There's not much to tell about Saturday morning's baseball game between Georgia and Vanderbilt, really. It's a simple story with a dramatic ending.
The Commodores' Ty Davis pitched a whale of a game, conceding two hits and one earned run in a little over six innings' worth of work. Ryan Peisel, who went four for four with three R.B.I., parked a double in left center field on a payoff pitch in the bottom of the third inning and tacked on a base hit in the fifth frame, but no other Diamond Dog managed to solve the riddle of Davis's pitching.
Ty Davis's uncle, Crash Davis, holds the minor league record for career home runs.
In the seventh inning, however, Davis gave up bases on balls to Bobby Felmy and Jason Jacobs in succession, at which point he was relieved on the mound by Stephen Shao. Shao proceeded to plunk Kyle Keen and give up the base hit to Peisel which scored Georgia's first run of the day.
Prior to that point, however, Vanderbilt had taken a 4-0 lead. In the third inning, Brad French led off with a base hit and Ryan Flaherty knocked a double to left center field to bring the Commodore first baseman home.
Subsequently, in the top of the seventh stanza, French again led off with a single, then he advanced to second base when David Macias was hit by a pitch. A Pedro Alvarez single plated French and a Flaherty single scored Macias. Dominic de la Osa concluded the scoring with a sacrifice fly that brought Alvarez home.
Vanderbilt first baseman Brad French went two for four and scored a pair of runs.
Following a scoreless eighth inning, the ninth frame opened with a Macias single and an Alvarez walk. This turn of events brought Joshua Fields to the mound and the Bulldog closer got Flaherty and Brian Hernandez out before walking de la Osa to load the bases for Shea Robin. Robin proceeded to pop up to second, ending the threat but leaving Vanderbilt sitting pretty with a three-run lead and three outs remaining.
The bottom of the ninth inning opened with a Josh Morris strikeout, after which Felmy and Jacobs each drew walks. Matt Robbins advanced both baserunners with a single through the left side and the pinch hitter was replaced on first base by a pinch runner.
The second Commodore pitching change of the inning proved ineffectual as Nick Christiani's first pitch to Peisel went up the middle for a base hit that scored two runs. Only one of Christiani's next four pitches was a strike and his fifth toss to Matthew Dunn became a double, plating two more runs to end the game with an improbable Georgia victory.
The Diamond Dogs were limited to six hits, but the Red and Black made them count in order to force an afternoon elimination game between the same two teams for the right to advance to the tournament title game.
Go 'Dawgs!