With a 34-7 overall record that includes a 12-6 mark in Southeastern Conference play, the Tennessee Volunteers are having another successful baseball season.
That has especially held true on the road.
The Vols have won 10 times in 12 opportunities away from Knoxville this spring, which includes a three-game sweep at South Carolina and taking two of three at Alabama and Ole Miss. That ability to prevail away from Lindsey Nelson Stadium will be put to the test this weekend, when Tennessee challenges LSU inside Alex Box Stadium.
“You’ve got to want to do it, first of all,” Tennessee coach Tony Vitello said earlier this week in a news conference when asked about his team’s road success. “It’s kind of like getting the bunt signal. Step one is wanting to do it and not fighting it and having your dad throw a Gatorade bottle at the dugout because he’s upset you’re having to do it. I think this group looks forward to it, and I don’t know if that’s because they like being on the road together or they have confidence or whatever.
“I don’t know how to coach that, to be honest with you, but since we’ve been getting big crowds here, you’re hoping and wishing for a likeness when going on the road. I think this group has that, but having said that, you’re going to a place that’s as difficult to win as any place in the country.”