KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (March 17, 2025) – In its final game before SoCon play begins this weekend, the ETSU baseball team will travel to take on No. 1 Tennessee on Tuesday. First pitch between the Buccaneers and Volunteers is set for 5 p.m. on SEC Network Plus.
Probable Pitching Matchup
LHP Derek McCarley (ETSU) vs. RHP Austin Breedlove (TENN) – Tuesday @ 5 p.m. | Live Stats | SEC Network +
Last Time Out – ETSU swept Longwood last weekend by scores of
12-1,
14-4, and
5-4 in 11 innings. The sweep of the Lancers boosts the Bucs' overall record to 15-4 on the 2025 campaign.
Buccaneer bats continue hot start – With the 2025 season a little over a month old, the Bucs are tied for fourth in the country with 45 home runs. Thanks in large part to its home run total, ETSU is also second nationally in slugging percentage (.613) behind only Tuesday's opponent Tennessee (.662). 11 different Bucs have homered this spring with
Grant Gallagher leading the charge with 11. Gallagher's 11 long balls are tied for the second-most in the country. Fellow Bucs
Cooper Torres (9 HR) and
Jamie Palmese (7 HR) also rank in the top 50 nationally in home runs.
More Success on the Mound – ETSU's pitching staff has held up its end of the bargain as well leading the SoCon in team ERA (3.39), hits allowed per nine innings (7.28), shutouts (2) and WHIP (1.22). The Buccaneer bullpen has been especially good with a collective ERA of 2.91 ERA in 80.1 innings pitched. Additionally, opponents are hitting just .191 against ETSU's relievers in 2025.
Homecoming of sorts for several Bucs – ETSU has five players that are Knoxville natives on its roster in
Eli Evans,
Andrew Hill,
Landon Crumbley,
Henry Ferguson and
Brady Frederick. Three other Bucs
Derek McCarley (Seymour),
Andrew Ronne (Athens) and
Jace Hyde (Athens) are from towns under a hour away from Knoxville.
ETSU vs. Ranked Teams – Tuesday will be the second straight week that the Bucs have faced a nationally-ranked opponent (
No. 4 Georgia – loss 8-6). The last time the Bucs defeated a nationally-ranked opponent was in 2019 when they knocked off No. 23 Tennessee in Knoxville, 6-5. Furthermore, the last time ETSU picked up a win over a team ranked in the top 10 of the national polls was in 2011 against No. 8 Georgia Tech, 8-6.
About Tennessee – After winning the National Championship as season ago, the Volunteers picked up where they left off in 2025. Tennessee enters Tuesday's game with ETSU as the last undefeated team in Division I baseball with a 20-0 record. This start for Tennessee is the best in its program history. As the 20-0 record would indicate, the Volunteers have been one of the top teams in the country in multiple statistical categories. Tennessee is second nationally with 53 home runs and is averaging 11.3 runs per game as an offense. On the mound, the Volunteers have been just as good leading the nation in team ERA (1.72), WHIP (0.94) and strikeout to walk ratio (4.52).
Series History vs. Opponent – Tuesday will mark the 91
st all-time meeting between the Bucs and Volunteers. Tennessee has won 70 of the previous 90 contests with ETSU's last win coming in 2019 by a score of 6-5.
For more information on Buccaneer baseball, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the baseball tab.
