HOOVER, AL — In Game 2 of the 2026 SEC Baseball Tournament, the No. 12 seed Vanderbilt Commodores mounted a thrilling mid-game comeback to defeat the No. 13 seed Kentucky Wildcats 8-5 at the Hoover Metropolitan Stadium.
Played in front of 6,748 fans, the game began at 2:00 p.m. under partly cloudy skies and 87-degree weather with a 7 mph south wind. The marathon contest lasted two hours and 57 minutes.
Kentucky struck first in the top of the first inning on an RBI single up the middle by second baseman Luke Lawrence, scoring shortstop Tyler Bell. Bell extended the lead to 2-0 in the third with a solo home run to right field. Vanderbilt answered in the bottom of the third when third baseman Brodie Johnston grounded an RBI single to center to score designated hitter Colin Barczi.
The Wildcats padded their lead with a solo home run from right fielder Carson Hansen in the fourth and an RBI double by Lawrence in the fifth to make it 4-1.
Vanderbilt flipped the script with a massive four-run sixth inning. Shortstop Ryker Waite lined an RBI single, followed by an RBI single from center fielder Rustan Rigdon. Barczi then tied the game with an RBI single to the left side. The go-ahead and game-winning run scored moments later when catcher Korbin Reynolds reached on a throwing error by Kentucky third baseman Caeden Cloud, bringing Rigdon home to make it 5-4.
In the eighth, Rigdon stole third and scored on a throwing error by Kentucky catcher Owen Jenkins. Johnston followed with a two-run home run to left field, breaking the game open at 8-4. Kentucky scratched one last run across in the ninth on an RBI single by Jenkins, scoring left fielder Will Marcy.
Johnston led the Commodores offensively, going 2-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs. Barczi and Rigdon also delivered two hits apiece. Kentucky’s offense was paced by Bell (2-for-4, HR) and Lawrence (2-for-3, 2 RBIs).
Vanderbilt reliever Alex Kranzler earned the win, improving his record to 3-3 after shutting down Kentucky over 4.1 innings, allowing just one run on one hit while striking out five. Kentucky starter J. Jelkin (8-3) took the loss, yielding five runs (four earned) on seven hits over 5.2 innings. No save was recorded in the contest.
Vanderbilt head coach Tim Corbin praised the turnaround. “Obviously the sixth inning was a big breakthrough for us,” Corbin said. “The difference was the ability to stop the game offensively for them, and that was Kranzler… turning the momentum to our side”. Barczi added, “We were just manufacturing runs… being able to score runs from just singles and short game is something that we also pride ourselves on”. (Note: Post-game quotes for Kentucky were unavailable).
Team Records and Tournament Status:
- Vanderbilt Commodores (33-24): Advances to the Second Round to face the No. 5 seed Florida Gators on Wednesday, May 20 (Time TBD).
- Kentucky Wildcats (31-21): Eliminated from the single-elimination opening round of the SEC Tournament.
This was created with AI assistance using content provided by the SEC, and edited for content and accuracy by the webmaster.
