Preview: Tennessee vs Vanderbilt Second Round of SEC Baseball Tournament

Everything you need to know about Tennessee's matchup against Vanderbilt in the second round of the SEC baseball tournament.

Tennessee Volunteers infielder Christian Moore (1) hits a home run against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Lindsey Nelson Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., Friday, May 17, 2024. / Randy Sartin/Special To The News

Everything you need to know about Tennessee's matchup against Vanderbilt in the second round of the SEC baseball tournament.

After the conclusion of Tuesday's action in the SEC baseball tournament, the Tennessee Volunteers discovered their opponent for the second round. The Vanderbilt Commodores defeated the Florida Gators by a final score of 6-3 and moved on to the next round to face the No. 1-seeded Volunteers. The game is set to be played at 5:30 PM ET.

Tennessee was crowned co-SEC Champions of the regular season along with Kentucky, but the Volunteers were awarded the top seed due to them winning the series against the Wildcats in the regular season. They currently hold a 48-10 overall record while Vanderbilt sits at 36-20. Earlier in the year, Tennessee won the series against the Commodores by taking the first two games of a three-game series.

The top-ranked Volunteers are led by a potent lineup of power hitters that have been a tough out for pitching staffs all season. Christian Moore leads the way for the team as he is batting .388 at the plate with 27 home runs and 60 runs batted in. Five other Volunteers boast a batting average of over .300 with a minimum of 40 games played this season. The team as a whole this year has hit 141 home runs, which ranks second in the country. Blake Burke is also a name for fans to keep an eye on as he is batting .359, has tallied 16 home runs and batted in 50 runs. Both he and Moore were named semifinalists for the Golden Spikes Award.

It's not just the offense that has led to a successful season for the Volunteers though. They rank third in the country for ERA as a staff which sits at 3.68 and opponents are batting just .236 against Tennessee's pitching staff.

As for the Commodores, they are led by Matthew Polk who is batting .323 on the year with five home runs and 21 runs batted in. The sophomore RJ Austin has been a major threat at the plate this season as well with a .318 batting average, five home runs and 51 runs batted in.

It's been a bit of a struggle this year for Vanderbilt on the mound as the staff holds an ERA of 5.08 , ranking them 69th in the country. Bryce Cunningham and Brennan Seiber both pitched in Tuesday's game against Florida which likely leaves them both unavailable for Wednesday's match against the Volunteers.

The winner of Wednesday's game will face the winner between Texas A&M and Mississippi State. The losers between the two games will also face one another as the SEC tournament is elimination from this point on.

Other Tennessee News:

• Travis Smith Jr Sets Commitment Date
• George MacIntyre Accepts Invitation To Elite 11
• Josh Heupel Details Importance of 2022 Alabama Victory

Join the Community:

• Follow Evan Crowell on Twitter: @EvanVCrowell
  
• Follow Blake Schowalter on Twitter: @BlakeSchowalte1
  

You can follow us for future coverage by clicking "Follow" on the top right-hand corner of the page. Also, be sure to like us on Facebook @VolunteerCountry & follow us on Twitter at @VCountryFN.