SCORE: Tennessee 13, Xavier 1 | FINAL
***SCROLL DOWN FOR LIVE AT-BAT BY AT-BAT FEED***
Second-ranked Tennessee baseball (12-0) is set to battle the Xavier Musketeers (7-5) Wednesday in a midweek matchup in Knoxville.
First pitch at Lindsey Nelson Stadium is set for 5:30 p.m. ET on SECN+.
First pitch was initially scheduled for 6:00 p.m. ET, but the schedule was altered given rain in Wednesday’s late night forecast.
Tennessee is looking to remain undefeated on the season after beating Radford 22-9 in a midweek run-rule win on Tuesday. The Vols got off to a slow start and the pitching staff had its worst game of the season, but the Big Orange totaled 11 7th inning runs to achieve the run-rule win.
Tennessee his three grand slams in the victory bringing its total to seven. In just 12 games, Tennessee is already halfway to the NCAA single-season grand slam record (2003 Arizona State – 14).
RECORD?: Tennessee Baseball Hitting Grand Slams At Torrid Pace To Begin 2025 Season
WATCH: Tennessee Baseball Rips Off Not One, Not Two, But Three Grand Slams on Tuesday
Prior to Tuesday, Tennessee went 3-0 in Houston last weekend at the Astros Foundation College Classic. The Vols passed their first two challenging tests of the season with flying colors, beating Oklahoma State 5-2 and Arizona 5-1.
Tennessee also achieved a 13-3 win over weaker opponent Rice. The Vols have also swept weekend series over Hofstra and Samford while beating UNC Asheville and North Alabama in midweek games.
HONORS: Gavin Kilen Named SEC Baseball Player of the Week
Tennessee’s pitching staff was dominant in Houston, allowing just six runs across the three games. Additionally, infielder Gavin Kilen stole the show, totaling four home runs, seven RBI and 24 total bases on the weekend. The junior received SEC Player of the Week honors Monday.
After the 4-0 week, Tennessee moved up one spot in D1 Baseball’s rankings to No. 2. However, the Vols are No. 1 in all four other polls.
RANKINGS: Where Tennessee Baseball Lands In Rankings Following Successful Weekend In Houston
With Tennessee playing stiffer competition in Houston, everyone was able to get more clarity on which players have firmer holds on positions. Manny Marin started all three games at first base, and Jay Abernathy started all three games in left field, an indication that both freshmen will be consistent starters moving forward.
Marin’s role was further solidified Monday when UNC 1B transfer Alberto Osuna’s preliminary injunction was denied, deeming him still ineligible to play. It remains to be seen if Tennessee will explore another option regarding Osuna’s eligibility and if it will work.
As of now, Andrew Fischer is Tennessee’s top option at first base with Marin handling duties at third.
INELIGIBLE: Judge Denies Alberto Osuna Preliminary Injunction, Slugger Remains Ineligible For Tennessee Baseball
Injury/Availability Notes
With key arms AJ Russell, Tegan Kuhns and Dylan Loy back 100%, Tennessee is basically fully healthy, but some players are still unavailable.
- UNC transfer first baseman Alberto Osuna remains ineligible.
- Infielder Alex Perry, who was in competition to start at first base before Osuna’s arrival, left the program in January to tend to a personal matter. It remains to be seen when or if Perry will return. He is in his second season at Tennessee.
Opponent Scout
Xavier has played one of the toughest schedules in the country to date. The Musketeers have won their only true weekend series of the season, beating Liberty in two of three games.
Last weekend, Xavier split a four-game series with Stanford.
Xavier began the season in Arizona as part of the Sanderson Ford College Baseball Classic. The Musketeers went 2-2 with wins over ranked Indiana and UNLV while dropping both games to Top-10 Oregon State.
Xavier had a late February rematch with Indiana, which it won in an 8-4 midweek bout.
The Musketeers were picked to Finish 2nd in the 2025 East Preseason Poll. Head coach Billy O’Conner is entering his eighth year with the program and boasts three Preseason All-Conference selections in 3B Luke Hammond, DH Connor Misch and outfielder Aedan Anderson.
On paper, Xavier is one of Tennessee’s toughest midweek opponents of the year and should present an intriguing challenge on Wednesday.
TRANSCRIPT: Everything Tennessee HC Tony Vitello Said After Vols’ Offensive Explosion Against Radford
For all of RTI’s preseason baseball coverage, including how head coach Tony Vitello plans to make Alberto Osuna’s time at Tennessee ‘worth his while,’ click here.
For the latest RTI Diamond Pass podcast, discussing all the major takeaways from Tennessee’s 3-0 weekend in Houston, click here.
VIDEO: Tony Vitello Recaps Eventful Midweek Win Over Radford
Lineups, pitching matchup and additional pre-game notes are below, followed by the LIVE at-bat by at-bat game thread.
Starting Lineups
TENNESSEE STARTING NINE:
3B Dean Curley (R)
2B Gavin Kilen (L)
CF Hunter Ensley (R)
1B Andrew Fischer (L)
DH Levi Clark (R)
RF Reese Chapman (L)
C Cannon Peebles (S)
LF Dalton Bargo (L)
SS Ariel Antigua (R)
Lineup Notes:
- Dalton Bargo gets the nod at LF for the first time since the Samford series. Jay Abernathy started every game in Houston and Chris Newstrom started Tuesday.
- Peebles back behind the plate after DHing Tuesday.
- Andrew Fischer back at first after playing 3B Tuesday. Levi Clark moves to DH after playing 1B Tuesday.
- Ariel Antigua in the starting lineup for the first time since game two vs. Samford, handling SS duties.
- Curley slides to third with Ariel at short.
XAVIER STARTING NINE:
2B Jake Lambdin (R)
LF Carter Hendrickson (R)
1B Connor Misch (R)
RF Landon Mensik (R)
CF Aedan Anderson (R)
3B Luke Hammond (R)
DH Isaac Wachsmann (R)
C Jason Jelic (L)
SS Eddie Peters (R)
Pitching Matchup:
Vols Jr. RHP Thomas Crabtree (0-0, 0.00 ERA, 2 app., 0 starts, 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 0 XBH, .167 opp. batting avg., 1.20 WHIP)
vs.
Musketeers Sr. RHP Logan Schmidt (0-0, 12.46 ERA, 5 app., 0 starts, 8.2 IP, 1 H, 12 R, 12 ER, 4 BB, 7 K, 5 XBH, .395 opp. batting avg., 2.19 WHIP)
Pitching notes:
- First career start for Crabtree.
- The JuCo transfer has made two appearances – one against North Alabama and one against Hofstra.
- Too limited of action to have many takeaways about Crabtree’s season so far.
- Did strike out the side vs. Hofstra around a walk.
Uniforms
Tennessee: Orange shirts, white pants
Xavier: Grey shirts and pants with navy caps and accents
*NOTES*
- There is NO run-rule tonight.
- Tennessee’s No. 2 ranking refers to D1 Baseball’s poll.
- Tennessee is No. 1 in all other polls (USA Today Poll, NCBWA, Baseball America and Perfect Game).
GAME THREAD
1st Inning:
T1
-Jake Lambdin strikes out looking.
-Carter Hendrickson fouls out to C.
-Connor Misch HBP.
-Landon Mensik strikes out looking.
END OF TOP HALF
B1
-Dean Curley strikes out looking.
-Gavin Kilen lines out to CF.
-Hunter Ensley strikes out looking.
- Bad strike three call. Was low and away.
END OF BOTTOM HALF
Score: Vols 0, Musketeers 0
2nd Inning:
T2
-Aedan Anderson strikes out looking.
-Luke Hammond flies out to CF.
-Isaac Wachsmann smokes a solo homer to the second deck of the LF porches.
-Jason Jelic doubles to left-center.
-Eddie Peters strikes out swinging, out at first C to 1B.
END OF TOP HALF
B2
-Andrew Fischer fouls out to 3B.
-Levi Clark drops a single in right field.
-Reese Chapman strikes out swinging.
-Cannon Peebles flies out to LF.
END OF BOTTOM HALF
Score: Vols 0, Musketeers 1
3rd Inning:
T3
*Pitching change: Jr. RHP Austin Breedlove (0-0, 2.70 ERA) on to pitch for Crabtree*
-Jake Lambdin grounds out to 3B.
-Carter Hendrickson pops up to 2B.
-Connor Misch grounds out to SS.
END OF TOP HALF
B3
-Dalton Bargo strikes out swinging.
-Ariel Antigua flies out to LF.
-Dean Curley strikes out looking.
END OF BOTTOM HALF
Score: Vols 0, Musketeers 1
4th Inning:
T4
-Landon Mensik grounds out to 3B.
- Nice job by Fischer to make the snag off the hop.
-Aedan Anderson strikes out swinging.
-Luke Hammond strikes out looking.
END OF TOP HALF
B4
-Gavin Kilen smacks a double to deep left field.
-Hunter Ensley grounds out to 2B. Kilen to third.
-Andrew Fischer crushes a two-run homer to right center.
- 362 feet, 103 mph.
- Fischer’s 5th HR of the season. 4th in last three games.
-Levi Clark works a walk.
-Reese Chapman strikes out looking.
-Cannon Peebles is walked. Clark to second.
-Dalton Bargo is walked on four pitches.
- Bases loaded with two outs for Ariel Antigua.
*Pitching change: Sr. RHP Ben Weber (1-2, 4.91 ERA) on to pitch for Schmidt*
-Ariel Antigua grounds out to 1B unassisted.
END OF BOTTOM HALF
Score: Vols 2, Musketeers 1
5th Inning:
T5
-Isaac Wachsmann strikes out swinging, out at first C to 1B.
-Jason Jelic is walked.
- Breedlove had retired all 7 batters he’d faced before the walk.
-Eddie Peters flies out to RF.
-Jake Lambin flies out to LF.
END OF TOP HALF
B5
-Dean Curley strikes out swinging.
-Gavin Kilen singles up the middle.
Kilen advances to second on a wild pitch.
Kilen advances to third on a wild pitch.
-Hunter Ensley works a walk.
-Andrew Fischer strikes out swinging.
-Levi Clark smokes a two-run double to left-center.
-Reese Chapman pops up to 2B in shallow right field.
END OF BOTTOM HALF
Score: Vols 4, Musketeers 1
6th Inning:
T6
*Pitching change: Fr. RHP Tegan Kuhns (1-0, 2.70 ERA) on to pitch for Breedlove*
-Carter Hendrickson smacks a double to left field.
-Connor Misch HBP.
-Landon Mensik HBP.
- Bases loaded with no outs for Aedan Anderson.
-Aedan Anderson strikes out looking.
-Luke Hammond strikes out swinging.
-Isaac Wachsmann pops up to 2B.
END OF TOP HALF
B6
*Pitching change: RHP Sam Stevens (season debut) on to pitch for Weber*
-Cannon Peebles strikes out looking.
-Dalton Bargo works a walk.
*Jay Abernathy pinch-running for Bargo*
Abernathy advances to second on a balk.
-Ariel Antigua bloops an RBI single to center, advances to second on the throw home. Abernathy scores from second.
-Dean Curley slaps an RBI single through the right side.
-Gavin Kilen sends a ground-rule double to right field. Curley to third.
-Hunter Ensley knocks a sac fly to the warning track in LF. Curley scores. Kilen to third.
-Andrew Fischer is walked on four pitches.
*Pitching change: RHP Jon Wylie (0-0, 16.87 ERA) on to pitch for Stevens*
-Levi Clark deposits an RBI single in right-center. Fischer to third.
-Reese Chapman hammers a three-run homer to left field.
- 4th HR of the season for Chapman.
- 355 feet, 96 mph.
-Cannon Peebles pops up to SS.
END OF BOTTOM HALF
Score: Vols 11, Musketeers 1
7th Inning:
T7
*Pitching change: Fr. LHP Brayden Sharp (1-0, 0.00 ERA) on to pitch for Kuhns*
*Abernathy to LF*
-Jason Jelic strikes out looking.
-Eddie Peters strikes out swinging, out at first C to 1B.
-Jake Lambdin doubles to left-center.
-Carter Hendrickson HBP.
-Connor Misch is walked.
- Bases loaded with two outs for Landon Mensik.
-Landon Mensik strikes out swinging.
END OF TOP HALF
B7
-Jay Abernathy grounds out to 2B.
-Ariel Antigua flies out to RF.
*Blake Grimmer pinch-hitting for Dean Curley*
-Grimmer rips a single through the right side.
*Hunter High pinch-hitting for Gavin Kilen*
-Hunter High strikes out swinging.
END OF BOTTOM HALF
Score: Vols 11, Musketeers 1
8th Inning:
T8
*Pitching change: So. LHP Luke Payne (0-0, 0.00 ERA) on to pitch for Sharp*
*Grimmer to 1B*
*High to LF*
*Colby Backus to CF for Hunter Ensley*
*Chris Newstrom to 3B for Andrew Fischer*
*Abernathy to 2B*
-Luke Hammond is walked.
*Hayden Christiansen pinch-hitting for Isaac Wachsmann*
-Christiansen pops up to SS.
Hammond advances to second on a wild pitch.
-Tyler Stack flies out to RF.
END OF TOP HALF
B8
*Pitching change: Fr. RHP Jack DeTienne (0-0, 0.00 ERA) on to pitch for Wylie*
-Colby Backus reaches on a fielding error by 3B.
-Chris Newstrom singles through the left side. Backus to second.
*Stone Lawless pinch-hitting for Levi Clark*
Runners advance on a throwing error by C.
- Tried to catch Backus stealing.
-Stone Lawless rips a two-run single to left field.
-Reese Chapman strikes out looking on three pitches.
-Cannon Peebles reaches on a fielder’s choice to 2B. Lawless out at second, 4-6.
-Jay Abernathy is walked.
-Ariel Antigua flies out to RF.
END OF BOTTOM HALF
Score: Vols 13, Musketeers 1
9th Inning:
T9
*Pitching change: Fr. RHP Brayden Krenzel (0-0, 0.00 ERA) on to pitch for Payne*
-Donovan Canterberry singles through the right side.
-Nolan Tucker singles up the middle. Canterberry to second.
-JD Crisp strikes out swinging.
-Clay Burdette singles to RF. Tucker to second. Canterberry out at home, 9-2.
- HOSE from Reese. Great throw.
-Landon Mensik grounds out to SS.
END OF TOP HALF
Score: Vols 13, Musketeers 1
FINAL: Tennessee Vols 13, Xavier Musketeers 1
