Vanderbilt first baseman Riley Nelson (32) watches his RBI single against Xavier during the fourth inning at Hawkins Field in Nashville, Tenn., Friday, March 7, 2025. Vanderbilt won 15-3 in seven innings. Andrew Nelles / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Instant Analysis: Vanderbilt Baseball 10, Tennessee 0 In Semifinal Round Of SEC Tournament

Originally posted on Vanderbilt Commodores on SI
By Graham Baakko | Last updated May 24, 2025 3:17 PM ET

HOOVER, Ala.- Vanderbilt dominated rival Tennessee 10-0 in Saturday’s first semifinal game at the SEC Tournament to move onto the SEC Tournament Championship Game.

It was another fabulous display of pitching for Vanderbilt. Starting pitcher Cody Bowker put up nine strikeouts in just 4.0 innings of work against the Volunteers. Bowker allowed just three hits and two walks as the defense backed him up.

Connor Fennell also gave the Commodores three quick innings out of the bullpen. In just 32 pitches, Fennell allowed just one walk and one hit in the afternoon.

“To be honest, I was trying to be too perfect. I wanted to be perfect. I wanted to just do everything I possibly could, and my mindset flipped when Barczi came out to me like, wait a second, I'm doing it for all the guys behind me and I don't have to be perfect. I have an amazing defense behind me, I'm going to let them work. They just happened to be strikeouts, but my mindset flipped to just attacking guys and letting the defense work,” Bowker said.

Vanderbilt’s offense provided plenty of run support early and often. The ‘Dores got 13 hits as Rustan Rigdon led the way with three hits and two RBIs. Riley Nelson and Mike Mancini also got two RBIs each. Vanderbilt also capitalized on two Tennessee fielding errors and two wild pitches that drove in Commodore runs and extended innings.

Vanderbilt will now shift its focus to the SEC Tournament Championship on Sunday as it awaits the winner of Ole Miss and LSU. The Commodores lost two of three on the road at Ole Miss earlier in the season, but did not face LSU in the regular season. Whichever team it faces, Vanderbilt will take on the winner at 2 p.m. CT.

Watch the above video as Vanderbilt On SI analysts Joe Gaither and Graham Baakko break down Vanderbilt baseball's SEC Tournament victory over the Tennessee Volunteers. The pair discusses the game, standout players and championship Sunday.