Texas A&M baseball handed Tennessee two firsts in its 17-6 eight inning run-rule victory on Saturday night at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. It was the Vols first run-rule loss and series loss of the season as the Aggies dominated the series finale.
The series loss marks the first time that Tennessee has lost a series at Lindsey Nelson Stadium in exactly two years when the Vols dropped two out of three to Florida from April 6-8 in 2023.
Here’s how things went wrong for the Vols in the series rubber match.
A Slow Start For Tennessee
Tennessee turned in perhaps its worst performance of the season in its 9-3 loss in game one of the doubleheader on Saturday. And the second game of doubleheader had a similarly poor start for Tennessee.
Vols starter Tegan Kuhns opened the game well enough, retiring the first two batters he faced before Wyatt Hanseler singled to center field and then a softly hit Caden Sorrell grounder found a hole in the defense to give the Aggies two-on with two-outs. Then Bear Harrison stayed hot and gave Texas A&M an early lead with a three-run homer to left field.
Tennessee’s bats didn’t start any faster than its pitching. The Vols went down in order in the first inning and Reese Chapman roped a liner right at the third baseman leading to a 5-3 double play in the second inning which allowed Myles Patton to face the minimum again.
Texas A&M ended Kuhns’ day in the third inning after scoring a run on a walk, stolen base and a single and then loading the bases. Brayden Krenzel relieved Kuhns and got out of the bases loaded jam but it was 4-0 Texas A&M before Tennessee showed any life.
Maybe it was a hangover from game one or maybe it would have happened either way but the Aggies came out on fire while the Vols were sluggish.
Texas A&M’s Emphatic Fourth Inning All But Buries Tennessee
Tennessee grabbed back some momentum when Krenzel got out of the bases loaded jam and then the Vols scored two runs in the bottom half of the inning and threatened to score more.
But that momentum was extremely short lived as Texas A&M responded with six runs it the top of the fourth inning that all but put the game away.
It was an immediate response from the Aggies as Ben Royo led off the inning with a homer to left field. Two singles later, including a Jace LaViollete single that went off Krenzel’s foot, and Wyatt Henseler went deep.
Krenzel walked the ensuing batter which ended his day but not the fourth inning onslaught. Kaeden Kent hit a home run on Dylan Loy’s first pitch. It marked the first run that Loy had allowed all season.
Tennessee entered the fourth inning trailing by two runs and very much still in the game. The Aggies ended the half inning up eight runs with the Vols needing a major comeback to get back in it.
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Texas A&M Hits An Onslaught Of Home Runs
Tennessee baseball is known for sending a bounty of balls over the fence at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. But it was Texas A&M that bashed a number of homers in the series rubber match.
The Aggies went deep seven times in the second game of the doubleheader, coming up just one home run shy of the previous record for opposing home runs in a game at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. Henseler and Sorrell both went deep twice while Kent, Royo and Harrison all left the yard once themselves.
Texas A&M nearly tied the record when a Jace LaViolette bomb just drift foul down the right field Iine in the seventh inning.
Entering Saturday’s doubleheader, Tennessee pitchers had allowed just 17 home runs all season long. But in the two Saturday games, Texas A&M combined to hit 11 home runs. It was a no good, very bad day for Tennessee’s pitching staff.
Box Score
Up Next
Tennessee baseball is back in action on Tuesday night when they host Alabama State in a midweek clash at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. First pitch is at 6 p.m. ET and the SEC Network+ is streaming the game.
