San Diego, Calif. – No. 7 Vanderbilt’s game at San Diego on Friday afternoon has been suspended due to rain after six innings with the Commodores leading 8-2. The game is scheduled to resume in the top of the seventh inning tomorrow night at 8 p.m. CT.
For the second day in a row, the Dores jumped out to an early lead. Ethan Paul led off the second inning with a double down the left field line before back-to-back walks loaded the bases. A ground ball forced Paul out at home but Jason Delay put VU in front with a single and fellow senior Ro Coleman made it 2-0 with a sacrifice fly to left field. Vandy pushed three more runs across in the third with only one hit, an Alonzo Jones double down the left field line. Jones scored his second run of the game moments later, scoring from third on a wild pitch. The Commodores blew the game open in the fifth when Julian Infante launched a two-run homer off the left field foul pole and Connor Kaiser drove in a run for an 8-0 lead.
While the Dores’ offense was rolling, starting pitcher Patrick Raby was dominating. The sophomore struggled out of the gate, walking two of the first three Toreros to start the game. But he battled back to hang a zero on the scoreboard in the first. He faced trouble with two outs in the second when Roman Garcia doubled to left and Jordan Abushahla walked on a wild pitch that moved Garcia to third. Raby bounced back to get Jeff Houghtby to pop out to Kaiser at short and the threat. That out began a string of 10 straight retired by Raby that took him to the end of his outing. He gave up just one hit while walking three with four strikeouts over five scoreless innings.
San Diego scratched out a pair of runs against Chandler Day before Collin Snider entered and struck out the side to end the sixth inning and strand the bases loaded. The tarp quickly came on to the field following the frame to suspend the game.
Jones was in the midst of a big game before the suspension, going 3-for-3 with two singles, a double and a walk to go along with three runs scored.
San Diego starter Jonathan Teaney was roughed up for five runs on three hits and five walks over just 2.1 innings.
Vanderbilt will resume the suspended game tomorrow night at 8 p.m. CT and wrap up the series on Sunday with first pitch to be determined.
