NASHVILLE – Alabama baseball fell behind early and could not recover, eventually falling by a score of 13-1 to Vanderbilt on Friday night at Hawkins Field. The win clinched the series victory for the Commodores (33-21, 15-13 SEC), while the Crimson Tide moves to 19-34 overall, 5-24 in Southeastern Conference play.
Kyle Wright (4-5) was dominant in his start, pitching 7.1 innings and limiting the Tide to just one run. The junior right hander gave up five hits and one walk while striking out 11 Alabama hitters for his fourth win of the season. Alabama starter Jake Walters (5-5) took the loss, pitching 4.0 innings.
Vanderbilt put together a big first inning for the second night in a row, plating eight runs on eight hits and two errors to take an 8-0 lead. A pair of Alabama errors in that first inning proved costly, as only two of the eight runs in the inning were earned. Alabama scored one run in the top of the second, its lone run of the game, when Hunter Alexander singled with one out to give the Tide a base runner. He advanced to second base on an infield ground out. With two outs, Alex Webb delivered an RBI-double to left-center field to drive in the run.
The Commodores added one run in the bottom of the third inning and two in the fifth inning to take an 11-1 lead. A two-run home run by Vanderbilt in the bottom of the seventh provided the final runs of the game.
Offensively, Alabama was paced by Chandler Avant and Chandler Taylor, who both finished with a pair of hits. Taylor went 2-for-3 on the night with a walk and a double, while Avant hit 2-for-4. Webb contributed the team’s lone RBI and hit 1-for-3.
Alabama, which will not advance to the postseason or the SEC tournament, will finish its 2017 season on Saturday afternoon. The Crimson Tide and Commodores third and final game of the weekend league series will begin at 1 p.m. Junior right hand pitcher Garrett Suchey is scheduled to start for Alabama while Vanderbilt counters with freshman right hander Drake Fellows.
