Brad McElroy had three hits for Charlotte in a 12-5 loss at Tennessee Wednesday. |
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Niners Baseball Falls 12-5 at Tennessee
April 3, 2008
Knoxville, Tenn. - Tennessee freshman Josh Liles set a school record with four doubles Wednesday as the Volunteers baseball team posted toppled 18th-ranked Charlotte 12-5 at Robert M. Lindsay Field at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. The loss snaps Charlotte's four-game win streak.
Charlotte drops to 21-4 on the season, while the Vols improve to 17-10.
Senior center fielder Brad McElroy recorded three hits, but Charlotte could not catch up after the Vols extended their lead in the fourth and fifth innings.
Tennessee junior Aaron Everett made his SEC-leading 17th pitching appearance of the season and improved to 3-2 by allowing a single unearned run on one hit with four strikeouts through 2 1/3 innings of relief action.
Sophomore catcher Yan Gomes has been one of Tennessee's top hitters recently, and the Miami, Fla., native jumpstarted the Vols offense Wednesday with an RBI single in the bottom of the first. Gomes' two-out basehit plated second baseman Andy Simunic, who had previously reached on one of UT's three hits in the opening frame.
Charlotte scored its first run with two outs in the top of the second, when an infield throwing error enabled 49ers catcher Chris Taylor to scamper home from second base.
The Vols produced some more two-out offense in the bottom of the third, with sophomore first baseman Jeff Lockwood belting a two-run homer to give Tennessee a 3-1 lead. It was Lockwood's third home run of the season and the seventh of his career.
Pinch hitter Alan Wright and shortstop Cody Grisham keyed a fourth-inning rally for the Vols with a hit-by-pitch and a double, respectively. Wright then scored from third on a passed ball by Taylor, and Grisham came home on an RBI sacrifice fly by Simunic to put the Big Orange up by four, 5-1.
Charlotte used consecutive RBI base hits from Shayne Moody and Brad McElroy to pull to within two runs in the top of the fifth.
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But the Vols responded with two runs of their own in the bottom of the frame to temporarily restore their four-run advantage. Liles roped an RBI double--his second two-bagger of the game--and later scored on a two-base throwing error by 49ers reliever Luke Stahl.
The 49ers took advantage of two Tennessee infield errors to post an unearned run in the top of the sixth. The teams combined for eight errors Wednesday, with each club committing four.
Liles delivered his third double of the game in the bottom of the seventh, scoring Lockwood to push the score to 8-4. And freshman P.J. Polk entered the game and produced a pinch-hit, two-run single later in the seventh as the Vols tallied additional insurance runs to build a comfortable 11-4 lead.
Charlotte first baseman Alex Burt pushed his team's final total to five runs with an RBI double in the eighth.
Liles' record-setting fourth double came against 49ers right-handed freshman Andrew Smith with one out in the bottom of the eighth. Lockwood scored UT's final run on the play after reaching on his third hit of the night.
Tennessee junior Ty'Relle Harris made his fourth start of the season and working 4 2/3 innings in which he allowed three runs (two earned) on seven hits with three walks and four strikeouts.
Charlotte starter B.J. Hagen took the loss for the Niners, his first decision of the year. In three innings of work, he allowed seven hits and one walk, striking out two. Four of his five runs were earned.
Rob Lyerly and Burt had a pair of hits for Charlotte, which logged 10 hits in the game.
Charlotte will stay in town and practice Thursday before heading up to Philadelphia for the second straight weekend for a three-game series at Temple. Friday's contest between the top two teams in the Atlantic 10 begins at 3 p.m.
