Tennessee baseball won their seventh straight game on the diamond against the Vanderbilt Commodores on Sunday afternoon in Knoxville to complete the three-game series sweep over their in-state rival.
The Vols made a statement in each of their wins across the weekend. Tennessee used a ninth-inning comeback to propel a walk-off home run by Griffin Merritt in the bottom of the 12th inning to start the series on Friday night. Then, during the Saturday game, Tennessee dismantled Vanderbilt to the tune of a 17-1 run-rule contest at noon. The Vols closed the series on Sunday by jumping out to another big lead against the Commodores before holding off a burst of offense late in the 10-5 game to secure the sweep.
Considering the Vols were unranked and on a four-game losing streak heading into the game on Friday, Tennessee might have once again found its swagger during the big weekend in Knoxville.
During the seventh inning of the Sunday game, with Tennessee leading 10-2, the ESPN television camera panned over to the concourse behind home plate. The broadcast showed a man, likely a Vanderbilt staff member judging from the official team backpack, making his way down the path. Tennessee’s Smokey mascot could then be seen sweeping the ground behind him with a broom as he walked to symbolize the “sweep” that was happening on the diamond over the weekend.
No words for this one, I’m dying 😂😂 pic.twitter.com/zPd0aqzleI
— Mark Leland Marshall (@MarkLelandMars1) April 23, 2023
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That video that Mark Leland Marshall posted to Twitter showing the funny moment has over 25,000 views and nearly 100,000 impressions on the app at the time of this publication.
This past weekend was Tennessee’s second sweep of SEC competition this season and their first since the Texas A&M series in Knoxville this past March. Additionally, this was Vanderbilt’s first time getting swept by SEC competition this season. The Commodores were 13-2 in SEC play heading into their soon-to-be treacherous weekend in Knoxville.
Tennessee Baseball (26-14) will return to the diamond in Knoxville on Tuesday night for a mid-week matchup against Bellarmine. Tennessee will then host Mississippi State (23-17) in a three-game series in Knoxville from Thursday to Saturday this weekend.
BREAKING: Tennessee Baseball sweeps No. 4 Vanderbilt in Knoxville 🧹🧹🧹 pic.twitter.com/2eD1JKkuYC
— Rocky Top Insider (@rockytopinsider) April 23, 2023
