OMAHA, Neb. — Christian Moore took a step back and looked over to Tennessee’s dugout.

Amid a 3-2 count and down to the last out trailing Florida State in the bottom of the ninth inning, the Vols’ second baseman shouted three times to his teammates from home plate: “Let’s fight.”

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By that point, Moore had already made College World Series history, becoming just the second player in the 77-year history of the event to hit the cycle, but his biggest hit of the night was yet to come.

He told his teammates to fight—then he led by example, smacking his second double of the game down the line in left field. One at-bat later, Blake Burke scored him and Cannon Peebles to even the score, extend the inning and set the stage for Dylan Dreiling to walk it off, 12-11 at Charles Schwab Field late Friday.

"It's a battle," Moore said. "Two outs, two strikes. If I get out, we lose. Let's fight. That's what I did."

Tennessee (56-12) fought and is now on the winning track in the CWS, set to face North Carolina in the winner's bracket on Sunday (7 p.m. ET, ESPN2).

It didn't come without its challenges. The Vols trailed by four or more runs multiple times, the result of a six-run third inning that seemingly put the Seminoles in the driver's seat.

Tennessee's rally started with Kavares Tears' triple to lead off the ninth. Fresh in the lineup as a pinch hitter, Cannon Peebles worked a critical walk to flip the Vols' order and put their best hitters at the plate.

"We just talked about getting on base. It's nice to turn over the lineup," Tennessee head coach Tony Vitello said. "And Christian Moore was a man on a mission tonight. So you would like to see him get up to the plate. But honestly in that situation, what the conversation is, let's just make sure we get one baserunner. And then I feel like our lineup is capable."

MORE FROM VOLREPORT: Christian Moore didn't let his second chance of being the hero pass by

For the Vols offense, it was the flip of a script.

The firs two of Vitello's Tennessee teams to reach the CWS in 2021 and 2023 were immediately match up against two of the best pitchers in college baseball at the time in Virginia's Andrew Abbott and LSU's Paul Skenes, both of which are now playing Major League Baseball.

Even hot-hitting Tennessee teams struggled out of the gate, resulting in losses that proceeded early exits.

The Vols found themselves in a similar situation going up against Florida State left-handed pitcher Jamie Arnold, who entered the game with an 11-3 record and a 2.77 ERA.

But Tennessee didn't sulk over not-so-distant memories. Instead, the Vols' lineup wanted to prove they could go toe-to-toe with Arnold and prove something to themselves in the process.

"We finally figure out who we're facing (Friday) and you look at the video and you look at the numbers, and (Jamie) Arnold can certainly make the case that he's the best pitcher in this thing," Vitello said. "We had a coaches meeting. And to quote Ace Ventura, "why don't you cry about it, saddle bags?" You'll have to beat somebody good.

"So our guys toughened up pretty good there. There was no game plan other than to compete and they did a good job there."

MORE FROM VOLREPORT: Dylan Dreiling delivered in biggest moment of Tennessee's season

It started with Moore, who was 4-for-4 with a single, a triple, a double and a home run by the end of the sixth inning. But one of the best individual performances in program history was on its way to being overshadowed by a loss that would put Tennessee's CWS run and season on the brink of elimination.

The difference was the rest of the Vols' lineup, where a different hero emerged when it mattered most.

"We're a very gritty team. And when we go out there, we always think that we can put up whatever number on the scoreboard," Burke said. "And we aren't trying to put a six-spot; we're just trying to win every pitch. We threw a bunch of jabs all game, and then threw that big punch in the ninth inning."

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