SCORE: Tennessee 3, Virginia Tech 1 | FINAL

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No. 20 Tennessee baseball (7-3) is set to battle the Virginia Tech Hokies (7-3) Sunday in its third game in Arlington, Texas as part of the Amegy Bank College Baseball Series.

First pitch in Globe Life Field is at 11:30 a.m. ET on FloCollege.

Tennessee suffered a 12-5 loss to UCLA Friday at Globe Life Field. The Bruins bashed their way to the victory, slugging five homers on 10 hits against the Vols’ pitching staff.

The Vols responded well Saturday, beating Arizona State 5-3 behind great pitching and a four-run inning.

Click the links below for recaps of both games in Arlington so far.

UCLA GAME RECAP: Tennessee Baseball Surrenders Five Home Runs in Loss Against UCLA

ARIZONA STATE RECAP: Four-Run Inning and Strong Pitching Lead Tennessee Baseball to Victory Over Arizona State

On Friday, starter Tegan Kuhns tossed a career-high 10 strikeouts and looked good for the majority of his outing, but he gave up three homers to leave a stain on what could have been a season-best performance.

Tennessee’s offense was inconsistent but woke up in the sixth, tallying four runs. However, Tennessee’s bullpen did not complement its offense, allowing six runs in the final three frames.

The loss marked Tennessee’s third in the last four games, but the Vols picked up a much-needed bounce-back win Saturday.

Starter Landon Mack impressively weathered the storm for five innings on the mound while Brady Frederick and Cam Appenzeller combined for four innings of impressive relief.

Offensively, Tennessee tallied four second-inning runs and Levi Clark provided a crucial insurance run with a sac fly in the ninth.

The Vols will look to go 2-1 on the weekend with a win over a below-average Virginia Tech team.

Opponent Scout

Virginia Tech’s lone loss before Arlington was a 16-1 defeat against Rutgers. They’ve won a ton of close games. The Hokies had a one-run win against William & Mary, two against Rutgers, one against James Madison and a two-run win against ETSU.

VT got run-ruled Friday by Texas A&M, 10-0, before dropping an uncompetitive contest against Mississippi State Saturday, 15-8. A&M and MSU are two of the best teams in the nation, but VT is not the same caliber of team as top SEC squads.

While Tennessee has the looks of a middle-of-the-pack SEC team, it is a healthy favorite against the Hokies.

• 2025 Record: 31-25 (12-18 ACC)
• 2025 Postseason: N/A
• 2026 ACC Preseason Poll: 11^th
• Head Coach: John Szefc
  • Overall Record: 622-434-4 (21^st year)
  • Record at VT: 230-175 (9^th year)
• Preseason All-Conference Selections: No Team Released

Info courtesy UT Athletics

Prediction: Tennessee wins by 5+ runs

Little bit of a bold prediction but Virginia Tech is reeling, and Tennessee is a much more talented team.

Evan Blanco’s command is much better this week and the offense has its best day since the UNC Asheville midweek.

Injury/Availability Notes

• UTL Blake Grimmer is dealing with lower back soreness and is yet to make his season debut.
• C/OF Garrett Wright had wrist surgery recently and made his season debut in the field Tuesday against Bellarmine. Has not taken an at-bat yet.

TRANSCRIPT: Everything Tennessee Baseball Head Coach Josh Elander Said After Win Over Arizona State

For all of RTI’s baseball coverage so far this season, click here.

For the latest RTI Diamond Pass podcast previewing the 2026 season, click HERE.

VIDEO: Tennessee Baseball HC Josh Elander Discusses Win Over Arizona State in Arlington

Lineups, pitching matchup and additional pre-game notes are below, followed by the LIVE at-bat by at-bat game thread.

TENNESSEE STARTING NINE: 

CF Jay Abernathy (L)

3B Henry Ford (R)

LF Blaine Brown (L)

C Levi Clark (R)

RF Reese Chapman (L)

DH Tyler Myatt (L)

1B Chris Newstrom (R)

SS Manny Marin (R)

2B Ariel Antigua (R)

Lineup Notes:

• First start for Ariel this weekend. Slides in at second.
• Chris Newstrom getting his first start at 1B this season.
• Levi Clark behind the plate. He started at catcher in the series finale on opening weekend.
• Brown stays in left, Myatt at DH.

VIRGINIA TECH STARTING NINE: 

1B Sam Grube (L)

LF Nick Locurto (R)

2B Ethan Ball (L)

CF Treyson Hughes (L)

DH Hudson Lutterman (R)

3B Owen Petrich (R)

C Anderson French (L)

SS Pete Daniel (R)

RF Sam Gates (R)

Pitching Matchup:

Vols Sr. LHP Evan Blanco (1-1, 2.00 ERA, 2 app., 2 starts, 9.0 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 6 BB, 17 K, 3 XBH, .235 opp. batting avg., 1.56 WHIP)

vs.

Hokies Fr. RHP Ethan Grim (0-0, 3.75 ERA, 2 app., 2 starts, 7.2 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 5 BB, 12 K, 3 XBH, .267 opp. batting avg., 1.86 WHIP)

Pitching notes:

• Blanco continues to start on day three. He walked four and struggled with command last week. Strikeout numbers have been impressive through two starts.
• Grim is a true freshman and has started the both series finales so far this season.

Uniforms

Tennessee: Orange tops, white pants

Virginia Tech: Grey tops and bottoms with maroon hats

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*NOTES*

• Run-rule in effect. If Tennessee or Virginia Tech leads by 10 or more runs after the seventh inning, the game is over.
• Tennessee is the HOME team against VT. It was the home team Friday and away team Saturday.

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GAME THREAD

1st Inning: 

T1

-Sam Grube HBP.

• 3-1 count.

-Nick Locurto flies out to RF.

Grube caught stealing, 2-6.

• Great throw by Levi and good job by Manny to nab it and make the tag.

-Ethan Ball strikes out swinging.

END OF TOP HALF

B1

-Jay Abernathy strikes out swinging.

-Henry Ford flies out to CF.

-Blaine Brown strikes out looking.

END OF BOTTOM HALF

Score: Vols 0, Hokies 0

2nd Inning: 

T2

-Treyson Hughes strikes out swinging.

-Hudson Lutterman flies out to LF.

-Owen Petrich strikes out swinging.

END OF TOP HALF

B2

-Levi Clark flies out to CF at the warning track.

• 404 feet.
• Clark has had an unlucky streak at the plate. Is making a lot of hard contact as of late. Two warning track flyouts this weekend that are homers in LNS.

-Reese Chapman strikes out swinging on three pitches.

-Tyler Myatt strikes out swinging.

END OF BOTTOM HALF

Score: Vols 0, Hokies 0

3rd Inning: 

T3

-Anderson French strikes out swinging on three pitches.

-Pete Daniel works a walk.

-Sam Gates lines out to SS.

Daniel advances to second on a balk.

-Sam Grube grounds out to P.

• Blanco fielded the ball beautifully along the 1B line with a bare-hand toss to Newstrom. Nice defensive play.

END OF TOP HALF

B3

-Chris Newstrom flies out to CF.

• Nice diving catch by center fielder Treyson Hughes in the right-center gap.

-Manny Marin pops up to 3B.

-Ariel Antigua legs out an infield single to 1B.

• Hit in the gap. First baseman made a diving stop. Toss to the pitcher wasn’t there in time.

-Jay Abernathy works a walk. Antigua to second.

-Henry Ford smacks an RBI single up the middle. Antigua scores. Abernathy to third.

-Blaine Brown strikes out swinging on three pitches.

END OF BOTTOM HALF

Score: Vols 1, Hokies 0

4th Inning: 

T4

-Nick Locurto smokes a solo homer to left field.

-Ethan Ball HBP.

-Treyson Hughes fouls out to 3B.

-Hudson Lutterman reaches on a fielder’s choice to SS. Ball out at second, 6-4.

• Should’ve been a double play but Newstrom didn’t make the catch.

-Owen Petrich flies out to RF.

END OF TOP HALF

B4

-Levi Clark grounds out to 3B.

-Reese Chapman flies out to deep right-center.

• 374 feet.

-Tyler Myatt flies out to CF.

END OF BOTTOM HALF

Score: Vols 1, Hokies 1

5th Inning: 

T5

-Anderson French strikes out looking.

-Peter Daniel grounds out to P.

-Sam Gates flies out to LF.

END OF TOP HALF

B5

-Chris Newstrom grounds out to 3B.

• Great play by Owen Petrich, making the charge.

-Manny Marin flies out to CF.

-Ariel Antigua pops up to 2B on the RF line.

END OF BOTTOM HALF

Score: Vols 1, Hokies 1

6th Inning: 

T6

-Sam Grube strikes out swinging.

-Nick Locurto singles to left-center.

-Ethan Ball HBP.

-Treyson Hughes strikes out swinging.

-Hudson Lutterman fouls out to 1B.

–Evan Blanco FINAL LINE: 5.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K, 56 strikes on 91 pitches–

END OF TOP HALF

B6

-Jay Abernathy works a leadoff walk.

*Pitching change: LHP Chase Swift (1-0, 1.45 ERA) on to pitch for Grim*

-Henry Ford grounds out to P.

-Blaine Brown sends an RBI double into shallow center. Abernathy scores.

• Grounder up the middle hit the second-base bag and ricocheted into the outfield.

-Levi Clark ropes an RBI double down the LF line.

-Reese Chapman strikes out swinging.

-Tyler Myatt strikes out looking.

END OF BOTTOM HALF

Score: Vols 3, Hokies 1

7th Inning: 

T7

*Pitching change: So. RHP Brayden Krenzel (0-0, 0.00 ERA) in to pitch for Hindy*

-Owen Petrich singles to right field.

• First pitch of the AB.

-Anderson French strikes out looking.

-Pete Daniel is walked. Petrich to second.

-Sam Gates grounds into a 4-6-3 double play.

• Such a smooth play by Ariel.

END OF TOP HALF

B7

*Pitching change: RHP Logan Eisenreich (0-0, 7.06 ERA) on to pitch for Swift*

-Chris Newstrom strikes out looking.

-Manny Marin reaches on a fielding error by 1B.

• Booted a grounder.

-Ariel Antigua flies out to CF.

-Jay Abernathy strikes out looking.

END OF BOTTOM HALF

Score: Vols 3, Hokies 1

8th Inning: 

T8

-Sam Grube strikes out swinging.

-Nick Locurto strikes out swinging.

-Ethan Ball flies out to LF.

END OF TOP HALF

B8

-Henry Ford flies out to CF.

-Blaine Brown works a walk.

-Levi Clark grounds into a 6-4 fielder’s choice. Brown out at second.

-Reese Chapman grounds out to 3B.

• Really nice play by 3B Owen Petrich, who has played beautiful defense today.

END OF BOTTOM HALF

Score: Vols 3, Hokies 1

9th Inning: 

T9

-Treyson Hughes flies out to CF.

-Hudson Lutterman strikes out swinging.

-Owen Petrich grounds out to SS.

END OF TOP HALF

Score: Vols 3, Hokies 1

END OF GAME

FINAL: Tennessee Vols 3, Virginia Tech Hokies 1