Neely Throws Complete Game as Vols Sweep Cincinnati

Sunday, March 11

Cincinnati, OH

1 P.M. ET

University of Tennessee

11-6

Cincinnati

7-8

Tennessee

Cincinnati

Photo by: Alison P. McNabb\Tennessee Athletics

March 11, 2018 | Baseball

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CINCINNATI, Ohio – A complete game by Will Neely and an RBI single by Justin Ammons in the ninth propelled Tennessee to a 2-1 victory in Sunday's series finale at Cincinnati. With the win, the Volunteers completed the series sweep over the Bearcats at Marge Schott Stadium.

Neely allowed just one run on five hits and fanned five batters in the career-long outing to improve to 2-0 on the season.

Following two three up, three down innings to start the game, Cincinnati jumped out to a lead for the third time in as many days. The Bearcats scored one run in the third on a two-out RBI single by Kyle Mottice.

After leaving the bases loaded in the fourth, the Vols kept the pressure on and tied things up in the fifth. With two outs, freshman Zach Daniels doubled to center field before advancing to third on an error. Wyatt Stapp followed with a single up the middle to plate the tying run. Stapp had a big day at the plate for UT, finishing the game 3-for-5 with an RBI.

The Vols put runners in scoring position again in the seventh on back-to-back hits by Pete Derkay and Leftridge, but a groundout ended the inning before Tennessee could push a run across.

The Big Orange were finally able to break the 1-1 tie in the ninth. Redshirt sophomore Nico Mascia doubled to left center to put the go-ahead run in scoring position and two at-bats later, Ammons singled to right field to put the Vols ahead, 2-1.

Commanding the mound in the ninth, Neely struck out the first batter looking before recording the final two outs of the game with the help of Tennessee's infielders to secure the win and improve to 2-0 on the year.

Notables
Neely Goes the Distance
Junior right-hander Will Neely threw his first complete game on Sunday, allowing just one run on five hits. Previously, his longest outing was 7.0 innings (achieved twice), last vs. ETSU on April 26, 2017. The Knoxville native also finished with five strikeouts, one off his career high.

Ammons Comes Up Clutch
After struggling for most of the weekend, sophomore Justin Ammons came through when UT needed it most, driving in the eventual game-winning run with a single in the top of the ninth inning.

Derkay & Santiago Extend On-Base Streaks
Pete Derkay and Benito Santiago both reached base safely in Sunday's game to extend their on-base streaks. Derkay has now reached base in all 17 games this season and 18 straight dating back to last year, while Santiago has reached in 16 consecutive games.

Next Up
Tennessee welcomes Western Carolina to Lindsey Nelson Stadium on Wednesday, March 14, at 6:30 p.m. ET. The game will be aired on SEC Network + (WatchESPN) and will also be available via an online radio stream on UTSports.com.