Day 4 of the Men’s College World Series took place Monday. Two Southeastern Conference team’s were in action. One stayed alive while the other was forced to the brink of elimination.
Tennessee vs. Stanford
The Comeback Vols!!#GBO // #OTH // #VolsWin pic.twitter.com/7S9CXec3Kd
— Tennessee Baseball (@Vol_Baseball) June 19, 2023
Monday, the Tennessee Volunteers defeated Stanford 6-4. With the victory, Tennessee won their first College World Series game since 2001.
Despite coming out with the victory, the Vols had work to do, coming back from an early 4-0 deficit. In the fifth inning, Tennessee tied the game on a two-run single from Christian Moore. The game-winning run was scored for the Volunteers in the seventh inning on a groundout to shortstop, and they added an insurance run on a wild pitch to put them up 6-4.
Doing whatever it takes to win a ballgame.#GBO // #OTH // #MCWS pic.twitter.com/nbddt7x2N2
— Tennessee Baseball (@Vol_Baseball) June 20, 2023
Sophomore pitcher Chase Burns entered the game in the third inning and pitched six scoreless innings for Tennessee, allowing just two hits while striking out nine Stanford batters.
As a result of the defeat, The Cardinal was eliminated from the tournament, and Tennessee will play LSU on Tuesday for a position in the semifinals against Wake Forest.
LSU vs Wake Forest
https://twitter.com/WakeBaseball/status/1670974546696888321
In the nightcap, LSU was defeated by Wake Forest 3-2.
At the beginning of the season, the Tigers were ranked No. 1 in the country. However, after a series loss to Auburn in May, the Deamon Deacons took over the No. 1 spot and have stayed atop the rankings since.
The Tigers got out to a fast start, scoring twice in the third inning to take a 2-0 lead. They held on to this lead until the Demon Deacons tied the game in the sixth inning. Wake Forest would score the winning run in the eighth inning on an RBI single from Bennett Lee.
Another comeback in Omaha‼️
No. 1 Wake Forest gets the W to move to 2-0 at the #MCWS pic.twitter.com/oYLGZxPtaH
— ESPN (@espn) June 20, 2023
Ty Floyd of LSU pitched five innings, recording 10 strikeouts while allowing just two hits. Josh Hartle, the Wake Forest starting pitcher, went six innings with nine strikeouts and gave up four hits.
Wake Forest will play in the semifinals on Wednesday, while LSU will play SEC foe Tennessee on Tuesday in an effort to advance from the losers bracket into the semifinals.