Vanderbilt Athletics Has Disappointing Weekend: The Anchor

There was much left to be desired from Vanderbilt athletics over the weekend.

Friday morning, men’s and women’s cross country started the weekend at the SEC Championships. In men’s cross country, Vanderbilt finished in 14th place at the event. Luke Churchwell led Vanderbilt as he finished 59th overall at the SEC Championships in the 8-kilometer. Churchwell finished with a time of 24:43. Brady Bliven finished in second place for the Commodores with a time of 25:48, which was good for 91st overall.

In women’s cross country, Vanderbilt finished in 10th at the event. Tyla Lumley had the best finish for Vanderbilt as she got a time of 20:56 in the 6-kilometer and finished in 35th place on the players leaderboard. Right behind her was Bria Bennis, who finished with a time of 20:59. Up next for both men’s and women’s cross country is the NCAA South Region Championships on Nov. 14.

Saturday morning, Vanderbilt swimming split its two meets. Vanderbilt lost to Missouri 236-57, but then beat McKendree 206-46. In the victory over McKendree, Aubrey Hull and Melissa Cowen led Vanderbilt in the 100 and 200 breaststroke and backstroke. The Commodores next meet is set for Nov. 7 against Illinois.

On the football field, Vanderbilt dropped its second game of the season with a 34-31 loss to Texas. The Commodores gave up a touchdown on the first play of the game and were forced to play catch up the rest of the game. Texas grabbed a hold of a 17-0 lead before a Brock Taylor field goal put Vanderbilt on the scoreboard.

Vanderbilt went into halftime down 24-10 via an Eli Stowers touchdown a few seconds before the end of the first half. But Vanderbilt did not go down without a fight. The Commodores scored 21 points in the fourth quarter to make the deficit just 34-31.

The fate of the game ended up coming down to an onside kick. Taylor gave his team a chance to recover it, but the ball eventually rolled out of bounds before a Vanderbilt player could get control of the ball.

Vanderbilt’s SEC Championship Game hopes are severely hurt, but its playoff hopes are very much a possibility. The Commodores have home games against Auburn and Kentucky before finishing the regular season in Knoxville against in-state rival Tennessee. Winning out would likely be enough to put Vanderbilt into the playoff bracket, but a third loss would certainly knock itself out of contention.

This Weekend’s Commodores Schedule

No. 19 Vanderbilt women’s basketball vs. California at 1:30 p.m. CT on ESPNU (in Paris, France).

Vanderbilt men’s basketball vs. Lipscomb at 7 p.m. CT on SEC Network+.

Vanderbilt men’s tennis at the ATP 50 Challenger, Day 1.

Yesterday’s Commodores Results Today

Vanderbilt men’s cross country finished 14th place at the SEC Championships.

Vanderbilt women’s cross country finished 10th place at the SEC Championships.

Vanderbilt volleyball lost No. 3 Kentucky 3-0.

Vanderbilt swimming lost to Missouri 236-57.

Vanderbilt swimming beat McKendree 206-46.

No. 9 Vanderbilt football lost to No. 20 Texas 34-31.

Vanderbilt volleyball beat Missouri 3-2.

Did You Notice?

Vanderbilt volleyball played another two matches over the weekend. On Friday night, Vanderbilt traveled to Lexington and was swept by No. 3 Kentucky 3-0. Vanderbilt dropped the first two sets 25-13 and 25-16. The third set set up a sweep scenario for Kentucky, and the Wildcats took full advantage. Though Vanderbilt challenged Kentucky, it could not force the match into a fourth set as it dropped the last set 25-21.

On Sunday, Vanderbilt volleyball hosted Missouri and won in a five-set match by a score of 3-2. The match started with a close Vanderbilt win, 26-24. The first set victory ended up looming large in the end. The Commodores went onto pick up the second set as well with a 25-13 win. But Missouri did not back down. The Tigers ended up forcing a fifth and final set as they won the third set 25-23 and the fourth set 25-21. But in the tie-breaking set, Vanderbilt stood tall and got the separation it needed to win the match.

Countdown to Vanderbilt’s 2025 Basketball Season Opener

0 days. Today is the day.

Commodores Quote of The Day

“A lot of times I take a lot of shots. I remember one time early on in the season coach talking to me and saying, ‘You’re being selfish if you don’t take those shots.’ A lot of people say you’re selfish if you shoot 20 times a game, but she told me for the team to be successful, that’s what I needed to do.”Christina Wirth

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