The Extra Point: Recapping Alabama Baseball's Series with No. 1 Tennessee
The Crimson Tide took a trip to Knoxville for a three game series with the No. 1 Volunteers, and both teams were on hot streaks. Alabama had won seven straight, and Tennessee was perfect in SEC play.
On Friday night, Alabama stunned the top team in the nation, taking game one 6-3. Garrett McMillan held the Volunteers to just three runs through 5.1 innings, and the Crimson Tide bullpen had his back, keeping Tennessee off the board the rest of the way. Alabama's scoring effort was punctuated by two home runs from Owen Diodati and one from Jim Jarvis, as well as two RBIs from Drew Williamson.
Alabama's fortunes on Friday turned into misfortunes on Saturday, as the Volunteers hit three home runs on their way to a 9-2 victory. Dominic Tamez had a tough game defensively, totaling three throwing errors in the late innings, two of which resulted in runs for Tennessee.
Tennessee flexed its muscles on Sunday, winning by whopping 15-4. Alabama could not get the bats going due to 14 strikeouts on the day, and the Volunteers added four more home runs to their weekend to continuously stretch the lead. Alabama starter Grayson Hitt was chased out of the game early, giving up seven earned runs in 3.2 innings. The bullpen could not hold the nation's top team down in game three either, and Alabama ultimately lost the series in Knoxville.
The Crimson Tide will welcome familiar in-state foe UAB to Tuscaloosa on Tuesday night at 6 p.m. in Sewell-Thomas Stadium for a midweek contest, followed by a weekend series hosting the Georgia Bulldogs. Georgia currently sits at No. 14 in the rankings, and Alabama has fallen out of the top 25 after being No. 24 heading into the Tennessee series.
