Three Vols Earn SEC Honors as Kuhns Lands on All-SEC Second Team
Image: Kate Luffman/Tennessee Athletics
By Aidan Sidoti
KNOXVILLE – After finishing the regular season 4-2 in conference play with series wins over No. 4 Texas and on the road at Oklahoma, three Tennessee players earned SEC recognition on Monday afternoon.
Sophomore right-hander Tegan Kuhns was named to the All-SEC Second Team after a dominant year on the mound. The Gettysburg (Pa.) native led all Tennessee pitchers with a 3.39 ERA across 14 appearances, including one out of the bullpen. He finished the regular season with a 5-4 record and ranked tied for fourth in the SEC with 100 strikeouts. Kuhns delivered a career-high 15 strikeouts in his second to last start of the regular season against No. 4 Texas, a performance that earned him his second SEC Pitcher of the Week award of the year.
Freshman left-hander Cam Appenzeller and DH Trent Grindlinger were both named to the All-SEC Freshman Team. Appenzeller, one of the top prospects to make it to campus out of high school, has been one of Tennessee’s most reliable bullpen arms this season. The Chatham (Ill.) native posted a 4.84 ERA in 17 appearances with a 5-1 record and one save. He earned SEC Freshman of the Week on Apr. 13 after striking out a career-high 8 batters in 5 innings against No. 8 Mississippi State, allowing only 2 runs and closing out a 6-5 win.
Grindlinger has been a major spark since entering the lineup in the final game of the Vanderbilt series and starting every conference game afterward. The Huntington Beach (Ca.) native leads Tennessee with a .357 batting average and a .434 on base percentage across 39 games. During SEC play, he hit .322 with 4 home runs and 18 RBI, helping fuel Tennessee’s surge going into postseason play.
Appenzeller will make the second start of his career on Tuesday evening against No. 15 South Carolina to open the SEC Tournament. First pitch is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. ET on SEC Network.
