No. 21 Tennessee Volunteers entered the SEC Tournament in Hoover, Alabama, with a lot left to prove. The Vols came into the first half of the season, blazing to the No. 1 spot before late-season struggles caused them to slide deeper and deeper in the rankings.
The Vols’ first series loss came against a struggling Texas A&M team after losing both games in a Saturday doubleheader despite a strong start in the first game of the series. Tennessee recovered the following week, winning an important series in Oxford, Mississippi. However, it was the last time the Volunteers won a series in the regular season.
Over the next five series, the Vols went to the rubber match each time, only to fall short and lose the final game. Week in and week out, the Vols showed flashes of the brilliance seen in Vitello teams of the past but struggled to put it all together at once.
Entering Hoover, this Tennessee lineup knew it was do or die if it hoped to return to Knoxville to potentially host a regional. A strong performance in the tournament would make it hard for the committee to overlook the team’s potential to turn it on at the right time. Tennessee didn’t disappoint in the conference tournament.
The team entered the tournament seeded eighth, giving them a first-round bye, where they met No. 23 Alabama in a high-scoring game. This opening game saw all nine Tennessee starters record a hit, and eight of them scored on their way to a 15-10 win.
The following quarterfinal matchup against No. 2 Texas marked the highest stakes game of the Vols’ season thus far, as a win could potentially give the committee enough confidence in the Volunteers’ resume to earn them a regional back home in Lindsey-Nelson Stadium.
The Vols rolled out recently crowned SEC Pitcher of the Year Liam Doyle against the Longhorns to keep them quiet early. However, this move backfired as Doyle allowed four runs in his 3 2/3 innings, putting the Vols in an early 4-0 hole.
Vitello called the bullpen for Brandon Arvidson to help sit down the team he initially committed to in the previous offseason before the firing of coach David Pierce opened the door for Vitello to bring him to Knoxville.
Arvidson shut down batter after batter in the Longhorn lineup, primarily off the back of his breaking ball that Texas had no answer for. Arvidson struck out nine and kept Texas scoreless through the ninth as the Tennessee bats started to come alive behind him.
Despite the early 4-0 lead, by the time the ninth finished, Tennessee had evened the score at 4-4, sending it to extras.
Vols shortstop Gavin Kilen collected a solo home run on two strikes and two outs in the 10th inning, giving the Vols their first lead. However, the celebration didn’t last long. Arvidson made his first mistake of the game, giving up a tying run off a failed pickoff attempt.
The game stayed scoreless until the top of the 12th when Kilen struck again with a two-RBI double, giving the Vols a 7-5 edge that Texas failed to match.
This win sent the Vols into a semifinal matchup against in-state rival No. 9 Vanderbilt, where they got exposed in their worst loss of the season, a 10-0 run-rule loss that is sure to make the tournament selection show into a nailbiter for Tennessee fans.
Only time will tell if the Vols did enough to warrant a regional in Knoxville, but even without hosting, the Vols have clearly shown their ability to turn it on when it matters and compete with the best of the best. Their next goal is to find a way back to Omaha and defend their championship.
