The first game of the 2024 Knoxville Regional is in the books after 3-seed Indiana’s opening victory on Friday afternoon in Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
The Hoosiers defeated two-seed Southern Miss by a score of 10-4 as Indiana built a strong lead throughout the first half of the game and hung on to it through the rest.
With Indiana’s win, the Hoosiers now move to the winner’s side of the Knoxville Regional bracket. Indiana will take on the winner of Tennessee-Northern Kentucky on Saturday night while Southern Miss faces the loser in an elimination game on Saturday afternoon.
Tennessee will host Northern Kentucky at 7:00 p.m. ET on Friday night to wrap up the first day of the regional.
More from RTI: The RTI Staff’s Knoxville Regional Predictions
Indiana opened the game in Knoxville with a two-run spot in the first inning and a three-run burst in the second. The Hoosiers would add on three more runs over the next three innings to go up 8-0 before Southern Miss’s first run crossed the plate.
The Golden Eagles answered with a three-run inning in the bottom of the sixth thanks to a two-run home run over the right-field fence and an error from the Hoosiers’ defense in the infield.
Loch Ness Monistere sighting near the Tennessee River#EverythingMatters | #SMTTT https://t.co/epcsyewJSU pic.twitter.com/XU3OWLtjjZ
— Southern Miss Baseball (@SouthernMissBSB) May 31, 2024
Neither team scored in the seventh or eighth inning as the game continued under the overcast Knoxville weekday sky. The Hoosiers broke the scoreless stretch with a two-run ninth-inning home run to dial up the pressure even more as the upset drew closer to reality for the Golden Eagles.
T9 | GET OUTTA HERE BALL! 110 OFF THE BAT! 🤟@morgancolopy | #IUBase pic.twitter.com/9YyrOnAiT4
— Indiana Baseball (@IndianaBase) May 31, 2024
Southern Miss put a runner across the plate in the bottom of the ninth to close the deficit to six but Indiana was able to close out the game to advance to Saturday’s winner’s bracket.
If Tennessee can take care of business against four-seed Northern Kentucky on Friday night in front of a roaring home crowd, the Vols will advance to play Indiana at 6:00 p.m. ET on Saturday night.
If Tennessee loses, though, the Vols will then play Southern Miss in a 2023 Hattiesburg Super Regional rematch on Saturday afternoon at Noon ET in an elimination game. Tennessee took two of three games against Southern Miss in the Super Regional round last season, winning game three by a score of 5-0. Southern Miss’s longtime coach, Scott Berry, retired after the game.
Three-seed Indiana defeated two-seed Southern Miss in an opening upset from the Knoxville Regional on Friday afternoon at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. The game between one-seed Tennessee and four-seed Northern Kentucky will take place at 7:00 p.m. ET on the SEC Network.
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for live updates during the Vols’ postseason game on Friday night both online and on social media (@RockyTopInsider).
