Game two of the 2023 SEC Baseball Tournament in Hoover, Alabama, saw the Tennessee Volunteers taking on the Texas A&M Aggies in an exciting first-round matchup. In front of the pro-Volunteers crowd, Texas A&M silenced the critics and shut down Tennessee at their own game.

Texas A&M came into the matchup with Tennessee knowing what they needed to do to leave the selection committee with an impressive outlook on the Aggies heading to Selection Monday. In baseball, it’s hard to beat a team four times in the season, and Tennessee proved that to be true on Tuesday morning as the Aggies came away victorious.

Coming into the 2023 SEC Baseball Tournament, Texas A&M knew they had to win at least a game on Tuesday to feel secure about earning an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Texas A&M’s Troy Wansing had a perfect game until the 6th inning when Christian Scott earned a one-out base hit for the Volunteers. Wansing would pitch a full eight innings for the Aggies, giving up one hit, zero runs, on seven strikeouts. Wansing was lights out for the Aggies on Tuesday, giving them the advantage on the mound and adding the protection needed on a 3-0 lead. Troy Wansing had one of those pitching outings that will go down in the history of the SEC Tournament as one of the best performances in tournament history.

Texas A&M would start their scoring efforts in the third inning when a fielders choice would score Hunter Haas to give the Aggies the 1-0 advantage in the top half of the third inning. In the top half of the 4th inning, it was a base hit from Austin Bost that would score Jordan Thompson to make it 2-0 Texas A&M. During the top half of the 6th inning, Jace LaViolette would hit a solo home run to deep right-center field to give the Aggies the three-run lead over Tennessee.

For the Tennessee Volunteers, sure, an early exit in the 2023 SEC Tournament is not what the Volunteers had in mind, but the NCAA Tournament is looming for Tony Vitello and his program. Many expect the Volunteers to compete for another trip to the College World Series.

With the win over Tennessee, Texas A&M will play Arkansas on Wednesday afternoon in another resume opportunity. A win over the Razorbacks on Wednesday, and the Aggies will be in the NCAA Tournament without question.