Cats bash Dores, clich SEC championship

LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Even Kentucky's victory celebration was a snapshot of how the Wildcats have approached their entire 2024 SEC championship season.

After Nick Mingione's squad defeated perennial league power Vanderbilt 17-7 in run-rule fashion on a rainy Friday night at Kentucky Proud Park -- a win that clinched a share of only the second SEC title in program history -- the Cats were equal parts elated and laser-focused on the work still left to be done.

"Hopefully, it's just one little milestone along the way of something even bigger," said senior pitcher Ryan Hagenow, who tossed two innings of scoreless relief on Friday and has emerged as one of UK's key bullpen arms late in the season. "This team is really hungry. We're definitely not satisfied, but we're going to enjoy tonight."

Added senior outfielder Nolan McCarthy: "This program has been through a lot... There's a lot more to go, but it's awesome, this feeling right now."

No. 2 Kentucky (39-11, 22-7 SEC) leads Tennessee by one game with one game remaining for both teams. The Cats can clinch the title outright and the No. 1 seed for next week's SEC Tournament in Hoover, Ala., if they can complete the sweep of Vanderbilt (34-20, 12-17 SEC) on Saturday at KPP.

The Volunteers, currently holding the No. 1 ranking, can earn a share of the league title and the top seed for the tourney with a combination of a UK loss and a UT win over South Carolina on Saturday.

Either way, Kentucky is celebrating something that has occurred only twice in the program's 83-year history. The Cats’ only other SEC title came in 2006.

"So thankful. What a team," Mingione said. "... I've been a part of this twice. This will be the third time in 18 years (as an SEC coach). I've just gotten to the spot where, when you watch the guys go about their business every day, you just want all this success for them. You just want it for them, and nobody will ever be able to take it away from them.

"That's what I told them tonight. They'll forever be SEC champions."

To get there, Kentucky kept pressure on Vanderbilt from start to finish. The Cats fell behind 2-0 in the top of the first inning but responded with five runs of their own, including back-to-back home runs by Ryan Waldschmidt and Emilien Pitre to send the hearty, rain-soaked crowd of 4,071 at KPP into an early frenzy.

From there, UK scored in every inning, adding one in the second, two in the third, two in the fourth, three in the fifth, and four in the sixth to set up a rare run-rule defeat of the proud Commodores.

"Just relentless," Mingione said of the Cats' 17-run night which included 12 hits, seven drawn walks, and eight hit batsmen. "Just non-stop. They keep coming and coming and coming and coming."

Waldschmidt remained one of the hottest bats in America with a 4-for-4 night, four runs scored, two RBI, and two stolen bases. He smashed his 16th double of the season and his 11th home run, pushing his season batting average to .379.

Kentucky also got two hits from Nick Lopez and Nolan McCarthy and multiple-RBI nights from Waldschmidt, McCarthy, Devin Burkes, Mitchell Daly and Ryan Nicholson.

Hagenow (2-0) earned the win with his two scoreless frames in relief of starter Dominic Niman, who exited after three innings on the mound.

Carter Holton (6-4) started and took the loss for Vandy, failing to get out of the first inning. The lefty allowed five earned runs on three hits and a walk in one-third of an inning.

Davis Diaz and Calvin Hewett each homered for the Commodores, but it wasn't nearly enough to keep pace with the UK offensive attack.

The series concludes on Saturday at KPP with a Noon ET first pitch.