AUBURN, Ala. – Top-ranked Vanderbilt posted a season-high 20 hits in an 11-6 win over Auburn Friday night at Plainsman Park.
The Commodores wasted no time scoring single runs in the second, third and fourth innings to take a three-run lead. However, the Dores stranded nine men on base through the first four innings, including the bases loaded twice. Auburn battled back to within a single run scoring two runs in the fifth. The VU offense then exploded in the sixth and seventh innings putting three runs on the board in the sixth and four more in the seventh to put the game away.
Tony Kemp, Anthony Gomez and Riley Reynolds all had four hits in the victory and Curt Casali added three hits of his own. Reynolds drove in a career-best three runs to go along with his four hits, which equaled a career-best. Gomez’s four hits tied a career-best and Kemp’s set a career-high. Gomez extended his hitting streak to 22 games with a first-inning single. The top five spots in the Vandy lineup scored nine of the team’s 11 runs.
Sonny Gray notched his sixth win of the year pitching five innings. The right-hander gave up two runs on four hits with four strikeouts and three walks while throwing only 76 pitches. Auburn starter Andrew Morris was pegged with the loss giving up three runs on nine hits in his three-plus innings of work.
Vanderbilt returns to action tomorrow night at Plainsman Park with first pitch slated for 6 p.m. against Auburn. The game will be televised on CSS and streamed on ESPN3.com. Grayson Garvin gets the ball for the Commodores against Tigers’ right-hander Jon Luke Jacobs.
