Tennessee survives 4-1 vs. Texas A&M to force winner-take-all Game 3

Tennessee isn’t ready to go home yet. On Sunday, the Volunteers defeated Texas A&M 4-1 in Game 2 of the College World Series to keep their postseason hopes alive. Tennessee had to win on Sunday after losing Game 1 to the Aggies 9-5.

Despite ultimately falling, the Aggies struck first in the nail-biting battle. In the bottom of the first inning, Texas A&M sophomore Jace LaViolette crushed a solo home run 415 feet to right field to give the Aggies an early 1-0 lead.

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LaViolette’s bomb was the only run for the next six innings, with neither team able to find a score. Tennessee repeatedly got runners on base but failed to bring them home. In only six innings, Tennessee left nine players on base.

Then, the dam broke. In the seventh inning, Tennessee took its fate into its own hands when sophomore Dylan Dreiling hit a two-run laser over the left field fence. The crushing shot gave the Volunteers a 2-1 lead.

Tennessee didn’t stop there. Only one inning later, senior catcher Cal Stark crushed a two-run homer to left field to stretch Tennessee’s lead to 4-1. Prior to the massive hit, Stark was 0-16 from the plate in CWS. His breakthrough couldn’t have come at a better time.

Texas A&M was unable to retaliate, going scoreless in the final two innings. Texas A&M put two batters on base in the bottom of the ninth inning but was unable to capitalize on the moment.

In the win, Dean Curley was a standout, leading Tennessee with a team-high two hits on four at-bats. Christian Moore and Hunter Ensley combined for two hits, as well. Tennessee finished the game with a .206 batting average.

UT put three pitchers on the mound in the win: Drew Beam, Aaron Combs, Kirby Connell and Nate Snead. Beam and Combs each pitched four innings, tallying a combined 12 strikeouts while only allowing four walks.

On Monday, Tennessee and Texas A&M will square off at 7:30 p.m. ET in Game 3. The winner will take home the national title. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.

2024 NCAA College World Series: Bracket, game times, TV

All times ET.

June 14

• Game 1: North Carolina 3, Virginia 2
• Game 2: Tennessee 12, Florida State 11

June 15

• Game 3: Kentucky 5, NC State 4 (10 innings)
• Game 4: Texas A&M 3, Florida 2

June 16

• Game 5: Florida State 7, Virginia 3 | Virginia is eliminated
• Game 6: Tennessee 6, North Carolina 1 

June 17

• Game 7: Florida 5, NC State 4 | NC State is eliminated
• Game 8: Texas A&M 5, Kentucky 1

June 18

• Game 9: Florida State 9, North Carolina 5 | North Carolina is eliminated

June 19

• Game 10: Florida 15, Kentucky 4 | Kentucky is eliminated
• Game 11: Tennessee 7, Florida State 2 | Florida State is eliminated
• Game 12: Texas A&M 6, Florida 0 | Florida is eliminated

June 22

• MCWS Final Game 1: Texas A&M 9, Tennessee 5

June 23

• MCWS Final Game 2: Tennessee 4, Texas A&M 1

June 24

• MCWS Final Game 3 (if necessary): Tennessee vs. Texas A&M, 7 p.m. | ESPN