Turbulence is one word to describe the recent success, or lack thereof, for the Diamond Vols.
Heading into the weekend, the Vols were riding an eight-game losing streak, six of those coming to the likes of SEC powerhouses Florida and South Carolina. Big Orange baseball (21-15, 4-11 Southeastern Conference) looked to right the ship in Tuscaloosa, Ala., and did just that, winning two of three games in a series against conference foe and No. 24-ranked Alabama (24-15, 8-7 SEC).
Thursday
Under the lights and in the national spotlight on ESPNU, Tennessee came out fast with a run in the first inning but couldn’t add to that until the seventh inning, dropping the first game in the series, 8-2, to the Crimson Tide.
Junior Charley Thurber batted 2-for-3 with two singles and reached base three times for the Vols, while senior Tyler Horne added a pair of singles. Productive second baseman Khayyan Norfork stole another base, adding to his SEC-leading 22 stolen bases, scored and recorded an RBI on a sacrifice fly.
UT coach Todd Raleigh liked the Vols’ hard-hitting, scrappy play early on but pointed out that getting behind after six unanswered runs flattened the Big Orange.
“We came out and scored a run in the first inning tonight, which is a good sign,” Raleigh said. “We just gave up too many runs. Once you get behind, it’s hard to hit like that.”
Senior lefty Rob Catapano recorded the loss, falling to 2-3 on the year. He allowed five runs on six hits in 2.1 innings.
Saturday
Because of inclement weather in Tuscaloosa Friday evening, officials decided to push the game to Saturday for a doubleheader starting at 4 p.m. and featuring two seven-inning games.
Now on a nine-game skid, the Vols took it upon themselves to change their fortunes with two clutch pitching victories against the Crimson Tide.
In game one, junior southpaw Steven Gruver started on the mound for the Vols and had a dream outing on the hill, throwing a complete seven-inning game en route to a 2-1 UT win.
The pitcher’s second complete game this year featured five strikeouts and four singles in a 105-pitch effort.
“We just couldn’t find any offense all day long,” Alabama coach Mitch Gaspard said. “We had a few opportunities and just didn’t have enough quality at-bats. We didn’t really put any pressure on them the entire day, and of course their pitching did a nice job.”
At the plate, Volunteer junior Zach Osborne and seniors Josh Liles and Tyler Horne recorded a pair of hits. Osborne and Liles tallied RBI singles in the third and fourth innings, respectively. A huge 4-6-3 double play in the bottom of the seventh capped the victory for the Vols.
In the second game, the Vols cashed in on another pitching performance, this time by sophomore Georgia native Nick Blount. Making the first start of his career and only his second appearance, Blount kept the Crimson Tide scoreless for five innings, allowing just three hits, walking one and striking out another, leading the Vols to a close 1-0 victory to end the series in winning fashion.
“Both of our starting pitchers were outstanding today,” Raleigh said. “Gruver really set the tone for us and pitched great. He got in a few jams and walked a few more than he usually does, but he was able to make the pitches when he had to.
“His off-speed was as good today as it has been all year. Nick Blount in the second game was just unbelievable. Ground ball city. We got a lot of ground balls today as a staff.”
With the second win in the series, Tennessee captured its first SEC series win of the season. The series win is also only its third ever against the Crimson Tide, the others coming in the 1994 and 2000 seasons.
UT looks to overcome its “trap game” woes this Wednesday against out-of-conference opponent Western Carolina at 7 p.m. at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
