The No. 17 Tennessee Volunteers finished a sweep against the Georgia State Panthers on Sunday afternoon, after a pair of two-run homers in the third. After the weekend sweep at Lindsey Nelson Stadium, the Vols sit at 11-2 overall, while the Panthers drop to 4-9 on the year.
“I think the manner in which they did it, against a guy who was a Freshman All-American last year, was most impressive,” Tennessee head coach Tony Vitello. “I think Treadway closed out the game against Vanderbilt and I believe he beat West Virginia on the mound and earned those accolades last year. [The Vols] made him look not as good as he is, in the first couple of innings with a really good approach. It’s not like we hammered the guy, but our guys’ approach was impressive against him in particular.”
Tennessee’s big bats were third baseman Jake Rucker and center fielder Drew Gilbert. Rucker finished the day going 2-4 with four RBIs, including a two-run home run in the bottom of the third. Three batters later, Gilbert launched a two-run shot of his own, to highlight a 2-4 outing. Liam Spence totaled a team-high three runs, as he has settled in nicely at the top of the order, registering a .380 average on the year.
The Vols struck early with a 1-out single from Rucker gliding past the shortstop to allow Spence to cross home plate.
Tennessee broke the game wide open in the bottom of the third as the Vols slashed four hits and drove in four runs. The inning started with Spence being hit by a pitch. Max Ferguson grounded-out to first, but Spence was able to advance. Rucker then brought the count to full and clubbed a home run to straightaway center to give Tennessee a 3-0 lead.
Jordan Beck grounded out, which was then followed by a Luc Lipcius single. Gilbert came to the plate with two outs and hit a 2-run shot to right field, putting the Vols ahead by five.
“I’ve just been getting in a groove by playing games,” Rucker said. “It’s been 360 days since we last played because of COVID. It’s just been about getting into a rhythm and that flow again. Guys like Jorel Ortega and Jordan Beck were crushing the baseball during the fall, so I probably wouldn’t have been in the middle of the lineup, but opportunities have come and I’ve just been doing well at the plate because of the confidence and my teammates being confident in me.”
The final two runs of the game came in the bottom of the sixth. Rucker walked in his fourth run of the game with nobody out. The next batter, Beck, hit into a double play, but was able to drive in Spence for the seventh and final run of the game.
Pitching was at a premium for the Vols on Sunday evening. Mark McLaughlin started on the bump for Tennessee and gave them a two-hit outing throughout 3.2 innings. Elijah Pleasants came out of the bullpen to notch his second win of the season. The righty pitched 2.1 innings and only surrendered a hit against three strikeouts.
“I think it’s just from growing my confidence as a player,” Pleasants said. “I think if I believe in myself, then I can do something. I’ve just matured a little bit and have tried to just constantly punch in the clock and hopefully, it’s starting to pay off.”
Georgia State struggled to drive in any runs in the series finale. The Panthers scattered six hits and five walks across nine innings, while being punched out 10 times and leaving eight men on base.
The Panthers’ pitching wasn’t much better. Starter Chad Treadway served up four runs over 2.2 innings of work. Rafael Acosta and Camren Landry combined for 2.1 innings and three runs out of the bullpen.
The lone bright spots for Georgia State’s pitching came from Dawson Sweatt and Dalton Davies, who didn’t allow a hit on two strikeouts through three combined innings.
Up next for Tennessee is a trip to Charlotte, North Carolina, for a midweek matchup against Charlotte on Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET.
