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BATON ROUGE, La. − Tegan Kuhns swiveled on the mound after LSU's Jake Brown turned around a second-inning Kuhns pitch.
Brown flung his bat end over end and his three-run homer whistled toward right field. Whatever good feelings Tennessee baseball had when it left Alex Box Stadium the night before were ruined quickly in the series finale and a distant memory by the time LSU's Luis Hernandez ended it with a two-run double.
The No. 6 Vols were crushed 12-2 in eight innings to lose the series to the No. 5 Tigers on Sunday. They lost 6-3 in Game 1 after blowing a three-run ninth-inning lead before bouncing back to win 9-3 in Game 2.
Tennessee (35-9, 13-8 SEC) has lost three of four series for the first time since it lost four of five to open SEC play in 2023. It lost to Texas A&M to open April, won at Ole Miss and dropped a weekend to Kentucky prior to the LSU (36-9, 14-7) series loss.
LSU scored once in the first inning on a Derek Curiel homer. It hit around three Vols pitchers in the second to turn the game.
Hernandez crushed a triple to the left center gap off AJ Russell that caromed off Dalton Bargo's glove. Russell recorded the second out on a strikeout before Vitello opted for lefty Michael Sharman to face Curiel, who slashed an RBI double to left.
Kuhns came in after an intentional walk to Jared Jones and gave up the three-run homer to Brown.
Tennessee carried its Game 2 performance into the finale offensively in the first inning with two runs on four hits on Tigers starter Casan Evans.
It had two hits in the following five innings against Evans, who had the best outing of his career against the Vols. He struck out six and did not walk in any in six innings.
Hunter Ensley doubled in the third inning and Dean Curley singled in the fifth.
Vitello turned to Russell to start Sunday, which seemed the likely outcome when the Vols did not announce a Sunday starter after Tegan Kuhns had been the choice for six straight games.
RETURN: Inside AJ Russell's return to Tennessee baseball against North Alabama
Russell threw the first 1⅔ innings, allowing two runs on three hits and a walk. He struck out two, throwing 21 of a season-high 37 pitches for strikes. He went through the LSU lineup once in his longest outing since returning from Tommy John surgery.
It was Russell's first SEC start of the season and his second in his career. He started UT's SEC Tournament title game win against LSU in May 2024.
Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X @ByMikeWilson or Bluesky @bymikewilson.bsky.social. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee baseball blown out by LSU in third SEC series loss in April
Continue reading...
Brown flung his bat end over end and his three-run homer whistled toward right field. Whatever good feelings Tennessee baseball had when it left Alex Box Stadium the night before were ruined quickly in the series finale and a distant memory by the time LSU's Luis Hernandez ended it with a two-run double.
The No. 6 Vols were crushed 12-2 in eight innings to lose the series to the No. 5 Tigers on Sunday. They lost 6-3 in Game 1 after blowing a three-run ninth-inning lead before bouncing back to win 9-3 in Game 2.
Tennessee (35-9, 13-8 SEC) has lost three of four series for the first time since it lost four of five to open SEC play in 2023. It lost to Texas A&M to open April, won at Ole Miss and dropped a weekend to Kentucky prior to the LSU (36-9, 14-7) series loss.
How Tennessee unraveled in finale to lose series at LSU
LSU scored once in the first inning on a Derek Curiel homer. It hit around three Vols pitchers in the second to turn the game.
Hernandez crushed a triple to the left center gap off AJ Russell that caromed off Dalton Bargo's glove. Russell recorded the second out on a strikeout before Vitello opted for lefty Michael Sharman to face Curiel, who slashed an RBI double to left.
Kuhns came in after an intentional walk to Jared Jones and gave up the three-run homer to Brown.
Tennessee baseball's offense wilted in LSU series finale
Tennessee carried its Game 2 performance into the finale offensively in the first inning with two runs on four hits on Tigers starter Casan Evans.
It had two hits in the following five innings against Evans, who had the best outing of his career against the Vols. He struck out six and did not walk in any in six innings.
Hunter Ensley doubled in the third inning and Dean Curley singled in the fifth.
AJ Russell struggled in his first SEC start this season
Vitello turned to Russell to start Sunday, which seemed the likely outcome when the Vols did not announce a Sunday starter after Tegan Kuhns had been the choice for six straight games.
RETURN: Inside AJ Russell's return to Tennessee baseball against North Alabama
Russell threw the first 1⅔ innings, allowing two runs on three hits and a walk. He struck out two, throwing 21 of a season-high 37 pitches for strikes. He went through the LSU lineup once in his longest outing since returning from Tommy John surgery.
It was Russell's first SEC start of the season and his second in his career. He started UT's SEC Tournament title game win against LSU in May 2024.
Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X @ByMikeWilson or Bluesky @bymikewilson.bsky.social. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee baseball blown out by LSU in third SEC series loss in April
Continue reading...
