Tennessee Baseball Completes the Series Sweep Over Georgia Southern

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.– The No. 19 Tennessee BaseVols completed the opening series sweep to kick off the 2022 season, defeating Georgia Southern 14-0 on Sunday in Knoxville. 

Hot bats and a solid day on the mound that saw six guys approach the bump powered the Vols' big win. 

Freshman RHP Drew Beam got the starting nod for day three of the series after the Chase duo in Chase Burns and Chase Dollander started on Friday and Saturday, respectively. Beam's Sunday start was his first as a Vol and the first of his collegiate career. 

Beam, a Murfreesboro native, pitched three innings, gave up one hit, walked three of 13 batters faced and threw one strikeout and 37 strikes on 60 total pitches. 

It was clear Tony Vitello wanted a lot of guys to get experience on Sunday, as Beam served as an opener, followed by Camden Sewell, who pitched two innings. After the five innings Beam and Sewell threw for the Vols, Tennessee was well into the thick of their dominant win, leading 10-0. Sewell faced seven batters and threw 19 strikes on 31 total pitches. Kirby Connell, Ben Joyce, Will Mabrey and Jake Fitzgibbons also saw the mound for the Vols. The collection of the four relievers did well, only allowing one hit combined (Fitzgibbons), and Connell struck out three of five batters. Ben Joyce also showed off his arm talent, firing a 100 mph heater on his afternoon's first pitch. 

Beam noted after the game that the Vols performance at the plate helped ease nervousness and pressure, as Tennessee scored three quick runs in the innings the freshman threw. 

"It takes a lot of pressure off," Beam said of his teammates doing well at the plate. "Whenever we know the bats are going, which they usually are, it's a great feeling."

And the bats were going in Lindsey Nelson Sunday, as the Vols recorded 16 hits, scoring 14 runs without hitting one over the fence. Tennessee's consistency at the plate in game three put to bed any doubts regarding their potential, despite relatively slow performances on Friday and Saturday. 

Star junior Jordan Beck was a significant part of the Vols' offensive success, as the Alabama native went 3-3 at the plate with two RBIs and scoring one run. 

Beck, who Tony Vitello said was swinging the bat the best he has since coming to Rocky Top, backed up what his coach said on Sunday and agreed. 

"I do believe that," Beck said of his swing being the best it's been. "I did put in a lot of work in the offseason and in the fall, too, to build confidence. And I think [Vitello] is right. He's got a good mind on him for sure."

Junior LF Seth Stephenson joined Beck as Vols who went 100 percent at the plate, as the former JuCo standout went 2-2 with one RBI and two runs. 

Stephenson's role in the field is not set in stone, as he saw time in the outfield and second base, and he has plenty of experience in the infield dating back to his junior college days. But one thing that does seem to be likely is that the Texas native will lead off plenty for Tennessee this season. 

"I've been a leadoff my whole life. I feel comfortable in that position," Stephenson said. 

Looking at Tennessee's weekend performance as a whole, Beck, Stephenson, Drew Gilbert, Jorel Ortega and Trey Lipscomb made some of the biggest plays at the plate. After losing five starters from the lineup, Tennessee is still trotting out a lineup that will keep any pitcher, coach and crowd on their toes. 

And as for Tennessee's crowd, Lindsey Nelson Stadium saw a record-high attendance on opening night with 4,335. 

Saturday and Sunday's combined attendance of 9,231 pushed the weekend mark to 13,566, which is a new weekend record for Lindsey Nelson Stadium. 

Vitello mentioned how pleased he was with the fans' overwhelming support following Sunday's game.

"I'd be remiss if I didn't say it. This was the biggest crowd of the weekend because of the weather, but I have to thank those people who came out on Friday." That wasn't exactly baseball weather; it was more like Packer weather, and we packed the stands, which was great."

Friday night's weather in Knoxville sat comfortably in the mid to high 30s and was overcast, yet over 4,300 fans supported Tennessee baseball. 

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The Vols' near-perfect start to the season, highlighted by two incredible and a third solid pitching performance from a trio of newcomers and 33 total runs thanks to six homers and a bomb-less 14 run game, puts Tennessee at 3-0 with a +30 scoring margin. 

Tennessee will take on the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. ET in Lindsey Nelson Stadium, followed by another midweek home bout against UNC Asheville. 

Cover photo via Volunteer Country on SI's Jake Nichols 

Tony Vitello's entire post-game media availability is in the video above. 

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