NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Ryan Flaherty’s two-run walk-off homer with two outs in the bottom of the ninth lifted No. 1 Vanderbilt to a 7-6 win over Boston College Sunday afternoon at Hawkins Field.
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The Commodores trailed 6-5 going into the bottom of the ninth and the first two batters flied out, leaving them one out away from their first loss of the year. Pedro Alvarez drew a base on balls off of reliever Dan Houston before Flaherty blasted a 2-0 pitch over the wall in right-center to give Vanderbilt the win.
“You got a kid (Flaherty) who tells the team in the dugout before his at-bat he’s going to win the game and goes out and does it,” said head coach Tim Corbin. “That says something about him. He’s a special kid who doesn’t feel pressure.”
Vanderbilt swept through the Music City Classic field to move to 10-0 on the year, while the Eagles lost their third straight one-run decision to fall to 0-3.
BC jumped on VU starter Brett Jacobson early, taking a 1-0 lead in the first when John Ayers led off the game with a triple and scored on a sacrifice fly by Eric Campbell.
Pedro Alvarez tied the game in the bottom of the first with a solo homer to center, his fifth of the year.
The Eagles took the lead back on a Joe Ayers RBI single in the second then knocked Jacobson out of the game with three runs in the third. Jett Ruiz had a RBI single and Peter Frates added a squeeze sacrifice bunt for the first two runs, while Tony Sanchez added a RBI single to make it 5-1.
Dominic de la Osa added a solo homer in the fourth to cut the lead to 5-2. The Dores continued to chip away at the lead in the fifth when Parker Hanks knocked a RBI single to right to make it 5-3.
Alvarez walked to lead off the eighth and moved to second on a single to left-center by Flaherty. Shea Robin then bunted both runners over for the first out of the inning. Dominic de la Osa followed with a slow roller to first that allowed Alvarez to score. The Dores then tied the game when reliever Dan Houston’s first pitch to pinch-hitter Ryan Davis was wild, allowing Flaherty to score.
Reliever Stephen Shao came on in the third and stabilized the game for Vanderbilt, holding the Eagles scoreless until the ninth. He pitched a career high six innings, allowing one run on four hits with five strikeouts and a walk.
Joseph Ayers led off the ninth for Boston College with a double to left and then moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by John Ayers. Casey Weathers came on in relief and Ryan Hutchinson followed with a RBI single through the left side of the drawn in infield to give the Eagles a 6-5 lead.
Weathers picked up the win to move to 2-0 on the year.
The Commodores continue their 11 game home stand with four games this week. VU will take on Austin Peay on Tuesday at 4 p.m. before hosting Xavier in a three-game series over the weekend. Tuesday’s game is the last chance people can purchase single game tickets for $1. Fans can call (615) 322-GOLD for more info.
Boston College 113 000 001 – 6 12 1
Vanderbilt 100 101 022 – 7 8 0
Asselin, Belfiore (7), Cadoret (8), Houston (8) and Sanchez. Jacobson, S. Shao (3), Weathers (9) and Robin. W- Weathers 2-0. L- Houston 0-2. Sv- None. HRs: VU: Flaherty (2), Alvarez (5).
