The Alabama Crimson Tide baseball defeated the Troy Trojans baseball 7-3 Tuesday night in Tuscaloosa, using timely hitting and solid pitching to secure the midweek victory. The game began at 6 p.m. and wrapped up at 9:25 p.m.
Alabama struck first in the bottom of the first inning. After two batters were hit by pitches and both runners advanced on a double steal, a sacrifice fly from Luke Vaughn brought in the game’s first run to give the Crismon Tide a 1-0 lead.
The Tide extended their lead in the second inning when Jason Torres launched a solo home run to left field, pushing Alabama ahead 2-0. Later in the inning, a two-RBI single from Justin Lebron drove in Will Holt and Peyton Steele, increasing the lead to 4-0.
Troy answered in the top of the third inning. After back-to-back singles put runners on base, Josh Pyne drove in Drew Nelson with an RBI single down the left-field line, cutting the deficit to 4-1. Alabama added another run in the fifth inning. With Vaughn on third after a walk and a double from John Lemm, Torres delivered a sacrifice fly to left field that brought Vaughn home and made the score 5-1.
The Trojans rallied in the sixth inning when Jimmy Janicki hit a two-run home run to left field, scoring Josh Pyne and barrowing the Alabama lead to 5-3.
The Crimson Tide responded quickly in the bottom half of the inning. After Steele reached base and advanced to third on defensive miscues, Bryce Fowler lifted a sacrifice fly to center field that allowed Steele to score and extend Alabama’s lead to 6-3.
Alabama added an insurance run in the seventh inning when Lemm doubled down the right-field line to score Brady Neal and push the lead to 7-3.
From there, the Crimson Tide pitching staff held the Trojans scoreless over the final three innings. Banks closed out the game in the ninth inning, retiring the side to secure the Alabama victory.
Alabama’s offense was led by Lemm, who recorded two doubles and an RBI, while Lebron contributed a two-RBI single in the second inning. Torres also made an impact with a home run and a sacrifice fly.
With the win, Alabama improved its momentum heading into upcoming conference play while Troy fell short after cutting the lead to two runs midway through the game.
