Tennessee entered Tuesday night's game against Kansas State inside Lindsey Nelson Stadium having amassed 26 home runs through its first 12 contests but having yet to collect a grand slam.
Dean Curley changed that.
The freshman shortstop cleared the bases in the third inning, with his blast to left field abruptly turning a 4-2 game into an 8-2 runaway as the No. 8 Volunteers cruised to a 15-5 triumph. Curley followed his grand slam with a three-run homer to left in the fourth, and he added a two-run homer to center in the sixth to become the first freshman in Tennessee history to compile a three-homer performance.
"I've never hit three home runs in a game until tonight," Curley said in a news conference. "It was a great game against a good team in the other dugout. We just showed up today and played our game.
"I honestly blacked out on all three of them. I just saw the ball well and got all of them."
Curley also became the first Tennessee freshman to tally nine RBIs as the Vols improved to 12-1 overall with their 11th consecutive victory. They will host Southern Indiana on Wednesday night.
"As he gets older, he'll like what he did tonight," Vols coach Tony Vitello said, "but I think he'll appreciate the win more. This was a pretty good win."
Aaron Combs got the start for the Vols and struggled during the first inning, allowing two hits and a walk and committing an error on a pickoff attempt that advanced two runners. The Wildcats capitalized for a 2-0 lead, but that was erased in the second inning on Dylan Dreiling's two-run homer to left-center.
Tennessee went ahead to stay 3-2 later in the second on a Blake Burke double to left that scored Hunter Ensley, and the Vols made it 4-2 when Billy Amick opened the third with a homer down the left-field line.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.