University of Tennessee Athletics
University of Tennessee
Missouri
Vols Drop Series Finale at Mizzou, 8-3
May 01, 2016 | Baseball
COLUMBIA, Mo. -- After taking an early jump against Missouri in the series finale on Sunday, Tennessee fell behind in middle innings and couldn't recover as the Tigers took an 8-3 win at Taylor Stadium.
With Sunday's loss, Tennessee moves to 24-21 overall and 6-15 in conference play, while Mizzou is now 24-21 (7-14 SEC) over 45 games.
Offensively, the Volunteers were led by centerfielder Brodie Leftridge (2-for-4), who put together his second multi-hit game of the series, and Jordan Rodgers (2-for-4).
Leftridge helped put the Vols on the board in the third, knocking a leadoff triple and scoring on a sac fly by Lance in the next at-bat.
With bases loaded and one out in the bottom fourth, a two-run single by Mizzou third baseman Ian Nelson and a sac fly delivered by Kirby McGuire helped the Tigers scratch three runs across to move ahead.
Leftridge again helped Tennessee chip away in the fifth, reaching first on a bunt single and taking advantage of defensive miscues by Missouri to score.
With Mizzou holding a one-run lead in the bottom of the fifth, MU's Zach Lavy knocked a two-run homer to right field to further the Tigers' lead to 5-2.
Benito Santiago (1-for-4, RBI) hit an RBI-single to score Vincent Jackson (1-for-4) in the sixth, narrowing UT's deficit to a 5-3 score. But the Tigers went on to load the bases against Tennessee in the bottom of the sixth and plate three runs to extend their lead to 8-3.
In his second career start for the Big Orange, freshman Will Neely (1-1) dealt 5.0 innings and allowed six runs on six hits while striking out three batters.
Fellow freshman Alex Harper-Cook entered in relief of Neely in the sixth, surrendering two runs over 0.1 inning before Eric Freeman went to the hill for UT. Freeman tossed 1.2 scoreless frames and fanned two batters.
Tennessee then called upon junior Hunter Martin to face Mizzou for the bottom of the eighth. Martin worked quickly to retire three of four batters faced vs. the Tigers.
Vol Baseball Quick Hits
- With Sunday's loss, Tennessee is now 5-7 in their all-time series against Missouri since 2013.
- Sunday's attendance at Taylor Stadium: 720
- On Deck for the Vols: Tennessee (24-21, 6-15 SEC) hosts the No. 1-ranked Florida Gators for a three-game set at Lindsey Nelson Stadium next weekend, May 6-8. Each game will be available for viewing via SEC Network+ stream.
For the most up-to-date information on Tennessee Baseball, visit UTSports.com/Baseball and follow @Vol_Baseball on Twitter.
