Drake Fellows, Patrick Raby and A.J. Franklin combined on a four-hit shutout, and Commodore hitters reached base 29 times, as Vanderbilt blanked UMass-Lowell, 15-0, in Game 1 of a three-game series on Friday night at Nashville's Hawkins Field.
The Commodores (5-1) erupted for five runs in the fourth, and three in the fifth, to break open a 1-0 game.
Austin Martin, J.J. Bleday and Ethan Paul led VU with two hits each, which included Bleday's first home run of the season.
Paul led the Commodores with three runs batted in, and Alonzo Jones led VU with three runs. Designated hitter Philip Clarke reached base five times (four walks), as did Martin.
Fellows (1-0), the winning pitcher, went five innings, striking out eight, walking one and giving up two hits, helping Vandy to its first shutout of the season.
Fellows gave up a hit and a walk to start the game, then struck out the next three, and dominated the River Hawks from there.
Martin lined an RBI single to left in the first, accounting for the first run.
Raby gave up two hits and struck out three in three innings, while Franklin yielded a lone walk in the ninth.
The two teams meet again at noon Central on Saturday.
NOTES
Vandy started Jones in center, Martin in left and Pat DeMarco in right, leaving last year's right field starter, Bleday, on the bench again. Bleday has started just three of six games this season.
This was the first game in which DeMarco hasn't gotten a hit.
Cooper Davis picked up the first RBI of his career.
Julian Infante didn't pick up a hit and struck out four times, and is 1-for-23 on the season.
All 18 position players on the roster saw the field on Friday.
The Commodores have out-scored teams 59-10 this season.
SCORING SUMMARY
VU 1: Martin singled to left, scoring Jones. VU, 1-0
VU 4: Gonzalez scored on Kaiser's walk. VU, 2-0
VU 4: Jones and Martin scored on Paul's double off the wall in left. VU, 4-0
VU 4: Kaiser scored on Clarke's walk. VU, 5-0
VU 4: Paul scored on a balk. VU, 6-0
VU 5: Kaiser's double to left scored Martin and Jones. VU, 8-0
VU 5: Paul doubled to left, scoring Kaiser. VU, 9-0
VU 7: Bleday solo homer to right. VU, 10-0
VU 8: Grisanti doubled to left, scoring Duvall. VU, 11-0
VU 8: Blaylock singled to right, scoring Grisanti and Ray. VU, 13-0
VU 8: Davis walked, scoring Blaylock. VU, 14-0
VU 8: Infante sacrifice fly to center scored Solomon. VU, 15-0
