Tennessee natives Ethan McElvain, Jayden Davis lift Vanderbilt baseball to even series vs LSU
Aria Gerson
Vanderbilt baseball evened its series against LSU on Friday night in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, thanks to the heroics of Tennessee natives Ethan McElvain and Jayden Davis.
Davis, a sophomore from Cookeville who transferred from Samford in the offseason, hit the go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth inning in the 8-6 win. He was 2-for-4 and had 4 RBIs against the Tigers (21-11, 3-8 SEC).
McElvain, a left-hander from Thompsons Station and Nolensville High School, went into the game with the Commodores (24-7, 7-4) trailing by a run in the sixth. He pitched 3⅓ scoreless innings to close out the game, allowing two hits and one walk, and striking out four.
After Vanderbilt took the lead in the top of the inning, McElvain put runners on the corners with one out in the bottom of the eighth after a walk, a single and an error. He got a double play to get out of the jam, then set down three straight batters after a leadoff single in the ninth inning.
RJ Austin had three RBIs and Camden Kozeal had one. Calvin Hewett went 3-for-3, stole two bases and scored two runs.
The Commodores, who lost Thursday's opener 10-6, are expected to turn to left-hander Carter Holton in the rubber match Saturday (2 p.m. CT, SEC Network+).
Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@gannett.com or on Twitter @aria_gerson.