Tennessee kept its program-best 19-game winning streak going Sunday afternoon, defeating No. 9 Vanderbilt, 5-0, for the series sweep.
The Vols’ offense got off to a slow start before Drew Gilbert opened the fourth inning with his third home run of the season.
Tennessee would add runs thanks to RBI hits from Luc Lipcius, Jorel Ortega and, finally, a dagger two-run double from Gilbert in the ninth inning. However, the solo home run was all Tennessee needed at Hawkins Field.
Freshman Drew Beam dominated on the bump, posting a complete game shutout of the Vols’ instate rival. Beam — a Murfreesboro native who wasn’t recruited by Vanderbilt — allowed just two baserunners and didn’t allow either to reach scoring position.
In fact, Beam pitched to just three batters with a Commodore runner on base. The Vols’ weekend staff has been dominant this season, but Beam — the least heralded of the trio of newcomers — has the lowest ERA of the bunch (0.72).
“I think when we recruited him we saw the guy we saw today,” Tennessee head coach Tony Vitello said. “Three pitch mix was definitely something at a young age he kind of already had going on. … He kind of had all the makings of a weekend starter at some point, but sometimes guys make up their own timeline or own grid there with work ethic and also presence.”
Tennessee’s starting pitching was so dominant on the weekend that power arms Ben Joyce and Blade Tidwell didn’t see action out of the bullpen.
Vitello also discussed his postgame conversation with Vanderbilt coach Tim Corbin, how his team can improve and more.
After back-to-back road series the Vols return to Lindsey Nelson Stadium for a three-game series with Missouri next weekend.
