Alabama baseball will now have to play with its backs against the wall as it hopes to return to College World Series for the first time since 1999.

The No. 16 overall seed Crimson Tide dropped the first game of its NCAA super regional against No. 1 overall seed Wake Forest, falling 5-4 Saturday in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Here are some notes from the game.

Wake Forest used leadoff home runs in each of the first two innings to take an early 2-0 lead. Tommy Hawke started things off by blasting the first pitch he saw off the scoreboard in right field in the bottom of the first. The following inning, Justin Johnson doubled up the Demon Deacon’s advantage by sending a towering shot over the wall in center.

"We talked a lot going into the game about the importance of attacking the strike zone," Alabama interim manager Jason Jackson said. "Hawke ambushed the first fastball of the game. And give him credit, he didn't miss it. He got it, and he didn't miss it. Johnson hit a breaking ball that kind of hung up a little bit."

Holman settled down blanking Wake Forest over the next two innings. However, as they have all season, the Demon Deacons were able to capitalize on an early advantage, moving to 39-4 when scoring first.

Heading the game, Wake Forest ace Rhett Louder had allowed just seven home runs over 101⅔ innings this season. Saturday, Alabama tagged the Wake Forest ace twice as Caden Rose blasted a 420-foot bomb to left in the top of the third before Colby Shelton tied the game 419-foot shot to right in the fourth.

Shelton’s game-tying shot came after Dominic Tamez worked a two-out walk. The blast was Shelton’s 23rd of the season, expanding on his Alabama freshman record. Rose followed up his fourth-inning shot with another solo home run off Wake Forest reliever Sean Sullivan in the top of the eighth.

"I got some good pitches to hit, and I put a good swing on it," Rose said. "I mean, no offense to this ballpark, but it doesn't play the biggest. You get it up here, it's going to go out."

Wake Forest ace Rhett Lowder is projected to be a first-round pick in this year’s MLB draft. The junior has given up multiple home runs in a game just twice this season, giving up a pair of dingers against Maryland in last week’s NCAA regional as well as a win against Pittsburgh on April 22.

Things got heated in the bottom of the fifth inning as a controversial check-swing call led to a go-ahead home run for Wake Forest.

Facing a 0-2 count with two outs Wake Forest designated hitter Danny Corona appeared to go around on a pitch that would have resulted in an inning-ending strikeout. However, third-base umpire Patrick Riley ruled that Corona checked his swing, allowing him to continue the at-bat. Corona lifted the next pitch over the wall in right field to put Wake Forest up 4-3, drawing an angry response from the Alabama dugout.

Alabama hitting coach Matt Reida was ejected while Jackson had a length debate with first-base umpire Mark Buchanan to no avail.

Check swings are tough," Jackson said. "Those guys got a tough job on that. He had a better view than I do, but from where we're at in the dugout, obviously, we thought that was strike three. Then, it's an emotional game, and that's a big swing. ... Emotions get the best of you a little bit. I thought he went, but like I said, that's always a tough call for umpires. I get it."

Wake Forest took advantage of the momentum-shifting moment, hanging onto the lead for the rest of the game.

Alabama starter Luke Holman gave up three home runs on the afternoon but still put together a solid outing on the mound. The right-hander allowed five runs, four earned, on six hits while striking out eight batters over 5⅔ innings.

"I thought Luke really settled into the game and pitched pretty well," Jackson said. "His stuff seemed to get better as he went on. Luke's pitched great for us all year."

Holman was dealt a bit of tough luck toward the end of his outing. First came the missed check-swing call led to a go-ahead home run in the bottom of the fifth. The following inning, a dropped-ball error by Alabama second baseman Ed Johnson allowed Wake Forest’s Blake Wilkin to reach second with no outs. That ultimately led to an RBI single from Adam Cecere to double the Demon Deacon’s advantage.

Alabama (43-20) might not have come away with the victory, but it proved it can hang with the nation's top team. Wake Forest (51-10) outscored its three regional opponents a combined 48-7 last weekend and never led the Crimson Tide by more than three runs Saturday.

“This is the two best teams in the country going at it right now, “Rose said. “I don’t care what they have us ranked, this is the best two teams in the country slugging it out. Whoever makes more mistakes, that’s usually the team that loses. We made one too many mistakes today, and that’s something that we need to flush and come back out tomorrow and play our best baseball.”

First pitch for Game 2 of the super regional is scheduled for 11 a.m. CT. If Alabama wins, the two teams will play a decisive Game 3 on Monday.