Vanderbilt eliminates Kentucky from SEC Tournament – Saturday Down South

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By Spenser Davis
Published: May 19, 2026 · 7:07 PM EDT
Vanderbilt defeated Kentucky 8-5 on Tuesday afternoon in Hoover, advancing to play Florida in the next round of the SEC Tournament on Wednesday.
The Wildcats held a 4-1 lead midway through the 5th inning, but were unable to hold off a strong Vandy offense. The Commodores scored 4 runs in the 6th and 3 more in the 8th to secure the victory.
On to Florida ➡️ pic.twitter.com/35XyHa07iy
Brodie Johnston was the star for Vandy on Tuesday as he drove in 3 runs and hit a 2-run homer in the 8th inning to put the game out of reach for Kentucky.
Although this is a quality win, Vanderbilt still faces an uphill battle to an NCAA Tournament berth. The Commodores are outside of the top 70 nationally in RPI entering the day.
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Vanderbilt began the week on the outside-looking-in of D1Baseball’s bracket projection, earning a spot in the “four to watch” tier. Kentucky, meanwhile, was one of D1Baseball’s “last four in” prior to this result. The Wildcats entered Tuesday ranked 34th nationally in RPI.
The Wildcats will now have to sweat out selection day without an opportunity to further improve their résumé. Vanderbilt, on the other hand, will face Florida in the SEC Tournament at 2 p.m. ET on Wednesday.
Here’s a look at the latest SEC Championship odds on Kalshi:
Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.
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