KNOXVILLE, Tenn — A pair of Saturday losses ended Tennessee softball's postseason run early. The Lady Vols were officially knocked out of the double-elimination Knoxville Regional with a 6-4 loss to Liberty. The No. 9 Lady Vols are just the second national seed to be eliminated so far in Regional play, joining No. 15 Arizona State on the outside looking in.
The last time Tennessee failed to make the Super Regional weekend was in spring of 2016 when the Lady Vols lost twice to Arizona.
After beating Eastern Kentucky on Friday, Tennessee lost its first game on Saturday, 3-1 against James Madison. A fielding error and a hit-by-pitch put two players on for Dukes redshirt senior Kate Gordon to send home with a three-run homer.
Against Liberty, Tennessee took the lead early after Ashley Morgan singled up the middle in the bottom of the first, giving Amanda Ayala a chance to score. In the bottom of the third, Morgan helped put runs on the board again, with a fly out to third bringing Kaitlin Parsons home.
Liberty took the lead in the top of the fourth inning with a Savannah Channell grand slam.
After another Liberty run, the Lady Vols were able to cut the lead to one with a Chelsea Seggern sacrifice fly to bring Ally Shipman home, but it was too little too late, with an Autumn Bishop solo shot to give the Flames some insurance.
Tennessee finishes the season with a 42-15 record.