Missed Opportunities Plague Vols as Georgia Takes Series Finale 8-3

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.– Top-ranked (D1) Tennessee Baseball (45-7, 22-5 SEC) fell to the Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday in the series finale 8-3 in Lindsey Nelson Stadium.

The Vols did not score a run after the fourth inning, and all of the Bulldogs' runs came in the third and seventh inning.

Ben Joyce got the starting nod on the mound for Tennessee–instead of Drew Beam, who has started every series finale this season–and was good through three innings before allowing three Georgia runs in the fourth. The Vols used five bullpen arms on Saturday, the first being Kirby Connell who retired all six batters he faced. The next two relievers to come out of the pen did not have similar success, as Drew Beam and Redmond Walsh gave up a combined five hits and five earned runs.

Luc Lipcius was the lone Vol to leave the yard, as the super-senior homered in the top of the second for Tennessee's second run of the game. Lipcius' bomb marks his 13th on the season, tied for second on the team with Jordan Beck.

Tennessee's base running blunders continued on Saturday to contribute to their loss, but the Vols' most significant offensive woes came in the fourth and sixth inning when UT stranded a combined five baserunners.

Drew Beam (8-1) was the losing pitcher for Tennessee, while Georgia's relief pitcher Jack Gowen (2-0)–who retired every Tennessee batter he faced–was rewarded with the win.

The 2022 SEC Champs in the Vols would have become the first team to sweep the Bulldogs all season, but Georgia was the better team in the finale with a five-run win.

A recap of Saturday's game in Knoxville is below.

Joyce Makes First Tennessee Career Start, Vols Strike First

Tennessee redshirt junior RHP Ben Joyce made his first career Tennessee start on Saturday afternoon for the Vols and excelled early.

'The Volunteer Fireman' retired the side in the top of the first around a one-out walk, showing off his 103+ mph fastball and filthy mid-80s mph slider. 

Joyce's solid first inning carried over into the second, when UT's own .44 Magnum retired the Bulldogs in order, including an inning-high 104.9 mph pitch.

The Vols' struck first at the plate in the bottom of the first with a one-out RBI single to score Seth Stephenson, who had drawn a leadoff walk.

Gilbert's single put himself and Jordan Beck on base, and the two runners advanced on a wild pitch. However, the inning abruptly ended as Lipscomb flied out to center and Gilbert made a base running mistake that resulted in an out at second.

Tennessee scored another run in the bottom of the second with a two-out home run from Luc Lipcius. The homer was the definition of an oppo homer for the super-senior, who drilled a solo shot to down the left-field line over the wall against a left-handed pitcher. Tennessee led 2-0 heading into the third, where Joyce walked another batter but retired the side around the two-out walk, keeping the Bulldogs scoreless.

Georgia Takes the Lead

The Bulldogs took the lead in the top of the fourth in Joyce's final inning, as the junior got shelled for the first time of the afternoon. Georgia's three-hole hitter Connor Tate cracked a leadoff single before advancing to second on a wild pitch. Joyce retired the next batter, but lefty Chaney Rogers then drilled a two-run homer into the Tennessee bullpen to tie the game.

And the Bulldogs weren't done. On the next pitch, the first pitch of the at-bat, Fernando Gonzalez connected for a solo blast to the left-field porches.

Joyce regained some composure and retired the next pair of batters, but the three-run inning from the Bulldogs called for Joyce's day to be done, as junior RHP relief pitcher Kirby Connell took over the mound in the fifth.

While Joyce's outing did not end well in the fourth, he showed he could put together a quality start for a few innings. 

Tennessee Gets Run Back But Misses Opportunity to Blow it Open

The Vols returned the favor in the bottom of the fourth, succeeding at the plate by loading the bases with a pair of singles and a walk. Christian Moore was the first Volunteer batter to approach the plate in the bases loaded, nobody out situation, and the freshman struck out looking on a 2-2 count.

Luc Lipcius did the same, striking out looking on an 0-2 count to give Cortland Lawson a bases-loaded, two-out situation. Unlike Moore and Lipcius, Lawson drove in a run by working a walk to score Drew Gilbert.

But leadoff hitter Seth Stephenson struck out looking to strand the bases loaded, becoming the third Tennessee batter to strike out looking with the bases loaded. Georgia had made a pitching change to sophomore left-handed pitcher Jaden Woods (1-1, 5.36 ERA) after the second single in the inning, who dealt the RBI walk but also logged three Ks with the bases loaded.

Kirby Connell is Terrific

Kirby Connell took the mound to relieve Joyce in the top of the fifth, striking out the side in 12 pitches. The Blacksburg, South Carolina, native retired the Bulldogs in order in the sixth, striking out the first two batters before getting some assistance from Gilbert to log the final out of the frame. 

Connell's day was done after the two innings in which he logged five Ks, concluding a great weekend for the junior in relief (3.0 IP, 7 K, 2 FO, retired all nine batters)

Tennessee's offense got three baserunners on in the fifth and sixth, but Georgia's bullpen stranded them all to keep the game tied.

And those baserunners, along with the three left stranded in the fourth, came back to haunt Tennessee.

Beam, Walsh Allow Five-Run Inning

Tennessee's missed opportunities came back to bite in the top of the seventh inning when Georgia blew it open with five runs to take an 8-3 lead.

Tennessee's typical day three starter freshman RHP Drew Beam (8-0, 2.15 ERA) took the mound in the top of the seventh in his first relief appearance all year. Beam's outing was forgettable to say the least, as he loaded the bases by allowing a trio of one-out singles.

After four batters, Vitello decided to bring in Redmond Walsh out of the bullpen in a bases-loaded, one-out situation. Georgia's leadoff man Ben Anderson laid down an RBI groundout to give the Bulldogs a one-run lead before Cole Tate sent a 2 RBI single to left field. Reeling, Walsh then allowed a two-run homer to Cole's brother, Connor Tate.

The Bulldogs took control of the game in a hurry, and Tennessee's offense could not come back.

Gowen Delivers Back-to-Back 1-2-3 Innings

Will Mabrey and Wyatt Evans were the final two arms to grace the mound for Tennessee, and the pair of lefties allowed a combined one walk and one hit and stranded three Bulldogs to keep Georgia's run total at eight runs.

But the Vols' offense never got anything going.

Georgia's senior RHP relief pitcher Jack Gowen–who entered the game in the bottom of the sixth to log the final two strikeouts of the inning–made it eight straight retired batters after setting down the Vols in order in the seventh and eighth. Gowen logged five Ks across the sixth, seventh and eighth innings before retiring the side again in the ninth with a trio of groundouts.

Up Next

Tennessee will face off against in-state foe Belmont on Tuesday in Lindsey Nelson Stadium at 6 p.m. ET. SECN+ will have the stream. 

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