After taking the first two games of the weekend series, No. 4 Tennessee was unable to complete the series sweep over No. 9 Florida, falling 7-6 Sunday afternoon at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
The Vols (28-5 // 9-3 SEC) fell behind on two separate occasions early but recovered to regain the lead in both the second and fourth innings.
After a three-run fourth inning powered by RBIs from Max Ferguson and Jake Rucker put Tennessee in the lead, a two-run home run by Connor Pavolony in the fifth inning extended the Vols' lead to 6-3.
After two straight scoreless innings, Florida (21-11 // 6-6 SEC) cut into Tennessee's lead with an RBI groundout by Kirby McMullen in the seventh inning.
The Gators then took the lead for good in the eighth with a three-run home run from pinch hitter Kris Armstrong.
Freshman Blade Tidwell got the start on the mound for Tennessee and pitched five innings, striking out four batters while surrendering three runs. Tidwell was in line for the win when he left the game.
Florida reliever Christian Scott was credited with the win after allowing just one Tennessee hit over the game's final 4.2 innings and striking out six batters. The Vols scored four runs on five hits and five walks against Gators' starter Hunter Barco.
At the plate for Tennessee, six different Vols had hits, but Ferguson and Jordan Beck recorded UT's only multi-hit outings of the day with two hits apiece, while Pavolony recorded his first home run of the season.
The Vols are back in action on Tuesday evening with a mid-week trip to Cullowhee, North Carolina, to take on Western Carolina. First pitch is slated for 5 p.m.
Despite the loss, Tennessee's 9-3 record through 12 SEC games is still its best since 2004. With the series win over the Gators, the Vols have secured a win in each of their first four SEC series for the first time since 1970.
Reaching base three times on Sunday, Liam Spence extended his on-base streak to 34 games, which dates back to last season.