Vanderbilt baseball defeats Florida in SEC tournament opener to bolster NCAA hopes

Aria Gerson, Nashville Tennessean
·2 min read

HOOVER, Ala. — Vanderbilt baseball faced a must-win game against Florida on Tuesday in the first round of the SEC tournament.

Sitting on the NCAA tournament bubble and facing another bubble team in Florida, the Commodores (36-20) got an excellent starting pitching performance from Bryce Cunningham, who threw six shutout innings as Vanderbilt won, 6-3, to solidify its position as a regional team.

The Gators (28-27) face a precarious position on the bubble while Vanderbilt gets at least two more opportunities to better its resume by advancing into the double-elimination bracket, where the Commodores will face No. 1 Tennessee on Wednesday at approximately 4:30 p.m. CT.

Vanderbilt has now won five consecutive SEC tournament openers dating back to 2019.

Vanderbilt's offensive performance against Florida

Vanderbilt struck first after Alan Espinal walked and Colin Barczi doubled to lead off the second inning. An RBI groundout from Matthew Polk and a sacrifice fly from Braden Holcomb brought both runners home.

In the fourth inning, three singles from Alan Espinal, Matthew Polk and Holcomb scored two more runs to make it 4-0.

Calvin Hewett hit a home run in the fifth inning, his second of the season, to extend the lead. RJ Austin added on with an RBI single in the seventh inning.

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Bryce Cunningham pitched a gem for Vanderbilt baseball

Despite throwing 75 pitches on Thursday against Kentucky, Cunningham returned to throw on short rest. Cunningham put up a strong performance, throwing six shutout innings with no walks and six strikeouts.

Vanderbilt chose not to extend Cunningham past six innings and Brennan Seiber took over.

Seiber gave up a run in the eighth inning after giving up a single, a passed ball, a wild pitch and another single. He also gave up a two-run home run to Michael Robertson with two outs in the ninth inning.

Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@gannett.com or on Twitter @aria_gerson.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Vanderbilt bolsters NCAA tournament resume vs. Florida in SEC tournament