Tennessee won twice this past weekend at the Shriners Children’s College Showdown in Arlington, Texas, but it’s the one that got away from the Volunteers that expects to be the focus in practice.
The No. 9 Vols opened Friday night with a 6-2 downing of No. 21 Texas Tech and closed Sunday night with an 11-5 thumping of Baylor. In between was Saturday night’s 5-1 loss to Oklahoma in 10 innings, a game in which Tennessee stranded 11 on base.
“I think right now it’s just hitting with runners in scoring position,” Vols junior shortstop Christian Moore quickly said following Sunday’s triumph when asked by reporters what the team needed to address. “We had a few times where we left guys on base, so that’s definitely something we need to work on.
“Overall, I think this was a really good weekend. It was a good test for us.”
Tennessee was declared the champion of the six-team event after four teams went 2-1. The Vols had the best run differential of the four with a plus-6.
Moore hit .462 with three doubles at Globe Life Field, the home of the World Series champion Texas Rangers, while third baseman Billy Amick hit .308 with two home runs and five RBIs. Amick is a junior who received plenty of preseason All-Southeastern Conference consideration after hitting .413 with 13 homers and 63 RBIs in 46 games last season at Clemson.
“I would say that he was impressive, but I’ve been watching him do that all fall,” redshirt sophomore right fielder Kavares Tears said Sunday night. “You kind of expect nothing else from him. He’s a great player, and I think he’s going to play baseball for a long time.”
Up next for the Vols is a 15-game homestand that begins Tuesday afternoon at 4:30 against UNC Asheville. They will then face ETSU on Wednesday at 4:30 before welcoming Albany for a three-game series that starts Friday at 4:30.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.