KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 3 Tennessee made a three-run first inning stand, riding another strong effort from its pitching staff to a 3-2 victory over University of Missouri baseball, wrapping up a three-game Southeastern Conference series sweep of the Tigers Saturday afternoon at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
Dean Curley’s two-out, two-run single capped the Volunteers’ decisive first-inning rally, and three UT relievers combined to blank the Tigers (19-26, 6-15 SEC) over the final eight innings. Nate Snead (7-1) worked a scoreless inning and two-thirds to earn the victory, before Aaron Combs and Kirby Connell combined to strike out four Tigers over the final 3 1/3 innings.
The Tigers dropped their second-straight one-run decision to the Vols (37-7, 15-6 SEC), both by matching 3-2 scores. After surrendering six home runs in the opening game of the series on Thursday, Mizzou pitching kept the Vols in the park for the rest of the weekend. The Tigers limited one of the nation’s top offenses to six runs over the final two contests of the series, thanks in large part to the work of Carter Rustad and Bryce Mayer in the finale. The duo combined to keep the Vols off the scoreboard for the final seven innings, with Mayer allowing just one hit over his 3.0 innings of relief to keep the Tigers within striking distance.
Mizzou, which out-hit the Vols by a 9-8 count, received a lift from Danny…
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