NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Interstat) — Ryker Waite’s three-run homer in the bottom of the fourth inning lifted Vanderbilt to a 5-3 victory over South Carolina on Saturday afternoon at Ken Dugan Field at Stephen Lee Marsh Stadium, clinching the Southeastern Conference series sweep.

The Commodores improved to 32-23 overall and 14-15 in SEC play, while the Gamecocks fell to 22-34 and 6-23. Vanderbilt had taken the first two games of the series by scores of 9-5 on Friday and 9-1 on Thursday.

South Carolina struck first, plating three runs in the top of the second inning against Vanderbilt starter Jacob Faulkner. After a leadoff single by Kennedy LeCroy and a single by Gavin Randolph, Ethan Craddock singled to third base to drive in LeCroy. Luke Yuhasz then doubled to left-center field, scoring Craddock and Randolph. Craddock also scored on a fielding error by Commodores center fielder Jaylen Maldonado on the play, giving the Gamecocks a 3-0 lead.

Faulkner settled in after that, finishing with four innings pitched, allowing four hits and two earned runs with three strikeouts. The Gamecocks managed only one more hit the rest of the game.

Vanderbilt began its comeback in the bottom of the fourth. With one out, Landon Johnston singled and Colin Holcomb doubled, putting runners at second and third. Grant Goodin grounded out to second base to drive in Johnston, cutting the deficit to 3-1. After a pitching change from Riley Goodman to Dane Philpott, Drew Rigdon grounded out to shortstop to score Holcomb, making it 3-2.

Philpott then walked Maldonado, and Aiden Reynolds singled to left, putting runners at first and third. Waite stepped to the plate and launched a three-run homer to right field, scoring Maldonado and Reynolds to give Vanderbilt a 5-3 lead. It was Waite’s only hit of the game in five at-bats, but it proved decisive.

The Gamecocks threatened in the top of the sixth, putting two runners on with a walk and a hit by pitch, but Yuhasz grounded into a fielder’s choice to end the inning. South Carolina got a leadoff walk in the seventh and a hit by pitch in the ninth, but Vanderbilt’s bullpen shut the door.

The Commodores used seven pitchers in total. After Faulkner, Aiden Stillman tossed a hitless fifth, Nate Schlote a scoreless sixth, Miller Green a strikeout-filled seventh, Brennan Seiber a clean eighth and Alex Kranzler a perfect ninth with two strikeouts. The quartet combined for five innings of no-hit relief, allowing only two walks and striking out eight.

South Carolina’s Cooper Parks pitched 3.1 hitless innings in relief with three strikeouts, but the damage from the fourth inning was done. Riley Goodman started and allowed two earned runs over 3.1 innings with four strikeouts.

Defensively, Vanderbilt turned a double play in the first inning and benefited from a steady bullpen. The Gamecocks left six runners on base and struck out 10 times.

The series sweep extended Vanderbilt’s winning streak to three games and kept the Commodores in contention for an SEC tournament berth. South Carolina, meanwhile, lost its seventh straight game and 13th of its last 14.

The game’s pivotal moment was Waite’s home run, which erased a three-run deficit and gave Vanderbilt the lead for good. The Commodores did not allow a hit after the second inning.

Interstat’s game simulator projected a final score of South Carolina 1, Vanderbilt 5, and the ELO system gave Vanderbilt a 70.70 percent probability to win.