College World Series Recap: Tennessee walks off Florida State, 12-11

Despite being down 9-4 after four innings, the Vols methodically worked their way back into the game, scored one run in the eighth and four runs in the bottom of the ninth thanks to seven two-out base hits in the final two frames, with Dylan Dreiling sending a ball to left and Tennessee to a 12-11 victory in dramatic fashion.

The game was, well, chaotic from first at bat. Tennessee starter Chris Stamos gave up a lead-off single that should have been an easy out that Blake Burke misplayed, then a four-pitch walk and a fielder’s choice that put runners on the corners.

Tony Vitello quickly went to AJ Causey, who struck out the first batter before tossing a five-pitch walk and a wild pitch that plated the first run of the game. Causey walked another on four-straight pitches but struck out the final hitter to get out of the jam with just the one run scored.

Christian Moore led the offense off with a heads-up, lead-off triple when he smoked a ball into right-center, and as it appeared to me, caught the Noles’ outfielder slipping a bit thinking Moore was going to stop at second. Burke brought him home the next pitch with a bloop single to left that dropped in thanks to the Florida State fielders losing the ball in the sun. A Billy Amick walk later, and Tennessee took a 2-1 lead with a Dreiling single.

Both teams committed errors in the second — Causey escaped the top half without allowing a run despite Moore’s error throwing to first, while UT added two more runs in the home half.

CMo rocketed another ball into the outfield, and Cal Stark was thrown out by a wide margin but managed to knock the ball loose from the catcher on his “slide,” at home. FSU’s catcher was charged with an error on the play, and Moore advanced to third:

Noles’ starter Jamie Arnold committed State’s second error of the inning when Burke hit a comebacker that Arnold played but threw the ball wide and pulled the first baseman off the bag. Moore scored on the play, and after two innings, Tennessee led 4-1.

Each squad played ugly defense early, but the Vols nearly cost themselves the game with the numerous defensive miscues that persisted through most of the first half of the game.

Florida State ended up tagging Causey and Kirby Connell for six runs on five hits in the third and put two more runs on Aaron Combs in the fourth after Combs walked the first batter he faced on four pitches then gave up a two-run bomb to the next hitter.

After what felt like an eternity, Combs put up a zero in the top of the fifth when he struck out two of the three batters he faced as he sat the Seminole lineup down in order.

The offense showed a pulse again in the B5 when Ensley poked a one-out single to right, and Tears, who had just two hits in his previous 13 at bats, lasered a ball out of the park for his 19th dinger of the season.

Tennessee needed another zero in the top of the sixth, and Combs got hit hard — a couple 100-MPH exit velos from the Florida State batters — but managed to get that zero even though he loaded up the bases. Amick nearly committed an error on the final play of the inning, but Burke made a good stretch-and-scoop at first to get the runner.

The thought of a comeback would have been a nonstarter without Christian Moore’s bat. He had a mammoth game for the Vols, going 5-6, scoring four runs and hitting for the second cycle in College World Series history. He completed the cycle in style when he absolutely crushed a ball to straight-away center in the home half of the sixth. At least three of his five hits had exit velocities of 110-plus, with the home run leaving the bat at 117 MPH, finally landing 440 feet away and measuring in as the third-longest home run ever hit at Charles Schwab Field.

Still down 9-7, Combs led the seventh off with two walks and a three-pitch strikeout sandwiched in between. Vitello played the percentages and brought in lefty Andrew Behnke to face FSU’s three-hole hitter James Tibbs, whose batting average is 200-ish points lower against left-handed pitchers. Tibbs struck out, Vitello left Behnke in and Marco Dinges, who hit lefties at around .400 this season, smashed a ball to left-center for a two-run double. The Noles extended their lead back to four, and the game’s outcome seemed to be determined.

But the top of the lineup just wouldn’t quit.

Burke, Amick and Dreiling put together three consecutive two-out base hits in the eighth, which cut FSU’s lead to three, then Tears got the rally started with a one-out triple in the Vols’ final at bat. Tennessee sent eight hitters to the plate in the ninth, with Dean Curley hitting a sac fly to plate the first run and Cannon Peebles coming off the bench to work a clutch walk — something he’s done all season. Peebles’ walk gave the top of the lineup a chance, and, once again with two outs, Moore, Burke, Amick came through with hits that gave Dreiling the opportunity to bring home the win.

Nate Snead gets some credit here, too, as he got his 10th win of the year by throwing 2.1 innings of absolutely crucial scoreless ball. He gave up just one hit, walked two and struck out two.

The Vols were dead in the water — with much of the harm self-inflicted. There’s been a lot of chatter about how this team responds to adversity this season, and one couldn’t script a better example.

With the win, Tennessee gets North Carolina on Sunday, after the Tarheels walked off Virginia earlier today. The two teams square off at 7 PM EST.