NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The University of Evansville raced out to a quick lead behind strong starting pitching and timely hitting, then showed some fight, battling back before falling late to #2 Vanderbilt, 5-4, on a rainy Wednesday night in Nashville.
“Unfortunate that we didn’t win, but I feel like our guys competed for the top to bottom in our lineup”, said University of Evansville head coach Wes Carroll. “All of our pitchers made big pitches tonight. We’re a young team, that’s growing right in front of our eyes. I’m really proud of our effort tonight.”
Despite the lofty atmosphere, the Aces (1-3) came out swinging. In the top of the second inning, junior outfielder Troy Beilsmith led off the inning with a double down the left field line. Senior outfielder Nate Reeder followed that up with a double down the right-field line, scoring Beilsmith for the opening run of the game. Later in the frame, Sam Troyer delivered a sacrifice fly to left, scoring Reeder from third, giving Evansville a 2-0 lead.
Freshman starting pitcher Shane Gray delivered a pair of solid innings before being lifted on a staff day for fellow newcomer SamSteimel, who would get tagged for a home run by the Commodores Jayson Gonzalez in the third frame. Vanderbilt would strike for two more in the off Steimel, taking a 3-2 lead. The freshman was then lifted and replaced by senior RHP Austin Allinger, who came in an put out a one-out, bases loaded fire without any more damage.
Vanderbilt would add to their pad in the fifth, but in the top of the next inning, UE rallied back. Freshman second baseman Danny Bergstrom came up clutch with an RBI single to left, scoring Troy Beilsmith. Then, junior shortstop Craig Shepherd bounced one to third, bringing in Nate Reeder, knotting the game at four.
However, the Commodores would tag UE reliever David Ellis for a one-out triple, then a wild pitch would allow the go-ahead to run totally. The Aces would threaten to knot it up several times lately, but couldn’t put the tying run across.
Up next for the UE baseball team is a rescheduled weekend series with Little Rock in Arkansas, beginning Sunday with a doubleheader. First pitch is at 1 pm Central Time.
FOOTNOTE: Â INFO: For all of the latest information on University of Evansville baseball, log on to the sports page on GoPurpleAces.com or follow the program on Twitter via @UEAthleticsBASE.
