All for Tennessee
Fansided

Tennessee Vols morning report: Softball begins regionals

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 09: Tennessee Volunteers fans cheer during the first half of the game against the Indiana State Sycamores at Neyland Stadium on September 9, 2017 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 09: Tennessee Volunteers fans cheer during the first half of the game against the Indiana State Sycamores at Neyland Stadium on September 9, 2017 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

We are still covering one regular season event of this odd year when it comes to the Tennessee Vols, but that is in the process of winding down now. Everything else is in the postseason, and some programs are succeeding in a big way on that front. Oh, and football continues to add transfers, as Michigan transfer linebacker William Mohan joined the Vols on Thursday.

Our morning update on Rocky Top leads with the baseball program continuing its final regular season series of the year while the softball program begins a postseason series. Individual recognition in softball and in the administration in general also made huge news.

Beyond the diamond and the individual awards, we’ve got postseason coverage in men’s tennis, track and field and women’s golf to bring you, and the men’s tennis coverage is huge. After men’s golf qualified for NCAA Championships, so many other sports are advancing in postseason play now too. Let’s go ahead and dive in to everything happening at UT in late May right now.

Baseball wins series opener vs. South Carolina – Wes Rucker, GoVols247

In the first game of their final regular season series, the Tennessee Vols beat the South Carolina Gamecocks on the road. This is a three-game series that will end Saturday.

"The Vols ambushed the 15th-ranked Gamecocks with a six-run fourth inning Thursday night and rolled to a 10-4, series-opening win at Founders Park in Columbia, ending the program’s 11-game losing streak in that city. With Thursday’s city-slump-busting win over South Carolina (32-19, 15-13 SEC), Tennessee (41-13, 19-9) still controls its own destiny in the SEC Eastern Division with two games left in the regular season."

Softball to begin NCAA Regionals – D1Softball.com

On Friday, the Tennessee Lady Vols softball team will face the Eastern Kentucky Colonels at 2 p.m. ET. This is their first game in the Knoxville Regional, in which they are hosting EKU, the James Madison Dukes and the Liberty Flames.

"The Lady Vols are hosting a regional for the 16th straight year. They gained confidence from a run to the SEC Tournament semifinals."

Four Lady Vols earn NFCA All-Region – SECSports

As Tennessee softball begins NCAA postseason play, four of its players made the 2021 National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Division I All-Southeast Region Team. Junior pitcher Ashley Rogers and sophomore outfielder Kiki Milloy earned First Team. Senior Infielder Ashley Morgan and senior outfielder Amanda Ayala earned Second Team. You can see all the teams here.

"The awards honor softball student-athletes from the Association’s 10 regions with first, second and third-team selections. NFCA member head coaches from each respective region voted on the teams, and all student-athletes now become eligible for the 2021 NFCA Division I All-America squads."

Men’s tennis advances to Final Four – WBIR

Thanks to a 4-1 win over the Georgia Bulldogs, the Tennessee Vols men’s tennis team advanced to the NCAA Final Four. They will face the Baylor Bears on Friday.

"The win was the Vols second win over Georgia this season. Tennessee had to rally behind in singles after the Vols dropped the doubles point, for just the sixth time overall in 2021."

Joan Cronan honored by Tennessee Sports HoF – TSHF.net

University of Tennessee Athletic Director Emeritus Joan Cronan was named the David Williams Significant Historical Achievement Award recipient from the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame Thursday. She will receive the award at the June 26 induction ceremony.

"Over her career, Cronan worked not only to keep UT at the top in the nation but also to improve women’s athletics on a local, regional and national level. In 1969, she led the women’s basketball team to an alternate berth in the first-ever National Invitational Collegiate Basketball Tournament."

Track and field earns 40 entries at NCAA preliminaries – UTSports

The Tennessee Vols track and field program will send 31 athletes to Florida for the NCAA East Preliminary rounds. They will take place in Jacksonville, Fla. and last from May 26 to May 29.

"Between the UT men’s and women’s squads, Tennessee has 30 individuals and two relay teams totaling 40 entries at the regional competition. The top-12 finishers in each event will advance to the NCAA National Championships, which will be held June 9-12 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon."

Mikayla Bardwell begins women’s golf NCAA Championships – NCAA.com

Although the Tennessee Lady Vols golf team did not qualify for NCAA Championships and head coach Judy Pavon was not renewed, junior Mikayla Bardwell is still in the running for postseason recognition. Bardwell is one of the individuals who will be competing at the NCAA Championships this weekend.

"The first three days of the tournament will consist of 54 holes of stroke play. The top 15 teams and top nine individuals not an advancing team will move on for a final day of stroke play to determine the top eight teams for match play as well as an individual stroke play champion."

Home/Tennessee Volunteers