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The No. 7 Florida Gators and the No. 1 Tennessee Volunteers will face off in the 2022 SEC Baseball Tournament championship game on Sunday at Hoover Metropolitan Complex in Hoover, Alabama, following an exciting Saturday of Final Four action.
Florida upset No. 2 Texas A&M 9-0 in the Final Four thanks to a combination of consistent run production and impressive pitching that left the Aggies with just six hits in 32 at-bats.
Meanwhile, Tennessee defeated No. 12 Kentucky 12-2 with a late surge in Saturday’s Final Four. With both teams tied 2-2 through seven innings, the Volunteers broke through with a four-run eighth inning to secure their semifinal victory.
With an exciting championship game on tap, here’s a look at Saturday’s Final Four scores and a look at the championship matchup between Florida and Tennessee.
Men’s Final Four Scores
No. 7 Florida def. No. 2 Texas A&M, 9-0
No. 1 Tennessee def. No. 12 Kentucky, 12-2
2022 SEC Championship Game Schedule
Where: Hoover Metropolitan Complex in Hoover, Alabama
When: Sunday, May 29 at 3 p.m. ET
Watch: ESPN2
Florida 9, Texas A&M 0
The Florida Gators got their revenge against the Texas A&M Aggies with a dominant 9-0 win in Saturday’s Final Four to reach the SEC title game. In the second round of the tournament, the Aggies stomped the Gators 10-0.
Florida got out to a hot start on Saturday when Jud Fabian sent a solo home run over the left field fence in the top of the second inning to put the Gators on top 1-0. It marked Fabian’s 22nd home run of the season.
After Wyatt Langford hit a leadoff double in the top of the third inning, BT Riopelle hit a sacrifice fly to bring him home and give the Gators a 2-0 lead. Mac Guscette followed that up with a two-RBI single in the top of the fourth inning to extend Florida’s lead 4-0.
Florida Gators Baseball @GatorsBB
BT BOOST ????????????<br><br>UF 2, TAMU 0 | M3<a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/GoGators?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#GoGators</a> // ???? <a href=”https://t.co/6twJnL9Tvf”>https://t.co/6twJnL9Tvf</a> <a href=”https://t.co/b5CaMjRUqr”>pic.twitter.com/b5CaMjRUqr</a>
The Gators then tacked on four unanswered runs over the next three innings to take a commanding 8-0 lead before capping off the afternoon with a run in the top of the ninth inning to make it 9-0.
While the bats were hot on Saturday, Florida’s pitching staff also put together a dominant outing. Starting pitcher Timmy Manning allowing just five hits and struck out six batters in five innings.
Fisher Jameson was also solid, allowing just one hit and striking out four batters in four innings.
Florida Gators Baseball @GatorsBB
Anotha one<br><br>Cc: <a href=”https://twitter.com/timmy_manning?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@timmy_manning</a> <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/GoGators?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#GoGators</a> // ???? <a href=”https://t.co/6twJnL9Tvf”>https://t.co/6twJnL9Tvf</a> <a href=”https://t.co/AeZXT9qw9Y”>pic.twitter.com/AeZXT9qw9Y</a>
Florida Gators Baseball @GatorsBB
Fish pitches a clean seventh, aided by a <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/SCTop10?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#SCTop10</a> gem by <a href=”https://twitter.com/TyboEvans?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@TyboEvans</a>!<a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/GoGators?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#GoGators</a> // ???? <a href=”https://t.co/6twJnL9Tvf”>https://t.co/6twJnL9Tvf</a> <a href=”https://t.co/3TJ07uBU19″>pic.twitter.com/3TJ07uBU19</a>
This tournament has been full of upsets for the Gators, who also defeated No. 3 Arkansas in the third round on Friday, before snagging a win against Texas A&M. That said, it will be no easy task for Florida to upset No. 1 Tennessee to claim the title.
The Gators went 0-3 against the Volunteers this season and gave up 17 runs over those three outings. So, the Florida pitching staff will need to be significantly better against a hot Tennessee lineup that has dominated this year.
Florida has won the SEC Tournament seven times, though they last won in 2015.
Tennessee 12, Kentucky 2
The No. 1 Tennessee Volunteers punched their ticket to the SEC Championship Game with a dramatic 12-2 win over the No. 12 Kentucky Wildcats on Saturday.
Tennessee and Kentucky were tied 2-2 through seven innings before the Volunteers put together a four-run eighth inning to take a 6-2 lead. The Vols’ run began when Kentucky pitcher Zack Lee hit Jorel Ortega with a pitch when the bases were loaded, which resulted in Luc Lipicius coming in to score.
With the bases still loaded, another run came into score on a wild pitch from Lee before two more runners scored on a double from Cortland Lawson.
Tennessee Baseball @Vol_Baseball
CLaw in the CLutch!!! He rips a double to the gap and the Vols score a pair! In total, 4 come across to score and UT leads it 6-2.<a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/GBO?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#GBO</a> // <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/OTH?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#OTH</a> // <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/BeatUK?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#BeatUK</a> <a href=”https://t.co/AY6v98XWjP”>pic.twitter.com/AY6v98XWjP</a>
It was an incredibly disappointing performance for Lee, who came on in relief for Austin Strickland, who pitched 3.2 innings and allowed just one run on three hits while striking out five batters.
That said, the Volunteers should receive credit for remaining patient and not getting frustrated at the plate. They had been one of the best offensive teams in this tournament entering Saturday’s games, so the runs were bound to come.
The Wildcats’ bullpen really let the team down on Saturday as the Volunteers went on to score six more runs in the top of the ninth inning off a number of Kentucky relief pitchers to put the game out of reach.
Tennessee’s pitching staff should also be credited for the win. Starter Chase Burns allowed just two runs on three hits in 4.2 innings while striking out eight batters.
Tennessee Baseball @Vol_Baseball
EIGHT STRIKEOUTS FOR CHASE BURNS!! Gets him swinging on the slider and the Vols take a 6-2 lead into the 9th!<br><br>???? <a href=”https://t.co/eaAcffkcbh”>https://t.co/eaAcffkcbh</a><a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/GBO?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#GBO</a> // <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/OTH?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#OTH</a> // <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/BeatUK?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#BeatUK</a> <a href=”https://t.co/Oia99gMM1W”>pic.twitter.com/Oia99gMM1W</a>
The Volunteers have been dominant in this tournament, posting a 10-1 win over No. 8 Vanderbilt and a 5-2 win over No. 4 LSU before Saturday’s game against Kentucky, and will enter Sunday’s title game as favorites over Florida.
Tennessee has won the SEC Tournament three times, but will be aiming to capture the title for the first time since 1995 on Sunday.
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