, 2-7 in the ACC) went out and shocked everyone by taking two of three from then-No. 14 Georgia Tech team.
That brings us to this weekend's series against the 22nd-ranked Demon Deacons (24-9-1, 8-4) at historic Jack Coombs Field. The Blue Devils lost all three games, but in both the first and third games they had an opportunity to tie the game in the ninth inning.
Duke proved that last weekend was no miracle, but no one, including head coach Bill Hillier, seems to know how to feel.
"Two of the games this weekend could have gone either way," he said. "That's progress in the program. But they are still losses. At the end of the year you still have to look at wins and losses."
Duke actually led much of Game 1 Friday. It scored in the first inning, and starter Pat Hannaway did not allow the Demon Deacons to get on the board until the seventh.
But the bullpen could not hold on to the lead, as Wake Forest scored two runs in the eighth and overcame a late Duke push to pull out the 3-2 victory.
Though disappointed with the loss, Hillier was extremely pleased with Hannaway's performance.
"Hannaway pitched very well on Friday," he said. "He put himself in a position where he's going to be a weekend starter again. He gave us a chance to win."
Saturday's outing was disastrous at best. The Blue Devils gave up 12 runs on 14 hits as Wake Forest rolled to an easy victory.
Then came the rollercoaster ride that was Sunday.
From the outset the contest looked like a repeat of Saturday. Dan Conway hit a second-inning two-run homer to open the scoring for the Demon Deacons, and by the end of the fourth inning they led 7-0.
But suddenly the Blue Devils started doing everything right. They scored four runs in the bottom half of the fourth on doubles from Troy Caradonna, Larry Broadway and Brian Patrick.
The Blue Devils then scored twice more in the fifth to pull within one, and Broadway gave up only one run in the game's final 5.2 innings.
Hillier said that after such a strong outing, Broadway will see more time on the mound.
"We would like to have thrown him more all year," he said. "He came in last fall with a tender arm, that's the biggest reason we haven't used him much. Right now we're going to have to wait two or three days and see how he feels, but after he throws like that against a team like Wake Forest, you have to get him back out there."
Despite Broadway's performance, and getting the tying run to the plate in the ninth, the Blue Devils were unable to pull out the victory as they lost 8-6.
"We gave up seven runs in the first four innings," Hillier said. "When you play teams like Wake Forest, you can't afford to get down early. We don't have a great deal of depth. We have to play ahead."
The up-and-down series left Hillier with mixed emotions heading into next week's games.
"We have Virginia next weekend," he said. "They're good enough to sweep us, but we're good enough to sweep them."
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