Tennessee goes 3-0 in Tony Gwynn Classic, finishes 4-0 on West Coast trip

Tennessee beats Seton Hall 12-5

Tennessee won its opening game in the Tony Gwynn Classic by beating Seton Hall 12-5 on Friday. The Vols (6-1) pounced on the Pirates (3-4) early and held a 10-0 lead by the end of the fourth inning.

Tennessee jumped on the board first by scoring three runs in the bottom of the second. Pete Derkay hit a triple to score Andre Lipcius, followed by a Dom Thornton double that brought in Derkay. Later in the inning, Brodie Leftridge lined a single to centerfield, scoring Thornton. Both Derkay and Lipcius finished the game with two hits.

Benito Santiago played a huge role in extending the lead out to 10-0. In the third inning, he tripled on a ball off the right-center field wall to drive in two runs. Then in the fourth inning, Santiago hit a two-run home run over the center-field wall.

Five players in Tennessee’s lineup finished the game with multiple hits. Third baseman Jordan Rodgers was the lone player to record three hits. He also drove in two runs.

Junior Hunter Martin earned the start on the mound for Tennessee, lasting five innings while giving up two runs. He also recorded nine strikeouts, a career high. Eric Freeman came on in relief and pitched the remaining four innings, giving up five hits and three runs. He also recorded three walks and two strikeouts.

Tennessee rallies to secure an 8-4 win over San Diego State

After squandering away a 4-0 lead to San Diego State (4-4), Tennessee rallied to score four runs in the ninth and came away with an 8-4 victory in the second game of its doubleheader on Friday.

With the game tied at four heading into the ninth, Jeff Moberg led the inning off with a go-ahead home run. The senior second baseman finished with a game-high four hits. The Vols were then able to add some much-needed insurance runs, highlighted by a Benito Santiago RBI double. Brodie Leftridge and Dom Thornton also recorded RBI singles during the inning.

After starting the game off with back-to-back hits, Benito Santiago scored Moberg on a groundout after he led off the game with a single, giving the Vols a 1-0 lead.

In the top of the fourth, Tennessee scored three runs by taking advantage of two San Diego State errors, extending its lead to 4-0. With runners on second and third, Jay Charleston reached on an infield single to score the runner on third. An error by the Aztecs’ second baseman allowed the runner from second to get home as well. Later in the inning, Jordan Rodgers reached on a fielding error by the left fielder, which scored Charleston.

The Vols failed to enjoy the four-run lead for long, as San Diego State responded by scoring three runs in the bottom of the fourth. Starting pitcher Zach Warren had trouble finding the strike zone, walking three batters. His third and final walk, which was also the last batter he faced, brought in the first run of the game. Warren lasted just over three innings and was responsible for all three runs scored. Daniel Vasquez relieved Warren, lasting just over two innings and recording four strikeouts.

Tennessee held onto a 4-3 lead heading into the eighth inning. Unfortunately for the Vols, a throwing error by Leftridge brought in the tying run for the Aztecs.

Tennessee managed to put together the four-run rally in the top half of the ninth before Jon Lipinski shut the door in the bottom half to secure the victory. The senior recorded the win, lasting just over a single inning while striking out three San Diego State hitters. He ended the game with back-to-back strikeouts.

Thanks to a time limit, Tennessee battles back to beat UC Irvine 10-9 in 8 innings

UC Irvine (3-4) jumped on the Vols early with a three-run home run to take a 4-0 lead into the bottom of the first inning.

Tennessee trailed 5-1 heading into the bottom of the third before the bats came alive and a five-run inning gave the team a 6-5 lead. The Vols totaled seven hits in the inning. Left fielder Justin Ammons started the rally with a double before scoring on a Jordan Rodgers two-bagger. Ammons finished with four extra-base hits, recording three doubles and a triple.

UC Irvine responded with two runs in the top of the fourth to take back the lead, 7-6.

Sparked by an Ammons lead-off triple, the Vols managed to score two runs of their own in the bottom of the inning to take an 8-7 lead.

The back-and-forth action continued in the sixth inning. The Anteaters took advantage of an error by Jeff Moberg and tied the game up at eight thanks to an unearned run. In the bottom of the inning, Andre Lipcius doubled and Pete Derkay followed with an RBI single as Tennessee retook the lead 9-8.

In the eighth inning, which turned out to be the final inning, UC Irvine loaded the bases with zero outs. Although Tennessee coughed up the lead, a double play followed by a groundout controlled the damage and kept the game tied heading into the bottom of the eighth. With Jay Charleston pinch-running for Pete Derkay, who finished with four hits, Reggie Southall singled up the middle and brought in Charleston for what turned out to be the game-winning run. The game was called right after Tennessee took a 10-9 lead and earned the victory thanks to a pre-game determined time limit. Southall’s game-winning hit capped off a big game for the shortstop as he finished with two hits and three RBIs.

Will Neely started on the mound for the Vols, but lasted only 2.1 innings. He gave up six hits and was responsible for five of the nine runs scored.

Freshman Garrett Stallings earned his first collegiate win and pitched the final four innings of the game. He only allowed one earned run and recorded three strikeouts. By fulfilling his role as a relief pitcher, Stalling’s outing played a key part in Tennessee’s fifth consecutive win.

Following a 4-0 trip on the west coast, Tennessee hosts Norfolk State in a three-game series starting on March 3.

Edited by Quinn Pilkey

Featured image by Craig Bisacre, courtesy of Tennessee Athletics