Seth Halvorsen talks about return to starting role in SEC Tournament

Tennessee‘s stay at the 2023 SEC Tournament was short-lived, with the Volunteers eliminated by Texas A&M in the single-elimination round on Tuesday. But the appearance wasn’t a complete loss.

During the loss, Tennessee coach Tony Vitello was able to get a player who hadn’t started all year his first start on the mound.

Redshirt junior Seth Halvorsen, a right-handed pitcher who transferred into Tennessee following the 2021 campaign but has since been besieged by unfortunate injuries, earned the start on the bump.

“Yeah it was fun to get back out there at the beginning of the game,” Halvorsen said. “I threw a bullpen after South Carolina on that, after that third game, so I was prepared from that time on. I was ready to go, and it was exciting to be back out there.”

In his first year with the Volunteers, Halvorsen suffered an elbow injury throwing a bullpen session shortly after Christmas break. It would sideline him for a few months.

Around the time he was projected to recover and rejoin the lineup, Halvorsen got an infection in his wisdom teeth. He wouldn’t pitch in a game in his first season in an orange jersey.

And while the right-hander had thrown 38.2 innings this season for the Volunteers, putting together a respectable 3.96 ERA, he still hadn’t started a game. Until the SEC Tournament.

He took the hill against Texas A&M and commanded his stuff reasonably well, albeit in trying circumstances due to some inclement weather.

“It was fine,” Halvorsen said. “Getting a new ball after it got wet is a good thing to do, so that was helpful. My slider was working pretty well and just had some deep counts, but beside that it was working pretty well.”

Halvorsen finished the day against Texas A&M working through four complete innings, getting up to 83 pitches in his appearance. He allowed two earned runs on three hits. His command wasn’t perfect, as he walked three batters, but he also struck out six.

All in all it was a start that gave Tennessee a chance to compete.

The Volunteers wound up falling to the Aggies 3-0 to exit the SEC Tournament after being one-hit by Texas A&M star Troy Wansing. Still, getting Halvorsen back in the mix as a starter should give Tennessee more options heading into the NCAA Tournament.

And that’s a big plus for Vitello and the Vols.