Tennessee survived with its latest softball victory. If the Lady Volunteers can win again Sunday, they’ll advance – to the Women’s College World Series.
Haley Bearden drew a bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift the Lady Vols to a 3-2 victory over Florida on Saturday night in the second game of their NCAA super regional.
Tennessee evened the best-of-three series after dropping the opener Friday in Gainesville, 3-0, and forced a deciding third game at 2 p.m. Sunday.
The 12th-seeded Lady Vols (42-16) took the first lead of Saturday’s game in the first inning as Aubrey Leach led off with a single, stole second base and moved to third on a wild pitch before scoring on Chelsea Seggern’s one-out single to right field. Bearden followed with a single and stole second, but she and Seggern were left stranded via a strikeout and flyout.
Fifth-seeded Florida (48-15) made it 1-all on Jaimie Hoover’s RBI single in the top of the fourth, but the Lady Vols answered in the bottom half when Madison Pacini singled to drive in former Silverdale Baptist Academy standout Kaili Phillips, who led off by being hit on the first pitch she saw, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Ashley Morgan and went to third on Cailin Hannon’s flyout to center field.
The Gators came right back in the fifth with Hannah Adams’ RBI single with two outs, and while the Lady Vols put runners on first and second with no outs in the bottom half, they moved no farther.
Tennessee went 1-2-3 in the sixth, had runners on first and second with two outs in the seventh and advanced Hannon to third in the eighth before she was caught trying to steal home for the third out.
In the ninth, Leach walked with one out, advanced to second when Amanda Ayala walked and moved to third when Seggern singled. That set up Bearden, who was patient with a full count to draw the walk that allowed Leach to trot home for the winning run.