by James Stooksbury
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – It was a warm day on Rocky Top as the Tennessee Volunteers faced off against the Kentucky Wildcats in game 2 of the weekend series.
The Wildcats would bounce back after a tough game 1 on Friday night to beat the Volunteers 4-1 in the second game of the weekend series.
Marcus Phillips would be the starter on the mound for the Vols and he faced trouble early and often against the scrappy Kentucky batting order.
In the top of the 1st inning Phillips would have to make big pitches as the Wildcats had runners on 2nd and 3rd before he got a groundout to escape without allowing a run.
This would be a trend for Phillips as he would have a runner in scoring position in all but one inning he pitched tonight.
He managed to pitch around walks and stolen bases to keep the game tied at zero until the 3rd inning when two runs would score off of errors by the Volunteers.
Phillips would keep the game within two until he exited the game after the 5th inning.
His final line for the game would be 5 innings pitched, 0 earned runs, 5 hits allowed, 4 walks, and 8 strikeouts.
When asked about Phillips after the game, Hunter Ensley said, “I personally think he had a dang good outing.”
The problem for the Vols is that Kentucky pitcher Nic McCay had a masterful performance of his own.
McCay finished with 7.2 innings pitched, 0 earned runs, 2 hits allowed, 3 walks, and 12 strikeouts.
McCay was able to keep Kentucky early when it was close, but Kentucky’s offense gave McCay insurance in the 6th when they drove in two more runs to extend the lead to 4-0.
McCay would lock it down from there, keeping the Vols off the scoreboard until the 8th when, after an error by the left fielder, Hunter Ensley’s single drove in the first and only run of the game for the Vols.
Jackson Nove would come into relief for the Wildcats and would slam the door shut, striking out three in the ninth.
When asked about the offensive struggles and McCay’s outing after the game, Vitello would say, “I think the fact his fastball was really good tonight made his other stuff better as well.”
The Volunteers will look to respond as they play game three of the series tomorrow afternoon at 1 pm Eastern Time.