University of Tennessee Athletics
Auburn Pulls Away Late as UT Falls 12-6
March 28, 2008 | Baseball
Box Score??|??Box Score (PDF)????
AUBURN, Ala. ??? A middle-inning rally by the Tennessee baseball team wasn???t enough to overcome a hot start by Auburn Friday night, as the Tigers handed the Vols a 12-6 loss in their series-opener at Samford Stadium-Hitchcock Field at Plainsman Park. Senior outfielder Shawn Griffin went 4-for-4 with a double, a home run and two singles for UT, but Auburn used a four-run eighth to pull away late.
Auburn???s 17 total hits were the most surrendered this year by the Tennessee pitching staff. The Vols (15-8, 4-3 SEC) countered with 11 hits on the night, while the teams combined for five errors.
???The game was closer than the score indicates,??? UT head coach Todd Raleigh said. ???It was 8-6 in the eighth, and we had runners in position to make it 8-7. We just made too many mistakes to win.
???We???ll be ready to play (Saturday), I can promise you.???
Auburn leadoff hitter Trent Mummey led off the top of the first Friday with a basehit and was driven in on a two-out RBI single by Tigers first baseman Hunter Morris to open the day???s scoring. Auburn (17-9, 3-4 SEC) collected three total hits in the first inning.
Tennessee countered Auburn???s opening blow by putting together a two-out rally of its own in the top of the second. Griffin sent a two-out double into left field before scoring on batter later when Vols shortstop Danny Lima laced an RBI single through the right side of the Tigers infield.
A pair of UT errors and three more Auburn hits in the bottom of the second inning enabled the Tigers to jump out to a 4-1 lead. All three Auburn runs in the frame were unearned against Vols starting pitcher Steve Crnkovich.
The hits kept coming for the Tigers in the third inning, and a two-run double down the first-base line by Mummey pushed Auburn???s lead to a commanding five runs, 6-1.
Griffin and Tennessee designated hitter Jarred Frazier combined to cut UT???s deficit to three runs in the top of the fourth. Frazier drew a two-out walk from Auburn starting pitcher Grant Dayton, setting the stage for Griffin to crush a towering two-run homer out of the park in right field. It was Griffin???s second home run of the season and his eighth as a Vol.
Auburn added a pair of scores???including another unearned run???in the bottom of the fourth to restore its five-run edge. Mike Bianucci led things off with a pop-up to shallow centerfield, and charging Vols centerfielder Kentrail Davis was unable to make the catch while trying to avoid a collision with crouching second baseman Andy Simunic. Joseph Sanders eventually drove in Bianucci with an RBI basehit. And Sanders, in turn, scored on an RBI double by Tigers designated hitter Kevin Patterson.
After being touched for eight runs (four earned) on 10 hits through four innings, Crnkovich gave way to Vols junior left-hander Joey Rosas for the bottom of the fifth.
The Tennessee bats got warm in the sixth, as the Vols Nos. 4-6 hitters each recorded hits in succession. Sophomore first baseman Jeff Lockwood plated catcher Yan Gomes with an RBI basehit, and then following a flyball out, Griffin beat out an infield single to load the bases with one out.
Lima then sent a slow roller toward the left side of the Auburn infield, and the ball eluded the converging shortstop and third baseman on its way through. Two runs came in to score on what was charged as a fielding error to third baseman Sanders. The Tigers??? first miscue of the night made it a two-run game, 8-6.
Tigers reliever Evan Crawford came on to pitch in relief of Dayton in the top of the seventh. Through six innings, Dayton gave up six runs on nine hits with one walk and four strikeouts. He improved to 3-1 with the win.
Frazier reached on a throwing error by Sanders in the top of the eighth, bringing Griffin to the plate representing the tying run. Griffin smacked a basehit???his fourth hit in as many plate appearances???that sent Frazier to third base and gave the Vols runners on the corners with one out.
Crawford then gave way to right-hander Bryan Woodall to face Lima, and Woodall and Tigers catcher Ryan Jenkins quickly teamed up to kill the Vols??? rally. Lima and Griffin were victims of a well-executed ???strike-???em-out, throw-???em-out??? double play to end the inning, keeping Auburn???s 8-6 lead intact.
The Tigers tacked on four insurance runs in the bottom of the eighth to build on that lead and bring the final score to 12-6. It marked just the second time this season a Tennessee opponent posted double-digit runs.
Crnkovich took the loss to fall to 4-2 on the year. In addition to Rosas, junior Aaron Everett and sophomore Bryan Powell saw action out of the UT bullpen. It was Powell???s first SEC appearance of the season.
The series resumes Saturday at 3 p.m. CT. Left-hander Bryan Morgado (3-2, 1.82 ERA) will start on the mound for Tennessee, while Auburn???s starting pitcher will be freshman left-hander Cory Luckie (3-2, 2.55 ERA).
Saturday???s game will be televised regionally on CSS.
