The Tennessee Volunteers went 25 consecutive baseball seasons without winning 20 Southeastern Conference games in a single spring.
They’ve now reached that challenging milestone three times in the past four years, with the top-ranked Vols attaining the feat with Thursday night’s 9-3 pummelling of No. 24 South Carolina inside Lindsey Nelson Stadium. Tennessee improved to 44-10 overall and to 20-8 in SEC play, while the Gamecocks fell to 33-19 and 13-15.
“I think it’s nice that this group is flexible,” Vols coach Tony Vitello said during a news conference afterward. “A couple of years ago and even the year before, we had guys slated in very specific spots, whether on the mound or in the lineup. I don’t know that we’ll get to that spot this year to where it’s just stationary.”
Well, other than Christian Moore at the leadoff spot.
The junior second baseman, who was a member of Baylor School’s 2019 TSSAA Division II-AA state championship team as a prep sophomore, went 3-for-4 Thursday with two home runs and a single off the top of the right-field wall. His two homers give him 26 for the season and 53 for his career, which are both program records.