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SEC Tournament: Tennessee staves off elimination with win over Texas A&M
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After Tennessee opened its stay at the SEC Tournament on the wrong foot Wednesday, the top-seeded Volunteers got back on track on Thursday, racing away from Texas A&M late to stave off elimination and send the 4-seed Aggies home.
Kavares Tears went 3-for-5 with 4 RBI and a home run to lead the Vols (47-11) to a 7-4 win.
Wednesday against Vanderbilt, Tennessee gave up 6 runs in the first 5 innings of the game as the bullpen burned through 8 different pitchers. On Thursday, Chris Stamos drew the start on the mound and pitched 3 and a third innings with just 1 hit allowed and 3 strikeouts. At the end of the fifth, UT had a 3-1 lead.
In the bottom of the seventh, UT got its necessary insurance. Billy Amick drew a leadoff walk to begin the frame. Tears stepped to the plate with 2 on and just 1 away before lifting a ball over the left-field wall for a 3-run homer.
Have a day KT!!!
https://t.co/av5EyLPgov (SECN)
#GBO // #OTH // #BeatTAMU pic.twitter.com/vXcAbGpcJU
— Tennessee Baseball (@Vol_Baseball) May 23, 2024
Cal Stark opened the bottom of the eighth with a leadoff homer to add 1 more to the tally.
Tennessee gave up runs in the sixth, eighth, and ninth, but never let things get away from it.
A solo homer from Jackson Appel was the only thing going for A&M in the sixth. AJ Causey — who picked up his SEC-leading 11th win — ended the frame with a punchout. Causey then sat down the side in order in the seventh.
Causey went 4 innings with 5 hits and 2 earned while striking out 7 of the 18 batters he faced. Kirby Connell closed things out with 2 strikeouts in 1.2 innings pitched, giving up just 3 hits and a run.
A&M’s Gavin Grahovac ripped a 2-1 ball to left field for a 2-out home run in the top of the ninth, bringing A&M within 3 runs. The Aggies followed that solo shot up with a 2-out single from Jace LaViolette, but Connell shut things down with a game-ending strikeout after he worked back from a 2-0 count.
Tennessee will face the loser of Thursday night’s Mississippi State-Vanderbilt game in another elimination contest. That game is tentatively scheduled for 7:30 on the SEC Network.
The Aggies (44-13) now turn their attention to the NCAA Tournament. Earlier on Thursday, A&M was projected to be the No. 3 seed in the tourney and host a regional. Both the Aggies and Volunteers are the current betting favorites at FanDuel to win the College World Series.
Related: Want to bet on Tennessee during the postseason? Head over to FanDuel to get started with $150 in bonus bets!
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
