KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee tried to rally in the ninth sparked by a Zach Daniels pinch hit homer but the comeback fell short in a 5-3 loss to Auburn in the opening round of the SEC Tournament. The Vols made it back to Hoover after missing the conference tourney the past two seasons. The opening round is single elimination meaning the Vols are done and will head home to await their NCAA Tournament fate.
Since the tournament expanded to its current 12-team format in 2013, Tennessee has yet to make it past the first round (0-4).
Tennessee finished the regular season with a series win against Ole Miss in Knoxville. The Vols finished with a 38-18 record (14-16 in SEC play), its best regular season record since 2005 which is the last time UT made the NCAA Tournament.
The Vols will find out on Monday at noon if they will make an NCAA Regional this season. D1baseball.com projects that they will make the tournament as a number two seed in the Greenville Regional.