Tennessee baseball picked up a series-clinching 5-4 win over Wright State Saturday in Knoxville.
Henry Ford and Reese Chapman led the way offensively with three hits apiece while Brayden Krenzel earned his second consecutive save.
Here’s how it happened as Tennessee won its sixth straight to clinch its second series of the season.
Landon Mack’s Mixed-Bag Outing
Tennessee starting pitcher Landon Mack got off to a rocky start in the opening frame, uncharacteristically struggling with his command.
The sophomore walked Wright State leadoff hitter Gus Gregory, who battled back from down 0-2, to begin the game before giving up a double to Andrew Duncan.
Raiders’ three-hole hitter Hunter Warren recorded an RBI groundout before Mack issued another walk. An RBI fielder’s choice then scored another for Wright State.
Mack’s early-game lack of command was an unfamiliar sight, as he entered the game with only five walks on the season.
However, Mack used his elite pickoff move to get a runner at first and end the inning and coasted for the remainder of his 5.0-inning outing.
The Rutgers transfer allowed multiple baserunners in an inning only one other time and no Raider got to third for the duration of Mack’s outing.
Mack’s final line was a mixed bag of season bests, worsts and highs. He gave up a season-best three hits but season-worst four walks. His five strikeouts tied a season low and 97 pitches marked a season-high.
“It was good,” Tennessee head coach Josh Elander said when recapping Mack’s outing. “I thought the stuff, obviously you never want to walk the leadoff guy to start the game, right? With the wind, it was his fastball that was just taking off. Even when I was throwing BP (batting practice) today, it was kind of taking off just because of that cross wind so much. Again, [he] could’ve landed the curveball and the change(up) a little bit better at times, but he’s always going to compete and give you a chance.”
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Reese Chapman Leads the Way Early
Senior outfielder Reese Chapman tallied a co-team-high three hits and provided multiple early key moments for Tennessee’s offense.
Chapman put Tennessee on the board with a leadoff homer in the second inning. His first blast of the season traveled 371 feet and landed on top of the video board to cut into Wright State’s two-run lead.
Two innings later, after Blake Grimmer walked and Garrett Wright doubled to put runners on second and third with no outs, Chapman drove a two-run double to the right-field wall to give Tennessee its first lead of the game.
Despite grounding into a double play with the bases loaded to end the seventh, Chapman has bounced back nicely after a poor performance last weekend in Arlington. The Colorado native has recorded seven hits and two walks in his last four games, including two three-hit days.
“It was great,” Elander said about Chapman’s big swings. “I think three knocks right there, and then of course everybody would love him to have that fourth one there with the bases loaded… A good sign for him, but we’d like to have a little bit better at that fourth one, and I think he’d say the same thing.”
Henry Ford Puts Tennessee Ahead
Junior third baseman Henry Ford gave Tennessee the lead in the fifth with his fifth long ball of the season.
Ford hammered a 412-foot two-run shot over the left-field porches to give Tennessee a three-run lead.
The blast also scored Jay Abernathy – who worked a leadoff walk – giving the speedy sophomore a nine-game scoring streak. Abernathy has also reached base in every game this season.
Ford finished the day with three hits, giving him five on the weekend. The Virginia transfer has been red-hot, recording a hit in seven straight with multiple hits in four of the seven.
“All the credit goes to Henry,” Elander said when asked about Ford’s recent hot streak. “He’s smashing balls all over the place. And, again, the math is very simple. He’s hitting balls close to 110 miles per hour. If he can get them north of 20 degrees and even if it’s only 102 or 100 (mph), a lot of those are going to leave the yard. It was good to see that one – he torched that one to the left today. I think there’s plenty more of that coming.”
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Wright State Makes Things Interesting
Wright State made things interesting with a two-run sixth inning against Tennessee reliever Cam Appenzeller.
Appenzeller was not as sharp as last week in Arlington, allowing a leadoff double and one-out single to set up an RBI groundout. A Cy Turner RBI single scored another to cut Tennessee’s lead to one run.
The freshman allowed a leadoff baserunner in the seventh, too, but Ariel Antigua helped turn a 5-6-3 double play to thwart any potential threat.
Antigua also orchestrated a crucial inning-ending 6-3 double play in the fifth and made an incredible charge on a ground ball for the second out of the fourth.
Brayden Krenzel Earns the Save to Clinch Series
As it’s done all season, Tennessee rode its pitching to the finish line.
The Vols offense did not score a run in its final three innings. Chapman grounded into an inning-ending double play with the bases loaded in the seventh after UT went down in order in the sixth. Ford grounded into a fielder’s choice in the eighth to strand a pair.
But on the mound, sophomore righty Brayden Krenzel slammed the door to earn the save and clinch the series.
The Ohio native worked around a two-out infield single in the eighth before sitting the Raiders down in order in the ninth with two strikeouts and a groundout.
Krenzel has earned a save in each of his past two outings. The sophomore recorded a three-inning save against Virginia Tech in Arlington last Sunday.
Up Next
Tennessee will look to sweep the series over Wright State Sunday. First pitch is at 1 p.m. ET on SEC Network +.
