Charlotte baseball falls to Tennessee in opening round of NCAA Tournament’s Clemson regional
In Charlotte’s opening game of the 2023 NCAA baseball tournament’s Clemson regional, the 49ers lost 8-1 to the Tennessee Volunteers.
Charlotte put three runners on base in a promising first inning, but Tennessee stranded all three, and that set the tone for the rest of the game.
The Volunteers came back in the bottom of the first and scored twice, tacked on two more in the second and were off and running. The latter two runs in the bottom of the second prompted a mound visit from Charlotte coach Robert Woodard, who left starter Collin Kramer in the game to finish the inning, but then lifted the sophomore to start the third.
The change did little to slow the Vols, who added four more runs in the next three innings, asserting their dominance and putting the game out of reach despite a seventh-inning home run by former Volunteer Austin Knight.
The 49ers had six hits on the game with just one run to show for it. Both teams were solid in the field as neither had an error during the game. Knight had the best outing at the plate for the 49ers, going 2-for-4.
Familiar Faces in New Places
Tennessee’s starting pitcher Andrew Lindsey, a former 49er, had a strong outing against his former club. He threw 116 pitches in his seven innings on the mound. He totaled 10 strikeouts on just 5 hits allowed. His lone earned run given up was the home run by Knight. Lindsey faced 27 Charlotte batters.
Other Clemson region result
In the region’s first game, the Clemson Tigers defeated the Lipscomb Bison, 12-5, thanks to a five-run eighth inning. The Tigers are the No. 4 overall seed in the NCAA tournament and the region’s top seed.
Tigers pitcher Nick Clayton earned the win in relief, pitching two innings and tossing four strikeouts. The Bison’s starter, Logan Van Treeck, gave up seven hits and four earned runs in six innings pitched.
What’s Next?
The 49ers are back in action Saturday at noon against Lipscomb. If the 49ers wish to advance to the NCAA Super Regional, they will have to do it the same way they won their conference tournament: through the losers’ bracket.
Tennessee will advance to the winners’ bracket to face Clemson in a battle of the region’s top two seeds.
If the 49ers advance over Lipscomb on Saturday, they will face the loser of the Clemson and Tennessee matchup Sunday at noon, with the winner of that game playing again at 6 p.m.
