In Tennessee‘s 6-1 win over North Carolina in the College World Series on Sunday, outfielder Hunter Ensley suffered a lower-body injury when he ran into the centerfield wall at Charles Schwab Field while making a highlight catch. Despite participating in Tennessee’s practices ahead of its game against Florida State on Tuesday, Ensley did not play.
On Saturday, Tennessee will kick off its three-game series against Texas A&M with the national title on the line. Tennessee head coach Tony Vitello is hopeful Ensley will be able to play.
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“Today will have a lot to do with it,” Vitello said on Friday. “I think he could go out there. It’s just a matter of match-ups and we feel good about our depth, too. There’s other guys who can play the outfield and play in different spots.
“We don’t want to push it, but at the same time he’s our guy. We want him in the lineup in some capacity. But I think there’s a lot of time between now and first pitch tomorrow. So hopefully that will benefit him.”
Ensley provides more than excellent outfield coverage. The redshirt junior boasts 11 home runs and 46 RBIs this season, along with a .286 batting average. During his three appearances at the CWS, Ensley recorded two hits and one RBI.
Tennessee prepared for rematch vs. Texas A&M
Tennessee has history on its side heading into the national championship. Although the Volunteers did not face Texas A&M in a three-game series during the regular season, they did square off against the Aggies during the SEC Tournament.
In the heated battle, Tennessee walked away with a 7-4 victory. In the win, Hunter Ensley recorded one hit and scored a run. Whether Ensley plays or not on Saturday, Vitello is not assuming the Volunteers will defeat Texas A&M simply because they won their previous meeting.
“Unfortunately, not a whole lot because we’re, for whatever reason, able to edge them out on that particular day, but we don’t get any runs for that on the scoreboard,” Vitello said of what Tennessee learned from its last meeting against Texas A&M.
“Again, every SEC coach and player knows there’s a different vibe to each day and how you approach that tournament is unique for each team. So to recall on that game, maybe you look at some match-ups that occurred or something like that. I don’t think it carries a lot of weight.”
On Saturday, Tennessee and Texas A&M will go head-to-head at 7:30 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.
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