Vols force a decisive Game 3 with an 8-4 win
Drop a quarter in the Applebees jukebox and cue up the Bee Gees because the Vols are staying alive. Chase Dollander pitched 8+ strong innings, the Tennessee bats came to life with a 6-spot in the 4th inning, and the Volunteers staved off elimination and forced a decisive Game 3 in the Hattiesburg Super Regional […]
Drop a quarter in the Applebees jukebox and cue up the Bee Gees because the Vols are staying alive.
Chase Dollander pitched 8+ strong innings, the Tennessee bats came to life with a 6-spot in the 4th inning, and the Volunteers staved off elimination and forced a decisive Game 3 in the Hattiesburg Super Regional on Monday with an 8-4 win in Game 2.
Southern Miss jumped out to an early 4-0 in the 3rd inning after Christopher Sargent followed a Dustin Dickerson RBI single with a 3-run home run. It seemed as though the Vols were simply snakebit in southern Mississippi.
Then, the fourth inning happened. Griffin Merritt singled home Christian Moore to get the Vols on the board at 4-1. Blake Burke followed with one of the longest home runs of the college baseball season.
The distance was said to be 479 feet, but it might as well have been 579 from what it looked like to the naked eye.
The blast lit the fuse for the Vols offense, who were not done in the 4th. With the bases loaded, Jared Dickey lined a base hit to center, and the ball went under Matthew Etzel's glove and to the wall. All baserunners scored, Dickey exulted at third base, and the series had suddenly turned in a big way.
It was a moment that went completely against the Vols yesterday. Hunter Ensley's missed dive in the 1st inning saw the ball roll to the wall, and the Golden Eagles plated the series' first two runs.
Tennessee added on two more runs in the 5th on another error by the Golden Eagles, who committed four on the day. Christian Scott grounded out to first base, but first baseman Sargent's throw was offline and ended up rolling to the backstop, scoring both Merritt and Burke.
From there, Dollander carried the team to the finish line. He retired 16 of his last 18 batters with 7 strikeouts, making it into the 9th inning on 111 pitches. Chase Burns, a potential Game 3 starter, came into the game after Dollander opened the 9th with a walk, and then he struck out Nick Monistere and induced a game-ending double play grounder from Carson Paetow.
The rubber match and ticket to Omaha will take place tomorrow, although the game time and starters have not yet been announced. Regardless, after Dollander's strong performance, the Vols will have most of their pitching staff available for the contest.
And, they'll also have a little thing called momentum on their side.
Featured image via Brianna Paciorka/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK
