TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Mac Guscette's eighth-inning home run proved the difference in Alabama baseball's 2-1 win over fifth ranked Vanderbilt on Saturday afternoon at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The series-clinching victory moved the Tide to 32-16 overall and 11-13 in Southeastern Conference play.

Hits and runs were hard to come by on Saturday, with each team registering only six hits apiece while the Tide held the advantage in runs. Vanderbilt struck first with a two-out RBI-double in the top of the third, but a Drew Williamson solo shot in the bottom of the fourth tied things up at one apiece. Both teams would go scoreless until the eighth when Guscette's solo homer to left clinched the game and series for UA.

Kade Woods (4-1) earned the win with 2.0 relief frames that included three punchouts. Alton Davis II followed with a scoreless ninth to record his sixth save of the season. The relief duo entered after an impressive start by Jacob McNairy. The graduate allowed just one run on four hits and a walk with a career-high tying seven strikeouts in 6.0 innings of work. Vanderbilt reliever Thomas Schultz (2-2) was tagged with the loss.

From Interim Head Coach Jason Jackson
"I can't say enough about our guys, just the overall effort. I was just so proud of them. We've been in a ton of those really tight games this year. We always say 'good teams win most close games' and we've been in a bunch of those that haven't gone our way, but today we went out and took it and made it happen for us. That's a really good series win, so I was definitely proud of our guys."

How It Happened
T3 | A two-out double just over the bag at third scored a runner from second for the Commodores. (1-0, Vanderbilt)
B4 | Drew Williamson tied things up with a solo homer into the visitor's bullpen. (1-1)
B8 | Mac Guscette sent an 0-1 pitch over the wall in left for the go-ahead solo home run. (2-1, Alabama)

Postgame Notes

• Today's game was officially a sellout. It is the Crimson Tide's fourth sellout of the 2023 season, with all three games of the Auburn series from April 14-16 also at capacity.
• Alabama's series victory over Vanderbilt was its first series win over a top-five team since May 19-21 of last season against then-No. 5 Arkansas. That series finished 2-1 in favor of the Tide.
• Jacob McNairy tossed a season-high 6.0-plus innings and 88 pitches in today's start. His previous high for innings was 5.2 at Missouri on April 23. He also threw 86 pitches in that start against the Tigers which was his then-season-best.
• McNairy struck out a career-high tying and season-best seven in his start. He had struck out seven on five previous occasions entering today with the most recent instance coming on May 20 of last year against the Razorbacks.
• Alabama has hit a home run in 39 of 48 games this season and has produced multiple homers 27 times. The Tide has also posted two-or-more homers in 13 SEC contests.
• Mac Guscette's game-winning home run was the Crimson Tide's first since Zane Denton hit one at Ole Miss last season on April 9.
• ATTENDANCE: 5,800 (SELLOUT)

Next up for Alabama is a trip to Montgomery to square off with Troy in a neutral site contest on Tuesday, May 9. The Crimson Tide and Trojans are scheduled for a 6 p.m. CT first pitch at Riverwalk Stadium, home of the Double-A Montgomery Biscuits.