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Score: Vols 9, 49ers 2 | FINAL
Tennessee baseball (40-19) is set to take on Charlotte (36-27) in Clemson on Sunday night for the NCAA Clemson Regional Final.
The game is double elimination for Tennessee and single elimination for Charlotte. So, if the Vols are victorious, they advance to the NCAA Super Regional. If Charlotte wins, the two teams will play again Monday at 1 p.m. ET in an elimination game.
First pitch is at 6 p.m. ET in Doug Kingsmore Stadium. ESPN+ has the stream, NOT SECN+. Therefore, to watch the game, one must have an ESPN+ subscription.
How Tennessee Got Here:
The Vols have gone 2-0 in the Clemson regional up to this point, having beaten Charlotte 8-1 on Friday night before topping host team Clemson 6-5 in a 14-inning thriller on Saturday.
The Tigers went on to get eliminated by Charlotte on Sunday afternoon, losing 3-2.
How Charlotte Got Here:
After Charlotte lost their first game of the regional to Tennessee on Friday, the 49ers have gone 2-0 since. Charlotte beat Lipscomb 9-2 in the early Saturday game and beat Clemson 3-2 earlier on Sunday. Therefore, Charlotte’s upcoming bout with the Vols will be their second game of the day.
More From RTI: Top Five Critical Moments in Tennessee’s Win Over Clemson
What’s at Stake:
With a win, Tennessee will advance to their third consecutive NCAA Super Regional. Additionally, the Vols are in a good position to potentially host the super regional. Clemson’s corresponding region is the Auburn region, and the Tigers have been eliminated. If Southern Miss wins the regional, the committee will have a decision to make on whether Knoxville or Hattiesburg host the super regional, but Knoxville probably has an edge.
For all of RTI’s coverage on Tennessee baseball in the Clemson Regional, click here.
Lineups, pitching matchup and additional pre-game notes are below.
Starting Lineups
TENNESSEE STARTING NINE:
SS Maui Ahuna
CF Hunter Ensley
LF Jared Dickey
DH Griffin Merritt
2B Christian Moore
1B Blake Burke
3B Zane Denton
RF Christian Scott
C Cal Stark
Lineup Notes:
–Same lineup Tennessee has used all weekend long.
CHARLOTTE STARTING NINE:
LF Blake Jackson
SS Jack Dragum
RF Cam Fisher
CF Jake Cunningham
3B Brandon Stahlman
2B Austin Knight
C Kaden Hopson
DH Will Butcher
1B Spencer Nolan
Lineup Notes:
–Same starters they had Friday night against Tennessee. Only difference is Knight and Butcher have since swapped spots in the order.
Pitching Matchup
Vols So. RHP Drew Beam (7-4, 4.19 ERA, 14 app., 14 starts, 1 CG, 66.2 IP, 71 H, 45 R, 31 ER, 20 BB, 62 K, .272 opp. batting avg., 1.37 WHIP)
vs.
49ers Jr. LHP Andrew Spolyar (2-2, 5.59 ERA, 17 app., 1 start, 37.0 IP, 29 H, 23 R, 23 ER, 15 BB, 41 K, .273 opp. batting avg., 1.46 WHIP)
Uniforms
Tennessee: Dark Mode (3rd time in a row)
Charlotte: Green on Grey
*Tennessee is the home team*
GAME THREAD
1st Inning:
T1
-Blake Jackson strikes out looking.
-Jack Dragum singles into right field over Christian Moore’s head.
-Drew Beam strikes Cam Fisher out looking.
-Jake Cunningham strikes out swinging.
End of Top Half.
B1
-Maui Ahuna strikes out swinging.
-Hunter Ensley is HBP. Vols have their first baserunner.
-Jared Dickey strikes out swinging.
-Griffin Merritt reaches on a fielder’s choice as Ensley is out at second 6-4.
End of Bottom Half.
Score: Vols 0, 49ers 0
2nd Inning:
T2
-Brandon Stahlman grounds out to SS up the middle. Nice play by Maui who has been making very solid defensive plays recently.
-Austin Knight fouls out to 1B right next to Tennessee’s dugout.
-Kaden Hopson strikes out looking. Beam up to four Ks.
End of Top Half.
B2
-Christian Moore spanks a leadoff solo homer into left center field.
-Blake Burke flies out to LF.
-Zane Denton grounds out to 3B.
-Christian Scott strikes out swinging.
End of Bottom Half.
Score: Vols 1, 49ers 0
3rd Inning:
T3
-Will Butcher pops up to 1B.
-Spencer Nolan strikes out swinging.
-Blake Jackson is hit by a pitch.
-Jack Dragum grounds out to 3B.
End of Top Half.
B3
-Cal Stark strikes out swinging.
-Maui Ahuna grounds out to 1B unassisted.
-Hunter Ensley grounds out to SS. Nice nab by the first baseman as the throw wasn’t good.
End of Bottom Half.
Score: Vols 1, 49ers 0
4th Inning:
T4
-Cam Fisher grounds out on a chopper up the middle to SS.
-Jake Cunningham strikes out swinging.
-Brandon Stahlman strikes out looking. Beam up to 7 Ks through four 👀
End of Top Half.
B4
-Jared Dickey reaches on a fielding error by 1B. Hard hit grounder that the first baseman couldn’t corral.
-Griffin Merritt ropes a double to deep left field down the line. Just fair. Dickey advances to third.
-Christian Moore connects for a hard-hit sac fly to center field. Dickey scores. Merritt advances to third.
-Blake Burke does the same thing. Smacks a sac fly to deep center to score Merritt.
-Zane Denton punishes a solo homer off the batter’s eye. Smoked it. 419-foot bomb.
-Christian Scott flies out to SS in shallow LF.
End of Bottom Half.
Score: Vols 4, 49ers 0
5th Inning:
T5
-Austin Knight smokes a leadoff homer to LF to get a run back for Charlotte.
-Kaden Hopson grounds out to SS.
-Will Butcher strikes out swinging, out c to 1b.
*Eli Weisner pinch-hitting for Spencer Nolan*
-Weisner strikes out swinging.
End of Top Half.
B5
*Weisner to 1B for Nolan*
*Pitching change: RHP Hale Sims (2-0, 3.65 ERA) on to pitch for Spolyar*
-Cal Stark strikes out swinging.
-Maui Ahuna strikes out looking.
-Hunter Ensley grounds out to 3B.
End of Bottom Half.
Score: Vols 4, 49ers 1
6th Inning:
T6
-Blake Jackson singles through the left side.
-Jack Dragum flies out to CF. Jackson advances to second.
-Cam Fisher connects for an RBI double down the RF line.
-Jake Cunningham strikes out swinging. Drew Beam has tied his career-high in strikeouts with 10. He struck out 10 batters against Vanderbilt this season and Alabama last season.
-Brandon Stahlman lines out to Hunter Ensley. Nice diving catch by Ensley.
End of Top Half.
B6
-Jared Dickey strikes out swinging.
-Griffin Merritt singles to deep left field.
-Christian Moore hammers another home run. This one off the batter’s eye for a two-run bomb.
-Blake Burke strikes out swinging.
-Zane Denton strikes out swinging.
End of Bottom Half.
Score: Vols 6, 49ers 2
7th Inning:
T7
*Pitching change: Sr. RHP Camden Sewell (4-0, 4.50 ERA) on to pitch for Beam*
-Austin Knight strikes out looking.
-Kaden Hopson strikes out swinging.
-Will Butcher is walked on a full count.
-Eli Weisner doubles to RF. Butcher advances to third.
-Blake Jackson strikes out looking.
End of Top Half.
B7
-Christian Scott singles up the middle.
-Scott steals second.
-Cal Stark singles through the left side.
*Pitching change: LHP Clark Dearman (2-0, 4.91 ERA) on to pitch for Sims*
-Maui Ahuna grounds into a 6-3 double play. It’s an RBI groundout as Scott scores. Call OVERTURNED. Ahuna is safe at first and it goes down as an RBI fielder’s choice. One out for Tennessee.
-Hunter Ensley strikes out looking.
-Jared Dickey grounds out to SS. Great stop and throw by the Charlotte short stop.
End of Bottom Half.
Score: Vols 7, 49ers 2
8th Inning:
T8
-Jack Dragum grounds out to 2B.
-Cam Fisher is walked on a full count.
-Jake Cunningham strikes out looking on three pitches.
-Fisher steals second.
-Brandon Stahlman hits a single to LF, Fisher rounds third and looks to score but is gunned down by Jared Dickey from left field to end the top half. Play was reviewed and stood.
End of Top Half.
B8
*Pitching change: RHP Miles Langhorne (1-2, 6.39 ERA) on to pitch for Dearman*
-Griffin Merritt works a leadoff walk on a full count.
-Christian Moore is walked on four pitches.
*Pitching change: LHP Sam Conte (0-2, 7.47 ERA) on to pitch for Langhorne*
-Blake Burke fouls out to c.
-Zane Denton strikes out swinging.
-Runners advance on a wild pitch. Runners on second and third with two outs.
-Christian Scott hits a two-run single to LF to score Moore and Merritt.
*Pitching change: RHP Aubrey Gillentine (1-1, 10.00 ERA) on to pitch for Conte*
-Cal Stark is HBP. Scott advances to second.
-Baserunners steal second and third.
-Maui Ahuna strikes out swinging.
End of Bottom Half.
Score: Vols 9, 49ers 2
9th Inning:
T9
*Pitching change: Fr. RHP AJ Russell (2-0, 0.98 ERA) on to pitch for Sewell*
-Austin Knight lines out to CF.
-Kaden Hopson grounds out to 2B.
*Dante DeFranco pinch-hitting for Butcher*
-DeFranco strikes out swinging.
END OF GAME
FINAL: Tennessee Vols 9, Charlotte 49ers 2
