Tennessee baseball extended its winning streak to 13 games on Friday night by knocking off Illinois 6-3 in the series opener at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
The Vols got strong outings from multiple pitchers and started fast at the plate as they earned the series opening victory.
Here’s how the Vols got it done.
Another Strong AJ Causey Start
Things started a little dicey for AJ Causey, who was making his second start of the season in place of the hurt AJ Russell.
It wasn’t Causey’s best start. He surrendered back-to-back one-out doubles in the first inning as Illinois claimed an early 1-0 lead. While it was dicey, it wasn’t as bad as it looked with the wind pushing the second double into the right-center gap.
But from there, the right-handed pitcher was fantastic. He got out of the first inning with a fielder’s choice and a strikeout. Causey didn’t allow another run the rest of the night in a six inning outing.
Causey worked around some baserunners throughout the night, working just a single one-two-three inning. But the submarine pitcher never got in any big jams and worked around runners well.
The Jacksonville State transfer allowed six hits and one walk while striking out 12 batters. Tennessee is looking for a third weekend starter. Causey continues to make a strong case to be that permanent guy.
More From RTI: How To Watch Tennessee vs. Illinois The Rest Of The Weekend
Tennessee’s Offense Starts Fast, Cools Off
Tennessee’s bats came out blazing in the series opener. The Vols scored three runs in the their first three at-bats of the game.
Christian Moore led off the game with a double. Blake Burke drove him home with a double to right field and then Billy Amick did the big damage, sending a fly ball to right-center that fought through the wind and made it over the wall for a two-run homer.
The Vols added their fourth run on the first pitch of the second inning when catcher Cal Stark hit a no doubter homer to left field. That gave Tennessee a comfortable 4-1 lead with Causey cruising on the mound.
But the Vols’ offense was largely quiet the rest of the game. Illinois starter Jack Crowder got into a rhythm and the Fighting Illini’s bullpen did a strong job of keeping Tennessee’s offense at bay.
Tony Vitello’s team added an insurance run in the sixth inning thanks to back-to-back doubles from Dylan Dreiling and Dean Curley and another run in the eighth inning with a Dreiling solo homer.
Andrew Behnke’s Stock Keeps Rising
I’ve said a few times on our RTI Press Pass Baseball Podcast that I’m high on sophomore left-hander Andrew Behnke and that while I think he’s going to be a really important pitcher in his career I wasn’t sure how big his role would be this season due to the number of strong left-handed arms in Tennessee’s bullpen.
I’m moving past that. I think Behnke is going to be a key guy in Tennessee’s bullpen this year. He came in with a runner on first and no one out in the seventh inning and proceeded to get the first two batters he faced out with a fly out and a strikeout.
Even when a Dean Curley fielding error prolonged the inning and gave Illinois runners on the corners. No problem for Behnke who got out of the inning with a fly out.
Behnke found himself in a similar situation an inning later when Illinois got two runners on with no one out after a swinging bunt and a weak hit grounder found a hole in the infield. Again, no issue for Behnke who worked his way out of the jam with two strikeouts and a fly out.
The sophomore has now pitched in six different outings this season and has just given up one run in a pair of the appearances. They came in 2.2 innings of action against UNC-Asheville and two innings earlier this week against Kansas State. His stock keeps rising.
Final Stats
Up Next
Tennessee and Illinois resume its three-game series tomorrow afternoon at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. First pitch is at 1 p.m. ET.
