Tony Vitello on Tennessee's series win over Florida: 'It's massive'

Tennessee finished off a series win over Florida on Saturday afternoon with an onslaught in the rubber match, pulling off a 16-3 win to make a real statement in the SEC race.

It came after Florida had evened the series in the second half of a double-header on Friday night.

“It’s massive. You’re so close to achieving really what’s a miraculous day if you can win a double-header on the road anywhere in the league, but in particular against these guys,” coach Tony Vitello said after Saturday’s clinching win.

The Volunteers won the opening contest 6-2 after reliever AJ Causey turned in a huge performance in relief of starter Chris Stamos. Causey went five full innings and gave up no runs on four hits. He struck out seven.

That put Tennessee into the driver’s seat, with the potential to take the series in one fell swoop on Friday.

“They showcase some fantastic arms and you know you might be seeing (Jac Caglianone) on the mound potentially today,” Vitello said. “And we came up short.”

Florida edged Tennessee 4-3 in the second game of the double-header, aided by a pair of early home runs by Brody Donay and Colby Shelton. Tennessee threatened with a run in the ninth but couldn’t push the second past that it needed to tie the game.

So on to Saturday and the decisive game it went.

Florida jumped out to an early 3-0 lead. Tennessee clawed two back in the fourth inning, then exploded for 11 runs in the sixth inning to put the game completely out of reach.

“The way the guys bounced back in general with the start of the game was great, and then we had some frustration early in the game and they kept forging ahead,” Vitello said. “Maybe after a little bit of a timeout from where we needed to be mentally, but again I’ve said it to you guys before, I think it’s a stronger group, maybe a tougher group is the right word than we originally thought. And they keep kind of pushing that line, which has been fun to watch.”

The win moved Tennessee to 17-7 in conference play, just one game behind league leader Kentucky and tied with Arkansas.

With just two SEC series left to play, that gives the Volunteers a serious chance at the league crown. Tennessee last won the SEC in 2022.