Long ball lifts Tennessee baseball over Missouri in series opener

No. 3 Tennessee baseball stayed hot and claimed game one of its series with Missouri.

The Vols cruised to a 10-1 win over the Tigers on Thursday in Knoxville.

Tennessee (35-7, 13-6 SEC) used an early barrage of long balls to get this done.

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In the opening four innings, the Vols homered in each frame. Tigers (19-24, 6-13) starting pitcher Ryan Magdic went three innings while giving up five runs before being pulled. Christian Moore, Cal Stark, Billy Amick and Hunter Ensley were the ones to go yard in the first four innings.

For Moore, this was his 20th home run of the year. His career mark is up to 47 which remains the most in program history.

Also producing runs later in the game were a three-run blast by Amick and a solo shot by Cannon Peebles.

Getting the ball on the mound to start for Tennessee was Chris Stamos. He would go 2.2 innings while allowing no runs on three hits. He also struck out three batters. He threw 41 pitches in the outing.

Then, AJ Causey entered out of the bullpen. He would finish the rest of game besides one out while tossing 6.0 innings and allowing one run on six hits and two walks with five strikeouts.

Matthew Dallas finished the job and got the last out.

Tennessee

1. Christian Moore (R) - 2B

2. Blake Burke (L) - 1B

3. Billy Amick (R) - 3B

4. Kavares Tears (L) - RF

5. Dylan Dreiling (L) - LF

6. Dean Curley (R) - SS

7. Hunter Ensley (R) - CF

8. Reese Chapman (L) - DH

9. Cal Stark (R) - C

LHP - Chris Stamos

Missouri

1. Brock Daniels (L) - LF

2. Kaden Peer (L) - CF

3. Trevor Austin (R) - 3B

4. Jedier Hernandez (R) - C

5. Mateo Serna (B) - DH

6. Jackson Lovich (R) - RF

7. Matt Garcia (B) - 2B

8. Drew Culbertson (R) - SS

9. Danny Corona (L) - 1B

LHP - Ryan Magdic

After Stamos got out of the first inning with no runs allowed despite consecutive hits, Moore got things started for Tennessee. The Vols' career home run leader went yard in the first at-bat for Tennessee to put it up 1-0.

In the second, the Vols worked back-to-back walks and used a Ensley bunt to move the pair into scoring position with one down. This led to a 400-foot Stark homer to left-center which put Tennessee up 4-0.

In the top of the third, Stamos' day was finalized with two outs and a runner on second. Causey entered and walked a batter before getting out of the inning. In the bottom of the inning, Amick hit another home run. This one was 112 mph off the bat and put Tennessee up 5-0.

The fourth innings featured another home run. This time, it was Ensley taking one opposite field to right for a solo shot. It gave the Vols a 6-0 advantage. This was the the 17th time this season and the fourth-straight game Tennessee had hit four home runs in a game.

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It wasn't until the sixth until the Vols scored again. Amick crushed his second home run of the night for a three-run shot to take a 9-0 lead.

In the top of the seventh, Danny Corona homored to right to give Missouri its first run of the game. The score stood at 9-1.

In the bottom of the eighth, Peebles hit his first home run with the Vols. It was a solo shot that got out to right-center and made it a nine-run game.

Causey remained in the game for the ninth to shut things down. However, he allowed two runners in scoring position with two down. Dallas entered to get the last out and finish things off.

1) Moore opens the game with a homer

2) Stark hits a two-out bomb in the second

3) Amick hits a ball 112 mph

Tennessee will have the chance to take the series on Friday at 6:30 p.m. ET. The Vols will also host the Tigers on Saturday for game three with first pitch coming at noon.

Tuesday will feature a home clash against Lipscomb before Tennessee hits the road for a Thursday-Saturday series against Florida.

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