Life in the Valley

Purple Aces Play Tennessee Sunday for a Trip to Omaha

Evansville stared the end of its season in the face Saturday. As homer after homer left the yard in Tennessee’s half of the 1st inning, eventually building a 3-0 lead for the host and #1 national seed Volunteers, it might have been fair to wonder if things were already decided.

Nah. Not with this group.

The Purple Aces rallied from 4-0 down to take a 10-5 lead, then held on with all its might in the top of the 9th inning, as the Vols scored 3 times to make it 10-8 and had the bases loaded before Shane Harris got Tennessee’s Christian Moore to fly out to right field, the final notch in the biggest win not only in Evansville’s baseball history – but probably the history of the athletics program as a whole.

Evansville will have a chance to top it on Sunday at 5 p.m. Central (ESPNU) when it takes on Tennessee one more time in a series-deciding Game 3, the winner of which will advance to Omaha for the College World Series. UE hasn’t stood on the precipice of such athletic success since the men’s soccer team made final fours in men’s soccer in 1985 and 1990, losing in the national semifinals on each occasion.

But this is a far different era. College baseball has become one of the major sports in college athletics and trips to Omaha are program changers – especially in a time when it’s so difficult to reach that kind of success if you aren’t in the SEC like Tennessee, or other power conferences such as the ACC, Big 12, or the soon to be departed Pac-12.

All of that discourse, however, will be part of tomorrow’s playbill. Today, it was a gutsy, veteran Evansville group once again refusing to fade when put under pressure by an overwhelming home favorite. Last Monday, it was coming back from 5-2 down at regional top-seed East Carolina to knock off the Pirates, 6-5, and advance to this Super Regional. Saturday, down a game after Friday’s 11-6 loss, UE had been left for toast by most experts, especially with staff ace Kenton Deverman having pitched Friday and not being part of the Aces’ picture going forward.

And when Blake Burke, Dylan Dreiling, and Hunter Ensley all hit solo homers in the 1st inning off UE starter Donovan Schultz, it looked like Evansville was headed overboard. It was 4-0 Tennessee in the 4th when the Purple Aces (39-25) staged an epic comeback that few who follow the program will ever forget, regardless of Sunday’s result.

It started innocently enough, when Kip Fougeousse scored on Brent Widder’s ground out. But Cal McGinnis followed with the thunder, hitting a 2-run home that suddenly closed the Purple Aces to within 4-3 and not only gave them a reason to believe, but it might have given Tennessee some reason to doubt, as the Vols are still trying to vanquish the ghosts of being the #1 national seed in 2022 but losing a home Super Regional to Notre Dame.

Tennessee (54-12) did add a run on a Kavares Terars double in the 5th, but the Purple Aces did more damage in the bottom of the frame (UE was designated the home team for Saturday’s game under somewhat bizarre NCAA postseason rules). Fougerousse, Widder, and McGinnis were again involved. Fougerousse singled in Simon Scherry to make it 5-4. Widder’s single scored Fougerousse to tie it, then UE took the lead for good when McGinnis drove in another run, this time with a single that scored Chase Hug.

The turnaround was sudden but UE didn’t stop there. In the 6th, Evansville caused more rambunction throughout the sphere, as both Brendan Hord and Fougerousse (of course!) hit 2-run homers to make it 10-5. Fougeorusse’s homer, his school record 22nd of the season, capped Evansville’s 10-1 scoring run over the #1 Vols. In holding on for the win, it also upended a pair of impressive Tennessee team stats.

But keeping your team alive for a possible trip to Omaha is never going to be easy, and Tennessee proved that in the top of the 9th, despite trailing 10-5 and up to that point, having done absolutely nothing against UE reliever Nick Smith, who had entered the game to start the 7th inning and thrown a pair of 1-2-3 innings with 2 strikeouts in the 8th.

The 9th, however, was a different story. The first 5 batters Smith faced in the 9th went walk, single, walk, single, walk, bringing home 2 runs to cut Evansville’s lead to 10-7. Harris was called upon once again to save Evansville’s bacon. Harris gave up a sac fly and a walk, to load the bases again with 1 out and the Vols now trailing by just 2 runs.

But if hearts were in the throats for Evansville fans, they needn’t have worried. Harris struck out Tennessee catcher Cal Stark, then with 30-HR man Moore up, got him to fly out innocently to Fougerousse in right, ending the rally and the game. It was a stark contrast of emotions – the Purple Aces happy to be playing another day but not overjoyed because the job isn’t done, while the Volunteers were a bit sullen, somewhat stunned this series would require a 3rd game.

Evansville outhit Tennessee, 13-8. Fougerousse (.353-22-71; 1.121 OPS) led the way, going 3-for-5 with 3 runs and 3 RBIs. McGinnis finished with 3 RBIs and was 4 Purple Aces with 2 hits. Jakob Meyer got the win for 3 2/3 innings of stellar relief, allowing just 1 run on 2 hits on 57 pitches. Harris earned his 4th save.

Kirby Connell (4-1) took his first loss of the season for Tennessee. Each team homered 3 times.

Evansville is now 30-10 in its last 40 games. Tennessee is 32-8. The Vols lost for the just the 4th time at home all season (39-4).

Knoxville Super Regional – Game 2 (best-of-3)
UT 8 8 1 (54-12)
UE 10 13 0 (39-25)
W: Meyer (4-4, 5.68)
L: O’Connell (4-1, 4.01)
S: Harris (4, 3.82)
HR: Fougerousse, UE (22); McGinnis, UE (6); Hord, UE (9); Burke, UT (19); Dreiling, UT (20); Ensley, UT (11).