Published May 30, 2025
Tennessee baseball blows by Miami (OH) to open Knoxville Regional
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Ryan Sylvia  •  VolReport
Assistant Managing Editor
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Tennessee baseball had no issue in its NCAA Tournament opener against Miami (OH).

The Vols, coming in as the No. 14 national seed, blew past the RedHawks 9-2 in the Knoxville Regional.

This came behind a dominant showing from ace Liam Doyle. The widely projected top 10 pick went 6.2 innings before being yanked. He allowed just four hits and one run while striking out 11 batters.

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Behind Doyle, Austin Breedlove and Andrew Behnke finished things out. Behnke allowed one run on a solo shot but slammed the door shut other than that.

At the plate, the lone home run was smacked by Reese Chapman. This solo shot played in to his team-high three-RBI game.

As a team, Tennessee recorded nine runs on nine hits.


WHAT HAPPENED

Things got hairy in the first for Doyle. After he allowed a single, a pick-off throw that got away put a runner on third. He walked one more, but got out of the inning unscathed while stranding two.

The Vols saw their first two batters retired before Hunter Ensley ripped a single. However, he was ultimately stranded.

In the second, Tennessee got its first run. Chapman took a ball to opposite field that scraped over the wall into the bleachers for a solo shot. Despite a following two-out double from Cannon Peebles, he was stranded to end the frame.

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Miami (OH) got the third started with a lead-off double off Doyle. He issued a two-out walk with a runner on third, as well, before giving up a roped double down the line. This scored one and tied the game.

In the bottom of the inning, Gavin Kilen walked as the lead-off batter. Andrew Fischer rolled into a double-play ball but reached safely on an error. With the infield shifted, Kilen got to third with nobody covering.

After loading the bases, Dean Curley worked a walk to score one with one out. Chapman followed it up with a sac-fly to push across a second run in the frame. This gave Tennessee a 3-1 lead after three innings.

The Vols tacked on some additional insurance in the fourth. Thanks to a 110 mph exit-velo single from Fischer, one scored. Ensley followed it up with a single that dropped into center to score another before the RedHawks were forced into a pitching change.

Dalton Bargo produced the fourth-straight single of the inning in response to score the inning's third run. Chapman took advantage of an error on the flip to second by the second baseman on what should have been a double-play ball to let another run cross. This gifted UT an 8-1 lead.

In the bottom of the fifth, Peebles got aboard before Kilen ripped another base hit to score him. Bargo got to the plate with two on, but came up just a few feet short of leaving the park to dead center. Tennessee still owned a comfortable 9-1 lead at this point.

Over 100 pitches in, Doyle stayed in the game in the sixth. After allowing a hit, he turned around and rolled a double-play ball to finish his outing. Breedlove entered to finish the frame.

In the eighth, Behnke got the ball. He sat down the side in order. In the ninth, he gave up a solo shot but limited it to just that.

UP NEXT

Tennessee will now meet Cincinnati in the winner's bracket of the Knoxville Regional. The game is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET on Saturday with a TV designation yet to be determined.

Marcus Phillips is scheduled to pitch for the Vols in the game.

The winner of that match will move on to the regional finals. They will have two chances to win one game and move on to the super regionals agains the winner of the Fayetteville Regional.

The loser will be tasked with winning three-straight games to advance.

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