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A capsule look at Tennessee’s 8-1 win over Rhode Island

By Chris Masse 5 min read

A closer look at the 8-1 Nolensville, Tennessee, win over Smithfield, Rhode Island, Friday at Lamade Stadium

PLAY OF THE GAME -- Tennessee's timely double play: Rhode Island had cut a five-run deficit to 5-1 in the fourth inning and had the bases loaded and no outs with its Nos. 3-4 hitters coming up. Following a flyout, pitcher Grayson May fielded a grounder back to the mound and fired home to catcher Corbin Cyphers for the second out. Cyphers than made a quick, on-target throw to first baseman Lucas McCauley, completing the double play and ending what looked like may be a game-changing rally. It was a huge play at the perfect time.

TENNESSEE PLAYER OF THE GAME -- Nash Carter: Playing at the Series for the second time, Carter unloaded his entire arsenal, shining offensively, at shortstop and on the bases. The team's lead-off picked up from where he left off in the Southeast championship, going 2 for 2 with a triple, a walk and three runs. Tennessee scored in each inning Carter batted and the 12-year-old gobbled up everything hit his way while anchoring a stingy defense. This was a team effort, though, as seven players combined for 11 hits and nine players reached base.

RHODE ISLAND PLAYER OF THE GAME -- Gavin Cadaret: Driving home the hitting prowess at the bottom of the order Rhode Island has displayed all summer, Cadaret went 1 for 2 with a run scored. Only another Nash Carter fantastic play kept Cadaret from going 2 for 2. The second baseman hit the ball hard both times and also played strong defense.

BIG INNING -- Tennessee first: The Southeast champions wasted no time feeling comfortable at their third straight Series, scoring three times in the top of the first and quickly taking control. Turner Blalock and Tristan McKenzie II highlighted the rally, hitting consecutive singles which produced all three runs. Following Carter's lead-off walk and Lucas McCauley being hit by a pitch, Blalock followed with an RBI single into the right-center field gap. After falling behind 0-2, McKenzie II battled back and scorched a two-run single to nearly the same spot, putting Tennessee up, 3-0 and immediately putting the pressure on Rhode Island.

BEST EFFORT -- Grayson May's pitching: Like Carter, May is appearing at the Series for a second straight year and also displayed both his talent and leadership. May dazzled on the mound just like he did against Florida in the Southeast final, taking a perfect game into the fourth inning. May retired the first nine batters he faced on 29 pitches with four strikeouts and exited after throwing 50 pitches and going 4 2/3 innings. That efficiency keeps him eligible to pitch Monday. Over his last two games, May has allowed just two runs in 10 2/3 innings.

FLASHING LEATHER -- Rhode Island first baseman Connor Curtis helped stymie the Tennessee momentum in the first inning, starting a double play for the first two outs. Curtis stopped a chopper down the line and tagged first before wheeling and throwing to shortstop Brady McShane for the second out. Gavin Gibree continued showing off the Rhode Island defensive prowess for the inning's final out. Kale McCarty drilled a deep drive to deep center field and it looked like it might bounce off the wall for a two-run double or triple. Instead, Gibree raced back, leaped on the warning track and made a spectacular catch. McShane moved to shortstop an inning later and stopped a well-hit one-hopper off the bat of Carter Gomillion, almost starting a double play. Nash Carter made a play which would make Ozzie Smith smile to start the second inning, going to his right and somehow snaring a wicked one-hopper hit by McShane. He made the difficult play look easy and fired to first for the inning's first out. The defensive highlights kept coming an inning later as Rhode Island right fielder Royce Agilone charged into shallow territory and made a sliding catch which took a hit from Turner Blalock.

WHAT THE ADULTS SAY -- "The entire school system shut down today," Tennessee manager said of the Nolensville School district. "They canceled classes so all the kids could watch the game."

"We have to be a little more comfortable with our surroundings and we have to learn to work through that and not let that it affect us the way it did," Rhode Island manager Eric Gibree said. "We can only control so much. We tried to take control of everything today and it didn't work. We need to make adjustments and really control what we can control."

WHAT THE KIDS SAY--"I was a little nervous at first," McKenzie II said. "I knew all my classmates were watching because they send me videos. It really helped me throughout my other at-bats and showed me that I can do it and I'm made for this."

WHAT IT MEANS--Tennessee advances into the winner's bracket for a second straight season and will play Washington Monday, back at Lamade Stadium with the winner of that game reaching the winner's bracket final. Rhode Island returns to action Sunday and will play the winner of Saturday's Pennsylvania-Maine game. Rhode Island competed with each team while playing at the Metro Regional in Bristol, Connecticut.

Starting at /week.