All recaps come from UTSports.com
Game 1: Hofstra
The reigning national champion Tennessee Volunteers opened their 2025 season with a bang by routing Hofstra, 15-0, in front of an Opening Day crowd of 6,212 at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
Eight different UT players drove in runs on the day, led by multi-RBI efforts from
Dean Curley (two),
Stone Lawless (two),
Ariel Antigua (two) and
Hunter High (three). High's pinch-hit three-run homer, the first of his career, capped a seven-run sixth inning for the Big Orange.
Curley's two-run blast into the porches in left center was the first of three Tennessee long balls on the day as the Big Orange cruised to a run-rule win.
Cannon Peebles had a great all-around day at the plate, as well, going 2-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI from the designated hitter spot.
With the win, the No. 2/4 Vols improved to 78-36-2 all-time in season openers and 4-1 in home season openers under head coach
Tony Vitello. A handful of players put up impressive performances in their Tennessee debuts, headlined by a masterful outing on the mound from junior lefthander
Liam Doyle. The Ole Miss transfer set a new career high with 11 strikeouts and allowed just one hit over five shutout innings to earn the win.
After getting a groundout to start the game, Doyle retired the next eight batters he faced via strikeout before giving up the Pride's only hit of the game. Doyle ended up facing the minimum through five innings after the runner was thrown out at second on the play after recording the single.
Fellow Ole Miss transfer
Andrew Fischer also put his stamp on the game by drawing two walks, scoring a pair of runs and hitting a solo homer in the third inning. Louisville transfer
Gavin Kilen finished the game 2-for-3 with a double and a triple while scoring two runs, as well.
Redshirt freshman
Stone Lawless got the start behind the dish and drove in a pair of runs with a double in UT's seven-run sixth inning. Freshman infielder
Manny Marin got the starting nod at third base and recorded two hits of his own in his first collegiate contest.
Rounding out the group of productive debuts was junior right hander
Tanner Franklin, who stuck out four over the final two innings and did not allow a hit.
Game 2: Hofstra
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 2/4 Tennessee earned their second win of their opening series with a 18-1 run-rule victory over Hofstra on Saturday afternoon at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
Ten different UT players scored runs on the day, including multi-run efforts from
Gavin Kilen (three),
Hunter Ensley (three),
Levi Clark (three),
Manny Marin (two) and
Jay Abernathy (two).
The Vols also notched 16 RBIs on the day, backed by efforts from seven different players. Four of the seven contributed two or more, including
Blake Grimmer (three), Ensley (four), Clark (three) and
Chris Newstrom (two).
Tennessee struck first, scoring a pair of runs in the second inning, starting a streak of five consecutive innings with multiple runs scored.
Clark hit his first collegiate home run in the bottom of the fourth, a three-run shot into the porches, extending the Vols' lead to 9-0. Tennessee hit two more homers on the day, including a grand slam from Ensley and a three-run homer from Grimmer.
Fierce Freshmen
The Vols were led by a multitude of dominant freshmen performances — including two true freshmen who made their first career starts in Clark and Newstrom.
Clark went 3-for-3 with three RBIs and three runs — including the aforementioned homer in the fourth inning. Newstrom had a bases-clearing double to cap off the third inning and finished the day with a pair of hits. Abernathy added to the Vols' lead with both an RBI single and a run of his own in UT's five-run sixth inning.
Grimmer joined in on the fun with a pinch-hit three-run blast in the sixth, notching the second home run for the Vols' freshman class in the game.
Pitching Shines Again
A day after limiting the Pride to one hit in a shutout effort, the Big Orange pitching staff allowed just one run on two hits during Saturday's victory.
Junior righthander
Marcus Phillips made his first-career weekend start and held Hofstra scoreless over four innings of work, allowing just one hit and two walks while striking out four batters.
Redshirt sophomore righty
Austin Hunley, earned his first win of the year after tossing 0.2 innings of scoreless relief. The duo of
Brandon Arvidson and
Thomas Crabtree didn't give up a hit over the final two innings and combined to strike out four batters.
Game 3: Hofstra
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 2/4 Tennessee completed its season-opening series sweep of Hofstra with its third straight run-rule win, downing the Pride 13-1 in seven innings on Sunday afternoon at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
The Volunteers (3-0) did the majority of their damage in the first two innings, scoring 12 of their 13 runs over those two frames, including putting up an eight-spot in the second to jump out to a 12-1 lead.
Reese Chapman led the charge at the plate with five RBIs, four of which came on a grand slam in the second inning, UT's second of the weekend after
Hunter Ensley hit one in Saturday's win.
Ensley built off his impressive game two performance with another strong day at the dish on Sunday, going 2-for-3 with two runs and two RBIs.
Dean Curley also had his second multi-hit effort of the series with a pair of singles.
Nate Snead put together a solid outing in his first weekend start as the Vol, allowing one run on two hits while striking out three batters over three innings.
Lefty reliever
Andrew Behnke picked up the win after tossing a scoreless fourth inning before
Ryan Combs,
Luke Payne and
Austin Breedlove combined to pitch the final three frames in scoreless fashion.
Another Successful Opening Weekend
The Vols posted their fourth consecutive series sweep when opening the year at home (2019, 2020, 2022, 2025) and are now 13-2 overall under head coach
Tony Vitello in season-opening home series.
Tennessee has posted a winning record on opening weekend in six of its eight seasons under Vitello with 2018 and 2023 being the only exceptions.
