By Jack Glennon
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – On Tuesday night, the Tennessee Volunteers baseball team (37-11) welcomed the visiting Indiana State Sycamores (22-25) to Lindsey Nelson Stadium for a midweek contest.
It went exactly as one would expect, as the Volunteers destroyed Indiana State. The final score was 9-1.
The Volunteers came ready to play after dropping another SEC play series to the Auburn Tigers this past weekend.
Left-hander Michael Sharman got the start on the mound for Tennessee, and pitched a scoreless first, striking out a pair.
Meanwhile, Jac Spencer took the mound for Indiana State. Unfortunately for Indiana State, his first inning was not as strong as Sharman’s.
Tennessee knocked Spencer around for four singles in the opening frame, bringing a pair of runs across.
And, after Sharman pitched another scoreless frame, the Volunteers brought two more across, one of which came from a Gavin Kilen home run.
The Sycamores were able to scrap a run across in the away half of the third, as Mason Roell stepped on home plate while two of his teammates were victims of a 4-6-3 double play.
RHP Emil Estrella replaced Jac Spencer on the mound for the home half of the third, and pitched a 1-2-3 inning.
Michael Sharman worked himself into a jam midway through the top of the 4th inning, and he was replaced by Austin Breedlove. Breedlove inherited a runner on third base with two outs.
Breedlove struck out Mason Roell to end the inning.
This preserved Sharman’s 1-run outing, which spanned 3.2 IP, and included three strikeouts. He walked one and gave up five hits.
In the bottom of the 4th, Tennessee scored four times, thanks to a pair of home runs from Reese Chapman and Gavin Kilen. The ladder was Kilen’s second of the night.
After the game, I asked Kilen how he’s been feeling since returning from injury just a few weeks ago. He told me, “Yeah, everything feels good… it’s good to feel as a competitor like I’m not… getting held back… anymore”.
This should certainly be encouraging to Tennessee fans, as Kilen has been one of Tennessee’s best hitters throughout the season.
I later asked Tennessee Head Coach Tony Vitello how much better having Kilen back in the lineup makes him feel about his team’s chances at a trip to Omaha.
He said, “… it’s good that he’s taken the responsibility of moving to a different position… I just feel good about him… more than anything he’ll lead by example…”
Getting back to the game, Austin Breedlove and Brandon Arvidson combined for a scoreless top of the 5th.
Jack Armstrong started on the mound in the 5th inning for Indiana State, and Volunteers capitalized by bringing another run across. Reese Chapman hit a sacrifice fly to score Ariel Antigua, giving Tennessee a 9-1.
Armstrong was replaced by Carson Seeman, who got the last two outs of the inning.
Vitello made another bullpen call, bringing in right-hander Brayden Krenzel in relief of Arvidson.
Krenzel pitched a scoreless inning, and preserved the Vols’ 9-1 lead heading into the bottom of the 6th.
The aforementioned home half of the 6th saw Tennessee bring three more runs.
Andrew Fischer blasted a solo shot over the right field wall, extending the lead to 10-1.
Dean Curley later brought another run across on an RBI groundout, and Chris Newstrom smacked a home run to right-center field. The Vols took a 12-1 lead into the 7th.
Thomas Crabtree came in to pitch the 7th inning, and he put the Sycamores out of their misery with a scoreless frame.
This ended the game after six and a half innings, and gave the Volunteers another midweek mercy-rule win.
With this win, Tennessee improved to 38-11 on the season, while Indiana State dropped to 22-26.
Tennessee’s next matchup will also take place at Lindsey Nelson Stadium, as the Volunteers will open up a three-game series against their in-state rivals, the Vanderbilt Commodores, on Friday evening.