No. 1 seed Tennessee fell to No. 8 seed Vanderbilt on Wednesday in the Vols’ first game of the SEC Tournament. The Commodores took the game by a score of 13-4 for their second straight win over the top-ranked Vols.
Tennessee will have another shot in the tournament with the double-elimination format, though. The Vols will take on No. 4 seed Texas A&M at 2:00 p.m. ET on Thursday in an elimination game from the Hoover Met in Hoover, AL.
After the loss, Tennessee head coach Tony Vitello and relief pitcher AJ Russell met with the media to discuss their reactions to the game. Vitello spoke about Russell’s return outing, the ups and downs of the pitching performances, Reese Chapman’s day at the plate, and much more.
“Pretty basic. They played better than we did. Coached better,” Vitello said to open his press conference. “Then a big mark in there is we didn’t do a good job against Espinal, but I would flip it and say the last three times we’ve played them, he’s been outstanding and he’s arguably been their best hitter. It’s nothing out of the norm for him, but he did have a big day. The result was awful, especially for fans. I think the city of Hoover likes when we’re here because a lot of our fans will attend. So, again, a bad result, but as I look at the box score, it was good to get a lot of guys get their cleats in the dirt in a situation that might be new to them or certainly is new to our group this year.”
Vanderbilt head coach Tim Corbin, shortstop Jonathan Vastine, and pitcher Miller Green also met with the media after the game to break down their thoughts on the win and what’s ahead for the Commodores.
More from RTI: AJ Russell Returns As Tennessee Falls To Vanderbilt In SEC Tournament Opener
Check out both interviews below. Stay tuned with Rocky Top Insider both online and on social media during the Vols’ elimination game against Texas A&M for live updates, postgame notes, and much more.
Tennessee Postgame Press Conference
Vanderbilt Postgame Press Conference
