CHARLOTTE – This game might have been meaningless in terms of advancing in the ACC tournament, but it sure didn’t seem meaningless to Wake Forest.

The Deacons pounded Miami 16-3 on Friday afternoon at Truist Field, triggering a 10-run mercy rule and ending the game after seven innings.

“For what’s supposed to be a meaningless game, it was anything but that for our kids,” Wake Forest associate head coach Bill Cilento said. “Really proud of our kids, really proud of the response of several of our players.”

Neither sixth-seeded Wake Forest (40-17-1) nor third-seeded Miami (39-18) could advance, since N.C. State – the No. 10 seed – beat both teams in pool play earlier this week.

But the Deacons certainly left Charlotte with no shortage of confidence ahead of an NCAA tournament berth, which should be announced Monday.

Confidence is important for a program that hasn’t reached the NCAA tournament since 2017 and is lacking in postseason experience.

“We have two guys who have played a postseason game, up until today,” Cilento said. “You’ve got a worthy opponent, and you know it, a really good opponent. And so those guys were ready.

“And obviously when you have Rhett (Lowder) on the mound, you feel really good about your chances in any game.”

Lowder, the Deacons’ ace and newly minted ACC pitcher of the year, wasn’t sharp – he said the only pitch he had command of was his fastball. But he battled through five innings, allowing three runs on four hits, which turned out to be more than enough.

“I don’t think I had my best stuff today,” Lowder said. “But that’s not an excuse, I’ve got to go out there and win either way. … I pretty much just had a fastball today, but made it work.”

Wake’s seven home runs tied the single-game record for the ACC tournament since the event went to pool play, which was 2007. Louisville hit seven homers against Clemson last year, also played in Charlotte.

The number of Wake’s home runs matched the number of pitchers used by Miami.

Six Deacons accounted for the record-tying home run total; only Adam Cecere had multiple homers, launching solo shots in the third and sixth as part of a 4-for-4 day.

That was important, Cilento noted, given he pinch-hit for Cecere at the end of Tuesday’s game.

“I pinch-hit for him the other day with a chance to win the game,” Cilento said, “and whether right move, wrong move, whatever, the only thing he can control is his response. And he did that today and put us on his back doing it.”

Cilento, who coaches third base, joked that Cecere didn’t say anything about being pinch-hit for – until he rounded third base after his second homer of the game.

“I said, ‘No more pinch-hits,’” Cecere said with a laugh. “But obviously when the pinch-hit happened, we were up on the railing for Kyle (Joye). Whether it was the right decision, wrong decision, Kyle is able to always put a good move on the baseball.”

Wake Forest was also a bit shorthanded for this game.

Outfielder Tommy Hawke and reliever Eric Adler were not in Charlotte for Friday’s game, reportedly sent home because of a missed curfew earlier this week.

When asked of possible absences, Cilento deferred to an explanation about wanting to get Lucas Costello, who started in centerfield, at-bats.

Their services, it turned out, were not required. Coach Tom Walter also missed the game because of COVID, the same reason he missed Tuesday’s loss to N.C. State.

This game didn’t always have the makings of a blowout. Wake Forest put three runners on in the first two innings but had nothing on the scoreboard to show for it.

That changed in the third inning, when the first four Deacons all reached on base hits – singles by Costello, Michael Turconi and Brendan Tinsman, and a double by Pierce Bennett. Turconi’s single drove in two runs and Tinsman’s hit chased starter Karson Ligon from the mound.

Nick Kurtz greeted reliever Anthony Arguelles with an opposite-field, three-run homer to left field, ripping open a 5-1 lead.

That started a string of 12 straight Wake Forest runs that came via homers. Cecere’s pair were both solo shots, Kurtz and Tinsman hit three-run homers, Brock Wilken teed off on a two-run shot that traveled 441 feet (per TV staff), and Jake Reinisch and Costello each hit solo homers.

“We’re dedicated to being pitch-by-pitch this year, getting out of the results and more into the process,” Cecere said. “When you’re really dedicated to that, great things happen.”

Lowder (11-3) didn’t have his best stuff, but it was really just one aspect that was troubling. The number of walks was startling: Lowder had walked four in his last seven starts combined (54 innings) and exceeded that with a season-high five against the Hurricanes.