Volunteer Country

Lindsey Nelson Stadium Sets Record in Vols Win Over Western Carolina

Lindsey Nelson Stadium set a midweek attendance record of 4,607 fans in the Vols' win over Western Carolina.

Jack Foster

In Tennessee baseball's 11-1 midweek win over Western Carolina on Wednesday, Lindsey Nelson Stadium set a midweek attendance record of 4,607 fans, topping the previous record of 4,494 that was set in the Vols' midweek matchup against Butler on Tuesday, March 22. 

4,607 is also the fourth highest attendance number in Lindsey Nelson Stadium history. 

With the fans filling the stands for a midweek matchup, Vitello had high praise for the Tennessee fanbase. 

"I was getting text messages that the crowd looked great on TV, and it looked even greater in person," Vitello said of the crowd. "When you see the porches filled with people, it's just awesome. And I thought people were more into the game tonight, probably because of the students. We only have two SEC weekends left when school is in session, and I hope that they come back when school is not in session. They made a difference tonight."

Wednesday's record-setting night between Tennessee and Western Carolina marks the first game for the Vols since being named the consensus No. 1 team in the country in all six major polls, and Vitello made note during the post-game press conference that he noticed a little extra juice from his team against the Catamounts. 

"What I noticed tonight was there was a little extra juice. We did a Wednesday because of their situation, and that may have helped us. Whatever they had in them, the focus was really good tonight, even from the guys that didn't play. And that focus is what's going to be needed against these guys and moving forward."

The Vols will take on No. 9 (D1Baseball.com) Vanderbilt in Nashville this weekend for their second consecutive weekend series. Tennessee is coming into the weekend on a 16-game winning streak, which ties a school record for the longest winning streak by a Tennessee baseball team (1994). The Vols also are 6-0 in SEC play so far this season, which is their best start to conference play since 1966. 

Vitello's entire post-game press conference is at the top of the article.

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Jack Foster
JACK FOSTER

Jack is a sophomore at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville majoring in Journalism/Electronic Media. Jack grew up in Paris, Tennessee, but now spends the majority of his time in Knoxville doubling as a student and sports journalist for Volunteer Country. Jack has been a sports junkie since he was a young kid and always watched NFL football with his dad on Sundays. Jack still follows the NFL religiously, as he is an avid fantasy football player. Jack started with Volunteer Country in May of 2021 and has since helped provide full coverage of football, baseball and men's and women's basketball. Jack also works as a recurring member of WUTK's Rock Solid Sports show on Wednesdays and Fridays, and he also serves as head sports producer of The Volunteer Channel's Vol News, a student-run show at the University. When Jack is not watching or covering sports, find him on the golf course or back home spending time with his parents, younger sister and friends. Follow Jack on Twitter and Instagram by clicking "Twitter" and "Instagram" to see all of his work with Volunteer Country as well as student media.

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