University of Tennessee Athletics
BASEBALL CENTRAL: 2016 Grand Canyon Classic
February 24, 2016 | Baseball
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Tennessee Baseball travels to Phoenix, Ariz., this weekend, as the Volunteers take part in the 2016 Grand Canyon University Classic from Friday, Feb. 26 - Sunday, Feb. 28, facing the `Lopes, Saint Mary's College Gaels and Central Michigan University Chippewas at Brazell Stadium.
MORE INFO
2016 Grand Canyon Classic
- Opponents: GCU, Saint Mary's College and Central Michigan
- Dates: Fri. Feb. 26 - Sun. Feb. 28
- Game 1: UT at GCU (Fri. 2/26 at 9 p.m. ET)
- Game 2: UT vs. Saint Mary's (Sat. 2/27 at 3 p.m. ET)
- Game 3: UT vs. Central Michigan (Sun. 2/28 at 1 p.m. ET)
- Venue: Brazell Stadium (Phoenix, Ariz.)
- Live Stats: StatBroadcast - GCU
Game 1 Info
- Opponents: Grand Canyon Antelopes
- Date: Friday, Feb. 26
- Final Score: Tennessee 25, Grand Canyon 8
- Recap: UTSports.com
Tennessee (3-1)
Roster Schedule StatsGrand Canyon (3-3)
Roster Schedule StatsSaint Mary's College (4-1)
Roster Schedule StatsCentral Michigan (0-4)
Roster Schedule StatsTennessee's appearance at the GCU Classic marks the first time for the Vols to participate in tournament-style action since 2013 (Hokie-Smokey Classic - Greeneville, N.C.). Saint Mary's College and Central Michigan are also among four, first-time opponents for the Volunteers this season (also, Maryland and Alabama State).
Friday night's (2/26) matchup vs. tournament host Grand Canyon begins at 9 p.m. ET, with senior lefty Andy Cox facing off against redshirt senior right-hander Jorge Perez. On Saturday (2/27), left-hander Zach Warren takes the mound vs. Saint Mary's College junior Johnny York, with first pitch scheduled for 3 p.m. ET. In Game Three for UT on Sunday (2/28), righty Hunter Martin gets the nod against Central Michigan's Pat Leatherman, slated for 1 p.m. ET at Brazell Stadium.
For the second consecutive year, the Vols began their season on the road, with a series win over the Memphis Tigers last weekend in Chattanooga, Tenn. Head Coach Dave Serrano and the Vols will begin their official home schedule on Wednesday, March 2 at Lindsey Nelson Stadium against Cincinnati.
On the season, the Volunteers are scheduled to play 18 of their 56 regular season games against eight 2015 NCAA postseason participants, including College World Series squads Vanderbilt, LSU and Florida.
- Fri. Feb. 26 at 9 p.m. ET - LHP Andy Cox (1-0, 2.25) vs. GCU RHP Jorge Perez (1-0, 0.00)
- Sat. Feb. 27 at 3 p.m. ET - LHP Zach Warren (1-0, 2.25) vs. SMC LHP Johnny York (1-0, 0.00)
- Sun. Feb. 28 at 1 p.m. ET - RHP Hunter Martin (0-0, 2.45) vs. CMU RHP Pat Leatherman (0-0, 2.25)
Tennessee vs. GCUC Opponents
- Overall vs. GCU: UT leads, 2-1
- Overall vs. SMC: First Meeting
- Overall vs. CMU: First Meeting
GCUC Opponents
Tournament host Grand Canyon (3-2) split a four-game series with Gonzaga to open the 2016 season last weekend in Phoenix. On Thursday night, the Lopes also earned a win over Central Michigan to begin the Grand Canyon Classic. Last season, the Lopes finish with a record of 32-22 and captured a first-ever WAC Championship title, marking the third year in a row for GCU hit the 30-win plateau.
Saint Mary's College (4-1) began their 2016 campaign winning three of four games vs. Seattle University before taking a 7-4 win vs. UC Santa Barbara on Tuesday. Last year, the Gaels finished 28-27 overall, 10-17 in the West Coast Conference and ended the year eighth in the WCC standings.
Following a 35-22 record and MAC Tournament appearance in 2015, Central Michigan opened the 2016 season going 0-4 vs. SEC opponent Arkansas, ranked No. 22 in the nation, in Fayetteville, Ark. and Grand Canyon.
UT's Arizona Ties
UT has a few connections to the state of Arizona, including senior right-hander Steven Kane and JUCO newcomer Matt Waldren.
Kane graduated from Sunrise Mountain HS (Peoria, Ariz.), where he posted a combined 23-6 record, including a 10-1 mark a a senior, with a 2.00 ERA and 65 strikeouts. Waldren, a native of Phoenix, Ariz., was a three-year letterman as an OF for Mesquite HS in Gilbert, Ariz., where he was Team Captain, MVP & a Golden Scholar Athlete.
Coaching Reunions
Head Coach Dave Serrano reunites with several assistant coaches from his past & Tennessee's previous seasons:
- GCU Head Coach Andy Stankiewicz, who has known Serrano since Little League - was a assistant on Serrano's 2012 USA Baseball Collegiate National Team.
- GCU's Nathan Choate served as Serrano's pitching coordinator on the 2007 UC Irvine CWS Team
- GCU's Gregg Wallis played for UC Irvine in 2005, Serrano's first team as a head coach. He followed Serrano as an assistant to Cal State Fullerton (2008-10) and was UT's director of ops/volunteer assistant coach from 2011-12.
About Last Weekend...
Tennessee went 2-1 in its Opening Weekend series vs. the Memphis Tigers at AT&T Field in Chattanooga, Tenn. The series marked the first time for the Vols to face Memphis in a three-game series since 1981 and with the pair of wins, UT moved to 15-20 in the all-time series vs. Memphis.
The 2016 Volunteers
Among the 34 active members of this year's squad, the Volunteers are led by eight seniors, marking the most on a UT Baseball roster since 2004 (also eight). On the pitching staff, seniors Andy Cox and Steven Kane look to provide a veteran presense, while the 2016 lineup is scattered with senior experience from infielders Jeff Moberg and Jared Pruett, catcher Tyler Schultz and outfielders Vincent Jackson, Chris Hall and Derek Lance.
Of Tennessee's eight seniors, four have spent their entire four-year collegiate career with the Orange and White (Cox, Jackson, Lance and Moberg).
This year, Tennessee also welcomes 11 newcomers to Rocky Top, including four junior college transfers and seven true freshmen. Among the new faces expected to make an immediate impact vs. Memphis are starting shortstop Max Bartlett (Gulf Coast State), right-handed closer Jon Lipinski (Palm Beach State) and potential designated hitter Daniel Neal, who was voted Mr. Kentucky Baseball as a senior at South Laurel High School (Ky.) in 2015.
Preseason Accolades
Boasting four preseason All-America nominations and a Preseason Golden Spikes Award Watch List nod, junior Nick Senzel looks to settle in as Tennessee's every day third baseman in 2016. Following a breakout summer in the Cape Cod League, where he earned Cape MVP and Most Outstanding Pro Prospect honors, Senzel has been named No. 5 on Baseball America's Top 100 Draft Prospects list as well as No. 14 on MLB.com's 2016 Draft Prospects list.
Among MLB.com's top-rated, draft-eligible players entering 2016 was right-handed pitcher Kyle Serrano, who made his season debut on the mound last Saturday, Feb. 20 vs. Memphis. Serrano, tabbed as No. 42 on Baseball America's Top 100 MLB Draft Prospects list, was also listed as No. 18 on D1Baseball.com's 2016 Top 20 Juniors ranking in 2016. Last season, Serrano led the Vols' pitching staff in wins with a 5-4 record and a 4.47 ERA through 54.1 innings of work.
On Deck for the Vols
The Vols return home to Rocky Top next week and prepare for their 2016 home opener against Cincinnati, slated for Wednesday, March 2 at 4 p.m. ET.
