KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 1 Tennessee faced off against No. 19 Auburn at Lindsey Nelson Stadium on Friday night for game one of the weekend series.
The Vols struck first with a pair of runs in the second inning off an Auburn error and an Evan Russell sac fly, but Tennessee did not score another run until the seventh inning.
In UT’s scoring drought, Auburn took the lead in the top of the sixth with a four-run inning, featuring a three-run homer from Blake Rambusch.
However, Tennessee went on to obliterate the 19th-ranked SEC foe, as the Vols scored 15 combined runs in the eighth and ninth innings.
The Vols started quickly in the bottom of the seventh with a leadoff double from Evan Russell to get the momentum going. Seth Stephenson followed it up with a single to put runners on the corners for Tennessee with no outs. Cortland Lawson then continued his hot streak at the plate with an RBI single to score Russell, and Christian Moore got on base afterwards to load the bases for Jorel Ortega with nobody out.
Ortega’s at bat was quite a journey for the Tennessee second baseman, as Auburn relief pitcher Blake Burkhalter was dealing with some pain and had to be looked at by trainers. While Burkhalter worked through his discomfort ultimately got cleared by the trainers, Ortega patiently waited by the plate for what would end up being possibly the biggest hit of his career in orange and white.
Ortega took a 1-2 pitch from Burkhalter over the left center wall for a grand slam to give Tennessee a 7-4 lead.
Tennessee was far from done.
After the grand slam, two more Vols got on base in the inning to give Evan Russell a two-on, one-out situation. And the senior took care of business by knocking a three-run homer into the Tennessee bullpen to extend the Vols’ lead to 10-4.
Auburn’s suffering in the seventh was over with after Russell’s homer, but the Vols poured it on even more in the eighth with seven more runs including four home runs.
Blake Burke was the first Vol to leave the yard in the eighth, demolishing a 435 ft. mammoth solo homer. Jorel Ortega and Trey Lipscomb followed Burke with homers of their own, with Lipscomb’s being a two-run shot to give the senior sole possession of the SEC home run lead (17).
Russell’s second homer of the night was the final run for the Volunteers, and the senior’s two-run shot marked the 100th home run of the season for the top-ranked Vols.
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Following Russell’s 2 RBI homer, the Vols had scored 15 runs in their last 20 at bats as they picked apart Auburn’s bullpen to achieve the win.
Last year–in Tennessee’s College World Series run–the Vols hit 98 home runs in 68 games. This year, in 26 less games, UT has already hit 100 home runs.
The stat goes to show how remarkable Tennessee’s baseball season has been up to this point, as the Vols continue to exceed expectations and keep everyone on the edge of their chairs.
And it’s not just the Tennessee bats that continue to impress, as the Vols’ pitching against Auburn worked through many tough situations.
Chase Burns–the Friday starter–was on the mound for 5.0 innings of work, dealing nine strikeouts, allowing six hits, one earned run and three walks. While Burns’ stat line is far from the most impressive of his freshman career, the Gallatin, Tennessee native struck out the side after walking the bases loaded in the top of the third inning.
Will Mabrey was abnormally ineffective in relief of Burns, but faced Mark McLaughlin delivered two shutout innings and retired six of eight batters. McLaughlin earned the win for the night, bringing his season record to 2-0.
Tennessee and Auburn both entered Friday on seven-game winning streaks, but the best team in the nation prevailed with an onslaught of the Tigers late in Knoxville to record their eighth consecutive win.
While a 17-run performance is far from expected to be repeated tomorrow, the Vols will look to earn the series win over Auburn on Saturday. Blade Tidwell will get the starting node on the mound.
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