GAINESVILLE — Zander Sechrist remembers it like it was yesterday.
“I was 11 and we went to Omaha (Neb.) to watch the College World Series,” Sechrist recalled. “We had a lot of fun. I was playing in a baseball tournament out there and I told my mom that I’m coming back again, but next time as a player.”
The former Flowery Branch and current University of Tennessee standout left-handed pitcher was able to fulfill that prophecy last month as a member of the Volunteers squad that qualified for the Series for the first time in over 15 years.
“It was even better than I remembered,” he said. “When we got our first practice on the field I think I just stood there for a minute or so and just kind of soaked it all in. It was definitely a dream-come-true to be able to go back.”
Unfortunately for the Vols, the team dream was more of a nightmare as they were swept out in two quick games. Sechrist, who was among a slew of young relief pitchers, did not make an appearance in either game. However, it did not diminish his experience.
“The amount of Tennessee fans that traveled to watch us was just nuts,” Sechrist said. “It made us all feel good to know we had that kind of support. I think that’s when it really hit me just how big a deal making it (to the CWS) is.
“But I think my favorite moment was warming up on the field and just talking to all the kids that showed up to watch us. I remember being that kid the first time so I wanted to make sure they had a good experience like I did.
“We all want to get out there and play but I wasn’t disappointed to not be able to get in a game. My role was a relief pitcher. If they had called on me, I was ready. The biggest disappointment was we didn’t win a game. But the program is in a great place right now.”
Despite the sudden end to the Vols season, Sechrist quickly found himself having the opportunity to live out another first. He was called by former Gainesville High and MLB player Micah Owings to be a part of the new Gainesville Braves traveling team that bases out of Ivey-Watson Field. The team features current college players, with several local and area players among a fluid roster of invitees.
The two have one thing in common as Owings, as a member of Tulane, was the last area player to make it to the CWS as a player in 2005.
“That's pretty cool. We talked about that a little," Sechrist said. "One of my coaches at Tennessee got in touch with Coach Owings and he asked me if I wanted to be a part of the team. I got home on a Thursday and started my first game two days later."
For Tennessee in 2021, Sechrist appeared in just eight games pitching 9 1/3 innings allowing just 8 hits and one walk while striking out 11. For the Braves against the Brookhaven Bucks on Saturday, Sechrist went four innings allowing just one hit, striking out four to get the win. It was the three walks that had Sechrist chuckling.
“I tripled my walks in one game more than I had the entire season at Tennessee,” he said. “I thought a couple of them should have been strikeouts but I guess they saw it different. They use wood bats in this league and that one hit I gave up definitely would have been out with aluminum bats so that was kind of interesting to see the difference.”
Sechrist is hoping to use this experience to boost his chances of advancement for the Vols in 2022.
“I think my ultimate goal is to be a starter (at Tennessee),” he said. “The Braves are going to use me as a starter and hopefully this will help me get prepared for next year. The cool thing about the first game for the Braves is that it was the first time I had ever pitched at Ivey-Watson. There’s a lot of tradition there so that was pretty cool for sure. It also feels good to be able to play in the area where I grew up.
“I really like where I am at with Tennessee. The coaches are great and it’s a great group of guys. But we are losing a lot of great players [to graduation and the upcoming MLB Draft], including probably three of our top four starters, so I’m hoping to be able to compete for one of those starting jobs next year.
“But I’ll do whatever the coaches want me to do. It was a fun first year of college baseball and right now I’m just going to try and have fun and help the Braves win some games and improve my game at the same time.”
