By Jay King
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The No. 2 Tenessee Volunteers faced off against the Radford Highlanders in a midweek game on Tuesday, and they got the massive win 22-9 on a run rule after scoring 13 unanswered runs starting in the bottom of the fifth after the game was tied 9-9.
12 of those 22 runs were off of three different grand slams hit by Reese Chapman, Andrew Fischer, and Blake Grimmer, respectively. This set a program record for most grand slams in a single game. Other home runs hit tonight were by Dean Curley and Andrew Fischer for a second time.
On the defensive side of the ball, they had a very slow start to the game, as there were three errors in the first four innings. Radford had the lead for the first two innings, and came back to tie it in the top of the fifth.
The turning point of the game defensively was putting Sophomore Pitcher Dylan Loy in the game after Austin Hunley gave up three earned runs in 1.2 innings pitched. Loy was lights out as he didn’t allow a hit, while getting four strikeouts and no walks.
Loy also had some help defensively as Center Fielder Hunter Ensley made an incredible leaping catch at the wall, just like in Omaha, to close out the top of the fifth inning.
In order to get the run rule, the Vols had to score at least eight runs in the bottom of the seventh, but they ended up scoring 11. Redshirt Freshman Pinch Hitter Blake Grimmer was the one to send he team home as he got the walk off grand slam to end the game early.
Head Coach Tony Vitello had this to say about Grimmer being the one coming up clutch for the Vols, “t’s impossible to not be happy for Grimmer. He’s a kid who’s had some injuries and some other adversity, and he works hard enough he deserves more reps. So that’s kind of the lasting impression”
The Vols next hame game is Wednesday, March 5th, at 6pm EST as they face off against the Xavier Musketeers.