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Hot Bats on a Cold Day

Vandy beats Saint Mary’s 11-4

Box Score #1

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Vanderbilt baseball scored 11 runs on 12 hits to defeat Saint Mary’s 11-4 in the first game of the series Friday at Hawkins Field.

While the temperature was barely hovering above freezing at first pitch, the Vanderbilt bats were hot on Friday. The Commodore offense combined for four extra-base hits including a three-run homer from Jonathan Vastine. Five Dores collected a multi-hit game led by Colin Barczi’s 3-for-5 day at the plate.

Vandy hitters went 5-for-14 with two outs, driving in six of Vandy’s 11 runs on those five two-out knocks.

Vanderbilt fell behind in the top of the second but quickly took the lead. Saint Mary’s tied the game in the fourth at 3-3, but the Commodores scored the next eight runs to pull away.

A one-out single sparked a two-run frame for Saint Mary’s in the second inning. The single was followed by a walk and with both runners in motion, the Gaels poked a base hit through the right side to score the game’s first run and put runners on the corner. A sac fly made it 2-0 but JD Thompson limited the damage with a strikeout to end the inning.

Vanderbilt wasted no time on a response, sending eight batters to the plate in the home half of the second.

Jacob Humphrey was hit by a pitch with two outs and Jonathan Vastine singled. RJ Austin was then hit by a pitch to load the bases. An infield single by Rustan Rigdon brought home Humphrey and kept the bags full for Riley Nelson.

Nelson lined a two-run single to right field to give Vanderbilt a 3-2 lead.

Saint Mary’s pulled even with a double, sac bunt and a single in the top of the fourth to make it 3-3.

Again, Vanderbilt had an answer in the bottom of the inning. Austin hit the first of two triples on the day to lead off the frame and scored on a sac fly by Rigdon. Jayden Davis reached base on a fielder’s choice and after JD Rogers worked a walk, Barczi doubled to right, scoring Davis and Rogers to put Vandy up 6-3.

Vandy increased its lead to four in the bottom of the fifth as Davis picked up an RBI with a bases-loaded walk.

The Dores added on in the bottom of the sixth starting with a leadoff single by Barczi. Chris Maldonado worked a walk, one of three for him in the game. Vastine then drilled a three-run homer to right field to make it a 10-3 game.

After Vastine’s home run, Austin tripled to left-center, becoming the first Commodore with two triples in a game since Tony Kemp did it twice during the 2012 season.

Vandy made it 11-3 in the bottom of the seventh with a sac fly off the bat of Braden Holcomb that scored Barczi.

Saint Mary’s got a run back in the ninth, but Vandy finished off the Gaels to win 11-4.

Six Commodores made their Vanderbilt debuts in the win. Freshmen Brodie Johnston, Ryker Waite, Tristan Bristow and Aiden O’Connell all made their first collegiate appearances while Mike Mancini, a transfer from James Madison, and David Mendez, a transfer from Dayton, each made their first appearances in a Vanderbilt uniform.

Sawyer Hawks earned the win, his second on the season, with 3.0 scoreless and hitless innings in relief. Hawks struck out five of the 10 batters he faced.

Vanderbilt improves to 5-1 on the season while Saint Mary’s falls to 4-2. The Commodores and Gaels will continue the three-game series Saturday at 1 p.m. at Hawkins Field.

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