The Tennessee Volunteers defeated the Stanford Cardinals by a score of 6-4 to keep their national championship hopes alive.
Monday in Omaha, the Tennessee Volunteers defeated Stanford by a score of 6-4 in an elimination game. The victory sends Stanford home and positions Tennessee to face either Wake Forest or LSU on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. E.T.
Tennessee’s offensive output was sluggish early on, as they were able to collect hits and baserunners. However, they were unable to bring the pursuers home. Stanford capitalized on this.
The Cardinal scored four runs due to two RBI by Albertos Rios, an RBI single by Braden Montgomery, and a throwing error by Tennessee catcher Cal Stark.
It was the first victory in Omaha for the Tennessee baseball team since 2001.
They maintained a 4-0 advantage until the fifth inning. The Stanford onslaught of runs occurred while Tennessee’s Chase Dollander was on the mound. During his start, he recorded two strikeouts, two walks, and allowed four earned runs on four hits.
He threw three complete innings. Chase Burns relieved him and went on to pitch the remaining six innings. He had nine strikeouts and allowed only two hits to claim his fifth victory of the season.
The Volunteers’ offense flourished in the top of the fifth inning. Hunter Ensley’s sacrifice fly netted Zane Denton. This was followed by Jared Dickey’s RBI single, which scored Stark.
Christian Moore scored both Maui Ahuna and Dickey with a two-run single. By the end of the inning, the Volunteers had once again tied the game, making the score 4-4.
Two runs scored in the seventh inning gave the Volunteers a lead they would not relinquish. Denton struck a deep enough ground out to score Griffin Merritt. Blake Burke scored the seventh run for the Volunteers on an errant pitch.