University of Tennessee Athletics
Vols' Four HRs Finish off Florida, 12-6
April 06, 2008 | Baseball
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KNOXVILLE ??? Trailing Florida 5-1 in the fifth inning Saturday, the Tennessee baseball team broke out some ???shock and awe??? offensive tactics, and the Volunteers rode an eight-run fifth inning to an eventual 10-5 lead when the second game of the weekend series between the Vols and Gators was suspended due to heavy rains with one out and a runner on first in the bottom of the sixth. Tennessee built on its lead Sunday and posted a 12-6 series-clinching win.
Play resumed Sunday at noon, and Vols reliever Joey Rosas (2-1) recorded his first career SEC win by pitching 3 2/3 shutout innings spanning two days.
The Big Orange improved to 19-10 (7-4 SEC) with the win, while Florida fell to 20-10 (7-4 SEC). The Vols out-hit the Gators 12-6 and committed no errors to UF???s three.
Back-to-back homers by catcher Yan Gomes and left fielder Shawn Griffin???both Florida natives???highlighted the eight-run fifth inning for Tennessee. The Vol trailed 5-1 entering UT???s at-bat, but the Big Orange sent 11 batters to the plate during their impressive go-ahead outburst. Gomes finished with a game-high three RBI.
Just as it had done in Game 1 of the Saturday doubleheader, Florida got on the scoreboard in the first inning of Game 2. The Gators plated a pair of two-out runs in the opening frame, with the first coming on a balk and the second coming on an RBI single by designated hitter Dustin Bamberg.
Gators second baseman Josh Adams gave his club a 4-0 lead in the third with a two-run homer. And an RBI groundout by Avery Barnes in the fifth inning put the Vols in a five-run hole.
Tennessee first baseman Jeff Lockwood drove in Griffin with an RBI single in the bottom of the fourth to put the Vols on the scoreboard.
Through four full innings, both teams had managed three hits, but the Gators capitalized on numerous free baserunners. Four of the first five players to score for the Gators reached base on walks.
A basehit followed by a pair of Florida errors enabled the Vols to load the bases with no outs in the bottom of the fifth. Tennessee centerfielder Kentrail Davis brought home one run with an RBI groundout before Gomes (three-run) and Griffin (solo) came through with back-to-back home runs to suddenly put the Vols on top by a score of 6-5.
The barrage was far from over, however. Tennessee added another run in the fifth when Lockwood scored from second on Florida???s third infield error of the inning. Freshman right fielder Josh Liles then capped UT???s biggest inning of the season with a two-run homer into the left-field bleachers. It was Liles??? first career home run and Tennessee???s third of the inning. The Vols had turned a 5-1 deficit into a 9-5 lead by the time the third out was finally recorded.
Davis gave UT its first double-digit runs total in SEC play this season when he drove in Simunic with an RBI basehit in the sixth. Simunic had previously led off with a double. Gomes followed Davis??? single with a flyball to center for the first out of the inning, and the game was then suspended due to heavy rainfall.
When play resumed Sunday, Florida freshman Travis Lawler took the mound. Tommy Toledo started the game Saturday and lasted 4 1/3 innings before giving way to reliever Clint Franklin. Toledo was charged with the loss, falling to 4-2.
Lockwood led off the bottom of the seventh by taking a Lawler offering and smacking it over the left-field wall for his fourth home run of the season and the eighth of his career. It was UT???s fourth homer of the game, marking a season-high.
Griffin hit an RBI double off the wall in the eighth???his third hit of the game???to log his second RBI of the contest and fourth of the series. And Adams closed out the game???s scoring with an RBI double in the top of the ninth to bring the final score to 12-6.
Prior to Sunday???s 12-6 win, the last time Tennessee hit at least four home runs in an SEC game was last season???s series-finale at Florida, when the Vols slugged four longballs in an 11-7 series-clinching victory.
