How it Happened: Zander Sechrist shoves, Christian Moore rakes and Vols get by Vanderbilt 6-4 for title game berth
HOOVER, Ala. — Tennessee will be playing for its fifth Southeastern Conference Baseball Tournament championship Sunday afternoon as the Vols cruised behind Zander Sechrist on the mound to defeat Vanderbilt 6-4 in semifinal action on Saturday afternoon.
It will be the No. 1 Vols (49-11) taking on the 11-seed LSU (40-20) Sunday afternoon at 3 o’clock eastern time to decide who is crowned the tournament champion. The Tigers outlasted South Carolina 12-11 in extras earlier on Saturday before the Vols disposed of the eighth-seeded Commodores (38-21).
Zander Sechrist (3-1) earned the win on the mound after tossing six innings of two-run baseball. Luke Guth (1-2) is the loser after allowing three runs off five hits over two innings of relief work. Christian Moore’s two-run home run in the sixth inning allowed the Vols to jump up by three runs and to take control of the contest. The second baseman tallied three extra-base hits on the day.
Tennessee’s stay in Hoover just keeps prolonging and the Vols will now have an opportunity to win another tournament title – the first since 2022 – and sweep both the regular season and tournament championship this season for the best baseball conference in the country. But first, here is how it all went down in semifinal action on Saturday evening.
Postgame Video
Scoring Summary
Top 4: A throwing error from the Vanderbilt shortstop allowed Dylan Dreiling to cross home plate. Vols 1-0
Top 4: Cannon Peebles sacrifice fly to left field drove in Hunter Ensley from third. Vols 2-0
Bot 5: Braden Holcombe sent a two-run homer to left. Tied 2-2
Top 6: Dalton Bargo sacrifice fly to deep right-center. Vols 3-2
Top 6: Christian Moore sent a no-doubter off the batter’s eye for a two-run homer. Vols 5-2
C-Mo cleared for liftoff!
— Tennessee Baseball (@Vol_Baseball) May 25, 2024
Absolute 🚀
📺 https://t.co/Jt6cQrCA8N (SECN)#GBO // #OTH // #BeatVandy pic.twitter.com/GDTOOIPOwC
Top 8: Cannon Peebles scored on a wild pitch with the bases loaded. Vols 6-2
Bot 8: Jonathan Vastine sacrifice fly to left field. Vols 6-3
The Final Stats
2024 SEC Tournament Bracket
SEC Tournament Schedule (all times Central)
Tuesday, May 21
Game 1: #11 LSU 9, #6 Georgia 1 | Final Stats
Game 2: #10 South Carolina 10, #7 Alabama 5 | Final Stats
Game 3 (4:30 p.m.) – #8 Vanderbilt 6, #9 Florida 3 | Final Stats
Game 4 (TBD) – #5 Mississippi State 2, #12 Ole Miss 1 | Final Stats
Wednesday, May 22
Game 5 (9:30 a.m.) – #11 LSU 11, #3 Kentucky 0 (8 inn) | Final Stats
Game 6 (TBD) – #10 South Carolina 6, #2 Arkansas 5 | Final Stats
Game 7 (4:30 p.m.) – #8 Vanderbilt 13, #1 Tennessee 4 | Final Stats
Game 8 (TBD) – #5 Mississippi State 5, #4 Texas A&M 3 | Final Stats
Thursday, May 23
Game 9 (9:30 a.m.) – #3 Kentucky 9, #2 Arkansas 6 | Final Stats
Game 10 (TBD) – #1 Tennessee 7, #4 Texas A&M 4 | Final Stats
Game 11 (4:30 p.m.) – #11 LSU 11, #10 South Carolina 10 | Final Stats
Game 12 (TBD) – #8 Vanderbilt 4, #8 Mississippi State 3 | Final Stats
Friday, May 24
Game 13 (3:00 p.m.) – #10 South Carolina 6, #3 Kentucky 5 | Final Stats
Game 14 (TBD) – #1 Tennessee 6, #5 Mississippi State 5 | Final Stats
Saturday, May 25
Game 15 (Noon) – #11 LSU 12, #10 South Carolina 11 (10 Innings) | Final Stats
Game 16 (TBD) – #1 Tennessee 6, #8 Vanderbilt 4 | Final Stats
Sunday, May 26
Game 17 (2 p.m.) – #1 Tennessee vs. #11 LSU | [ESPN2]
Vols in the national polls this week
NCBWA – No. 1
USA Today – No. 1
Baseball America – No. 1
Perfect Game – No. 1
D1 Baseball – No. 1
