HOOVER, Ala. — Tennessee baseball is just one win away from advancing to the SEC Tournament championship in consecutive years after beating LSU 5-2 on Friday night.
After a late start, with the first pitch at 11:10 p.n., the Vols did not look sleepy. They got on the board first after right fielder Jordan Beck hit an RBI triple in the bottom of the first inning, scoring first baseman Luc Lipcius, which made it 1-0. Beck would score on a wild pitch shortly after to make it 2-0.
Tennessee held a 3-0 lead in the fifth inning, but LSU responded, partly thanks to two errors by UT. Tigers center fielder Dylan Crews hit a double in the top of the fifth, which scored second baseman Drew Blanco after a fielding error by Seth Stephenson. Left fielder Josh Pearson then reached on a throwing error by Cortland Lawson, which allowed Crews to score.
The Vols got out of the half-inning leading 3-2 and immediately extended their lead. Center fielder Drew Gilbert scored Lipcius on an RBI single and then second baseman Jorel Ortega scored Gilbert on a double. Tennessee went back up 5-2 and wasn't threatened from there.
Former Alcoa pitcher and now Vols pitcher Redmond Walsh got the save, which tied him for most all-time career saves in program history with legend Todd Helton.
The game ended at 2:12 a.m.
By beating the Tigers, Tennessee advanced to the semifinals of the SEC Tournament on Saturday. They will play the winner of LSU and Kentucky's game scheduled for on Saturday. LSU beat Kentucky on Thursday 11-6 to play Tennessee in this game they lost on Friday.
The Vols will play in the semifinals approximately 30 minutes after Texas A&M and Florida play, which is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
