NASHVILLE, Tenn. ? Vanderbilt plated five runs in the sixth to erase a two-run deficit and the Commodores went on to defeat the University of South Alabama 7-4 Tuesday night at Hawkins Field.

USA (7-11) got on the board first, taking advantage of a Vanderbilt (12-6) error to plate a pair of runs in the top of the second inning. Ryan Bohanan led off with a single, then advanced on a sacrifice bunt and a passed ball before Derek O'Reilly brought him home with a RBI single.

Nathaniel Lami reached on catcher’s interference to move O’Reilly to second and set up Clint Reynolds’ RBI single, giving the Jags a 2-0 lead.

The Jags got another run in the third when Sean Laird hit a leadoff triple and came home on an RBI single from David Doss to extend their lead to 3-0. With the single, Doss extended his hitting streak to 12 games and collected his 21st RBI of the season.

Jag starter Chris LaGrow, who had worked around four hits to hold Vanderbilt scoreless through the first two frames, was unable to escape a similar jam in the third. He was pulled from the game with one out after a walk and a single put two on, and Miles Ethridge came on in relief.

Ethridge struck out Joe Loftus, but allowed a two-out double on a looping fly ball that fell just out of the reach of Nathaniel Lami in left field. The Jags answered with a run of their own in the fourth when Reynolds singled and came home on Zach Grichor’s RBI single, extended their lead to 4-2.

Grichor finished the night 2-for-4 with a walk, a stolen base and a RBI, and Bohanan and Reynolds each had two hits and a run scored.

Ethridge maintained the lead until the sixth, when a walk and two singles led to one Commodore run, and Steven Liddle tied the game at 4-4 with a RBI single. Another walk loaded the bases with two out, and Aaron Westlake reached on a fielder’s choice when the Jags failed to record an out on a grounder deep in the hole at shortstop.

Loftus then connected on a two-run double to extend Vanderbilt’s lead to 7-4 before Jarrett Bailey came on in relief and got Jason Esposito to ground out to end the sixth.

Vanderbilt threatened to add to its lead it the eighth when it put two runners on with no outs, but Greg Johnson came on in relief and induced a double-play grounder and recorded a strikeout to send the game to the ninth with the Jags trailing by only three.

The Jags brought the tying run to the plate with one out after Reynolds and Grichor drew walks, but Vanderbilt closer Drew Hayes got Sean Laird to strike out swinging, and David Doss’ deep drive to center field was chased down by Alex Hilliard, who made a running catch on the warning track to end the game.

USA returns to action when it hosts New Orleans this weekend for its first Sun Belt Conference series at Stanky Field in 2009.

Notes:  Doss extended his hitting streak to 12 games ... Grichor’s first-inning single extended his career-best streak to 10 games ... Laird and O’Reilly extended streaks to six and five games, respectively ... Ethridge took the loss to fall to 0-2 on the season ... The Jags are 1-2 against Southeastern Conference teams in 2009 ... They play five additional games against SEC teams ? one at home against Mississippi State, and a pair of home-and-home series with Auburn and Alabama.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com.  Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).