NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Vanderbilt took care of North Alabama in seven innings Tuesday night at Hawkins Field, beating the visiting Lions 14-2.
Parker Noland went 4-for-4 at the plate with three runs scored. Davis Diaz and Jonathan Vastine each drove in four runs. The Commodores scored in each of the first five innings to pull away after falling behind 2-0.
FOUR-HIT NIGHT FOR PARK 🥵#VandyBoys | #AnchorDown pic.twitter.com/hamXrMH9SE
— Vanderbilt Baseball (@VandyBoys) April 12, 2023
North Alabama took advantage of a pair of walks and a hit-by-pitch with two outs in the top of the first. The Lions plated two runs on a single up the middle to take an early lead. Vanderbilt’s pitching held the Lions to just one hit and zero runs over the final six frames.
Enrique Bradfield Jr. worked a walk to lead off the bottom of the first and, after a walk and an error, tagged from third on a fly ball to cut North Alabama’s lead to 2-1. Vanderbilt has scored in the first inning in five consecutive games.
The Dores jumped on top in the bottom of the second, pushing four runs across the plate on four hits.
Noland singled and Matthew Polk stretched a bloop hit into a double to put runners on second and third with no outs. Noland came home on a groundout by Vastine to tie the game at 2-2 before the Dores took the lead on an RBI double to the wall in left-center off the bat of Alan Espinal that scored Polk.
Espinal moved up to third on a wild pitch and Bradfield worked a walk to put runners on the corners with one out. After Bradfield stole his 117th career base, Diaz brought home Espinal on a sac fly and Bradfield moved up to third.
North Alabama went to the bullpen with two outs and Chris Maldonado welcomed the new arm with an RBI single to center field to give Vanderbilt a 5-2 lead.
Vanderbilt scored three more runs in the bottom of the third on three consecutive bases-loaded walks to go in front 8-2.
Noland and Polk started the bottom of the fourth with back-to-back singles. Noland scored on a Vastine sac fly. Bradfield singled for his second hit on the night and stole second. Diaz followed with a two-run single to right.
Vandy added three more in the bottom of the fifth. Noland doubled after RJ Austin drew a leadoff walk, scoring Austin all the way from first. Calvin Hewett recorded a pinch-hit singled and Vastine brought home Noland and Hewett on a double to left-center.
Bring ’em on in 👏#VandyBoys | #AnchorDown pic.twitter.com/VPBW7ZSPjV
— Vanderbilt Baseball (@VandyBoys) April 12, 2023
Vanderbilt totaled 13 hits and nine walks on the evening. Bradfield scored a team-high four runs to pass David Macias for 10th-most career runs scored in program history. Bradfield now has 173.
Vanderbilt used six arms on the mound in Tuesday’s win. Greysen Carter got the start and went one inning. JD Thompson (W, 2-0) threw two scoreless frames to get the win. David Horn and Jack Anderson pitched the fourth and fifth innings, respectively, and Colton Regen made his collegiate debut in the sixth, striking out a pair of batters. Thomas Schultz struck out two in the seventh to end the game with the run-rule.
No. 4 Vanderbilt (27-6) has won 15 of its last 16 games. The Commodores welcome No. 6 South Carolina to Hawkins Field for a three-game series between the top two teams in the SEC East standings.
The series begins with Game 1 at 6 p.m. Friday. All three games will air on SEC Network+.
