Offensive struggles were the story for Tennessee over the last week, but over the last couple of games, the Volunteer bats have delivered. Coming off of a 20-2 explosion against Tennessee Tech, the Vols delivered again this evening in Athens to open SEC play.
Taking on No. 6 Georgia, Henry Ford got things rolling in the top of the 3rd with a 2-run single back up the middle. Teagan Kuhns was rolling along until the 5th, where trouble struck. A solo shot from Ryan Black got the Bulldogs on the board,
but Georgia wasn’t done. A string of hits would end up scoring three more runs, ending Kuhns’ night on the mound and giving the Bulldogs a 4-2 lead.
Tennessee would put two on in the next inning, and Manny Marin delivered a key hit to tie things up. It was a 2-run double, which ended up chasing Georgia starter Joey Volchko.
Tied at 4-4, the Tennessee bats came alive.
It was Henry Ford — then Stone Lawless — then Manny Marin — each hitting solo shots to build the Tennessee lead out to 7-4 in the 7th and 8th innings.
Brandon Arvidson took over on the mound for Tennessee and shut things down for the rest of the night. Following Kuhns, Arvidson went 4.1 innings, giving up just two hits and striking out four. Following Tennessee’s three solo homers, Arvidson would be credited with the victory — his first of the season.
Tennessee moves to 14-4 on the season and now just a win away this weekend from clinching their first SEC series. It would be quite the statement weekend for Josh Elander’s group, doing this against a top ten team on the road. We’ll see if this offense can keep that momentum going on Saturday. First pitch is set for 5 p.m. ET.
