Tennessee softball completes series sweep of N.C. State

The Tennessee softball team continued its mastery of nonconference opponents at home on Sunday afternoon by completing a sweep against North Carolina State.

CJ McClain tied a career high with three hits; Megan Geer hit another home run; and Meghan Gregg extended her nation-leading RBI total to help No. 19 Tennessee beat N.C. State 6-1 at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium.

The Vols (31-5) recorded their second straight series sweep and extended their winning streak to 10 games.

McClain, a junior from Nashville, finished 3-for-3 with a run scored and two RBIs, including the game-winning RBI in the bottom of the fourth to break a 1-1 tie.

Freshman Caylan Arnold earned the win in relief for the Vols to improve to 14-4. The Maryville native gave up three hits and no runs in six innings with six strikeouts.

UT opened the scoring in the bottom of the first when Gregg registered her NCAA-leading 51st RBI to score Aubrey Leach.

After the Wolfpack (12-24) tied the score on a passed ball in the top of the second, the Vols regained control with five runs spanning the fourth and fifth innings.

Freshman Chelsea Seggern led off the fourth with a double and scored the game-winning run on a single by McClain. Leach followed with a run-scoring single for a 3-1 lead.

Geer continued her power streak with another home run – this one a two-run shot in the fifth inning. Geer hit a grand slam in the series opener and has five home runs this season.

McClain drove in the game’s final run on another RBI single.

The victory moved Tennessee co-head coach Ralph Weekly into sole possession of fourth place on the NCAA Division I all-time wins list with 1,286, surpassing former Louisiana-Lafayette and LSU coach Yvette Girouard.

UT improved to 25-2 in nonconference games this season, including 12-0 at home. They complete a 10-game homestand Tuesday night against Eastern Kentucky at 6 p.m. ET.