2/24/2023 baseball Edit

Vol baseball coach Tony Vitello suspended for weekend series vs. Dayton

Tony Vitello will miss the next three games for Tennessee. (Saul Young/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK)

Ryan Sylvia • VolReport

Assistant Managing Editor

Born in Knoxville, Tenn. and a graduate of the University of Tennesee, Knoxville. Covering football, basketball, baseball and recruiting for VolReport.

As Tennessee's baseball team prepared to take the field for the first match of a three-game series vs. Dayton, it was announced that head coach Tony Vitello won't be with the team.

Instead, the Vols' skipper will serve a suspension through the weekend slate.

Tennessee Athletics released a statement regarding the situation.

The University and Coach Vitello are working collaboratively with the NCAA to address a violation in the program. Coach Vitello will be suspended for this weekend’s series, with Josh Elander serving as acting head coach, and we will provide an update on Monday. Coach Vitello has acknowledged his mistake and accepted full responsibility. We appreciate his cooperation in the process and his dedication to do right by the student-athletes in the Tennessee baseball program. NCAA bylaws prohibit additional comment or details. The University will continue to emphasize—to all staff—the imperative of leading with honesty and integrity.

— Tennessee Athletics

Vitello's suspension is not by the NCAA, though. Instead, it is a cooperation between Tennessee Athletics and Vitello.

The exact violation has not been specified at this time. However, Vitello's suspension does come as the team awaits eligibility for transfer Maui Ahuna.

After transferring to Tennessee, Ahuna has been forced to sit out as he awaits a ruling on his eligibility. Last year at Kansas, he slugged for a .396 batting average, eight home runs and 48 RBI.

While Vitello serves his suspension, associate head coach Josh Elander will take his place. Elander has been with the team since 2018 and has acted as the associate head coach since 2022.

Elander did not provide an update following the game.

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