KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 14 Tennessee battled back from a four-run deficit in the middle innings but was unable to come away with the win in game six of the NCAA Knoxville Regional on Sunday night, falling to Wake Forest, 7-6, at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
The Demon Deacons, who were the home team on the scoreboard in Sunday’s contest, loaded the bases with nobody out before pulling out the win with a walk-off walk by Jack Winnay to force a decisive game seven on Monday night for a spot in next weekend’s super regionals.
Andrew Fischer once again was among the Vols’ most productive hitters, finishing 2-for-5 with three RBIs, including a two-run blast over the batter’s eye in the top of the fifth to cut UT’s deficit from four to two runs.
Another two-run homer tied the game in the top of the sixth as freshman Levi Clark deposited a 3-1 pitch into the Tennessee bullpen for his 10th long ball of the season.
Gavin Kilen also had a solid night at the dish with a run scored and an RBI double to plate the Vols’ first run of the game in the top of the third inning.
Despite a rocky start to his outing, Brandon Arvidson pitched well and kept the Big Orange in the game with a career-high 12 strikeouts over 5.1 innings of relief. UT’s pitchers combined to strike out 17 batters to set a program-record for most punchouts in an NCAA tournament game.
Logan Lunceford started and pitched five solid innings for Wake Forest (39-21), striking out three while allowing four runs (two earned) on five hits. Haiden Leffew picked up the win for the Demon Deacons after retiring the side in order in his lone inning of work.
Regional Winning Streak Snapped
Sunday’s defeat snapped a 14-game winning streak in the NCAA regionals for UT. It was also the Vols’ first home loss in a regional since falling to Wake Forest, 10-3, on May 27, 2001. Tennessee went on to defeat the Demon Deacons later that day to win the regional and advance to its first super regional in program history.
Up Next
Tennessee and Wake Forest will square off in a decisive final game of the NCAA Knoxville Regional on Monday night at 6 p.m. (ET) on ESPN2. The winner will advance to next weekend’s NCAA Super Regional round to face the winner of the Fayetteville Regional.
