MARTIN, Tenn– Tristan Walton struck out a career-high 11 batters en route to his fifth victory of the season as the University of Tennessee at Martin baseball team snagged a 7-2 Game 1 win over Tennessee Tech.
Walton (5-4) went at least seven innings for the fourth time in his last five outings, conceding just two hits. Tucker Reed finished off the final two frames, extending his streak of zero earned runs allowed in five straight appearances.
Cole Smith (three-run home run) and Mac Danford (solo home run) used the long ball amongst their multi-hit outings to provide momentum to the Skyhawks (16-25, 8-8 Ohio Valley Conference), who never trailed in the ballgame. Cameron Brady and Blaze Bell each had RBI’s while Andrew Fernandez tallied two hits with a run scored. Blaze Bell and Benny DeTrude also crossed the plate for UT Martin, who outhit the visitors by a 9-4 margin.
Walton picked up a pair of strikeouts in the top of the first as Skyhawk Field would get loud in the home half. UT Martin pushed across five runs in its first time up to bat, starting with Jalen Fithian and Fernandez hitting back-to-back singles. Bell collected an RBI on a fielder’s choice before Danford brought in a run on an RBI single. Cole Smith proceeded to mash a three-run moonshot over the right field wall as the Skyhawks assumed a 5-0 lead.
Walton worked a perfect inning in the second, managing two more strikeouts while using only eight pitches overall in the frame. Tennessee Tech (26-16, 10-6 OVC) would score its only runs of the game in the top of the third, tallying a pair of runs with two outs.
Danford answered one of those runs in the bottom half by hitting his team-best 10th home run of the year over the batter’s eye – a solo shot that made the score 6-2.
Walton accounted for two additional strikeouts in the fourth and posted two more punchouts in the fifth. The lefty out of Clay, Ala. wound up retiring each of his final seven batters, coasting through perfect sixth and seventh innings with only one ball leaving the infield over that span.
UT Martin then turned the game over to the bullpen, specifically Reed. The senior righty from Athens, Ala. sat down the Golden Eagles in order in the top of the eighth, allowing the Skyhawks to tack on an insurance run in the bottom half of the frame.
After Cole Smith drew a one-out walk, DeTrude came in to pinch run and advanced to third on a single off the bat of Hunter McLean. On the next pitch, Cameron Brady executed a perfect squeeze bunt to score DeTrude and extend the Skyhawk advantage out to 7-2.
Reed notched a pair of strikeouts in the ninth to give UT Martin’s pitching staff 13 punchouts for the contest.
The Skyhawks will aim for the series win tomorrow on ESPN+ at 3 p.m.
