The record start to Tennessee’s baseball season now includes a run-rule victory over a top-10 opponent.
Marcus Phillips pitched seven innings Saturday afternoon for the top-ranked Volunteers, and that wound up being a complete game after a nine-run bottom of the seventh turned their 1-0 advantage into a stunning 10-0 defeat of No. 7 Florida inside Lindsey Nelson Stadium. The Vols improved to 19-0 and will go for a 20th opening triumph in Sunday afternoon’s finale to the three-game series — the first in Southeastern Conference play this season for each team.
“If our guys will take the right approach, you can only hold them down — over the course of three days, I would like to think we’re going to get something going,” Tennessee coach Tony Vitello said afterward in a news conference. “I just think it was a unique inning where we had seen such great stuff and that there wasn’t anything that was going to surprise our guys or get them shaking.
“The box score doesn’t make sense, but I know it was a fun inning to end the day.”
Tennessee’s seventh inning began with singles by Reese Chapman and Manny Marin, and the Vols then loaded the bases when Jay Abernathy drew a one-out walk. Dean Curley cleared those bases with a double down the left-field line, but 4-0 quickly became 7-0 on Hunter Ensley’s RBI single to left and Andrew Fischer’s two-run single to left-center.
Chapman came to the plate for the second time in the inning and launched a three-run home run to right to abruptly end the contest that took place before 5,575 fans.
Phillips became the first Vols pitcher this season to throw seven innings, with the 6-foot-4, 246-pounder allowing five hits while striking out seven batters and lowering his earned run average to 0.82.
“I had a lot of things working for me, but what was mainly working was our defense,” Phillips said. “I had a lot of balls hit right at people, and they made some good plays. I think I had some good pitches, but I think our defense is what made the difference.”
The Vols indeed produced defensive play after defensive play, beginning with Abernathy slamming into the left-field wall in the second inning after making a catch. Tennessee in the seventh retired the Gators (16-4) with catcher Stone Lawless fielding a slow roller up the third-base line and throwing to first base in time, second baseman Gavin Kilen unleashing a throw to first from the outfield grass, and Lawless throwing to second to catch Brody Donay stealing for the third out.
Tennessee took its 1-0 lead in the second inning, when Levi Clark led off with a double down the right-field line and scored on Marin’s one-out single to center.
Vitello did not name a starter for Sunday’s finale, which is scheduled to start at 1. It will be available on the SEC Network+ streaming option.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.