Friday’s Clemson Regional opener was a rough one for Vanderbilt against Coastal Carolina. The Commodores struggled mightily on the mound as the Chanticleers came away with the 13-3 victory to start the NCAA Baseball Tournament and headed to the losers bracket as a result.
Facing elimination Saturday afternoon against High Point, Vanderbilt bounced back well with five early runs, and head coach Tim Corbin said he’s happy with how his team responded.
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Corbin said he didn’t have to say much ahead of the elimination game, but added the mindset is the same as it was heading into the Coastal Carolina matchup. With a 5-0 lead entering the sixth inning, his focus is simply on staying alive.
“Well, not a lot of talking,” Corbin said on the ESPN+ broadcast about what the conversations were like Friday night. “But just get into that recovery mode last night and then certainly, this morning, too. It’s just a one-game season, and it really is – yesterday, too – I think whether you’re trying to go 1-0 yesterday or today, it’s really all the same. Backs are against the wall a little bit more, but we’ve kind of been there and responded pretty well.”
Vanderbilt’s young stars came through in the early going against High Point, including a towering home run from freshman Colin Barczi to make it a 2-0 lead. Braden Holcomb also got on base with a double and scored the fifth run of the game, and Tim Corbin said both players carved out roles as the season went along.
“They’ve gotten more experience towards the end of the year,” Corbin said. “I think Barczi is going to be a good player. He’s a catcher for us, too, but he’s shown some good pop in his bat. And certainly Braden. Braden Holcomb has gotten more opportunities as the season’s progressed. It’s good to see him get in the box and take a good swing there.”
Vanderbilt had to go through most of Saturday’s game without catcher Alan Espinal. The Commodores’ home run leader left after the top of the first inning with an apparent left leg injury sustained while running the bases. He has started all 59 games this year for Vanderbilt and entered Saturday’s game with a team-high 13 home runs. Espinal also brought in a .289 batting average and his 49 RBI are second on the team only to RJ Austin.
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