Mark Maloney on Kentucky sports

Rondel Sorrillo

Kentucky junior Rondel Sorrillo finished a strong second place in Saturday’s 200-meter dash for men at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships.

Sorrillo came up big after UK discus throwers Rashaud Scott and Chase Madison failed to score at Fayetteville, Ark.

Texas A&M, under Coach Pat Henry, swept the men’s and women’s team championships. LSU, then coached by Henry, is the only other school to sweep the men’s and women’s crowns, in 1989 and 1990.

Sorrillo, a junior who competed for Trinidad and Tobago at last year’s Beijing Olympics, finished in 20.70 seconds. Florida State junior Charles Clark won in 20.55.

Sorrillo’s eight points pushed the Wildcats’ total to 15, moving the team from 30th place to 15th. Sorrillo was involved in all 15 points, placing fifth in Friday’s 100-meter dash and anchoring UK’s 4-by-100-meter relay to a sixth-place finish.

Gavin Smellie

In the 200, after Sorrillo came Auburn freshman Marcus Rowland in 20.82, Texas A&M’s Gerald Phiri in 20.83 and Western Kentucky senior Gavin Smellie in 20.96. Smellie’s four points put the Hilltoppers in a tie for 46th place with Louisville, 4-4.

In the discus, seniors Scott and Madison both have career bests of more than 200 feet. They didn’t come close to that distance at the University of Arkansas’ John McDonnell Field.

Chase Madison

Martin Maric, a senior from Cal, came through on the final throw of the competion – 196 feet, 3 inches — to nip Arizona State’s Ryan Whiting by an inch.

Scott, the defending champion, was coming off a school-record and NCAA-leading 216-2 regional victory. He was eliminated after three attempts Saturday. After opening at 179-3, Scott fouled his last two tries to wind up in 10th.

Rashaud Scott

Madison made it in on his third throw overall, 182-0, but was unable to improve. He fouled on four of his six attempts and finished ninth.

Louisville’s Andrew Hackney came in 12th at 177-2.

U of L’s Jere’ Summers, who qualified first in the women’s discus with a mark of 183-2, fouled on all three attempts in Saturday’s finals. That left her 12th overall. D’Andra Carter of Texas Tech won wth a throw of 182-6.

Texas A&M secured the men’s team title by placing second to Florida State in the final event, the 4-by-400 relay. The Aggies wound up with 48 points. Florida State, Florida and Oregon tied for second place with 46 each.

Southeastern Conference teams bagged eight of the top 17 spots. In addition to Florida’s second-place tie, the SEC had LSU in fifth, South Carolina sixth, Arkansas ninth, Georgia 11th, Auburn 12, UK 15th and Mississippi State 17th.

A&M’s women totaled 50 points. Second-ranked Oregon edged Arizona State for second place, 43-41. Western Kentucky tied for 52nd place with four points.

The SEC had three teams in the women’s top 10: No. 6 LSU, No. 9 Florida and No. 10 Tennessee.

Rondel Sorrillo was Kentucky’s top performer Friday, the rain-delayed third day of the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Fayetteville, Ark.

Sorrillo ran the third-fastest 100 meters in UK history to place fifth in the country, timed in 10.22 seconds. LSU’s Trindon Holliday won in 10.00.

Sorrillo, a junior who competed for Trinidad and Tobago in the 200-meter dash at last summer’s Beijing Olympics, also anchored the Wildcats’ 4-by-100 relay Friday.

Rondel Sorrillo

The foursome of Gordon McKenzie, Jose Acevedo, Kwasi Obeng and Sorrillo clocked 39.27, good for sixth place. The time ranks fourth-best in school history.

Sorrillo is set to run the 200-meter finals Saturday, to be televised live by CBS. Also in the finals is Gavin Smellie of Western Kentucky.

The Southeastern Conference dominated the relay, placing 1-2-4-5-6-7. Clemson, from the Atlantic Coast Conference, broke up the pack by finishing third.

Florida won in 38.58. Holliday anchored LSU to second place in 38.67. After Clemson came Mississippi State, South Carolina, UK and Auburn.

Corey Thorne

Tone Belt

Louisville had two finalists Friday, both placing seventh.

Tone Belt cleared 7-1 1/2 in the high jump. Scott Sellers of Kansas State won at 7-5.

Cardinals steeplechaser Corey Thorne finished the 3,000-meter event in 8:45.86. Kyle Perry of Brigham Young took top honors in 8:29.24.

Janet Jesang

In women’s action, Western Kentucky’s Janet Jesang, a junior from Uganda, placed fifth in 16:32.59. Illinois junior Angela Bizzarri snared first place in 16:17.94. Runner-up Nicole Blood of Oregon was more than 8 1/2 seconds back in 16:26.58.

UK heptathlete Ashley Trimble began Friday in 19th place. She rallied to finish 14th with 5,459 points. Oregon’s Brianne Theisen was the only competitor to break 6,000 points, scoring 6,086.

Ashley Trimble

Trimble scored 680 points in the long jump (17-9 3/4), then finished with career bests in the final two events. Her javelin throw of 118-8 was worth 594 points, and her 800-meter time of 2:11.32 scored 945 more.

U of L’s Seidre Forde fell 8 1/4 inches shy of qualifying for finals of the women’s triple jump. Needing a top-12 finish, she finished 21st at 41-10.

Lexington native Tyson Gay is among the winners as the U.S. Olympic Committee has announced its Athletes of the Month for May.

Gay, out of Lafayette High School and the University of Arkansas, took men’s honors. The American record-holder at 100 meters, Gay posted the world’s third-fastest 200 meters ever and blew away a world-class field in the Reebok Grand Prix, May 30 at New York.

TYSON GAY, from his photos on Facebook.

In his first 200 in the United States since pulling a hamstring last July at the U.S. Olympic Trials, Gay crossed the finish line in 19.58 seconds. The only faster races recorded are 1996 Olympic gold-medalist Michael Johnson’s world-record 19.32, and 2008 Olympic gold-medalist Usain Bolt’s world-record 19.30.

Earlier in May, Gay lowered his personal best for 400 meters to 45.57 at the Texas Invitational.

Gay will be out to defend his titles in the 100, 200 and as part of the Team USA 4-by-100-meter relay in this summer’s World Outdoor Championships at Berlin.

Other USOC awards for May went to diver Allison Brennan and the National Sled Hockey Team.

Brennan won on the 3-meter springboard in the USA Diving Grand Prix at Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Her score of 358.55 points was 18 better than Russia’s Anastasia Pozdniakova, last year’s Olympic silver-medalist. Brennan, an assistant coach at South Carolina, also beat four-time Olympic medalist Wu Minxia of China. Brennan’s final dive, a reverse 1 1/2 somersault with 2 1/2 twists, earned the highest score of the finals, 76.85. 

The Paralympics Sled Hockey Team won the World Championships at Ostrava, Czech Republic. Team captain Andy Yohe scored with 11 seconds left in the championship game to earn a 1-0 victory over Norway. Steve Cash made 11 saves for the Americans.

Others on the team: Mike Blabac, Taylor Chace, Jimmy Connelly, Brad Emmerson, Mike Hallman, Lonnie Hannah, Tim Jones, Taylor Lipsett, Chris Mans, Adam Page, Josh Pauls, Greg Shaw and Kip St. Germaine.

The top three in the USOC monthly award results:

Women — 1. Allison Brennan (diving); 2. Alaina Williams (gymnastics); 3. Lauren Wenger (water polo).
Williams won one international and two national trampoline competitions. Wenger scored three goals in a 10-5 Team USA win over Canada in the World League Super Finals for the Americas.

Men — 1. Tyson Gay (track and field); 2. Steve Cash (sled hockey); 3. Devin Britton (tennis).
Britton, an unseeded freshman, won the NCAA singles title and led Ole Miss to the quarterfinals.

Team — 1. U.S. National Sled Hockey Team; 2. Troy Dumais and Kristian Ipsen (diving); 3. U.S. Women’s Gymnastics Team.
Dumais and Ipsen won the synchronized 3-meter springboard event at the USA Diving Grand Prix, and were selected to dive for the U.S. at this summer’s World Championships in Italy. The gymnatics team won a pair of “friendlies” against Germany and France. Bridget Sloan took all-around honors in both meets.

Rashaud Scott

Kentucky’s Rashaud Scott remains the No. 1 discus performer, but the Wildcats team dropped from 21st to No. 25 in the released U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association men’s poll that was released Wednesday.

Cross-state rival Louisville, led by second-ranked steeplechaser Corey Thorne, also fell, from No. 25 to 27.

Oregon reclaimed the No. 1 team ranking, dropping Florida to No. 2.

Florida and Kentucky are among seven Southeastern Conference teams ranked in the top 25. The SEC Championships open Thursday and last through Sunday at Florida.

Texas A&M is No. 1 in the women’s poll. Kentucky is 37th, Louisville 42nd. LSU is the top-rated SEC team, No. 4.

                            MEN                                                     
    Team                     Conference                 Points                    

 1. Oregon                 (Pac-10)              278.52 
 2. Florida                 (SEC)                    265.86
 3. Florida State        (ACC)                   265.23
 4. Texas A&M          (Big 12)                 236.25
 5. Nebraska              (Big 12)               205.59
 6. Arizona State         (Pac-10)             187.09
 7. South Carolina       (SEC)                  172.25
 8. Arkansas               (SEC)                   169.58
 9. Texas                    (Big 12)               162.35
10. Stanford               (Pac-10)              162.10
11. Baylor                   (Big 12)               159.03
12. LSU                       (SEC)                  158.29
13. Auburn                 (SEC)                  149.12
14. Washington          (Pac-10)             137.66
15. Texas Tech          (Big 12)               120.31
16. Souther Cal         (Pac-10)              119.30
17. California            (Pac-10)               114.77
18. Minnesota           (Big Ten)              111.72
19. Brigham Young   (Mountain West)    94.94
20. Georgia               (SEC)                     93.64
21. Washington State (Pac-10)              91.25
22. Virginia Tech       (ACC)                     91.17
23. Liberty                 (Big South)           91.11
24. Missouri              (Big 12)                 90.43
25. KENTUCKY           (SEC)                   90.27

Other Kentucky and SEC teams — 27. Louisville (Big East), 79.85; 34. Tennessee, 68.73; 37. Western Kentucky (Sun Belt) 62.39; 43. Alabama, 54.34; 46. Mississippi State, 50.94; 71, Mississippi, 25.68; 146. Eastern Kentucky (Ohio Valley) 1.88.

                               WOMEN

 1. Texas A&M          (Big 12)              302.56
 2. Oregon                (Pac-10)            256.51
 3. Florida State        (ACC)                242.82
 4. LSU                      (SEC)                220.09
 5. Southern Cal       (Pac-10)            212.44
 6. Texas                  (Big 12)             192.53
 7. Arizona State      (Pac-10)            170.80
 8. Baylor                 (Big 12)               169.52
 9. Virginia Tech     (ACC)                     154.60
10. Brigham Young (Mountain West)   153.40
11. Michigan          (Big Ten)                150.96
12. Tennessee        (SEC)                    148.34
13. UCLA                (Pac-10)                146.00
14. Auburn             (SEC)                     126.52
15. Stanford           (Pac-10)                119.98
16. Miami, Fla.       (ACC)                     112.82
17. Washington     (Pac-10)                111.96
18. Nebraska         (Big 12)                 111.93
19. Oklahoma       (Big 12)                  111.81
20. Penn State       (Big Ten)               110.29
21. Minnesota       (Big Ten)                  95.52
22. Arkansas         (SEC)                       92.82
23. Texas Tech     (Big 12)                     89.26
24. SMU                (Conference USA)     88.60
25. Indiana           (Big Ten)                  86.12
Other Kentucky and SEC teams — 29. Florida, 71.01; 37. Kentucky, 59.25; 39. Mississippi, 55.93; 42. Louisville (Big East), 52.88; 53. South Carolina, 42.53; 60. Alabama, 37.76; 72. Georgia, 25.96; 73. Western Kentucky (Sun Belt), 24.58; 83. Mississippi State, 17.06.

Event-by-event leaders (plus Kentuckians in top 20)

                       MEN

Gavin Smellie

100 — Jacoby Ford (Clemson) 10.11; 13. Gavin Smellie (WKU) 10.29.
200 — Trey Harts (Baylor) 20.29; 6. Gavin Smellie (WKU) 20.58.
400 — Gil Roberts (Texas Tech) 45.27.
800 — Tevan Everett (Texas) 1:47.39.
1,500 — Matt Centrowitz (Oregon) 3:36.92.
5,000 — Brandon Bethke (Arizona State) 13:27.74.
10,000 — Sam Chelanga (Liberty) 27:28.48.
110 hurdles — Oma Osaghae (Texas Tech) 13.42.
400 hurdles — Jeshua Anderson (Washington State) 49.44.

Corey Thorne

3,000 steeplechase — Jake Morse (Texas) 8:34.57; 2. Corey Thorne (U of L) 8:39.19; 12. Matt Hughes (U of L) 8:47.36.
4-x-100 relay — Florida State 38.75; 17. WKU 39.93.
4-x-400 relay — Florida State 3:01.54; 8. UK 3:05.77.
High jump — (Tie) Trent Arrivey (Washington State) and Matt Fisher (Minnesota) 7-4 1/2; 13. Tone Belt (U of L) 7-1.
Pole vault — Jason Colwick (Rice) 18-9 1/4.
Long jump — Brian Chibudu (Florida State) 26-5; 4. Mandhla Mgijima (WKU) 25-11; 6. Rudon Bastian (U of L) 25-8.
Triple jump — Will Claye (Oklahoma) 55-3/4.
Shot put — Ryan Whiting (Arizona State) 66-11 1/2; 15. Steve Hnat (U of L) 60-6 1/2; 16. Rashaud Scott (UK) 60-3 3/4; 20. Chase Madison (UK) 59-11 1/4.
Discus — Rashaud Scott (UK) 212-9; 6. Chase Madison (UK) 196-7.
Hammer throw — Chris Rohr (Missouri) 235-11.
Javelin — Cyrus Hostetler (Oregon) 272-10.
Decathlon — Ashton Eaton (Oregon) 8,091.

                        WOMEN
100 — Alexandria Anderson (Texas) 11.09.
200 — Tiffany Townsend (Baylor) 22.63; 20. Miaie Williams (WKU) 23.43.
400 — Jessica Beard (Texas A&M) 51.52.
800 — Molly Beckwith (Indiana) 2:02.51.
1,500 — Jenny Barringer (Colorado) 4:08.38.

Janet Jesang

5,000 — Jenny Barringer (Colorado) 15:07.64; 10. Janet Jesang (WKU) 15:52.22.
10,000 — Lisa Koll (Iowa State) 32:43.85; 20. Janet Jesang (WKU) 34:08.18.
100 hurdles — Tiffany Ofili (Michigan) 12.82.
400 hurdles — Eric Cray (Bethune-Cookman) 51.80.
3,000 steeplechase — Nicole Bush (Michigan State) 9:39.38.
4-x-100 relay — Texas A&M 42.91.
4-x-400 relay — LSU 3:31.81; 20. WKU 3:37.43.
High jump — Destinee Hooker (Texas) 6-3 1/2; 11. Rachel Gehret (U of L) 5-11 1/4.
Pole vault — Natalie Willer (Nebraska) 14-4 1/2.
Long jump — Blessing Okagbare (UTEP) 22-6 1/4.
Triple jump — Kim Williams (Florida State) 44-9 3/4; 10. Seidre Forde (U of L) 42-11 3/4.

Ashley Muffet

Ashley Trimble

Shot put — Mariam Kevkhishvili (Florida) 59-2 1/4; 12. Ashley Muffet (UK) 53-4 1/2; 20. Khadija Abdullah (U of L) 52-2.
Discus — Annie Alexander (Tennessee) 188-9; 3. Ashley Muffet (UK) 187-8; 13. Jere’ Summers (U of L) 173-8; 17. Emilee Strot (UK) 171-2.
Hammer throw — Eva Orban (Southern Cal) 226-10; 11. Jere’ Summers (U of L) 199-10; 13. Kristin Smith (UK) 199-2.
Javelin — Kara Patterson (Purdue) 191-7.
Heptathlon — Brianne Theisen (Oregon) 5,986; 20. Ashley Trimble (UK) 5,438.

In the bottom of the ninth, Chad Wright is caught looking at strike three. Andy Burns coaxes a walk, bringing the potential tying run to the plate. Chris Bisson loops a single to shallow left, moving Burns to second and bringing the potential winning run to the plate. Gunner Glad grounds into a 6-4-3 double play. FINAL SCORE: Auburn 7, Kentucky 5.

Auburn           212  002  000  — 7    6  1
Kentucky        000  100  310  — 5  11  1
W — Price (4-2); L — Meyer (1-4); Sv — Hubbard (11). HR — AU: Mummey (15), Feltcher 2 (16); UK: Burns (6), Nidiffer (7). Att. — 2,040.

Cats hold Auburn in 9th, try to rally from 2 down

Auburn’s Brian Fletcher leads off the top of the ninth with a walk and moves to second on a grounder. UK Coach Gary Henderson replaces Logan Darnell with right-hander Clint Tilford. Darnell, a lefty, gave up three hits over 5 2/3 innings in relief. Second baseman Chris Bisson knocks down Wes Gilmer’s grounder up the middle and throw him out at first, while Fletcher takes third. Catcher Marcus Nidiffer blocks a Tilford pitch in the dirt, keeping Fletcher at third. Tilford then strikes out Dan Gamache with a B-B over the inside corner. Going to the bottom of the ninth: Auburn 7, Kentucky 5.

Nidiffer homers for UK, cuts Auburn lead to 7-5

Marcus Nidiffer

After the first two Kentucky batters are retired, Marcus Nidiffer sneaks a solo homer just over the center-field wall and the outstretched glove of Trent Mummey. Nidiffer’s seventh homer of the season cuts UK’s deficit to two runs. At the end of eight innings: Auburn 7, Kentucky 5.

Auburn goes down 1-2-3 in eighth

Auburn goes down in order in the eighth inning. Going to the bottom half of the inning: Auburn 7, Kentucky 4.

Kentucky scores 3 in 7th, trails Auburn 7-4

Chad Wright

Gunner Glad

When Braden Kapteyn leads off Kentucky’s half of the seventh with a bloop single to center, Auburn Coach John Pawlowski pulls starting pitcher Dexter Price and brings in another righty, Bradley Hendrix. Hendrix retires one batter, but Cory Farris doubles to right, Kapteyn stopping at third. Chad Wright’s chopper to short scores Kapteyn, but Farris gets hung up between second and third. He stays in a a rundown long enough for Wright to advance to second base. Andy Burns brings Wright home with a single up the middle and advances to second on the throw to the plate. Chris Bisson walks. Gunner Glad singles through the right side of the infield and, when right-fielder Ben Jones bobbles the ball for an error, Burns scores and Bisson takes third. Pawlowski yanks Hendrix and brings in another right-hander, Austin Hubbard. He gets Chris Wade to ground out. Going to the eighth inning: Auburn 7, Kentucky 4.

Unusual double play ends Auburn threat in 7th

In the top of the seventh, Auburn’s Wes Gilmer leads off with a double to the gap in right-center and Dan Gamache follows with a walk. Caleb Bowen puts down a two-strike bunt to move the runners to second and third. Justin Haggerty bounces to shortstop Chris Wade. Gilmer holds at third but Gamache doesn’t hold at second. After Wade throws out Haggerty at first, Gunner Glad whips the ball to second baseman Chris Bisson, who gets the ball to Chris McClendon for the tag. Score the double play 6-3-4-5. Seventh-inning stretch time: Auburn 7, Kentucky 1.

Wildcats add two hits but no runs in 6th

In the bottom of the sixth, Kentucky gets a one-out single, up the middle, from Chris Bisson. One out later, Chris Wade singles, the fifth hit given up by Auburn right-hander Dexter Price. The threat ends as Keenan Wiley lines out to center. Going to the seventh inning: Auburn 7, Kentucky 1.

Fletcher goes deep again to give Auburn 7-1 lead

Brian Fletcher

A hit batsman and Brian Fletcher’s second home run of the game (16th of the season) produce two runs for Auburn in the sixth inning. Three homers have produced six Auburn runs. Trent Mummey, the other long-ball artist, drove in the Tigers’ other run with a bases-loaded walk. Going to UK’s half of the sixth: Auburn 7, Kentucky 1.

Cats leave 2 runners on in 5th, trail Auburn 5-1

Kentucky gets a leadoff single from Keenan Wiley and a two-out single from Cory Farris, but can’t score in the fifth. Two runners are stranded as Chad Wright flies to deep center. Going to the sixth inning: Auburn 5, Kentucky 1.

Nidiffer, Darnell quell Auburn threat in fifth

After the first batter grounds out, Auburn loads the bases with a single, walk and fielding error. UK catcher Marcus Nidiffer fires a strike to Andy Burns, successfully picking off Wes Gilmer at third. Logan Darnell then induces Justin Hargett to ground out to second. In the middle of the fifth: Auburn 5, Kentucky 1.

Burns homer puts Kentucky on the board

Andy Burns

Held to a walk through three innings, Kentucky gets a lift from Andy Burns. The third baseman rips the first pitch of the inning for a home run off of the light tower in right-center field. Five of his six homers this season have come on first-pitch offerings. Auburn righty Dexter Price retires the next two batters. Then, Chris Wade just misses a homer — a long foul down the left-field line — and then flies out to right. After four innings: Auburn 5, Kentucky 1.

Darnell strikes out Auburn in order in fourth

UK’s Logan Darnell strikes out the side in the fourth: Hunter Morris, Ben Jones and Brian Fletcher, all swinging. In the middle of the fourth: Auburn 5, Kentucky 0.

Wildcats’ bats remain silent in third inning

Kentucky goes down in order in the third via two fly balls and a called third strike. Through three innings: Auburn 5 runs, 3 hits; Kentucky 0 runs, 0 hits.

Fletcher homer increases Auburn lead to 5-0

Alex Meyer

Auburn’s half of the third inning starts out much like the first inning. Ben Jones draws a leadoff walk and Brian Fletcher follows with a home run, his 15th of the season, over the left-field wall. Then, just as in the first, UK righty Alex Meyer strikes out the next two: Casey McElroy and Wes Gilmer. Unlike the first, though, he doesn’t get a third whiff in a row, as Dan Gamache and Caleb Bowen walk — Meyer’s and seventh free passes of the day. Gary Henderson pulls Meyer and brings in left-hander Logan Darnell. For his third straight at-bat, Justin Hargett works the count full before drawing a walk — this one to load the bases. But Trent Mummey fouls out to third baseman Andy Burns and Auburn leaves the bases loaded for the second consecutive inning. In the middle of the third inning: Auburn 5, Kentucky 0.

Cats get a base-runner but nothing else in 2nd

Auburn right-hander Dexter Price handles Kentucky’s first two batters in the second. The freshman gets Gunner Glad on a fly ball to left and Chris Wade on a pop to short right. Keenan Wiley draws a walk. Right fielder Ben Jones, battling the sun, wind and a long run to Braden Kapteyn’s shallow fly, makes a circus catch. At the end of two innings: Auburn 3, Kentucky 0.

Auburn adds a run in 2nd, leads Kentucky 3-0

Auburn puts runners on first and second with one out, prompting Kentucky Coach Gary Henderson to make a visit to RHP Alex Meyer. The freshman responds, striking out Caleb Bowen but then issues Justin Hargett his second walk of the game. Trent Mummey, who homered in the first inning, pops a foul behind the plate. But catcher Marcus Nidiffer is slow to locate the ball and can’t make the catch. Mummey then walks, forcing in a run. Hunter Morris just misses a grand slam, flying out on a drive to the right-field warning track. In the middle of the second inning: Auburn 3, Kentucky 0.

Wildcats go down in order in first inning

Kentucky goes down in order in the first, with a groundout, lineout and fly out. At the end of one: Auburn 2, Kentucky 0.

Mummey homer gives Auburn early 2-0 lead.

Trent Mummey

In the top of the first, Auburn taketh and Auburn swingeth away. Leadoff man Justin Hargett takes a 3-2 pitch for ball four. Trent Mummey brings him around with a two-run homer to the deck in right-center, his 15th homer of the season. UK freshman right-hander Alex Meyer settles down to strike out the next three batters — Hunter Morris, swinging; Ben Jones, looking; and Brian Fletcher, swinging. After half an inning: Auburn 2, Kentucky 0.

SEC baseball: Auburn at Kentucky, III

Kentucky, which hadn’t won a home baseball series against Auburn since 1989, tries for a three-game sweep Sunday.

We’re about 20 minutes away from the first pitch on a beautiful day at Cliff Hagan Stadium — 64 degrees, mostly sunny and a 7 mph wind blowing out to left field.

Kentucky swept Saturday’s Southeastern Conference doubleheader 6-5 (10 innings) and 6-3.

UK (26-23, 11-15 SEC) still has hopes of qualifying for the eight-team SEC Tournament. The Wildcats start Sunday ninth overall, 1 1/2 games behind Vanderbilt and 2 games back of South Carolina. Vandy goes for a sweep of Georgia on Sunday, with South Carolina taking on Tennessee.

Saturday’s sweep virtually eliminated Auburn (27-24, 8-18) from contention.

 

Sunday’s starting lineups:

AUBURN — Justin Hargett, 2B; Trent Mummey, CF; Hunter Morris, 1B; Ben Jones, RF; Brian Fletcher, LF; Casey McElroy, SS; Wes Gilmer, 3B; Dan Gamache, DH; Caleb Bowen, C. Pitching — RH Dexter Price (3-2, 5.74).

KENTUCKY — Chad Wright, LF; Andy Burns, 3B; Chris Bisson, 2B; Gunner Glad, 1B; Chris Wade, SS; Keenan Wiley, CF; Braden Kapteyn, DH; Marcus Nidiffer, C; Cory Farris, RF. Pitching — RH Alex Meyer (1-3, 4.67).

UMPIRES — Kevin Assman, plate; Nelson Graham, 1B; A.J. Lostaglio, 3B.

Friday’s Southeastern Conference baseball game between Kentucky and Auburn has been postponed due to rain.

The three-game series at UK’s Cliff Hagan Stadium now will start Saturday with two games.

The game postponed Friday will start Saturday at 2 p.m. Saturday’s regularly scheduled game will be televised on the Big Blue Sports Network, starting at 7 p.m.. Sunday’s game is set for 1 p.m.

Probable pitchers in the opener are left-hander James Paxton (5-2, 5.40) of Kentucky against RH Jon Luke Jacobs (3-4, 6.23). The second game will pit another UK lefty, Chris Rusin (5-4, 4.07), against LH Grant Dayton (2-5, 5.61). Auburn will go with right-hander Dexter Price (3-2, 5.74) in the finale, with UK’s starter yet to be announced.

Kentucky-Auburn in a rain delay

It’s a beautiful day for baseball!

Just not at Cliff Hagan Stadium.

Friday’s scheduled game, Auburn at Kentucky, will not get off at the scheduled time (6:30 p.m.) as rain continues to fall. Coaches and umpires are scheduled to meet at 6:40 to decide whether to play, postpone or wait some more.

The teams also have games scheduled Saturday and Sunday, both with hopes of being among the eight teams that will qualify for the Southeastern Conference Tournament. Kentucky comes into the weekend ninth in the SEC (9-15), Auburn 10th (8-16). Vanderbilt holds the eighth spot (10-13).

UK (24-23 overall) took two of three games from Tennessee last weekend. The Wildcats finish SEC play next week — at SEC East-leading Florida.

Auburn (27-22) has lost seven in a row in league play — one to South Carolina, followed by three-game sweeps at the hands of top 10 teams LSU and Ole Miss. Auburn finishes league play at home next week, facing arch-rival Alabama.

Kentucky pitchers struck out 17 and starter Chris Rusin (14 K’s) took a no-hitter into the sixth inning Saturday.

Yet, Tennessee’s pulled out the 8-2 victory at Cliff Hagan Stadium.

“We struck out, but we did have some good swings in between those,” said Todd Raleigh, coach of the Volunteers. “We hit three homers and almost four … but that kid (Rusin) pitched a heck of a game.”

Kentrail Davis broke up the no-hitter and shutout with a two-run homer that gave Tennessee a 2-1 lead. Tyler Horne led off the seventh with a homer and Cody Brown added a three-run shot in the eighth.

The outcome evens the three-game series at a game apiece. Both sides see Sunday’s finale as a must-win situation. UK (23-23, 9-14 SEC) began the day ninth in the SEC overall standings, the Vols (21-26, 7-16) 11th. Only eight teams will qualify for the SEC Tournament, May 20-24 at Hoover, Ala.

Gary Henderson

“Absolutely,” UK Coach Gary Henderson said of the “must-win” assessment. “We’ve got to win a series, we’re at home and then you’ve got to win another series next weekend. So absolutely.”

Todd Raleigh

“It is,” Raleigh agreed. “It has to be. We figured we had to win two this weekend, we’ve got to win two against South Carolina and two against Vandy to have a chance. So it’s a must win.”

Rusin, a 6-foot-2, 190-pound senior, said that he struggled with his command early. He issued a pair of first-inning walks, the first first-inning walks he’s surrendered all season. But he also baffled the Vols, striking out 10 over five no-hit innings.

“Really a shame to waste Chris Rusin’s effort,” Henderson said.

UK didn’t do much against Tennessee righty Ty’Relle Harris.

Marcus Nidiffer, who singled, scored on Chris McClendon’s second-inning double for a 1-0 lead.

Bryan Morgado

In the fifth, McClendon lined an infield single off of Harris’ throwing hand. Harris retired the next two batters, then turned things over to lefty Bryan Morgado. (Raleigh said later that Harris “is fine.”)

“I was expecting to go in in the sixth, not in the fifth, so I didn’t have very many (warm-up) pitches to go in there,” Morgado said. “But I knew I had to battle my way through and find a way to keep my team in the game.”

He did, going the last 4 1/3 innings while holding UK to a run, two hits and four walks. Morgado (3-1) struck out five.

Rusin’s sixth-inning trouble began with the fourth of his five walks in the game, this one to leadoff batter Zach Osborne. P.J. Polk bunted Osborne to second.

Kentrail Davis

Davis jumped on an 0-1 pitch, drilling the ball deep into the parking lot beyond right field.

“We didn’t panic at all,” Davis said. “We got some good pitches to hit. He had our number for a minute there. We just settled down, not try to do too much and we started getting some hits.”

As for the big first hit, Davis said, “There was a man on second, so I knew he wasn’t going to give me anything special to hit. He threw me a good breaking ball and I just kept my hands back and I hit it.”

After Horne’s homer made it 3-1, UK got a run in the seventh without benefit of a hit.

A hit batsman, walk and sacrifice put runners on second and third. A Morgado wild pitch scored Nidiffer. Two more walks, sandwiched around a strikeout, loaded the bases, but the inning ended when Andy Burns lined out to right field.

“When somebody gives you that opportunity, if you’re going to win the ball game, you’ve got to take advantage of it,” Henderson said. “Somebody’s got to step up and get a base hit and put a crooked number up there, and get us back in the ball game.”

Instead, the momentum swung back to Tennessee, which struck for four runs in the eighth. The big blow was Brown’s three-run homer, which came on the first pitch offered by UK reliever Braden Kapteyn.

Rusin was charged with six runs, five hits and five walks over 7 1/3 innings. He threw 124 pitches, 75 for strikes.

Chris Rusin

“We didn’t get the win so (14 strikeouts) doesn’t feel too good,” Rusin said. “I made a couple mistakes and it cost me three runs.”

Which leaves the Cats with a must win in order to take the series.

“I think we’ll be good,” Rusin said. “We’ve just got to come out aggressive and we’ll win the series.”

Would one ever think of being on a team that struck out 17 times and somehow pulled out a win?

“Never. Never,” Davis said. “I don’t think anybody, any coach, any player would have. But we stayed focused and got it done.”

Tennessee lefty Bryan Morgado seals things in the ninth by getting Chris McClendon to ground out for the first out. Braden Kapteyn reaches on a bloop single, but Troy Frazier lines out to third and Chad Wright strikes out. FINAL SCORE: Tennessee 8, Kentucky 2.

Cats face 8-2 deficit in bottom of the ninth

Tennessee gets a double from P.J. Polk to open the ninth. One out later, pinch-runner Jarred Frazier steals third. Frazier scores on Blake Forsythe’s single off the old scoreboard in right field. Two more strikeouts in the inning are a Vols season-high 17 for the game. Going to the bottom of the ninth: Tennessee 8, Kentucky 2.

Vols take 7-2 lead over UK into 9th

Vols break through with 4 in 8th, lead Cats 7-2

Tennessee restores its two-run cushion in the eighth. Chris Rusin matches the UK season high of 14 strikeouts by

Cody Brown

getting leadoff batter P.J. Polk. (James Paxton struck out 14 at LSU.) Kentrail Davis reaches on a high-hop infield single, then steals second. Blake Forsythe singles to center. Davis, planning to stop at third, continues home when center fielder Keenan Wiley bobbles the ball for an error. Cody Hawn singles, Forsythe stopping at second. That knocks out Rusin, who finishes with 14 strikeouts and having thrown 75 of 124 pitches for strikes. Braden Kapteyn, the DH, replaces Rusin. First pitch, Cody Brown greets Kapteyn with a three-run homer to right-center. Tyler Horne singles through the left side and Cody Grisham bunts for Tennessee’s sixth consecutive hit. A wild pitch puts the runners on second and third. Matt Ramsey strikes out for the fourth time in as many at-bats and Zach Osborne pops up to the pitcher. In the middle of the eighth: Tennessee 7, Kentucky 2.

Cats strike back in seventh to cut deficit to 1

UK’s half of the seventh begins with Marcus Nidiffer getting hit by a Bryan Morgado pitch. Keenan Wiley works an eight-pitch walk. Chris McClendon bunts the runners to second and third. On a full count, Braden Kapteyn draws a walk on a wild pitch that allows Nidiffer to score and Wiley to take third. UK Coach Gary Henderson sends Troy Frazier in to bat for Bryan Rose. Frazier also works the count full before taking a called third strike. Kapteyn steals second base without a play. Chad Wright, on yet another full count, walks to load the bases. Andy Burns lines an 0-1 pitch deep to right field, but right at Matt Ramsey, for the final out. Frazier remains in the game for UK, playing right field. At the end of seven innings: Tennessee 3, Kentucky 2.

Rusin gets 13th strikeout, but Vols pad lead to 3-1

Tyler Horne

Tennessee’s second hit of the game look much like the first one — a home run. Tyler Horne leads off the seventh inning with a line drive off the scoreboard in left-center. Chris Rusin retires the next three in order, including his career-high 13th strikeout of the game. That moves Rusin into third place on UK’s career strikeout list with 260, one more than Brandon Webb compiled from 1998 through 2000. Seventh-inning stretch time: Tennessee 3, Kentucky 1.

Tennessee leads Kentucky 2-1 through 6th

Kentucky gets a one-out walk to Chris Bisson, but he gets picked off by pitcher Bryan Morgado. Going to the seventh inning: Tennessee 2, Kentucky 1.

Vols’ Davis breaks up no-hitter with 2-run homer

Kentrail Davis

Tennessee’s Kentrail Davis ends Chris Rusin’s no-hit, shutout bid, as well as Kentucky’s lead with one mighty swing. Zach Osborne leads off the sixth with a walk, taking second on P.J. Polk’s sacrifice bunt. Davis then takes an 0-1 pitch deep into the parking lot beyond the right-field wall for a two-run homer. Blake Forsythe becomes Rusin’s 11th strikeout victim, but the UK lefty issues his season-high fifth walk of the game, this one to Cody Hawn. Rusin fans Cody Brown. In the middle of the sixth inning: Tennessee 2, Kentucky 1.

Cats head to 6th clinging to 1-0 lead over Vols

Kentucky’s fifth inning starts with an infield single — a hot shot off the throwing hand of pitcher Ty’Relle Harris — by Chris McClendon. Braden Kapteyn bunts McClendon to second base. Harris retires Bryan Rose on a fly ball. Then, apparently because of the ball he took off his hand, Harris exits and left-hander Bryan Morgado takes over. A passed ball allows McClendon to take third base. Chad Wright, on a full-count pitch, goes down swinging. Through five innings: Kentucky 1, Tennessee 0.

Rusin strikes out the side again in fifth

In the fifth, UK left-hander Chris Rusin strikes out the side for the second inning in a row. Rusin has 10 strikeouts overall, his latest victims being Tyler Horne, Cody Grisham and Matt Ramsey. Horne went down swinging, the other two taking called third strikes. In the middle of the fifth: Kentucky 1, Tennessee 0.

Double play ends Cats’ chances in fourth

Marcus Nidiffer

Kentucky gets a one-out single from Marcus Nidiffer, his second hit of the game. But Keenan Wiley grounds into a 4-6-3 double play. At the end of four innings: Kentucky 1, Tennessee 0.

Rusin strikes out the side in fourth; Cats lead 1-0

Tennessee’s Kentrail Davis opens the fourth by drawing a walk. But UK lefty Chris Rusin strikes out Blake Forsythe, Cody Hawn and Cody Brown. Through 3 1/2 innings, Rusin has seven strikeouts, with the score: Kentucky 1, Tennessee 0.

Kentucky leads Tennessee 1-0 through 3rd

Kentucky’s Andy Burns pokes a two-out single through the right side of the infield. But Chris Bisson bounces into a fielder’s choice. At the end of three innings: Kentucky 1, Tennessee 0.

Rusin sets Vols down in order in third

UK lefty Chris Rusin retires Tennessee in order for a second consecutive inning. getting a pair of groundouts and his fourth strikeout of the game. In the middle of the third: Kentucky 1, Tennessee 0.

McClendon double gives Cats 1-0 lead in 2nd

Chris McClendon

In the Kentucky second, Marcus Nidiffer fists a one-out bloop single down the left-field line, just over the reach of third baseman Cody Brown. One out later, Chris McClendon rips a run-scoring double towards the scoreboard in left-center. Nidiffer just beats the throw to the plate, with McClendon taking third on the throw. Braden Kapteyn lines out to left. After two innings: Kentucky 1, Tennessee 0.

Vols go down in order in 2nd

Chris Rusin

Tennessee goes down in order in the second as Chris Rusin picks up his third strikeout and gets a pair of fly balls. In the middle of the second: Kentucky 0, Tennessee 0.

Cats, Vols scoreless through first

Kentucky gets a bad-hop infield single from Chad Wright to open the bottom of the first. But Andy Burns lines to left and Chris Bisson grounds into a 4-6-3 double play. Through one inning: Kentucky 0, Tennessee 0.

Tennessee threatens in first

UK lefty Chris Rusin retires the first two batters of the game, but then gives up his first first-inning walk of the season — to Kentrail Davis. Wild pitches advance Davis to second, then third, before Blake Forsythe walks. Forsythe steals second without a play. But Rusin strikes out Cody Hawn on a full-count pitch. After half an inning: Tennessee 0, Kentucky 0.

SEC baseball: Tennessee at Kentucky, game 2

Getting set for the second game of a three-game Southeastern Conference baseball series at Cliff Hagan Stadium in Lexington, Ky.

Kentucky scored six runs in the sixth inning, rallying from a 3-0 deficit, en route to a 6-4 victory over Tennessee in Friday’s opener.

The teams enter play Saturday ninth (UK, 9-13) and 11th (UT, 6-16) in the SEC. Only the top eight will qualify for the SEC Tournament, May 20-24, at Hoover, Ala. South Carolina (10-12) is in the eighth spot, a game ahead of Kentucky.

The lineups:

Tennessee – Zach Osborne, ss; P.J. Polk, lf; Kentrail Davis, cf; Blake Forsythe, c; Cody Hawn, 1b; Cody Brown, 3b; Tyler Horne, dh; Cody Grisham, 2b; Matt Ramsey, rf. Pitching — RH Ty’Relle Harris (4-4, 6.57).

Kentucky — Chad Wright, lf; Andy Burns, ss; Chris Bisson, 2b; Gunner Glad, 1b; Marcus Nidiffer, c; Keenan Wiley, cf; Chris McClendon, 3b; Braden Kapteyn, dh; Bryan Rose, rf. Pitching — LH Chris Rusin (5-3, 3.73).

Umpires — John Whitaker, plate; Owen Butts, 1b; Tony Maners, 3b.

Weather – 56 degrees, overcast, calm wind.

The Cats get something going in the bottom of the ninth. Keenan Wiley leads off by lining a single over shorstop Bobby Haney, and Spencer Korus follows with a walk. A four-pitch walk to Chad Wright loads the bases with none out.

Chris Bisson strikes out swinging. Chris Wade’s fly to left scores Wiley, with Korus and Wright staying put. Chris McClendon bounces out as Blake Cooper completes an eight-hit distance performance. Final score: South Carolina 4, Kentucky 2.

Cats trail by 3 going to bottom of 9th

Jackie Bradley Jr. starts the South Carolina ninth with a double down the right-field line. He takes second on Whit Merrifield’s sacrifice bunt. Nick Ebert draws a walk, putting runners on the corners with one out, and knocking Clint Tilford from the game. Left-hander Logan Darnell gets the call from the Kentucky bullpen.

Darnell promptly strikes out DeAngelo Mack. Right-hander Braden Kapteyn, already in the game as DH, gets the call for face Andrew Crisp. Kapteyn does the job with a called third strike.

With Carolina’s Blake Cooper trying to finish a complete game, going to the bottom of the ninth: South Carolina 4, Kentucky 1.

Going to the 9th: Carolina 4, Kentucky 1

In the top of the eighth, South Carolina strands a runner, Scott Wingo, who was hit by a pitch.

Kentucky gets a Chris McClendon walk and Gunner Glad single in the bottom of the seventh, but both are stranded. Going to the ninth inning: South Carolina 4, Kentucky 1.

Gamecocks lead Wildcats 4-1 through 7th

In the top of the seventh, one-out singles by Bobby Haney and Jackie Bradley Jr., drive UK’s Tyler Henry from the mound. Right-hander Clint Tilford gets the call from the ‘pen.

Whit Merrifield welcomed Tilford with a run-scoring double down the right-field line, with Bradley stopping at third. With the infield drawn in, Nick Ebert lined a two-run single past a diving UK third baseman Chris McClendon.

Whit Merrifield

Tilford got the next three batters. But South Carolina leads 4-1.

In the bottom of the seventh, UK got two-out singles by Spencer Korus and Chad Wright. They were stranded when Chris Bisson was retired on a close play at first.

At the end of seven innings: South Carolina 4, Kentucky 1.

Cats, Gamecocks tied 1-1 through 6th

UK strands a runner in a scoreless sixth inning. Going to the seventh: UK 1, South Carolina 1.

Gamecocks tie with run in sixth

So much for settling down.

DeAngelo Mack

UK’s Alex Meyer opened the sixth inning by issuing his sixth walk of the game, and his third to Nick Ebert. Meyer’s third wild pitch of the game moved Ebert to second. And DeAngelo Mack drove in the tying run with a single up the middle.

That ended Meyer’s day as Coach Gary Henderson called to the bullpen for righty Tyler Henry.

Henry set down the next three batters in order.

Midway through the sixth: Kentucky 1, South Carolina 1.

Cats take 1-0 lead in fifth

Braden Kapteyn

After struggling through two innings, UK right-hander Alex Meyer has settled down.

In the fifth, recorded his first 1-2-3 inning of the game, getting a pair of groundouts and his fourth strikeout of the day.

Braden Kapteyn led off UK’s half of the fifth with a double to left-center. A sacrifice bunt by Keenan Wiley moved Kapteyn to third base. Spencer Korus brought him home with the game’s first run, sending a double over the head of center fielder Whit Merrifield.

Korus made it to third on Chad Wright’s bunt, but was stranded when Chris Bisson grounded out.

Spencer Korus

After five innings: Kentucky 1, South Carolina 0.

Nothing doing in the fourth inning

Carolina wasted a two-out single by Kyle Enders. Through four innings, the Gamecocks have left at least one runner on base in every inning, five total.

Kentucky went down 1-2-3 in the fourth.

Through four, both teams have no runs on two hits.

Still no score through three innings

Carolina wasted a two-out walk in the third inning.

The Gamecocks made a defensive switch, subbing Kyle Enders for Justin Dalles behind the plate. Dalles appeared to suffer an injury in the first inning, by a ball that deflected off of UK batter Chris McClendon.

The Wildcats wasted a two-out infield single by Chris Bisson.

Through three innings: no score.

Scoreless through two innings

UK starter Alex Meyer did his best Houdini impression in the second.

South Carolina’s Andrew Crisp led off with a single and Jeffrey Jones walked. A wild pitch advanced both runners, and Justin Dalles walked to load the bases with none out.

But Meyer struck out Scott Wingo, picked off Jones at second and got Bobby Haney on a dribbler to the mound, escaping unscathed.

Carolina’s Blake Cooper retired the Cats in order.

At the end of two innings: no score.

No score through first

Both teams turned double plays in a scoreless first inning.

Two walks and a two-base throwing error gave South Carolina runners on the corners with one out. But DeAngelo Mack flied to Chad Wright in short left, and Wright threw out Jackie Bradley Jr., at the plate to end the top of the first.

Kentucky got a leadoff infield single by Chris Bisson, but Chris Wade grounded into a 6-4-3 double play.

Going to the second inning: no score.

Live from Cliff Hagan Stadium at the University of Kentucky: South Carolina vs. Kentucky

After splitting a wild Saturday doubleheader, this Southeastern Conference series winds up Sunday. South Carolina won Saturday’s opener 20-19. Kentucky took the nightcap 5-4.

Sunday’s game-time conditions: 38 degrees, a 24 mph wind blowing from right field to left, with light rain.

The lineups:

South Carolina – Jackie Bradley Jr., rf; Whit Merrifield, cf; Nick Ebert, 1b; DeAngelo Mack, lf; Andrew Crisp, 3b; Jeffrey Jones, dh; Justin Dalles, c; Scott Wingo, 2b; Bobby Haney, ss. Pitching: RH Blake Cooper (3-2, 4.74).

Kentucky – Chris Bisson, 2b; Chris Wade, ss; Chris McClendon, 3b; Marcus Nidiffer, c; Gunner Glad, 1b; Braden Kapteyn, dh; Keenan Wiley, cf; Spencer Korus, rf; Chad Wright, lf. Pitching: RH Alex Meyer (1-1, 4.81).

Friday’s South Carolina-at-Kentucky baseball game has been postponed due to wet grounds.

The game will be made up Saturday as part of a doubleheader, starting at noon. Both games are scheduled for nine innings.

The three-game series is scheduled to conclude with a single game, Sunday at 1 p.m.

Kentucky-South Carolina: rain delay

Live from Cliff Hagan Stadium at the University of Kentucky, it’s … a rain delay.

The scheduled 6:30 p.m. start between Kentucky and Southeastern Conference foe South Carolina won’t happen. Rain continues to fall on the tarp-covered infield. Umpires and coaches are scheduled to reconvene at 7 p.m. to consider options.

Friday’s contest is the first of a three-game series.

Just in case we eventually do get underway, here are the lineups:

SOUTH CAROLINA (16-6 overall, 2-4 SEC)

Jackie Bradley Jr.

47  Nick Ebert                    1B

17  DeAngelo Mack           CF

42  Parker Bangs     DH                                                                                                 

Sam Dyson

23  Bobby Haney               SS

  8  Scott Wingo                 2B

20  Sam Dyson                RHP (3-1, 2.73)

Chris Bisson

KENTUCKY (15-7, 3-3)

 29  Chris Bisson                2B

  7  Chris Wade                SS

  5  Chris McClendon        3B

12  Marcus Nidiffer           C

46  Keenan Wiley            CF

30  Braden Kapteyn        DH

James Paxton

44  Cory Farris               RF

22  James Paxton          LHP (4-0, 3.30)

UMPIRES — Steve Manders, plate; Kenneth Couch, 1B; Randy Watkins, 3B.