NASHVILLE, Tenn. — In a thrilling match at the Nashville Regional, Louisville triumphed over top-seeded Vanderbilt with a 3-2 win on Saturday night.
Zion Rose set the tone for Louisville with a home run at the start of the fifth inning. Later in the same inning, Tague Davis hit a double and then scored the decisive run thanks to a throwing error by Vanderbilt. This stellar play pushed the top-seeded Commodores into the losers’ bracket.
Pitching was crucial in the tense final moments of the game. Jake Schweitzer hit Colin Barczi with a 3-2 pitch to lead off the bottom of the ninth but quickly regained control by striking out the next two batters. With runners at the corners following a single by Mike Mancini, a force play at second ended the game and earned Schweitzer his third save.
The defeat means that Vanderbilt, now with a record of 43-17, faces an elimination game against Wright State on Sunday. Should they win, the Commodores will need to beat Louisville twice, once on Sunday night and again on Monday, to move forward to the super regionals.
Justin West was pivotal in securing the win for Louisville by pitching 2 1/3 scoreless innings in relief of starter Tucker Biven. Biven had allowed two runs—one of them unearned—over 4 2/3 innings. Wyatt Danilowicz maintained the lead with a scoreless eighth inning.
Vanderbilt’s starter Cody Bowker was tagged with the loss after giving up three runs, only two of which were earned, over 5 1/3 innings, during which he allowed five hits. Connor Fennell offered relief but couldn’t close the gap, conceding three hits during three shutout innings.
The game had an electrifying start when Matt Klein homered just two batters into the game, giving Louisville an early 1-0 edge. The Commodores responded in the third when Mancini walked, eventually scoring on a wild pitch to tie the game. Vanderbilt briefly took the lead again with an unearned run in the fifth before Louisville sealed their victory.