The Demons were out on Sunday night during the first round of the 2024 MLB Draft.

Demon Deacons, that is.

Three players from Wake Forest University were selected among the top 10 picks in Sunday¡¯s Draft, making the Atlantic Coast Conference school only the second in history to have three players taken in the Top 10.

Right-hander Chase Burns was the first Wake Forest player selected, going to the Reds with the No. 2 overall pick. First baseman Nick Kurtz went two picks later at No. 4 to the Athletics, while shortstop Seaver King completed the trifecta when the Nationals selected him at No. 10.

• Wake Forest flamethrower Chase Burns blazed his path to Draft day

¡°That was awesome,¡± Kurtz said. ¡°Seeing Chase go early and then Seaver going at pick 10, so many emotions. I¡¯m so happy and proud of those guys. We¡¯ve all worked so hard for this moment.¡±

The only other school to have three Top 10 picks was Rice University in 2004, when right-handers Philip Humber (Mets) and Jeff Niemann (Rays) went back-to-back at Nos. 3 and 4, then righty Wade Townsend was selected at No. 8 by the Orioles.

Aside from Wake Forest this year and Rice in 2004, only 11 other times have a pair of teammates even been taken together in the Top 10, including last year¡¯s top two picks, LSU¡¯s Paul Skenes and Dylan Crews.

¡°You¡¯re on a college baseball team together, you spend countless amount of hours together every single day,¡± Kurtz said. ¡°It¡¯s long days, early mornings, late nights, and it kind of shows what Wake Forest baseball is building. Two years in a row with a Top-10 pick and three in the top 10 this year, going to Omaha last year then having another good year this year. I feel like it¡¯s only going up from here. I¡¯m so proud to be a Wake Forest Demon Deacon.¡±

• Wake Forest hitting machine and No. 4 pick Kurtz draws huge comps

Burns was named ACC Pitcher of the Year in 2024, while he was also named a finalist for the Dick Howser Trophy and a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award. He was ranked as the sixth-best player in the Draft by MLB Pipeline after going 10-1 with a 2.70 ERA and a school-record 191 strikeouts in 16 starts for Wake Forest.

¡°Chase has the ability to be a top-of-the-rotation starting pitcher at the Major League level, and do it quickly,¡± said Reds director of amateur scouting Joe Katuska. ¡°It's a profile that we always start with in the Draft, and Chase checks all the boxes. We love the quality and depth of his pitch mix, and his competitiveness. He's made great strides since we first saw him pitch four years ago, and we see him continuing on that same trajectory.¡±

This marked the second straight year that the Reds drafted a Wake Forest pitcher with their first pick, after taking right-hander Rhett Lowder at No. 7 in 2023.

¡°That pitching lab they have is no joke,¡± Burns said. ¡°Just being able to get in there and work with all the new technology that baseball has coming and learned how to move better, and the mental game really helped me elevate my game.¡±

Kurtz hit .306 with 22 home runs and 57 RBIs for the Demon Deacons in 2024, earning First Team All-ACC honors. He led the country with 78 walks against only 42 strikeouts, posting a .531 on-base percentage and a .763 slugging percentage. He earned All-ACC First Team honors in 2023 and Third Team honors in 2022, landing him as the No. 7 prospect in the Draft, according to MLB Pipeline.

King hit .308 with 16 home runs, 64 RBIs, 11 stolen bases and 59 runs scored in 60 games in 2024, helping lead Wake Forest to the Greenville Regional of the 2024 NCAA Tournament. He posted a .377 on-base percentage, a .577 slugging percentage and recorded at least one hit in 48 games, including 24 multi-hit performances.

King, who was ranked as the No. 17 prospect in the Draft by MLB Pipeline, had 21 multi-RBI games, including eight games with three or more. King was a Dick Howser Trophy semifinalist and earned Third Team All-ACC honors for his impressive junior season.

¡°I knew I was going to be the third guy [from Wake Forest]; hopefully 12 to 24 was kind of what my radar was,¡± King said. ¡°The last thing me and those guys want to talk about was baseball, so me and Kurtz were playing Call of Duty all the time and not worried about a care in the world. When Burns went No. 2, it was awesome. And Kurtz at four right there behind him was super surreal. At that point, I knew my moment was the next moment and I didn¡¯t have to worry about those guys and they were all set up. At that point, I kind of got where my feet were and enjoyed the moment and kind of let it all hit me.¡±