Vols use home runs from Dylan Dreiling and Cal Stark to force gamer three of CWS Finals
By John Sartori
Published: Jun. 23, 2024 at 2:13 PM EDT|Updated: Jun. 23, 2024 at 5:49 PM EDT
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - Tennessee used a pair of home runs to force a third and final game of the 2024 CWS Finals, defeating Texas A&M 4-1 on Sunday.
Inning-by-inning updates are listed below. Scoring plays are marked in italics.
TOP FIRST INNING
Christian Moore singled to lead off the game.
Moore reached second on a stolen base as Billy Amick struck out for the second out of the inning.
Dylan Dreiling struck out swinging to end the threat.
BOTTOM FIRST INNING
Three pitches into Drew Beam’s outing, the Tennessee dugout was given a warning from home plate umpire Scott Cline.
Jace LaViolette gave Texas A&M its second straight day with a solo home run in the first to give the Aggies an early lead | Texas A&M 1, Tennessee 0
AGS STRIKE FIRST 💣#GigEm x @JaceLaViolette2 x #MCWS pic.twitter.com/eaDkHztQJP
— Texas A&M Baseball (@AggieBaseball) June 23, 2024
Beam ended the first with his second strikeout of the day.
TOP SECOND INNING
Hunter Ensley led off the second with a single to center field.
Chris Cortez came on in relief of starter Zane Badmaev.
Cannon Peebles drew a two-out walk to put runners in first and second.
A throwing error on Ali Camarillo allowed Cal Stark to reach and load the bases.
Christian Moore grounded out to second to end the inning.
Through two innings, Tennessee is 0-7 with runners on base, 0-3 with runners in scoring position, and has left four runners stranded.
— John Sartori (@JohnSartoriTV) June 23, 2024
BOTTOM SECOND INNING
Aside from his first-inning home run, Drew Beam was dealing early, striking out the side in the second.
TOP THIRD INNING
Blake Burke drew a walk to lead off the inning.
The Vols could not advance Burke, striking out twice in the inning.
BOTTOM THIRD INNING
Following a leadoff single, Beam picked off the runner at first and struck out his sixth and seventh batters of the day.
TOP FOURTH INNING
Kavares Tears singled to lead off the fourth. The Vols put the leadoff man on in all four innings to begin the day Sunday.
Cannon Peebles drew a one-out walk, his second of the game to put runners on first and second.
— John Sartori (@JohnSartoriTV) June 23, 2024Cannon Peebles has appeared in 13 less games than Billy Amick and 16 less games than Hunter Ensley.
All three of them have drawn 29 walks this year.
After a Cal Stark strikeout, Christian Moore walked to load the bases.
Blake Burke grounded out to second to strand the bases loaded.
— John Sartori (@JohnSartoriTV) June 23, 2024Time for an update.
Through four innings, Tennessee is 0-13 with runners on base, 0-5 with runners in scoring position and has stranded 8 runners.
BOTTOM FOURTH INNING
Following a leadoff walk, Beam got out of the inning with a flyout, a fielder’s choice, and a groundout to keep the deficit at one.
TOP FIFTH INNING
Billy Amick struck out for the third time in as many at-bats to lead off the fifth.
Hunter Ensley lined out as the Vols were retired in order for the first time.
TOP SIXTH INNING
Caden Sorrell singled to lead off the inning for A&M’s second straight leadoff baserunner.
A walk put runners at first and second with no outs.
Aaron Combs inherited both runners, taking over for Drew Beam on the mound.
Combs struck out Kaeden Kent and Travis Chestnut for the first and second outs of the inning.
Cal Stark executed a back pick to first to end the inning.
IRON MAN pic.twitter.com/6pNmIC7AtR
— WVLT Sports (@WVLTSports) June 23, 2024
TOP SIXTH INNING
With one out in the sixth, Dean Curley singled to rightfield.
A wild pitch advanced Curley to second.
Cannon Peebles walked for the third time in as many plate appearances, forcing a Texas A&M pitching change.
— John Sartori (@JohnSartoriTV) June 23, 2024For the first time in his Tennessee career, Cannon Peebles has drawn three walks in a single game.
He drew four while at NC State.
Kaiden Wilson became A&M’s third pitcher of the day, inheriting both runners.
Cal Stark grounded into a double play to end the inning.
BOTTOM SIXTH INNING
With one out in the inning, Jackson Appel became the first player for either team to register a hit with a runner on base.
With Appel’s single, both teams are now a combined 1-20 on the day. The single put runners at first and second with one out.
A flyout allowed the runner at second to tag up to third, putting runners at the corners with two outs.
Ted Burton flew out to right field to end the threat.
TOP SEVENTH INNING
Christian Moore drew a walk to lead off the inning.
Moore advanced to second, tagging up on a flyout by Blake Burke.
Billy Amick flew out for the second out of the inning.
Dylan Dreiling launched a two-run home run to give Tennessee its first lead of the day on its first hit with a runner on base | Tennessee 2, Texas A&M 1
BOTTOM SEVENTH INNING
Combs struck out two batters as part of a 1-2-3 bottom of the seventh.
TOP EIGHTH INNING
With one out, Dean Curley singled to rightfield.
Cal Stark’s first hit in Omaha was massive. A two-run home run | Tennessee 4, Texas A&M 1
BOTTOM EIGHTH INNING
The Aggies kept the inning alive with a two-out single by Jace LaViolette.
A walk brought the tying run to the plate.
Aaron Combs escaped without allowing a run, forcing a flyout to end the threat.
TOP NINTH INNING
Tennessee was retired in order.
BOTTOM NINTH INNING
A leadoff single forced a pitching change. Kirby Connell entered the game looking to lock down the 7th save of his Tennessee career.
A single brought the tying run to the plate with no outs.
Nate Snead relieved Kirby Connell after one batter.
A fielder’s choice placed runners at the corners with one out.
A flyout became the second out of the inning.
A flyout to the warning track ended the ballgame.
FINAL | TENNESSEE 4, TEXAS A&M 1
Tennessee evens the championship series at 1-1. The national championship game is set for 7:00 Eastern Time on Monday night.
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