Tennessee baseball will meet Cincinnati in the Knoxville Regional on Saturday evening.
The winner is just one victory from punching its ticket to the super regionals while the loser will need to rattle off three-straight wins to advance.
To preview the game, I spoke with Neil Meyer of The Front Office News, a Bearcats reporter. Here's what he said.
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Who's getting the ball for Cincy? What should UT expect from him?
"Kellen O’Conner (LHP transfer from CSU Bakersfield) will get the nod."
"UT should expect him to confirm in and attack early. Hasn’t started a game since May 10 vs. TCU where he gave up a season-high six earned runs. Used in relief vs KState two times and Texas Texas down the stretch."
What went well for Cincy to handle Wake Forest as well as it did?
"What went well for Cincy was it was able to get runners in scoring position early. They had Morningstar in a rut and made him pay with RISP."
"UC hit long balls with runners on compared to wakes solo shots."
"Also, Cincy was able to get going after Taylor got settled in after a long second inning and that was huge for their ace."
"Most of Cincy's runs today also came with two outs. If you give them free stuff, they’ll make you pay."
"Pitching depth is iffy for UC so getting (through) today with just two bullpen guys was critical."
How much is base running a part of the typical game plan? Do you think that will be a factor?
"Cincinnati is known for “Bischel Ball,” but essentially small ball and the ability to play aggressive."
"Base running plays a huge part. We saw it today play in their favor. Vidourek returned after missing the last few weeks and picked up two bags."
Who has the hottest bat for Cincy right now?
"Hottest bat is still Big 12 Player of the Year in Kerrington Cross who’s hitting .399 entering today."
How do you see it playing out?
"Think it’ll be a good matchup but it will come down to pitching. If Cincinnati gets another quality start, think they could find a way to gut it out. But yet again, UT is reigning national champs and will be a handful. But I believe it can go either way, but think it’ll be a close ball game. Bischel is in his fourth regional appearance and he managed today perfectly and you could sense he’s not scared of the big moments and the Bearcats are here to stay."
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