Tennessee bats go cold in extended game 1 loss to Southern Miss
The Tennessee Volunteers' Super Regional start involved one key word: disaster. Both their luck in the early stages of the game and the weather that cursed Hattiesburg for most of Saturday. The Vols started off the game on Saturday in a 2-0 hole after Hunter Ensley laid out for a fly ball with two outs […]
The Tennessee Volunteers' Super Regional start involved one key word: disaster. Both their luck in the early stages of the game and the weather that cursed Hattiesburg for most of Saturday.
The Vols started off the game on Saturday in a 2-0 hole after Hunter Ensley laid out for a fly ball with two outs and two runners on. The ball squirted under his glove and rolled to the fence, and the Vols were off to a bad start early in the first game of the series.
Southern Miss added a pair of home runs by Dustin Dickerson and Nick Monistere in the 3rd and 4th innings to push the lead to 4-0. Tennessee threatened with two on in the bottom of the 4th, but the game was suspended with two outs and two strikes on Christian Moore due to lightning. He struck out after the game was resumed. Shortly, thereafter, lightning and rain put the teams in an extended delay, and late in the evening, the game was suspended for the day.
On Sunday, the game was resumed in the 5th inning, and the Vols quickly put the pressure on Southern Miss, loading the bases with two outs. Ensley was plunked, and the Vols had their first run at 4-1. The Golden Eagles then turned to Justin Storm, who was expected by the broadcast crew to be the Game 2 starter later in the day. Jared Dickey lined a pitch to center to drive in two and draw the Vols to within 4-3. Griffin Merritt struck out on a full count, but Tennessee had made an impact with a three spot in their first opportunity.
But that would be it for the Vols on the day. Southern Miss added a run in the top of the 6th on an RBI groundout, and that would be the game's final score. Storm allowed only two hits over 4.1 innings to finish out the game and get the win.
UT managed a meager four hits for the game, with three of them coming from the top three spots in the lineup. If the rest of the lineup can't come around quickly, then Vols season will end quickly on a (finally) sunny afternoon in southern Mississippi.
Featured image via Brianna Paciorka/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK
