Tennessee completed a perfect 15-game homestand with ease Tuesday night, sending 10 to the plate in the third inning and nine more in the fourth during a 17-2 dismantling of Eastern Kentucky at Lindsey Nelson Stadium that was halted after seven innings.
Hunter Ensley, Dylan Dreiling, Kavares Tears, Christian Moore and Cal Stark each homered for the No. 5 Volunteers, with Stark's grand slam to left field in the sixth inning providing the 15-run margin. The No. 5 Volunteers have won 16 straight overall and will carry a 17-1 record into Friday night's Southeastern Conference opener at Alabama.
"I think we're in a good spot," Moore said afterward in a news conference. "Going into SEC play, I think we have a lot of momentum coming off a big weekend and tonight. I think losing early in the season kind of helped us, too, and it let us know where we're at."
Tennessee had 13 players collect a hit Tuesday, with Ensley and Tears snagging two hits apiece. Tears leads the Vols with a .426 batting average.
Zander Sechrist got the start for the Vols and worked into the fourth inning while facing the minimum 10 batters.
Tennessee has won nine of its 17 games by 10 or more runs, but coach Tony Vitello knows such smooth sailing is about to change with 30 league games on the way. Vitello was asked to assess his Vols heading into Tuscaloosa compared to the dawn of the season.
"I think they're a little tougher maybe than the coaches gave them credit for early on," Vitello said. "I think they've handled the lineup getting posted pretty good. There have certainly been guys up in the office who want to know what they've got to do to play more, but no one has complained or pouted.
"That sounds simple, but that is massive."
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.