NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Vanderbilt Commodores finally have what they worked so hard for all season, hosting an NCAA regional on their own field, and they are eager to take full advantage of being at home.
“They were investing all year, they were investing to purchase a home, and the home they wanted to purchase was this one right here,” Vanderbilt Coach Tim Corbin said Thursday. “I think they put themselves in a good position, but we still have to play well.”
Corbin’s Commodores have turned in quite the season even by their standards.
They are 51-9 and had been the consensus No. 1 team in the country. They set the SEC record with 26 victories before losing two games in the league tournament, including a 5-4 loss in 11 innings to LSU in the championship in a possible national title game preview.
Those losses dropped Vanderbilt to the No. 2 seed nationally. But the Commodores are hosting an NCAA regional for the second time in three years, starting tonight against East Tennessee State pitcher Kerry Doane, who is leading the country in complete games and innings pitched.
“It’s nice to be here, and it’s nice to be together,” Vanderbilt senior center fielder Connor Harrell said. “It’s kind of cool because there’s no one else on campus except for us. We just get to hang out and eat a lot of meals together. It’s nice to be in Nashville. You don’t want to travel if you don’t have to, so having these teams here is really beneficial for us.”
East Tennessee State (36-22) is in a regional for the first time since 1981. The Bucs won the Atlantic Sun Tournament, winning three games in their last at-bat. Doane pitched complete games on three days’ rest, the second in the title game after waking up ill with strep throat.
Coach Tony Sole is confident his pitcher will be ready, barring a relapse. A shortstop his first three seasons, Doane is 13-1 with a 1.99 ERA over 140 innings pitched, 12 complete games and is tied for the nation’s lead with 4 shutouts.
The Commodores are focused on playing the Bucs, even calling this the “East Tennessee State regional.” Corbin is starting junior left hander Kevin Zoomed, his usual Friday starter. Sophomore right-hander Tyler Bede, who is 14-0, will go Saturday.
Sole said Vanderbilt’s offensive production almost looks like pinball baseball. Tony Kemp is hitting .402 after leading the SEC with 58 runs, 27 stolen bases and a .490 on-base percentage. Senior Mike Yastrzemski led the SEC in hitting at .407. Harrell has career highs with 11 home runs and 64 RBI.
“We know it’s sort of a David versus Goliath match up,” Sole said. “We’ve got tough kids in our program, and I expect them to play well.”
Sports, Pages 23 on 05/31/2013