No. 18 Alabama baseball split the first two games of the series with No. 15 Vanderbilt but lost the final game to lose the series. The Crimson Tide move to 36-12 overall and 13-11 in SEC play on the season.
Here is a recap of the weekend series.
Game One:
An offensive explosion by Vanderbilt in the final three innings led to 12 runs as Alabama dropped the series opener 12-2. Going into the sixth inning, the score was knotted up at 0-0, but the Commodores put up three runs in both the sixth and seventh innings. Vanderbilt added six more runs in the eighth to end the game early by the 10-run rule.
Tyler Fay pitched a gem for Alabama in the first five innings before allowing three consecutive singles in the sixth, forcing him to exit the game. Fay allowed three runs on seven hits while striking out five on the day.
The Alabama offense had a tough time in the series opener, only scoring two runs on five hits. Justin Lebron went 1-for-3 and was the only Crimson Tide player to drive in a run.
Game Two:
Alabama evened up the weekend series with a 5-2 win on Saturday, led by a career start from Riley Quick.
Quick recorded his seventh win of the season, throwing a career-high six innings and nine strikeouts while giving up just four hits and two runs. Quick allowed a run in the first inning but settled down and retired the next 12 Commodores in order, including striking out the side in the second inning. Carson Ozmer recorded his 14th save of the season, pitching a perfect final two innings, striking out the side in the ninth.
Nine-hole hitter Coleman Mizell gave the Crimson Tide offense a lift, finishing 2-for-4 on the day with a solo home run and a double. Richie Bonomolo, Jr. recorded just one hit on the day but was responsible for driving in two of Alabama’s five runs.
Game Three:
Alabama took a 7-2 lead into the bottom of the eighth, but Vanderbilt scored seven unanswered runs in the final two innings to get a 9-7 comeback win to clinch the series.
Garrett Statton’s lone hit on the day was a three-run home run in the fourth to put the Crimson Tide up 3-2. Will Hodo also made the most of his only hit of the afternoon, starting a four-run sixth inning with a two-run home run to center field.
Zane Adams pitched well enough to deserve a win, but the bullpen couldn’t hold off the Vanderbilt comeback. Adams gave up two runs on five hits, striking out five in six innings of work. Carson Ozmer came in relief in the ninth, looking for a program record 15th save, but gave up four runs on three hits and a hit batter in the ninth to get his first loss of the season.
Alabama will travel to Troy for the final midweek matchup of the season on Tuesday at 6 p.m. The game can be streamed on ESPN+.
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