Feb. 19, 2012
STANFORD, Calif.-- After Vanderbilt scored four runs in the second, Stephen Piscotty drove in seven runs thanks to a three-run double and a grand slam and Christian Griffiths added four RBIs as No. 2-ranked Stanford (3-0) swept No. 10-ranked Vanderbilt, following an 18-5 win on Sunday afternoon.
Freshman John Hochstatter (1-0), who came on in the second, pitched 6.1 no-hit innings in relief, striking out two and walking two for the win. He retired eight in a row, before finishing off the eighth inning.
Piscotty greeted reliever Brian Miller, as the righthander's second pitch of the sixth led to a grand slam and a 13-4 lead. Griffiths' two-run double made it 15-4 as part of a seven-run sixth, the second big rally of the day for the Cardinal. Stanford would score 18 unanswered prior to a lone Vandy run in the ninth.
Piscotty's three-run double in the second erased an early four-run lead and was a part of an eight-run second for the Cardinal. Griffiths had a two-run single in the inning as well. Piscotty finished 2-for-5, Griffiths 3-for-4 as Stanford racked up 14 hits.
Tyler Gaffney with an 0-for-4 day, despite two runs, snapped his two-year hitting streak at 24 games.
Stanford swept the series with 35 runs and a .352 average.
Sam Selman (0-1), who gave up the eight runs (two earned) early, lasted into the sixth, loading the bases before being relieved. The freshman gave up 12 runs (six earned) overall.
The second inning, was simply a wild one. Vanderbilt sent nine men to the plate in the top of the inning to lead 4-0, before Stanford countered with eight runs and five hits on four Vandy errors to lead 8-4.
A two-run single by Griffiths got things started and made it 4-2. A wild pitch and an error occurred before a three-run double by Piscotty made it 7-4.
Vanderbilt sent eight men to the plate in the second, scoring four times to chase AJ Vanegas out of the contest after 45 pitches and a 4-0 deficit. Vanegas gave up four hits and walked two as a fielder's choice by leadoff hitter Tony Kemp put the second out on the board, but not before Vandy went up 3-0. An RBI single by Anthony Gomez made it 4-0 and ended the day for the sophomore righthander. Hochstatter then came on, as Vandy's next run (and hit) came in the ninth off of reliever Sam Lindquist.
Both starters retired the first four batters they faced before chaos ensued.
NOTES: It was the ninth time since 1996 that a Stanford player had seven RBIs and it was the first grand slam and seven RBI game since Brian Ragira last April at Washington State... for the series, 6145 fans came out to Sunken Diamond... it marked the debut of freshman Dominic Jose, son of long-time Oakland A's outfielder Felix Jose. Jose pinch hit in the eighth... Stanford heads to Pacific on Tuesday for a game in Stockton at 1:30 p.m., before returning home for a three-game series with Texas starting on Friday at 5:30 p.m.