KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Another explosive offensive performance resulted in a 16-6 run-rule win for No. 7/8 Tennessee in Sunday’s series finale against Bowling Green at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
The Vols (11-1) completed their second consecutive series sweep and rank their winning streak to 10 games with Sunday’s victory. Since the start of the 2020 season, UT has swept 13 of its 15 non-conference home series.
The Big Orange set the tone early with a four-run first inning and added five more in the second to race out to an early 9-2 lead. They finished with a season-high 17 base hits thanks to multi-hit efforts from four different players. Cannon Peebles and Dalton Bargo led the charge with three hits apiece while combining for four RBIs and four runs scored on the day.
Dylan Dreiling also had a productive afternoon at the plate, posting a career-best four RBIs on two hits, including a three-run homer in Tennessee’s five-run second inning. Ethan Payne had a career-high two hits and drove in a run, as well.
The Vols used eight different pitchers in the game with Kirby Connell picking up the win after an impressive inning of work. The veteran lefty entered the contest with runners on first and second with nobody out in the third but escaped the jam unscathed with a groundout and a pair of strikeouts to strand two runners on base.
Sam Seidel and Gavin Ganun led the Falcons’ offensively with two RBIs each, but no BGSU player recorded more than one hit on the day.
Starting pitcher Calvin Mitchell suffered the loss after allowing four runs on five hits in just one inning of work.
UP NEXT: Tennessee is slated to play five more home games next week, starting for a midweek showdown against Kansas State on Tuesday at 6 p.m.
STAT OF THE GAME: The Vols scored seven of their 16 runs with two outs and went 7-for-13 at the plate with two outs in the game. UT also was 10-of-16 with runners in scoring position.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The ninth-ranked Lady Vols hit five home runs on Sunday at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium as they picked up two more wins in the Tennessee Classic – beating Stetson 3-2 and Longwood 12-1.
Graduate Kiki Milloy hit a pair of bombs in game two versus Longwood – opening the outing with a leadoff homer before roping her second of the day in the fourth inning. Tennessee’s all-time home runs leader, Milloy has hit six homers this season with three coming over the weekend.
Milloy also stole three bases in the day’s first game versus Stetson and has six stolen bases in the last four games.
Destiny Rodriguez was the hero against Stetson as her sixth-inning home run proved to be the game-winner. With the game tied 2-2, Rodriguez blasted a ball off the top of the scoreboard in left to put UT ahead by a run and clinch the victory.
The long ball was Rodriguez’s four of the season and her second game-winner.
In the circle, Charli Orsini got the start against Stetson and tossed 4.1 innings. She scattered four hits and two runs – one earned – with a pair of strikeouts. Karlyn Pickens came on in relief with the game tied and threw the final 2.2 frames.
She allowed just one hit, struck out five and walked one as she earned the win and moved to 6-2 on the year.
Payton Gottshall went the distance in Tennessee’s run-rule win over Longwood as she pitched five innings. The graduate struck out eight, while giving up one run on four hits. With the win, Gottshall is 5-2 in 2024.
GAME ONE – #9 Tennessee 3, Stetson 2 In the first inning against the Hatters, senior Zaida Puni started the scoring with a grounder to short. Her hit allowed Milloy to break for home and slide in to beat the tag at the plate for Tennessee’s opening run.
Senior Rylie West continued to swing a hot bat as her third-inning double to right center plated Milloy and gave UT a 2-0 lead.
Stetson’s Annabella McClerren tied the game in the fifth with a two-run home run, setting the stage for Rodriguez’s second game-winning blast of the season.
With one out and a 2-1 count in the bottom of the sixth, Rodriguez plunked the top of Tennessee’s scoreboard in left-center field to put UT ahead and clinch the game-one win.
GAME TWO – #9 Tennessee 12, Longwood 1 No heroics were needed in the second game of the day versus Longwood as the Lady Vols jumped out quick on the Lancers, scoring eight runs in the first two innings.
Milloy led off the game with a homer in the bottom of the first before UT cranked up the offense in the second, plating seven runs on three hits.
Rodriguez drew a bases-loaded walk – one of 10 walks drawn by the Lady Vols in the game – to drive in UT’s second run. West cleared the bases in the next at-bat, hitting a grand slam to straightaway center field.
Tennessee added two more runs in the frame off a bases-loaded walk and a Sophia Nugent grounder that Katie Taylor was able to score on.
Longwood got one run back in the third as Kayley Devivi roped an RBI double to left.
McKenna Gibson responded for the Lady Vols as she hit a two-run home run in the bottom half of the inning. The homer marked her third of the season.
Also in the third, Taylor Pannell drove in a run with a sac fly to center.
Opening and closing the night, Milloy hit her second home run of the game in the fourth to put the Lady Vols up 12-1.
UP NEXT The Lady Vols and Lancers will close out the 2024 Tennessee Classic with a Monday matinee. First pitch from Sherri Parker Lee Stadium is set for noon ET. The game can be streamed on SEC Network+ or through the ESPN app.
Voice of the Lady Vols Brian Rice will mark his first game in the booth for Tennessee softball in 2024 on Monday. Fans can listen to his call via a free audio broadcast through UTSports.com or the Tennessee Gameday app.
The University of Tennessee is planning on pumping $85 million into upgrades for Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center.
The upgrades were originally announced when UT signed a naming deal with Food City, officially changing the name of their arena. At the time, UT announced new club amenities, changes to the Ray Mears Room and a new center-hung video board.
Food City is paying $20 million dollars for their 10 year parntership.
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee visits with troops ahead of their deployment to the southern border.
Lee committed to deploying more troops during a trip to the southern border with 14 other Republican governors just over a month ago.
Lee says it was an honor to stand before them Saturday and called the ongoing issues at the southern border “a true crisis for our country” with concerns about human and drug trafficking.
He commends Tennessee’s National Guard troops for answering this important call to service and providing critical support.
The Knox County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a teen after she threatened to “shoot up” a school in Farragut.
The Knox County Sheriff’s Office says 18 year-old Amina Fatima Albaraqi posted a picture of a gun to social media and said “shoot up Farragut” and “shoot up the school.” KCSO says deputies took her into custody with the help of special agents from the Tennessee Office of Homeland Security and KCS school security.
Officials say she specifically targeted Farragut High School and threatened two specific students.
An Amber Alert remains active for a missing autistic teen boy out of middle Tennessee.
There has not been a confirmed sighting of 15-year-old Sebastian Rogers since his disappearance on February 26th. He’s 5′5″, 120 pounds, with brown hair, and brown eyes, last seen in Hendersonville, Tennessee, wearing a black sweatshirt, black sweatpants and glasses.
Search-and-rescue dogs haven’t been able to pick up hid scent. He was last seen in Hendersonville, just outside of Nashville.
Authorities want the public to search their property and any surrounding waterways, as those with autism are known to favor water.
Anyone with information is asked to call 1-800-TBI FIND
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – After its early 11-point lead become a seven-point second-half deficit Saturday night at No. 14/13 Alabama, the University of Tennessee men’s basketball team stormed back to claim its second top-15 win of the week with an 81-74 triumph.
In a matchup of the conference’s co-lead, fourth-ranked Tennessee (23-6, 13-3 SEC) got a team-best 18 points from junior guard Zakai Zeigler at a sold-out Coleman Coliseum. The Crimson Tide had won 16 straight SEC games in the building, which held College GameDay earlier in the afternoon for the first time ever.
The Volunteers scored 10 straight points in just 2:59 midway through the opening half to grab an 11-point edge, 23-12, with 10:53 on the clock. They held Alabama (20-9, 12-4 SEC) scoreless for a span of 3:46 and made eight of their first 14 shots, while the home team hit just four of its opening 15.
The Crimson Tide hit six of their next seven field-goal attempts, sparking a 17-7 run to slice the deficit to one, but Tennessee answered with the next nine in just 1:09, going back up by 10, 39-29, with 3:47 left in the frame. Alabama, though, scored the final 12 points of the session, all in a span of 2:27, and took a 39-37 advantage into the locker room.
After a 10-of-21 start from the field, Tennessee went 2-of-11 down the stretch of the half and finished it 12-of-32 (37.5 percent), including 5-of-21 (23.8 percent) beyond the arc. At the other end, the Crimson Tide made 10 of its final 16 shots to post a 14-of-31 (45.2 percent) clip, including a 7-of-20 (35.0 percent) ledger on 3-pointers. Both teams missed just two free throws, but the Volunteers attempted 12 and conceded only eight.
Alabama logged five of the second half’s opening six points, making it a 17-1 extended surge over 4:31, to take a then-game-best six-point lead, 46-40, but Tennessee countered with a 9-2 burst featuring a trio of 3-pointers in 1:08 to go back in front, 49-48, with 16:53 to go.
The Volunteers, however, missed their next 10 field goals—part of a 1-of-13 stretch—and Alabama went on a 10-2 run during 3:32 of that span, going up by a game-high seven points, 58-51, with 13:43 remaining. Tennessee responded with a 19-7 burst—the Crimson Tide had its own 1-of-17 stretch from the field—to go ahead by five, 70-65, with 3:38 left.
Tennessee pushed the margin up to seven, 79-72, with 17.2 seconds remaining and the two sides exchanged the final four points to make it a seven-point final margin. Zeigler iced the game at the line with 5.4 seconds to go.
After allowing the Crimson Tide to start 6-of-8 from the field, including 2-of-4 beyond the arc, in the first five-and-a-half minutes of the second half, Tennessee held their opponent to a 3-of-21 mark from the floor. Alabama, KenPom’s top-ranked offense in the country, missed all 13 of its 3-point attempts during that time against the stingy Tennessee defense.
Zeigler scored 13 of his 18 points in the second half and paced Tennessee with four assists in the game. Fifth-year guard Dalton Knecht tallied 13 points, his second-lowest total in SEC play, as he battled foul trouble, but hit a key jump-shot with 2:30 left to triple the lead.
Junior forward Jonas Aidoo, who played only 23 minutes after committing two fouls in the first five minutes of the contest, finished with 12 points—all but two came in the second half—and seven rebounds.
Fifth-year guard Josiah-Jordan James, who tipped out a missed free throw in the closing seconds leading to Zeigler’s game-clinching shots at the line, totaled 11 points and a season-best 13 rebounds, one shy of his career high, to lead all players. The Charleston, S.C., native shot 3-of-6 from 3-point range. Jordan Gainey added nine points and fellow junior guard Jahmai Mashack posted eight to go along with a season-high-tying six rebounds.
Alabama senior guard Mark Sears led all scorers with 22 points, but Tennessee limited him to a 2-of-8 clip from long range. Graduate student guard Aaron Estrada had 16 points and eight rebounds, while senior forward Nick Pringle compiled 13 points and a team-best nine boards.
In a matchup of two vaunted offensive attacks, both sides shot under 40 percent on the night, but Tennessee took three more 3-pointers, all of which were makes, as it went 12-of-40 (30.0 percent) and allowed a 9-of-37 (24.3 percent). The Volunteers also had a 15-10 advantage in second-chance points
Up next for Tennessee is its road finale and its third of four straight top-20 matchups, as it travels to Columbia, S.C., where Wednesday at 7 p.m. it faces No. 18 South Carolina at Colonial Life Arena, live on ESPN2.
To keep up with the University of Tennessee men’s basketball team on social media, follow @Vol_Hoops on Instagram and X/Twitter, as well as /tennesseebasketball on Facebook.
TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS POSTGAME NOTES • Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes now owns 802 victories in his career, three behind Rick Byrd for No. 14 on the all-time wins list (min. 10 years at a Division I school). • The Volunteers upped their winning streak against Alabama to three in a row, with the Crimson Tide in the KenPom top seven for all three contests. • Nine of the last 11 matchups, including seven of the past eight, between Tennessee and Alabama have been determined by single digits. • Tennessee’s victory snapped Alabama’s 16-game home winning streak in SEC play, as it last lost to a conference foe at Coleman Coliseum exactly two years ago when it dropped an 81-77 decision versus Texas A&M, after which it went 9-0 last season and started 7-0 in 2023-24. • In two matchups with Tennessee, Alabama has posted its lowest point total (71 on Jan. 20 in Knoxville, Tenn.) and co-second-lowest point total of the season, as half of its four outings with under 75 points are against the Volunteers. • The Volunteers have now won back-to-back games over AP top-15 foes—with no other outings in between—for the first time in over 24 years, as they last did so on Jan. 18/25, 2000, when they won at ninth-ranked Florida, 81-79, in double-overtime and then beat seventh-ranked Auburn, 105-76, both while ranked in the top 20. • The last time Tennessee won back-to-back contests versus AP top-25 teams—with no other games in between—was over 17 years ago, as it last did so on Feb. 10/13, 2007, when it claimed consecutive home triumphs over No. 23 Vanderbilt, 83-57, and No. 20 Kentucky, 89-85, both while unranked. • Tennessee improved to 26-20 (.565) in AP top-25 matchups under Barnes, including 20-13 (.606) with both teams in the top 20 and 12-7 (.632) with each in the top 15. • With a 2-0 mark this season, the Volunteers are now 3-3 (.500) in AP top-15 road matchups during Barnes’ tenure. • Tennessee upped its record to 4-1 in its last five games on the road against AP top-15 teams, dating back to March 3, 2020—a victory, while unranked, at sixth-ranked Kentucky—after previously dropping 10 such games in a row over the course of seven seasons. • The Volunteers moved to 28-27 (.509) versus AP top-20 teams under Barnes, including 21-20 (.512) against top-15 foes. • Over its last 17 games against top-15 opponents, going back to Dec. 22, 2021, against Arizona, Tennessee now possesses a 14-3 (.824) record. • Saturday marked just the third time in the last 16 seasons (2008-24) the Volunteers took 40-plus free throws, including the first such occasion in SEC play, as the prior ones were Nov. 7, 2022, against Tennessee Tech (14-of-44) and Nov. 9, 2021, versus UT-Martin (17-of-40). • Aidoo and sophomore forward Tobe Awaka each had two fouls by the 11:43 mark of the opening half, with the former playing just 4:37 first-half minutes and the latter only 3:40. • Fifth-year guard Santiago Vescovi passed Wayne Chism (2006-10) for sole possession of second place on the Volunteers’ all-time games played list with his 143rd appearance. • James passed Josh Richardson (2011-15) to enter the top 10 on Tennessee’s career minutes played leaderboard, now with 3,848. • The double-double for James marked his eighth as a collegian, including his third this season. • James pulled down double-digit rebounds for the 13th time in his career, including the third in 2023-24. • James’ previous season high in rebounds was 12, which he recorded on Nov. 20, 2023, versus Syracuse in Honolulu. • The prior game this season in which Mashack pulled down six rebounds was on Jan. 10 at Mississippi State. • Knecht is the fifth SEC player in the last 19 years (2005-24) to record 13-plus points in at least 15 straight league games in a single campaign, joining Kentucky’s Antonio Reeves (2023-24), Vanderbilt’s John Jenkins (2011-12), Kentucky’s Jodie Meeks (2008-09) and LSU’s Glen Davis (2005-06).
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 7/8 Tennessee continued its hot start to the season with its second straight run-rule win, downing Bowling Green 12-1 in seven innings on Saturday night in front of a record crowd of 5,343 at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
Following AJ Causey’s dominant outing on Friday night, Drew Beam gave the Vols another great start on Saturday, allowing one run on five hits and one walk in six innings to improve to 2-0 on the year. The junior righthander also finished with a season-high nine strikeouts, one away from tying a career best.
For the second consecutive day, UT homered four times, showing off its impressive array of power up and down the lineup.
After Falcons’ leadoff man DJ Newman homered to start the game, the Vols responded immediately with back-to-back home runs in the bottom of the first by Christian Moore and Blake Burke to take a lead that they would never relinquish.
Burke added another long ball in the sixth inning and finished the night with three hits, three runs and two RBIs. Billy Amick registered another impressive hitting performance, as well, going 3-for-3 with a walk, three runs scored, a home run and two RBIs. The junior third baseman leads the team with seven round trippers this season and has homered in all three games this week.
Sophomore catcher Cannon Peebles also had a nice night at the dish with a pair of hits, a run scored and an RBI. The NC State transfer has recorded back-to-back multi-hit performances this week.
Leading 5-1 heading into the bottom of the sixth inning, UT busted the game wide open with seven runs in the frame, all coming with two outs.
Shortstop Sam Seidel led Bowling Green (2-6) with two hits. Starting pitcher Nic Good had eight strikeouts but suffered his first loss of the year after allowing four runs on seven hits in four innings of work.
UP NEXT: Tennessee (10-1) will look to extend its winning streak to 10 games and finish off the sweep in Sunday’s series finale, which is slated for a 1 p.m. start.
STAT OF THE GAME: The Vols mashed four home runs for the second game in a row and have now hit four long balls in a game four different times this season.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Playing in the friendly confines of Sherri Parker Lee Stadium for the first time in 2024, the ninth-ranked Lady Vols run-ruled Stetson and Brown – 8-0 and 9-1, respectively – on Saturday.
Graduate Kiki Milloy heated up back on Rocky Top, going 3-for-4 (.750) on the night with a triple, home run, three runs scored, three RBIs and three stolen bases over two games.
Junior McKenna Gibson also stood out as she went 3-for-6 (.500) with a run scored, one double, one home run and three RBIs.
In the circle, sophomore Karlyn Pickens pitched a one-hit complete-game shutout against Stetson. The right-hander struck out three over five innings of work – earning her fifth win and third shutout of the year.
Versus Brown, sophomore Charli Orsini got the start and tossed 2.2 innings – allowing one run on two hits with a pair of strikeouts. Graduate Payton Gottshall came on out of the bullpen to close out the final 2.1 frames. She fanned three and held the Bears hitless as she picked up her fourth victory in 2024.
GAME ONE – #9 Tennessee 8, Stetson 0 It took a couple of innings for the bats to heat up against Stetson, but the Lady Vols broke through with a pair of runs in the third. Destiny Rodriguez and Taylor Pannell knocked in both runs with back-to-back RBI singles.
Milloy started the run-rule win in the home half of the fifth as she led off the inning with a home run – the 60th blast of her career.
Puni did not miss as she launched a three-run home run into the stands in left field to end the game and open the night with a win.
GAME TWO – #9 Tennessee 9, Brown 1 Gibson starred in the nightcap as she went 2-for-3 with a run scored, a double, a home run and three RBIs. She got UT going immediately in the first with a two-run homer – her second long ball of the season.
Brown responded with a run-scoring double in the top of the third – cutting UT’s lead to 2-1.
In the bottom half of the inning, Gibson again sparked the offense with an RBI double of her own. Puni followed with an RBI single and passed the bat to Rodriguez who capped the frame with a two-run home run off the scoreboard in left.
Milloy roped a two-RBI single in the fourth to put the Big Orange up 8-1 and in the fifth, Pannell walked it off with an RBI single to center.
UP NEXT Tennessee is back in action with two games on Sunday, starting at 11:30 a.m. ET against Stetson. The Lady Vols will end day two of the Tennessee Classic with Longwood and a 4:30 p.m. scheduled first pitch.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Back home after spending three weeks on the road, No. 9 Tennessee is set to welcome Brown, Longwood and Stetson to Sherri Parker Lee Stadium for the 2024 Tennessee Classic – running March 1-4.
Due to expected inclement weather on Friday, the original schedule has changed with only one game slated for Friday – Stetson vs. Brown at 6 p.m. ET – with Saturday and Sunday featuring four games throughout the day.
Tennessee will also play one game against Longwood on Monday, with first pitch scheduled for noon.
A full tournament schedule can be seen below:
FRIDAY, MARCH 1 G1: 6:00 p.m. – Stetson vs. Brown
SATURDAY, MARCH 2 G2: 10:00 a.m. – Longwood vs. Stetson
G3: 12:30 p.m. – Longwood vs. Brown
G4: 3:00 p.m. – Tennessee vs. Stetson
G5: 5:30 p.m. – Tennessee vs. Brown
SUNDAY, MARCH 3 G6: 9:00 a.m. – Stetson vs. Brown
G7: 11:30 a.m. – Tennessee vs. Stetson
G8: 2:00 p.m. – Brown vs. Longwood
G9: 4:30 p.m. – Tennessee vs. Longwood
MONDAY, MARCH 4 G10: 12:00 p.m. – Tennessee vs. Longwood
BROADCAST INFO All Tennessee games throughout the weekend will be available to stream on SEC Network+ or through the WatchESPN app.
Fans can also listen to a free audio broadcast of all four of Tennessee’s games via UTSports.com and the Tennessee Athletics Gameday app.
All streaming, live stats and radio links can be found by visiting the Tennessee softball schedule page at UTSports.com.
NOTABLE CAREER ACTIVE LEADERS Graduate Payton Gottshall is playing her fifth season of collegiate softball and has quietly put together an impressive resume.
The rankings below highlight Gottshall’s numbers against other active career leaders.
Category Stat NCAA Rank SEC Rank Games start 100 4 2 Strikeouts 952 1 1 Inn. Pitched 680.7 4 2
NO FREE PASSES Tennessee’s pitching staff ranks eighth nationally in strikeout-to-walk ratio with a mark of 4.94. Individually, Payton Gottshall is 12th in the nation and leads the SEC at 12.67. Sophomore Karlyn Pickens is seventh in the conference with a 6.57 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
PICK-ING THEM APART Karlyn Pickens struck out 30 batters last weekend over 16.1 innings of work – and walked just two. The hard-throwing right-hander has 46 strikeouts this season – a mark that ranks 28th in the country and fifth in the SEC.
MAKING HISTORY Kiki Milloy and Karlyn Pickens made history last weekend against Loyola Marymount as Milloy hit her 58th career home run to become Tennessee’s all-time home runs leader. In the circle, Pickens tossed her second-career perfect game, joining Monica Abbott and Erin Gabriel as the only pitchers in program history to pitch multiple perfect games.
SCOUTING BROWN
Head Coach (Record at Brown): Kate Refsnyder (72-168)
2024 Record: 3-2
Series Record: First meeting
Last Meeting: N/A
SCOUTING LONGWOOD
Head Coach (Record at Longwood): Dr. Megan Brown (95-82)
2024 Record: 3-9
Series Record: Tennessee leads 6-0
Last Meeting: W, 8-0 on May 17, 2019 in Knoxville
SCOUTING STETSON
Head Coach (Record at Stetson): Shellie Robinson (55-73)
2024 Record: 6-10
Series Record: Tennessee leads 6-0
Last Meeting: W, 11-0 (5) on Feb. 12, 2011 in DeLand, Florida
UP NEXT Tennessee will take a quick trip to Clemson, South Carolina, on Tuesday, March 5 for a midweek top 10 matchup against the Tigers at McWhorter Stadium. The game is slated for a 6 p.m. first pitch.
