OXFORD, Miss. – No. 4/5 Tennessee fell behind 3-1 after one inning and was never fully able to claw its way back to level footing in an 8-5 loss to No. 6/6 Ole Miss on Saturday afternoon at Swayze Field.
The Vols opened the scoring with a Gavin Kilen solo home run in the top of the first and answered the Rebels’ three-spot with another solo homer by Levi Clark in the second inning before being held scoreless over the next three frames while Ole Miss scored three unanswered runs to take a 6-2 lead into the sixth inning.
UT starter Marcus Phillips had a tough day, allowing five runs (four earned) on four hits over 3.1 innings. The junior righthander did finish with six strikeouts but also walked three batters in the loss to fall to 2-2 on the year.
Rebels’ starter Riley Maddox earned the win after striking out five and allowing just two runs on three hits over five innings.
Tennessee looked like it would claw its way back after plating two runs in the top of the sixth, cutting its deficit in half with its third long ball of the day, a two-run shot by Dalton Bargo. However, Ole Miss (27-8, 9-5 SEC) responded with two runs of its own in the bottom of the inning to regain its four-run advantage.
The Vols (30-5, 10-4 SEC) had another chance to get themselves back into the game but were only able to manage one run after loading the bases with no outs in the seventh inning.
Reliever Connor Spencer pitched 1.1 scoreless frames to finish the game and earn his third save of the year.
Franklin Impressive in Relief
Junior righty Tanner Franklin posted another solid outing on Saturday, tossing three shutout innings while striking out four to keep the Big Orange in the game.
Kilen Keeps Hitting
Kilen’s return to the lineup has provided a big boost for the Vols as he has racked up five hits in the first two games of this weekend’s series. The Wisconsin native finished with a game-high three hits on Saturday and also drew a walk to reach base in four of his five plate appearances.
Up Next
Tennessee will look to make it a winning weekend in Oxford with a victory in Sunday’s rubber game. First pitch is slated for 3 p.m. ET on the SEC Network.
