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After battling #24 St. John’s on Monday afternoon, head coach David Seifert’s young University of Evansville baseball team will battle its second nationally-ranked team of the week on Wednesday, as UE will travel to Nashville, Tennessee to take on #7 Vanderbilt.  First-pitch is set for 4:00 p.m. central time.

Evansville will enter Wednesday’s contest in search of its first victory of the 2008 season, after dropping all three games of the Johnny Gill Memorial Tournament in Rock Hill, South Carolina over the weekend.  The Purple Aces had a late rally foiled by St. John’s on Monday, as UE had a run home and two runners on with two outs in the ninth inning of a 3-1 game, before SJU closer Colin Lynch slammed the door for his second save in as many appearances.

Vanderbilt will bring a 2-1 overall record into Wednesday’s game.  The Commodores’ only loss came at top-ranked Arizona State, 18-6, after pummeling two-time defending national champion Oregon State, 8-1, in the season opener.  The Commodores roster features a trio of preseason All-America sluggers in junior third baseman Pedro Alvarez, senior outfielder Dominic de la Osa, and junior shortstop Ryan Flaherty, however, Alvarez status is unknown for Wednesday’s game due to an arm injury.  He is projected as the possible first pick of the Major League Baseball draft this spring.

Junior RHP John Foley will get the start for Evansville on Wednesday, as he will be making his Purple Aces’ debut.  He will be opposed by redshirt freshman RHP Caleb Cotham.  Wednesday’s game was originally scheduled to be broadcast on 91.5 F.M.-WUEV, but due to a time conflict with the “Marty Simmons’ Show,” the game will not air.  Instead, WUEV now plans to broadcast Friday’s home opener against Radford at 3:00 p.m.