The Raiders built a 3-0 lead before even allowing a hit but gave up three home runs — including a disputed one — to drop a 4-3 decision in the Vandy regional.
Freshman Conlan Daniel bashed his sixth homer in the second inning, and senior Boston Smith smacked his Horizon League-record 24th in the fourth.
League tourney MVP Pat Fultz started the scoring with an RBI double to deep left in the first, bringing in Hunter Warren.
First-team all-league pitcher Cam Allen didn’t give up a hit in his six-inning stint, walking three and striking out seven.
Reliever Warren Hartzell came on in the seventh and gave up a homer to SEC tourney MVP Brodie Johnston with two outs in the inning, making it 3-1.
Vandy, which won national titles in 2019 and ‘14, exploded in the eighth. DH Mike Mancini homered to center, and then first-baseman Riley Nelson, with a runner aboard, hit a two-out screamer down the right-field line that went over the foul pole.
The umps initially ruled it foul and then changed the call to fair. After a review, the call was upheld.
That gave the Commodores (43-16) a 4-3 lead, and closer Sawyer Hanks struck out the side in the ninth.
The Raiders (38-20) play in the elimination bracket at 3 p.m. Saturday against East Tennessee State, which lost to Louisville.
“I was proud of our guys, the way they fought tonight. It kind of showed our toughness as a team, our resilience,” Raider coach Alex Sogard said.
“I thought we were going blow for blow with them. A couple pitches (were) left over the plate, and they did a very good job of putting a good swing on it. And we felt short.”
Sogard wasn’t happy with the changed call on the decisive homer.
“Our dugout (one the first-base side), it’s kind of at a tough angle. Everything to right field seems foul. I didn’t have the best angle. Obviously, he hit it well, but I thought it was a tough one to overturn. I did not agree with the explanation. But I don’t want to get into that too much,” he said.
“If you leave it in the umpire’s hands, it’s tough. I think we could have done a better job. We were trying to work around that lefty. It wasn’t a pitch we were trying to throw over the plate. You make a mistake in baseball, sometimes they capitalize.”
Allen only threw 76 pitches, but the Raiders’ pre-game strategy was to go with multiple pitchers in the opener.
“He started to labor that second time through (the lineup). I know he didn’t give up a hit, but he’d walked (three) of the last eight. The plan going in was maybe one time through (the lineup). But if he’s really good, keep him rolling. We wanted to keep changing the looks,” Sogard said.
“We felt like that was our best shot against their lineup. He was just a warrior out there. But the second time through, he was fighting it, kind of laboring but was making big pitches. I know his pitch count wasn’t crazy. But we felt good with the arms behind him.
“It’s easy to say ’what if’ now. Me and our pitching coach talked throughout the game every inning about every possible situation. We felt really good about it.”
Allen joined Sogard at the post-game press conference and said: “The cutter and fastball were jumping today. I usually set up pitches with the cutter and throw it past them with the fastball.
“I felt good. You’ve just got to get right back to it, keep grinding and claw back.”
The Raiders also lost one-run games in their NCAA openers against Indiana State in 2023 and Tennessee in 2021.
“It’s a tough pill to swallow. It’s a hump we want to get over as a program. But I don’t think it surprises anyone in our locker room that we’re in every game in these big games,” Sogard said.
“Talent is one thing—and we have a talented roster—but the toughness of our guys, they tend to thrive in these hostile environments.”
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