NASHVILLE – No. 15 Vanderbilt suffered its sixth-consecutive loss on Thursday night, falling 3-2 in the series opener against No. 16 Georgia at Hawkins Field.
The Commodores (17-13, 5-5 SEC) took a 2-0 lead into the eighth inning, but a pair of Commodore errors and two walks helped Georgia (23-7, 8-2 SEC) score three runs despite just one hit in the frame. Vandy starter Drake Fellows and reliever Zach King combined to walk consecutive batters in the eighth and UGA executed a double steal as Stephen Scott’s throw to second base sailed into center field to allow a run to score and cut the VU lead to 2-1. Two-hole hitter Aaron Schunk followed, lifting a sacrifice fly into left to knot things at two. Keegan McGovern reached on Vanderbilt’s second error of the inning as King’s errant throw gave the Bulldogs another runner and three batters later, pinch-hitter Mitchell Webb singled with two down, scoring McGovern for the lead.
Vanderbilt threatened to tie the game in the bottom half, but came up empty. Ethan Paul was hit by a pitch to start the inning, and reached third base following a sacrifice bunt and a one-out Stephen Scott infield hit. The Bulldogs turned to Schunk, who fanned pinch-hitter Walker Grisanti and induced an inning-ending flyout off the bat of Julian Infante.
The Commodores opened the scoring in the fourth inning. Connor Kaiser and Stephen Scott worked consecutive walks from Georgia starter Chase Adkins and executed a double steal to reach scoring position with one out. Making his first career start, Cooper Davis lined a sacrifice fly to right field, scoring Kaiser and giving Vandy the game’s first run.
Philip Clarke doubled Vanderbilt’s lead in the seventh with his third hit of the game. Austin Martin singled to right field with one out, stole second and advanced to third on a groundout. Clarke brought him home with two down by lining a 0-2 offering from Bulldog reliever Tony Locey into center field.
King was saddled with the loss, allowing two runs (one earned) on one hit alongside a pair of walks in one inning. Fellows threw seven-plus innings for Vanderbilt, allowing one run on six hits and two walks while striking out five. The sophomore right-hander did not allow more than one hit in any inning, completing seven frames in an SEC game for the first time.
Clarke went 3-for-5 with an RBI for Vanderbilt, while Scott and Martin each registered two hits.
McGovern finished 2-for-4 with a run for the Bulldogs and Adam Sasser went 2-for-3 with a double.
Adkins pitched 5.1 innings, allowing one run on five hits. Tony Locey (6-0) succeeded Adkins, holding Vanderbilt to a run and two hits in 1.2 innings for the victory. Schunk tossed 1.2 scoreless for his fourth save.
The two teams return to action for the middle game at 6:30 p.m. on Friday from Hawkins Field. Vandy will send right-hander Patrick Raby (2-4, 2.67 ERA) to the mound against left-hander Ryan Webb (1-2, 3.64 ERA). The matchup will be streamed on the SEC Network Plus.
