Lexington, Ky. – No. 2 Vanderbilt used a seven-run fifth inning to cruise to an 11-3 win at Kentucky in the first game of a doubleheader Saturday afternoon.
The Commodores (43-6, 22-2) took a 3-1 lead in the fourth inning when Connor Harrell and Zander Wiel each hit home runs. But the Dores blew it open in the fifth, scoring seven runs on seven hits. Jack Lupo started the rally with the first of four straight hits against Wildcats’ (28-20, 10-15) starter A.J. Reed. Xavier Turner’s RBI-single scored the first run and Mike Yastrzemski followed with a RBI-double. After a Conrad Gregor ground out for the second out scored a run, Zander Wiel added a two-run single. In his second at-bat of the inning, Spencer Navin capped the rally with a two-run single of his own to make it 10-1 headed to the bottom of the fifth.
With a big lead on the scoreboard, Vandy starter Kevin Ziomek settled in and cruised to his 10th win of the season. Ziomek allowed two runs, one earned, on seven hits with four strikeouts over six innings. The lefty becomes just the 10th pitcher in Vanderbilt history to win at least 10 games in a single season joining teammate Tyler Beede. The duo is the third pair of VU hurlers to win 10-plus games in the same season joining David Price and Casey Weathers (2007) and Sonny Gray and Grayson Garvin (2011).
Walker Buehler worked the final three innings allowing one run on five hits to notch his first career save.
All nine Commodores in the starting lineup had at least one hit led by Tony Kemp’s three-hit performance. Harrell belted a pair of homers to push his season total to 10, his second two home run game of the season. Wiel drove in three runs and now has 18 RBI in his 10 starts. J.T. Riddle paced the Wildcats with three hits.
Reed took the loss (2-7) giving up career-highs in hits (12) and runs allowed (10).
The Commodores and Wildcats are set to play game two of the double dip tonight at 6 p.m. CT. Tyler Beede (12-0) gets the ball against UK’s freshman right-hander Kyle Cody (3-2).
