Texas A&M’s (44-13) SEC Tournament run ended Thursday afternoon at the hands of No. 1-seed Tennessee, who defeated the Aggies 7-4 behind a late offensive onslaught.
However, the Volunteers only outhit A&M 10-9, so it wasn’t the Aggies’ performance at the plate that was the issue but rather head coach Jim Schlossnagle’s strategic approach to the pitching lineup in the last two days. Thursday’s combination of Brock Peery, Tanner Jones, Josh Stewart, and Weston Moss on the mound allowed six of the Volunteers’ seven runs on the day.
After the game, Schlossnagle met with the media to discuss what’s next for the Aggies ahead of Monday’s NCAA Tournament selection show. Unsurprisingly, the third-year head coach was eager to return to College Station and Blue Bell Park, where Texas A&M ended the regular season with an elite 32-2 record.
“Three of the last four weekends we’ve been on the road, and we haven’t played very well. We’ve earned the right to play at home, so maybe that will get us going.”
Schlossnagle is exactly right. The Aggies have earned a Top 8 seed heading into Monday, and they are guaranteed to host the Regional Round and look to return to the Super Regional for the first time since the 2022 season.
Representing the players, recently named SEC Freshman of the Year, Gavin Grahovic, who hit two home runs on the day to reach 20 on the year, provided a few words of encouragement after the loss:
“We’ve had a rough few weeks, but we’re still the Aggies, and we’re going to continue to play Aggie baseball.”
Here is everything Jim Schlossnagle and Gavin Grahovac had to say.
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