With a 5-4 loss to Wright State on Sunday, Vanderbilt became the first No. 1 seed to fail to reach the regional final of the NCAA Baseball Tournament since the current format was adopted in 1999. The Commodores dropped two straight games on their home field after winning their opener on Friday.
One of the most successful college baseball programs in recent history, Vanderbilt entered the tournament as the No. 1 seed following an SEC Tournament title. The Commodores were viewed as a true national championship contender, but their run was cut short on Sunday.
Vanderbilt won its first meeting with Wright State on Friday, but things started to go south on Saturday with a 3-2 loss to Louisville. That set up an elimination game against the Raiders on Sunday, and the Commodores failed to complete the comeback after falling behind early.
Following a Gus Gregory RBI single in the bottom of the third inning, Wright State held a 5-1 lead. The score remained there until the top of the ninth when Vandy rallied. The Commodores loaded the bases before a single from Mike Mancini and a ground-rule double from Rustan Rigdon made it a 5-4 game.
That was as close as the Commodores would get. The next batter, RJ Austin, flew out to right field to end the game.
This shocking defeat puts an end to a Vanderbilt season that looked like it could go the distance. The Dores went 19-11 in SEC play before winning the conference tournament, and they looked poised for a visit to Omaha.
Wright State will now face Louisville in the regional final at Hawkins Field later Sunday. The Cardinals are 2-0 on the weekend, which means the Raiders will have to beat them twice in a row to reach the Super Regionals.
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