13-year old Kelsea Ballerini is freaking out right now.
Well, the 2021 version of Kelsea Ballerini is also kind of freaking out right now too — after getting a call from the Jonas Brothers to go out on tour with them…
Kelsea is a long time Jonas Brothers fan — and just in case she’s called upon to come up and help with one of their songs, Kelsea shared a quick acoustic version of their hit “Burnin’ Up”
Starting in August, and running through the end of October Kelsea has about 40 dates on the books for The Remember This tour with the Jonas Brothers.
Fans will be excited to see this new one from Kelsea in concert – this is “half of my hometown” (featuring Kenny Chesney)
It was 2 years ago this week that Laine Hardy won Season 17 of American Idol.
To mark the anniversary Laine shared on social media “Thank y’all for sticking with me on this journey for the last couple years. I feel blessed to have the best fans!”
Laine also recently released his brand new single “Memorize You”
Talking about the track, he says “I’ve been so excited to get this out since the moment I heard the mix. I’ve been asking and asking when we could put it out. Well, it’s here!”
Check out the music video for Laine Hardy’s “Memorize You”…
Vols Drew Gilbert & Max Ferguson / Credit: UT Athletics
COLUMBIA, S.C. – No. 4 Tennessee wraps up the regular season with an important series against SEC eastern division rival No. 15 South Carolina starting Thursday night at 7 p.m. in Columbia.
The Vols enter the weekend with a half game lead over Vanderbilt in the SEC East and have a chance to win their first eastern division title since 1997.
BROADCAST INFO
Thursday and Friday’s games will be streamed live on SEC Network+ and the ESPN app as Butch Antley (PxP) and Kip Bouknight (color) call the action. Saturday’s contest will be televised on the SEC Network with Tom Hart (PxP) and Chris Burke (color) on the call.
Fans can also listen to the official Vol Network radio call for all three games on Sports Radio WNML (FM 99.1 / AM 990), as well as UTSports.com and the UT Gameday app. The Voice of Tennessee Baseball John Wilkerson will call the action.
PROJECTED STARTING PITCHERS
Game 1: RHP Chad Dallas (8-1) vs. RHP Brannon Jordan (5-4) Game 2: LHP Will Heflin (2-2) vs. RHP Brett Kerry (4-1) Game 3: RHP Blade Tidwell (6-3) vs. RHP Thomas Farr (3-5)
SERIES HISTORY
Overall: South Carolina leads, 65-38
In Knoxville: South Carolina leads, 24-22
In Columbia: South Carolina leads, 38-14
Neutral Sites: South Carolina leads, 3-2
Last Meeting: W, 6-3 (March 24, 2019)
While the Vols won their last series against the Gamecocks in 2019, South Carolina has had UT’s number in recent years, especially at home. Tennessee will be looking to end an 11-game losing streak in Columbia.
NOTABLE
SEC East Title Up for Grabs
Tennessee has a chance to win its first SEC Eastern Division title since 1997 and secure a top-four seed in the SEC Tournament this weekend in Columbia. The Vols still have an outside chance to win the SEC regular season title as well but will need help from Florida in its series at Arkansas.
Walk-Off Wins
Tennessee has had a flair for the dramatic this season with sixth walk-off wins, including three walk-off home runs after last Saturday’s 8-7 win over No. 1 Arkansas. Max Ferguson hit a three-run homer with UT trailing 7-5 in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Vols their third victory over a top-ranked opponent under Vitello.
53 and Counting…
Senior shortstop Liam Spence has been one of the toughest outs in all of college baseball this season. The Geelong, Australia, native has reached base in 53 consecutive games played dating back to last season and has gotten on base in all 50 games he’s played in this year. His 53 games streak is the second longest active streak in college baseball behind East Carolina’s Connor Norby (54 games). His 50-game on-base streak for just this season is the longest in the nation.
Road Vols
The Vols have been extremely good away from home this series, winning all five of their weekend road series, including their first four SEC road series for the first time since 1994. UT’s 14-4 road record this season is the best in the conference.
Head Coach: Mark Kingston (4th season) // Has led three different schools to NCAA Regionals during his head coaching career.
Predicted SEC Finish: 4th (Eastern Division)
Preseason All-SEC Selections:
Wes Clarke (2nd Team – DH/UTL)
Stat Leaders:
Batting Avg: Andrew Eyster (.285)
Runs: Wes Clarke (50)
Hits: Brady Allen (56)
Home Runs: Wes Clarke (20)
RBI: Wes Clarke (49)
Stolen Bases: Brady Allen (12-12)
Wins: Brannon Jordan (5-4)
ERA (min. 15.0 IP): Jack Mahoney (1.62)
Innings Pitched: Thomas Farr (71.0)
Strikeouts: Brannon Jordan (90)- ERA (min. 15.0 IP): Kyle Brennan (3.19)
Innings Pitched: Joshua South (71.1)
Strikeouts: Joshua South (57)
ON DECK
The Vols will head to Hoover, Alabama for the 2021 SEC Tournament next week at the Hoover Met. The tournament starts on Tuesday, May 25 and runs through Sunday, May 30. The Vols’ opening game in the tournament is to be determined. Should UT earn a top-four seed, they would receive a bye into the double elimination rounds, which begin on Wednesday, May 26.
On Wednesday, the NCAA Medical Advisory Group announced that venue capacity for 2021 Spring NCAA Championships conducted outdoors will be determined by state/local guidelines and may increase to 100 percent.
As a result of the announcement, this weekend’s NCAA Knoxville Regional will see softball attendance at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium expand to 100 percent capacity.
Friday’s regional opening games will be the first games played at Sherri Parker Lee this season for which capacity restrictions will be lifted. Tickets for this weekend’s games are available for purchase at AllVols.com or by calling the UT Ticket Office at 1-800-332-8657.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Tennessee redshirt senior Redmond Walsh was named to the 2021 SEC Baseball Community Service Team on Wednesday, as announced by the league office.
The SEC names a community service team for each of its 21-league sponsored sports, looking to highlight an athlete from each school who gives back to his community through superior service efforts.
On top of being one of Tennessee’s most valuable relief pitchers this season and throughout his career, Redmond Walsh has also been one of the team’s most active players when it comes to community service despite having to balance a busy schedule as a member of the baseball team while majoring in aerospace engineering.
The Louisville, Tennessee, native has participated in numerous community service events and volunteered his time with multiple organizations around the area such as the Knoxville Challenger League, a local baseball league for young people with special needs. Walsh has also volunteered at the East Tennessee Children’s Hospital and Tennessee’s annual VOLoween event, which serves as a night of Halloween fun for the children of athletic department staff to interact with UT student-athletes.
Walsh earned his bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering this May from the Tickle College of Engineering and has once again been one of Tennessee’s most valuable relief pitchers this season. He is tied for the team lead with five saves and ranked third in career saves at UT with 16. Walsh is 4-1 on the year and his 2.59 ERA this season ranks second on the team.
The entire 2021 SEC Community Service Team can be seen by visiting SECSports.com.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee earned its 40th win of the season with an 11-2 victory over in-state foe Belmont on Tuesday night at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
The Vols scored in each of their final six offensive innings, totaling 10 hits on the night.
UT reliever Camden Sewell picked up his third win of the season, finishing with two strikeouts while allowing just one hit in three shutout innings.
At the plate, Jordan Beck went 3-4 with a career-high six RBIs and Jake Rucker was 2-4 with one RBI.
Tennessee sophomore Jorel Ortega sparked the offense by recording the team’s first hit of the night before coming around to score and tie the game at one in the third inning. The Big Orange carried that momentum into the fourth inning, scoring three runs on Beck’s first home run of the night to give UT a 4-1 lead.
The Vols (40-13) plated in three more runs in the fifth inning, one in the sxith, two in the seventh and another in the eighth to pull away.
In the sixth inning, Liam Spence walked to extend his on-base streak to 53 consecutive games, including all 50 games he’s played in this season. His streak, which dates back to last season, is the second-longest active streak in college baseball while his streak of reaching base in all 50 games this season stands as the longest in the country.
Beck’s second home run of the night came in the bottom of the seventh as he belted his 13th long ball of the season over the left field wall to make it 10-2.
The Vols conclude the regular season with a Thursday-Sunday road series at No. 15 South Carolina this weekend. Games one and two will be streamed on SEC Network+ while Saturday’s series finale will be broadcast on the SEC Network.
NOTABLE
FIRST TO 40: With Tennessee’s victory on Tuesday, the Vols become the first team in the country to reach the 40-win mark this season. Tennessee has now won 40 games in consecutive full seasons for the first time since 2000 and 2001.
NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS: The Vols improve to 22-4 in non-conference action this season and 11-2 in midweek contests with Tuesday’s victory.
Niko Moon is following up his number-one hit “Good Time” with his new single, “No Sad Songs.”
Talking about the track, Niko says, “NO SAD SONGS” is all about having fun. As we all know, life can be stressful at times and this song right here is all about putting that to the side for a minute and just enjoying life and having fun.”
Check out the music video for “No Sad Songs” from Niko Moon right here…
Ashley McBryde will be the talk of the towns that she takes her tour to in 2021!
Ashley proudly stated “AAAAAND we’re back!! I’ve been waiting to be able to say that! We’ve missed you all so much. There aren’t even words to do it justice. We can’t wait to see you. I CANT WAIT TO SEE YOU! Being back on the road is a deep breath of fresh air. Now let’s be together and make some damn music!”
This Town Talks tour schedule
*Morgan Wade as support | ^Adam Hambrick as support | +Priscilla Block as support |
~Ray Fulcher as support | #Support to be announced
June 12, 2021 Dr. Pepper Park at the Bridges Roanoke, Va.*
July 16, 2021 Gold Nugget Grand Event Center Lake Charles, La.
July 17, 2021 Floore’s Country Store Helotes, Texas#
July 18, 2021 Nutty Brown Café & Amphitheatre Austin, Texas#
July 28, 2021 Bourbon Theatre Lincoln, Neb.^
Aug. 5, 2021 Cain’s Ballroom Tulsa, Okla.*
Aug. 6, 2021 Orpheum Theatre Memphis, Tenn.*
Aug. 7, 2021 Robinson Performance Hall Little Rock, Ark.*
Aug. 17, 2021 Irving Plaza New York, N.Y.+
Aug. 19, 2021 Theatre of Living Arts Philadelphia, Pa.+
Aug. 20, 2021 House of Blues Boston, Mass.+
Aug. 21, 2021 The Fillmore Silver Spring Silver Spring, Md.+
Aug. 26, 2021 Ryman Auditorium Nashville, Tenn.
Aug. 27, 2021 Ryman Auditorium Nashville, Tenn.
Sept. 2, 2021 The Pageant St. Louis, Mo.+
Sept. 3, 2021 Bogart’s Cincinnati, Ohio+
Sept. 16, 2021 The Sylvee Madison, Wis.^
Sept. 22, 2021 The Wilma Missoula, Mont.~
Sept. 23, 2021 Martin Woldson Theatre at the Fox Spokane, Wash.~
Sept. 25, 2021 Showbox Seattle, Wash.~
Sept. 26, 2021 Roseland Theater Portland, Ore.~
Sept. 29, 2021 Ace of Spades Sacramento, Calif.~
Oct. 3, 2021 House of Blues San Diego, Calif.+
Oct. 5, 2021 The Wiltern Los Angeles, Calif.+
Oct. 13, 2021 Ogden Theatre Denver, Colo.~
Nov. 12, 2021 The Eastern Atlanta, Ga.+
Nov. 13, 2021 Tivoli Theatre Chattanooga, Tenn.+
Nov. 14, 2021 The Fillmore Charlotte Charlotte, N.C.+
Dec. 8, 2021 Riviera Theater Chicago, Ill.+
Dec. 11, 2021 ` Mississippi Moon Bar Dubuque, Iowa+
Dec. 12, 2021 Egyptian Room at Old National Centre Indianapolis, Ind.+
Jan. 6, 2022 Brown Theatre Louisville, Ky.+
Jan. 7, 2022 Roxian Theatre Pittsburgh, Pa.+
Jan. 8, 2022 The National Richmond, Va.+
Jan. 13, 2022 20 Monroe Live Grand Rapids, Mich.*
Jan. 14, 2022 The Fillmore Detroit, Mich.*
Jan. 15, 2022 Agora Theater Cleveland, Ohio#
Tickets for Ashley’s This Town Talks tour go on sale this Friday – for dates and tickets, visit https://ashleymcbryde.com
Plenty of people will be looking for this one when Ashley brings her tour to town – it’s “Martha Divine”
