Big Orange Report May 28, 2026

 

Next Stop Oklahoma City

There is an old saying in baseball and softball: "great pitching stops good hitting." That is exactly what happened in Knoxville in the Super Regional matchup between Tennessee and Georgia. The UT pitching staff muffled and silenced a red hot Georgia offense and the Lady Vols swept two games to punch their ticket to Oklahoma City and the College World Series.

Tennessee smacked three solo homers in the opener on Thursday evening and Karlyn Pickens took care of business, striking out 10 Bulldog batters in the 3-1 win. It got scary in the seventh when Georgia loaded the bases with just one out but Pickens fanned the next two batters to secure the triumph.

On Friday, it was another nail biter but junior Sage Mardjetko, who relieved Erin Nuwer in the second inning, kept the Georgia bats at bay in the 2-1 verdict. Pickens had been warming up in the bullpen but she was not needed to finish the contest that propelled UT back to OKC.

Centerfielder Sophia Knight provided some surprising punch and launched a two-run homer in the second inning to give Tennessee all the runs they needed to send the Bulldogs back to Athens. Knight had also homered in the opening game. In 168 previous at bats in college ball, she had hit only one round tripper. She is batting .415 on the season and does a marvelous defensive job patrolling in the outfield. Knight and shortstop Bella Faw anchor a defense that was efficient and reliable in the two-game sweep.

Tennessee will meet the winner of the series between Texas and Arizona State on opening day in Oklahoma City.  

Baseball Waiting

The Tennessee baseball squad won a game before being eliminated in the SEC tournament last week. Arkansas knocked UT out with an 8-4 win after the Vols had defeated South Carolina on the first day of the tourney in Hoover, Alabama. One interesting note here is that Tennessee's ace, Tegan Kuhns, never threw a pitch in either game. He had been named SEC pitcher of the week twice during the regular season. Kuhns had registered 100 strikeouts in 77 innings pitched this season. Trying to save him to pitch on the third day was a mistake.

The Volunteers now await the NCAA selection show to find out their destination for the regionals this year. Tennessee is projected to be a two seed and they might get a chance to stay close to home. A three seed is not out of the question, but then that doesn't really matter because the two and three seeds meet in the first matchup in regional competition. The two most likely destinations being mentioned are Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and Hattiesburg, Miss. The hope for UT is that the bats will stay hot. The team has been putting up some big numbers over the past three or four weeks in series wins over top five ranked Texas and also Oklahoma.  

Meet the New Defensive Coaches (Part 1)

Jim Knowles-- Defensive Coordinator-- The veteran defensive mastermind joins the Big Orange staff with a glowing reputation for success during his career. Knowles was the DC for the 2024 national champions at Ohio State when his stop troops shut down Tennessee in the playoffs. He is known for his masterful game preparation, his recognition during game action and his ability to make defensive adjustments on the fly during the heat of battle.

Knowles philosophy is not hard to understand. "Good players, No. 1, it is always the players," Knowles said. "But 2, it is having answers because you are always going to get into situations in a game where they are hurting you or where they are attacking you. That is my job to figure out the answers."

During his coaching stops, Knowles' teams have led three different conferences in multiple defensive catargories. There is little question that this hire is an upgrade over the departed DC and three of his assistants.

Derek Jones-- Cornerbacks--Coach Jones is no stranger to the SEC. He played cornerback at Ole Miss (1993-96) and earned all conference honors twice. Jones is also familiar with Knowles, having coached with him at Duke (2010-17). Jones has sent multiple cornerbacks to the NFL from his various stops in college. "He has also shown great ability as a recruiter in his over two decades of coaching," Josh Heupel noted. "We are excited to welcome him to Rocky Top along with Coach Knowles."

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