Tennessee baseball has survived the Knoxville Regional and is on to the super regional stage.

After beating Wake Forest 11-5, head coach Tony Vitello and players Manny Marin, Andrew Fischer and Liam Doyle met with the media.

Here's what they said.

TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM

Opening Statement…

“It's tough to describe the energy that was in the building tonight. It was a little bit different. Maybe they listened to [Andrew] Fischer. I don't know if the numbers were bigger because it was a Monday, but the energy was insane. Our guys’ response to being down was equally insane. The biggest thing was guys doing things they struggled throughout the year doing well, one through nine. And then [we have] our guys that are just willing to take the ball. It is a weird deal on this staff to have that many guys that want the ball, no matter what day it is or what the circumstances are. [Nate] Snead was willing to go 100 pitches today. I feel for the guys that didn't get action because everybody was available. Marcus Phillips, it would have had to be like, I don't know [what situation]. Even [Ben] Martin was joking around about being out there. I know it's in a unique way because Frank [Anderson] is pretty hard on these guys and he gets results out of it. There's a lot of trust and a lot of love there between the pitchers and ‘Coach A’ and, of course, there's other people that that help out, too. Maybe that's got something to do with it, that they want to pitch for the boys and not just themselves, which I greatly appreciate and benefited from today as well.”

On what it means to see his pitchers get it done tonight…

“The first part was interesting because I'm not a big fan of the shenanigans with the starting pitcher thing. I know they mentioned who would go for them in the presser, but—honest answers this weekend—I like to hear everyone's opinion. There's a lot of people in this building that help out. Some get paid, some don't, and I value everybody's opinion. I also needed to communicate with guys like, ‘Who's good to go?’ And there wasn't anybody that was backing down. AJ [Russell] has probably got the most unique circumstances. It's been a quirky year for him, but we're sitting where we're sitting. He's going to throw again for us and I think the guys need to give him props for what he did today because it’s been tough. He's had to come back from injury. Last year he did everything for us that he could and it meant a lot to see him out there. And [Brayden] Krenzel, maybe because he's been around his dad, was absolutely fearless, and we've run D[ylan] Loy through the ringer this year. He always wants the ball and did a great job. ‘T Frank’ [Tanner Franklin] was huge in there, too. Jumping into big boy’s arms was fun and foolish. I'm sure someone won’t like it on Twitter. There's a lot of moments where we calm the excitement we have going on and there's a lot of sacrifice and a lot of hard work. So, the boys don't need to be doing anything too crazy tonight, but they need to enjoy it. All kids should enjoy it. You hit a homer 450 feet, it’s a new day and age. Maybe you look at it for a second. I had fun doing it. I love them. I love these three guys, [Liam Doyle, Andrew Fischer and Manny Marin], sitting next to me. The two on my left, [Andrew and Manny], would agree that Liam's a very unique character and I'm blessed to have him in my life. And Manny just doesn’t say as much to me as these other guys, but I've said it before—maybe you're not supposed to say this as a coach, but I've told a bunch of people, like Kyle Peterson, he's probably better than all of them. He's just a young pup, so it'll be fun to watch him grow up. He's taken a lot of pride in his weight and he wouldn't have been able to hit that ball over the fence the opposite field in the fall.”

On the significance of Brayden Krenzel’s 1-2-3 inning…

“It reminded me of a couple of his other outings early in the year. ETSU was one. I know it didn't come out the way we wanted. That was the one non-conference game we lost, but they had a great team this year. He came in and changed the whole tune and he did the same thing today. There's been a couple of them like that. At Alabama he was like that. Alabama was in there competing, but on day three in Tuscaloosa it turned into a one-sided game when he got out there. These guys know what they’re facing, the two to my left, [Andrew Fischer and Manny Marin]. It's nasty stuff. It's just about him having the presence that he had today, which he's done several times.”

On what it means to the team to make another Super Regional appearance…

“I think we did it in a different style and it is just a tournament. We just got done with one in Hoover and we had a winning record, but it didn't end well. We could have done better there, but I think we learned from it and this is a new style for us. We hadn't done it this way at home. It's good to face that adversity. There's some magic moments that took place in this building, as it's being reconstructed. We're going through some things. I like winning in tournaments, trust me. You name the tournament, it's fun, but also this is a game based off sample size and I think it's [not always] fair to judge people. And it's not just this game. Coach [Rick] Barnes is a phenomenal example. His office not too far from us. You get in a tournament, crazy things can happen, like tonight or last night. How many crazy things happened? But to do things that are measurable over a consistent amount of time, is something I'm shooting for at a younger age. Props to the coaches that have done it.”

On Vitello’s vision for Liam Doyle tonight…

“To be honest with you, a possible Plan A was him starting the fifth and being in the middle of the game. I'd trust the guy with anything you could come up with, but I also care about him and didn't want to be in a position where he'd stretch out the pitch count too much. And also, I didn't necessarily want to put him in a spot where it would be a tough one for him. That sounds foolish saying it now. Also, AJ [Russell] was supposed to get past [Dalton] Wentz and he kind of tricked me. If we make a catch in the outfield, [things may change]. Dalton] Bargo’s hammy is barking a little bit. We disagreed with something that happened, so Russell kind of tricked me and I left him out there too long. I regret that. And [Brayden] Krenzel was at the end of his rope, too. These kids have made a bunch of mistakes all year long. I think [Andrew] Fischer alluded to it a little bit. Our fans should appreciate consistency and not expect dominance in any sport. I know it's an SEC school, so that's going to fall on deaf ears, but they make mistakes. Like [Andrew] Fischer said, they work their butts off and there's a lot of passion. At the very least they're playing for each other as much as anything and they're playing for UT right after that and they're a very close onetwo, I can tell you that. I made mistakes tonight. I wish I could have made it a zero, although this lineup Wake’s got makes it impossible to make it nine zeros. Could have made a couple decisions different, but wouldn't have it any other way than having Liam [Doyle] throw the last pitch.”

On what led to Cannon Peebles’ ejection…

“The catcher celebrated the strikeout, as he should. We're in a regional. Cannon [Peebles] said something back to him, as he should not. But probably what he said to the catcher is something both dugouts said back and forth to one another the whole night long. I don't know if it had to do something with a warning being out there or not. I've sat in here—and the Notre Dame game [in 2022] for one which is relevant, I've sat in here [to address an ejection]. I'd like to think these kids would say I've got their back as much as any coach they've been around. But it was foolish. First of all, take your walk because the ball wasn't close to being a strike. And then have some composure, especially in that situation playing the scoreboard. Cannon is always going to err on the side of working hard, if not working too hard, and playing hard, if not playing too hard. It was a foolish mistake. And to be honest with you, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow was Stone Lawless is probably up for Teammate of the Year Award again two years in a row. He got some action and he deserves it and he's fully capable back there too.”

On his thoughts on going back to Arkansas…

“I've talked to those guys before all this started, but I didn't know it was complete. When you're in the backyard, at least the neighborhood I grew up in, it was still everybody meets out on the street and you play a bunch of games and whenever I lost—maybe my dad did it to me—I was kind of a little punk, but I always wanted to run it back. Let's redo it. So, at the very least, my first reaction is we want to be playing this time of year, as does anybody that's left. I don't know if any other games are still going on. I haven't followed much of that stuff, but it's a blessing to be playing and this team has been confident going on the road, but at the very least they get a chance to redo the thing.”

On the freshmen playing well…

“I feel for the guys who didn't get action. We yelled at these guys in the fall. Now it wasn't these two guys, but we yelled at them in the fall. The topic of conversation was some of the freshmen were showing less fear or were playing more fearlessly than some of the older guys. Tegan [Kuhns] has that unique composure and competitiveness and isn't scared, and [Chris] Newstrom certainly does. I don't think that kid's ever been scared of anything in his life. This time of year, whether it's the ones you mentioned or the other ones that that didn't get credit, they're not really freshmen anymore. They've had to play through the SEC and it's hell. You know coach [Dave] Van Horn and I had that conversation last time we were in Fayetteville. It was the last weekend of the year and by week 10 you could be the biggest competitor. You're kind of ready to move on to something else, or at least you can see the light at the end of the tunnel moving on to Hoover. The teammates, the league and their work ethic have got them in a spot where that's who they are now.”

On coming up big in the game with his home run...

"It feels good. It's where I wanted to be, the moment. It's why you come here to Tennessee. On deck, I looked through the corner of my eye and [Andrew] Fischer was there like this. I knew after his energy was given, that it was going to be good."

On what he can take away from his first NCAA Regional experience...

"I think I can take away slowing the game down for sure and using every advantage I have, even if it is a timeout, to slow the game down and just [determine] how can you do what you know you can do."

On Manny Marin coming up big...

"I rarely try to tinker with the freshman when they are in the on-deck circle. Like coach [Tony Vitello] said, they are still pups out there and they are still figuring it out. I looked at Manny [Marin] and sometimes you never know what's going through his head because he doesn't say much, but he just kind of had a little bit of a different presence about him in the on-deck circle. When he looked at me, he just kind of nodded and I was like, 'Let's go. Let's do this'. Then, he just got it done and I just lost my mind. I think from that moment when he hit the ball to, I think, Dyan Loy's first out recorded, I just blacked out. I don't remember any of it. Yeah, I am just super happy for him."

On the crowd at tonight's game...

"I was definitely pleased with the crowd tonight. Like coach [Tony Vitello] said, it's a different kind of atmosphere. When you have—obviously, there's only nine guys out there on the field, but like coach said, we have 50 guys willing to put anything on the line to win that game. Guys are willing to risk whatever is happening with their arm or whatever and they aren't supposed to be out there, but we just have literally 50 guys that are the definition of what the sign says up here, 'I will give my all for Tennessee'. I was just happy with the way the crowd showed up and was behind us. It really swung some of our momentum. Obviously, these guys, they deserve—whether we play here again or not, moving forward for the next season, the season after and the season after that—the crowd should be like that every single time. We work too hard for that to not be the case."

On why he wanted to be available to pitch tonight and what he is going to do with the game ball he kept...

"Probably going to my mom and just keeping it for good memories. It's my first time making it to a Super Regional with a team. Me and Andrew [Fischer] took—I wouldn't say a risk, but I'd say [we made] a smart decision entering the transfer portal this year and coming to a spot where we knew we wanted to win. That's all it was about. We wanted to win. We wanted to come to a spot that has won in the past and done great here. I wanted the ball. I knew I could win for my team and put it all on the line out there tonight."

On why it was important for him to be able to pitch tonight...

"I just knew I was prepared for the moment. I felt like I've gone through it here now being in the SEC for two years. I've taken a lot of information from last year, my first year [in the league]. I've had some ups and downs. … I have been ready for what was my task. My arm felt good enough yesterday, arm felt great today. And [it was about] just going out there and giving my team a chance to win. I am really glad coach [Tony Vitello] had the trust in me to go out there and close the game tonight."

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