It’s not everyday a Tennessee Vols program has a huge top five matchup on the diamond during the middle of the week, but that’s exactly what happened with softball on Wednesday against the Virginia Tech Hokies. The game didn’t end well for UT.
Our morning update on Rocky Top leads with a recap of what happened in that softball matchup. That’s not the only recap we have, though, as we have updates to cover in the men’s golf SEC Tournament too, which began Wednesday.
Other SEC events are set to begin today as well in men’s and women’s tennis, and we’ll touch on both of those before finishing with a rowing honor by the Big 12. Simply put, there’s plenty to cover. Let’s start with the diamond.
Softball loses 5-2 to Virginia Tech – Ken Lay, VolsWire.com
In a battle of top 20 teams, the Tennessee Lady Vols softball program fell 5-2 Wednesday at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., to the Virginia Tech Hokies, who are in the top five across the board and No. 3 in multiple polls. UT was coming off a sweep against the Texas A&M Aggies this past weekend.
"The Hokies (33-6, 15-2 ACC) scored three runs in the first inning. Meredith Shaw had an RBI single and Bre Beck hit a two-run home run.The Lady Vols (30-13, 11-6 SEC) pulled to within, 3-1, when Zaida Puni’s single plated Kiki Milloy."
Brennan Webb talks first round of SEC Championships – Austin Price, VolQuest
Shooting 12-over par, the Tennessee Vols men’s golf team finished the first day of SEC Championships in 13th place and seven strokes behind the eighth spot, where they need to be to advance to weekend play. Spencer Cross finished No. 13 individually at one-under par. Here is what head coach Brennan Webb said about the day.
"“It was obviously not a very good day at all, but if you are going to play bad one day, this is the tournament to do it just because obviously the goal is to finish in the top eight. Now, obviously the level is much higher, but we can still win this tournament.”"
Men’s tennis set for SEC Tournament – UTSports
As the No. 5 seed, the Tennessee Vols men’s tennis team will take on the No. 13 seed Alabama Crimson Tide to begin the SEC Tournament for them Thursday. The tournament is hosted by the Georgia Bulldogs at Feild Courts in Athens, Ga., and will last through Sunday.
"Tennessee (20-6) leads the all-time series 49-16, ahead of the 66th meeting between the two programs. The Vols defeated Alabama (9-20) this past Friday in Knoxville, a 7-0 Big Orange sweep. After an 0-12 mark in SEC play during the regular season, Alabama defeated Vanderbilt 4-3 in the tournament’s first match Wednesday."
Women’s tennis set for SEC Tournament – SECSports
Just like the men, the Tennessee Lady Vols tennis team will begin the SEC Tournament Thursday, and they will also play Alabama. In this case, UT is a No. 7 seed while Bama is a No. 10 seed. This year’s tournament is hosted by the Florida Gators at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex in Gainesville, Fla., and will last through Sunday.
"The SEC Women’s Tennis Championship is an on-campus event. It rotates to all 14 schools with future sites set for Arkansas (2023), Georgia (2024), Auburn (2025), Kentucky (2026), LSU (2027) and Missouri (2028)."
Rowing wins Big 12 Boat of the Week – Big12Sports.com
For the fourth time this year, the Tennessee Lady Vols rowing program earned the Big 12 Boat of the Week award. UT did it with a 7-2 record last weekend at the Big Ten Invitational.
"In the first session of the day, the 18th-ranked Lady Vols defeated No. 20 Indiana, Dartmouth and Michigan State with a time of 6:31.323. During the afternoon slate, Tennessee crossed the finish line first with a 6:34.529 mark to top 12th-ranked Virginia, Iowa and Wisconsin."