Georgia Tech Loses Heartbreaker to Tennessee
After winning the rematch with Campbell, Georgia Tech would have to take on the number one team in the country, Tennessee. Tennessee Baseball has been the top team for months now and was the heavy favorite to come out of the region and win the national championship. It was going to take a complete effort from both the pitching and the offense from Georgia Tech to win this game. Zach Maxwell got the start for Georgia Tech and he had the task of going up against what most think is the top offense in the country.
What a start that Maxwell had to the game. He was in complete control against the top-ranked Vols offense and had seven strikeouts through four innings.
Georgia Tech was able to get on the board courtesy of an error by Tennessee that allowed Colin Hall and Jadyn Jackson to score and get the 2-0 lead.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Stephen Reid kept his phenomenal Sunday going with a monster two-run home run that gave Georgia Tech a 4-0 lead over Tennessee. Reid was fantastic against Campbell earlier today and followed it up nicely against the elite pitching staff of Tennessee.
Georgia Tech had an opportunity to add more runs, but neither Jackson nor Simpson could drive in the runners on first or second.
Tennessee got their first run on the board courtesy of an error by Georgia Tech and then they would add a second, making it 4-2.
Georgia Tech would get two runners on courtesy of back-to-back singles from Jenkins and Gonzales but was unable to punch the runs in. No lead is ever safe against Tennessee and Georgia Tech left the door open for a comeback because they could not drive runs in at every opportunity.
Maxwell did start to struggle with his control and was walking batters in the fifth and sixth. One of the biggest plays of the game came when Tennessee had the bases loaded, but Maxwell struck out the last batter on a questionable call. Tech would stay in the lead 4-2.
Maxwell would not come out for another inning. He put together a great six innings, striking out 11 and limiting the number one offense in the country to just five hits. It was a clutch performance in the biggest game of the season for Maxwell and he deserves all kinds of props for his night. He would be replaced by Dawson Brown.
Brown would have a shaky inning and gave up a run to make it 4-3. A crucial double play to end the top of the inning prevented Tennessee from tying the game or even taking the lead. It was another clutch play from Georgia Tech.
Georgia Tech would get runners on second and third in the bottom of the seventh, but once again could not add to the lead, keeping the door open for Tennessee.
Brown would come back to pitch the eighth, which was a questionable decision. He would give up a leadoff walk and Tennessee once again had a chance to tie the game. Another double play and a fly-out would end the inning and Georgia Tech was three outs away from beating the top team in the country.
After a scoreless bottom of the eighth, Georgia Tech would head into the ninth inning with a chance to pull off the massive upset. However, Tennessee would not go away quietly. Brown was back out to pitch for the ninth. A leadoff single would get things going for the Vols and have every Georgia Tech player and fan nervous.
Tennessee would then tie the game on an RBI double to make it 4-4. They would then take the lead on a hit by pitch to make it 5-4 after the intentional walk. Tennesse would add a couple of hits to extend the lead to 8-4 and the meltdown was officially on. Tennessee would add six runs total in the top of the ninth. It would be 9-4 heading to the bottom of the ninth.
Georgia Tech would not go away though. After a series of hits, Borden had a two-RBI hit that made the game 9-6 and Georgia Tech would have a chance to tie it. Stephen Reid would strike out and it would be up to Drew Compton to extend the game. Compton would be walked and the bases would be loaded. Hall would have a chance to end the game with one swing of the bat.
Unfortunately, though, Hall would strike out and the season was over for the Yellow Jackets. They put forth a great effort to get back in the game after Tennessee took the lead, but could not finish the job.
This is a heartbreaking way to have the season end. Georgia Tech led for the whole game until the ninth and then just unraveled completely. This was one of the most talented offenses Georgia Tech has ever had and it is a shame that they were not able to have a better season and have it end on a higher note.
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