Six pitchers get Vandy by UCA

Six Vanderbilt pitchers combined to strike out 12 Central Arkansas hitters, as the Commodores rolled past the Bears by a 10-2 score on Tuesday afternoon at Hawkins Field.

Freshman Michael Doolin (1-0) picked up his first carer win, striking out five as he held UCA scoreless in the third and fourth innings.

Five Commodores--left fielder Cooper Davis, center fielder Tate Kolwyck, DH Ty Duvall, right fielder Isaiah Thomas and shortstop Carter Young--each had two hits. Kolwyck, Duvall and third baseman Parker Noland tied for the team lead with two RBIs.

Ethan Smith started, and allowed the only two runs. Nick Maldonado threw two innings, while Jack Leiter, Luke Murphy and Chris McElvain each threw one.

Vanderbilt completed an 11-game home stand on Tuesday; the Commodores won 10 of those games.

Redshirt freshman Luke Murphy showed some good things in the eighth inning on Wednesday.

Murphy had a tough start when UCA's Coby Potwin singled to lead off the inning when he slapped a ball down third against a shirt that left that side of the infield vacant. Murphy then got up 0-2 on Ben Ayala before walking him.

Murphy then started using his fastball-curveball combo effectively to get out of the inning untouched.

Murphy's fastball--which sat 94-97--was good, but it was particularly the breaking ball that worked for him. He struck out the next two hitters--both on 1-2 curves--and then set up Cole Fiori 0-1 with another bender that caught the corner. Fiori eventually popped to short on a 1-2 pitch.

Murphy had walked six in two-thirds of an inning this season, which spanned two appearances. VU felt Murphy--who sat out last year due to Tommy John surgery--would help in a high-leverage role this year. Tuesday's outing had to give Murphy a confidence boost and the way he threw against UCA suggested he can help this team now.

The Commodores did a terrific job of manufacturing two runs in the sixth.

Thomas led off with a ground ball to the third-base side of short, which the sophomore beat out. Noland then walked on a 3-2 pitch.

Harrison Ray and Young struck out, but Cooper Davis then reached on a ball hit back to the pitcher. Coach Tim Corbin, coaching third, sent Thomas from home from second and he scored, while Noland alertly took third. Kolwyck then singled to short as Noland scored on that play.

It turned a one-run lead into a three-run advantage at a time when it very much mattered.

All-American center fielder Austin Martin left the game after the fifth for undisclosed reasons.

Martin, who rarely comes out of games, exited with VU up 3-2. The move was all the more strange given that no balls were hit to Martin in the bottom of the fifth, and that his last at-bat--a ground-out to third--came in the fourth.

Kolwyck entered the game in his place, and reached base both times up.