Tennessee baseball beats FSU behind Zander Sechrist, advances to College World Series final
OMAHA, Neb. − Zander Sechrist didn't pitch in the College World Series in 2021. He didn't throw in 2023 either.
The Tennessee baseball pitcher finally got his chance on Wednesday and he dazzled to bring the Vols to the doorstep of the finest moment in program history.
Tennessee will play for a national championship in the seventh season under coach Tony Vitello after dispatching Florida State 7-2 and advancing to the CWS final at Charles Schwab Field.
Tennessee (58-12) opens the best-of-three final series against either Texas A&M or Florida on Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN). It is UT's first CWS finals appearance since 1951 and is the first finals appearance for a No. 1 national seed since 2009.
UT's 58 wins are a program record, passing the 2022 Vols who won 57.
Zander Sechrist gave Tennessee baseball another quality start
Sechrist delivered a quality start for the fourth time in his past five outings. It might have been his best one yet.
The senior held FSU (49-17) scoreless for 6⅓ innings before back-to-back home runs ended his start. The homers were the first earned runs Sechrist allowed in the postseason. He covered 17⅓ innings in three starts without allowing an earned run. He has allowed three earned runs in his past 29⅓ innings in four starts.
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Sechrist got big-time defense in the outfield early as Kavares Tears crunched into the right-center wall for the final out of the first inning. Dylan Dreiling made a strong catch colliding with the wall in the fourth.
Tennessee's infield defense was key in third inning
Tennessee's infield defense was shaky in the first two innings. It was savvy in the third.
Sechrist gave up back-to-back hits to open the third before shortstop Dean Curley cut down Jaxson West on a chopper over the mound from FSU star Cam Smith. Blake Burke stepped on first and fired to Curley for an inning-ending 3-6 double play to get Sechrist out of the inning without allowing a run.
The Vols delivered the first punch and it held
The first five batters of the game reached base for Tennessee, which was enough for Tennessee to take a 3-0 lead that was enough to win Wednesday.
Christian Moore walked before Burke singled down the right-field line. Billy Amick had a run-scoring fielder's choice before a Dreiling walk and Hunter Ensley RBI single. The Vols scored another on an errant pickoff throw to take the 3-0 lead.
Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on Twitter @ByMikeWilson. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee baseball cruises to CWS final with win over Florida State
