University of Tennessee
ETSU
Vols Rally for 5-2 Win Over ETSU
March 10, 2015 | Baseball
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- After a back-and-forth offensive battle between Tennessee (7-5) and East Tennessee State on Tuesday, the Volunteers used a two-run eighth inning and strong relief pitching to come out on top, 5-2, at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
Tennessee's righthander Hunter Martin threw 5.0 innings in his first home start of the year, allowing no earned runs on three hits in the outing.
ETSU pushed one run across early, taking advantage of a throwing error on Martin to claim a 1-0 lead in the first. Tennessee answered in the fifth, as first baseman Nathaniel Maggio ripped a leadoff single to left field. Designated hitter Andrew Lee reached on a fielder's choice before catcher David Houser knocked a double to left-center, advancing Lee to third. Third baseman Brett Langhorne executed a sacrifice bunt in the next at-bat and after taking a huge lead, Lee scored to tie the game at 1-1.
"That's baseball. That's what baseball does," Head Coach Dave Serrano said of the seesaw scoring against the Buccaneers. "It's nine innings and sometimes you don't start out but you can't sit on the clock and stall. They have got to get us out for 27 outs and we were able to get it going later in the game and come away with a 5-2 victory. I'm proud of our guys for doing that."
After the Buccaneers nudged ahead, 2-1, in the sixth, Tennessee again capitalized on a solid leadoff at-bat. Right fielder Vincent Jackson roped a standup double to right field. A.J. Simcox then reached first on an infield hit, moving Jackson to third and putting runners on the corners with no outs. Second baseman Nick Senzel made it a tie ballgame once again on a sacrifice fly to right, scoring Jackson from third, before the Vols took three straight walks to bring Simcox in for the go-ahead run.
"That is a part of our offense, taking pitches out of the pitchers arms," junior Christin Stewart said. "That's what we try to do. Work deep counts every time, have a quality at bat and the more pitches the pitcher throws helps us in the long run."
Tennessee went to right-handed pitcher Steven Kane in relief of Martin in the sixth. Despite allowing one run, Kane held the Bucs to three hits over his 2.0 innings of work to earn the win. Righty Andrew Lee, who began the evening in the designated hitter spot of UT's lineup, then went to the mound in the eighth. Lee went on to strike out two of his three batters faced in the frame.
The eighth proved to be another big inning for the Vols, as Christin Stewart belted a solo home run over the right field wall to further UT's lead to 4-2. The homer marked his third of the season and second in his last four games. In the next at-bat, Maggio hit a double down the right field line and moved to third on a wild pitch. Then, Lee roped an RBI-single into center field to score Maggio, giving Tennessee a 5-2 advantage.
"I think [Nathaniel] Maggio is the guy of the night," Serrano added. "I was really excited with the way Maggio swung the bat. That's what he's here for. He's an imposing figure in the box. We want him to swing the bat like he did tonight."
Lee returned to the hill in the ninth and shut down the Bucs to earn the save, his second of the season for UT.
Tennessee looks to host Morehead State on Wednesday, March 11 at 5 p.m. ET at Lindsey Nelson Stadium, a rescheduled matchup from a previously cancelled date due to inclement weather. Lefthander Zach Warren is slated to make the start for the Vols against the Eagles, which will mark his first official appearance for the Volunteers.
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