University of Tennessee Athletics
Lady Vols Display Intensity In Regional Sweep
May 21, 2018 | Softball
By Rhiannon Potkey, Special to UTSports.com
They received strong pitching performances and contributions throughout the lineup. They scored in conventional and unconventional ways. They endured weather delays, quick turnarounds and searing heat.
The Lady Vols experienced a little bit of everything to open the NCAA tournament, and managed to handle much of it with ease.
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No. 10-seeded Tennessee completed a perfect weekend with a 5-1 victory over Ohio on Sunday afternoon to capture the regional title at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium.
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The Lady Vols (48-12) swept a regional in three games for the ninth time in program history, and tied the program record for runs scored in a regional sweep with 26.
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Tennessee will play in an all-SEC Super Regional for the second straight year when they face No. 7 Georgia in Athens. Game 1 is scheduled for Friday at 5 p.m. (ESPNU). Games 2 and 3 (if necessary) will be at 3 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday (ESPN).
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"When they're on a mission, one through nine, they can be pretty tough," Tennessee co-head coach Karen Weekly said of the Lady Vols. "I think they listened to some of the noise about us not being very strong at the bottom of our batting order and people picking us to lose this regional and I think that got them fired up. Maybe it was thinking that a lot of people thought they were the underdog this weekend, but they certainly had an intensity about them."
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Caylan Arnold capped the regional with back-to-back wins, limiting Ohio to four hits with eight strikeouts and no walks to improve to 26-4. The sophomore finished the weekend with 15 strikeouts and only one walk in 13 innings pitched.
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"I hate walks. I really try hard not to walk people. That's probably my favorite thing about today is the no walks," Arnold said. "That's been something that I've been working on all season. That's definitely a really great accomplishment for me. I thought (catcher) Abby (Lockman) did a great job behind the plate getting me pitches. I'm really happy with that stat."
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Even Karen Weekly admitted to flashing a smile in the dugout after Arnold struck out an Ohio batter in the sixth inning.
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"Did you take a picture, because that's rare," Weekly said. "It's not because I'm mad, I just have a hard time smiling and thinking at the same time. She just executed pitches really, really well today. For her to shut down their top three hitters was phenomenal. She was dealing the pitches we needed at the time we needed them."
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After displaying their power in a win over James Madison the day before, the Lady Vols generated runs in a less explosive fashion against Ohio.
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Tennessee took advantage of an error to take a 2-1 lead with Meghan Gregg and Jenna Holcomb scoring on an Ashley Morgan hit in the third inning that was mishandled at second base.
Chelsea Seggern added another run in the frame when she stole home after pinch runner Brooke Langston drew the throw to second on a steal attempt and was caught in a rundown. Seggern scored before Langston was tagged out to give the Lady Vols a 3-1 lead.
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"Obviously, we didn't have a lot of power today at the plate, but we figured out a way to get things working," Gregg said. "I was just following Jenna and Aubrey (Leach) who started things off and we made a move. I think that's really what we needed to do against Ohio, just make the infield move."
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Haley Bearden provided some insurance in the sixth inning with a two-out, two-run pinch hit single to right field that scored Sheridan Allen and Amanda Ayala.
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"Haley doing that just really brought all of the momentum on our side. After that hit, we really just saw some of their shoulders going down," Gregg said. "We just really got hyped for that. I was really proud of Haley. She was really excited and couldn't wipe the smile off her face. She was just happy she could do it for the team."
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During the regional, Gregg hit two home runs to become the program's all-time leader in home runs hit in NCAA play with eight.
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The Ohio victory was the final game ever played at Lee Stadium in the decorated career of the record-breaking senior. Gregg's next game will come in her home state of Georgia.
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"It's pretty bittersweet. I felt like I was a little sad, but it's hard to be sad when we're going to a Super Regional," Gregg said. "I started thinking about how we still have practice tomorrow on the same field. I can't be too sad when we have practice tomorrow on the same field. We have a lot of work to do this week and prepare for Georgia."
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They received strong pitching performances and contributions throughout the lineup. They scored in conventional and unconventional ways. They endured weather delays, quick turnarounds and searing heat.
The Lady Vols experienced a little bit of everything to open the NCAA tournament, and managed to handle much of it with ease.
Â
No. 10-seeded Tennessee completed a perfect weekend with a 5-1 victory over Ohio on Sunday afternoon to capture the regional title at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium.
Â
The Lady Vols (48-12) swept a regional in three games for the ninth time in program history, and tied the program record for runs scored in a regional sweep with 26.
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Tennessee will play in an all-SEC Super Regional for the second straight year when they face No. 7 Georgia in Athens. Game 1 is scheduled for Friday at 5 p.m. (ESPNU). Games 2 and 3 (if necessary) will be at 3 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday (ESPN).
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"When they're on a mission, one through nine, they can be pretty tough," Tennessee co-head coach Karen Weekly said of the Lady Vols. "I think they listened to some of the noise about us not being very strong at the bottom of our batting order and people picking us to lose this regional and I think that got them fired up. Maybe it was thinking that a lot of people thought they were the underdog this weekend, but they certainly had an intensity about them."
Â
Caylan Arnold capped the regional with back-to-back wins, limiting Ohio to four hits with eight strikeouts and no walks to improve to 26-4. The sophomore finished the weekend with 15 strikeouts and only one walk in 13 innings pitched.
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"I hate walks. I really try hard not to walk people. That's probably my favorite thing about today is the no walks," Arnold said. "That's been something that I've been working on all season. That's definitely a really great accomplishment for me. I thought (catcher) Abby (Lockman) did a great job behind the plate getting me pitches. I'm really happy with that stat."
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Even Karen Weekly admitted to flashing a smile in the dugout after Arnold struck out an Ohio batter in the sixth inning.
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"Did you take a picture, because that's rare," Weekly said. "It's not because I'm mad, I just have a hard time smiling and thinking at the same time. She just executed pitches really, really well today. For her to shut down their top three hitters was phenomenal. She was dealing the pitches we needed at the time we needed them."
Â
After displaying their power in a win over James Madison the day before, the Lady Vols generated runs in a less explosive fashion against Ohio.
Â
Tennessee took advantage of an error to take a 2-1 lead with Meghan Gregg and Jenna Holcomb scoring on an Ashley Morgan hit in the third inning that was mishandled at second base.
Chelsea Seggern added another run in the frame when she stole home after pinch runner Brooke Langston drew the throw to second on a steal attempt and was caught in a rundown. Seggern scored before Langston was tagged out to give the Lady Vols a 3-1 lead.
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"Obviously, we didn't have a lot of power today at the plate, but we figured out a way to get things working," Gregg said. "I was just following Jenna and Aubrey (Leach) who started things off and we made a move. I think that's really what we needed to do against Ohio, just make the infield move."
Â
Haley Bearden provided some insurance in the sixth inning with a two-out, two-run pinch hit single to right field that scored Sheridan Allen and Amanda Ayala.
Â
"Haley doing that just really brought all of the momentum on our side. After that hit, we really just saw some of their shoulders going down," Gregg said. "We just really got hyped for that. I was really proud of Haley. She was really excited and couldn't wipe the smile off her face. She was just happy she could do it for the team."
Â
During the regional, Gregg hit two home runs to become the program's all-time leader in home runs hit in NCAA play with eight.
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The Ohio victory was the final game ever played at Lee Stadium in the decorated career of the record-breaking senior. Gregg's next game will come in her home state of Georgia.
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"It's pretty bittersweet. I felt like I was a little sad, but it's hard to be sad when we're going to a Super Regional," Gregg said. "I started thinking about how we still have practice tomorrow on the same field. I can't be too sad when we have practice tomorrow on the same field. We have a lot of work to do this week and prepare for Georgia."
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Players Mentioned
OF
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P/UT
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OF/C
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IF/C
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IF
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OF
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IF
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1B/OF
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IF
/ SoftballSB | Tennessee Postgame vs. Nebraska (5.25.25)
Sunday, May 25
SB | Tennessee Postgame vs. Nebraska (5.24.25)
Saturday, May 24
SB | Tennessee Postgame vs. Nebraska (5.23.25)
Friday, May 23
SB | Tennessee Postgame vs. Ohio State (5.18.25)
Sunday, May 18
