Tennessee’s semifinal showdown Saturday afternoon against Florida in the Southeastern Conference baseball tournament did not go as planned for Volunteers coach Tony Vitello, and he was thrilled with that.
After riding the pitching trio of Chad Dallas, Will Heflin and Blade Tidwell to an SEC East title and through the first three games of the league tournament in Hoover, Alabama, Vitello tabbed junior Camden Sewell to start against the surging Gators. The former Cleveland High School standout was more than up for the task, producing six dominant innings as the No. 4 Vols prevailed 4-0 for a spot in Sunday’s championship game against top-ranked Arkansas.
ESPN2 will televise the 3 p.m. Eastern matchup.
“Camden Sewell was the ultimate leader today,” Vitello said afterward on a Zoom call. “Our plan was to use him as a starter when the postseason rolled around, because he’s kind of been a swing man for us. He started in the (NCAA) regionals as a freshman, and he’s fully capable as you saw today.
“We thought Camden Sewell could win this game today, but Camden Sewell in a zone showed up. He was in a flow there, and it was pretty special to watch.”