Kentucky Completes Historic Regular Season

The postseason is here.

No. 2 Kentucky, which clinched the Southeastern Conference regular season championship on Friday, capped its 2024 regular season with 39 victories, including a school-record 22 in league play. It now will head to Hoover, Alabama as the No. 3 seed in the SEC Tournament (due to conference tiebreaker rules) and advance directly to the double elimination portion of the event. The Wildcats (39-11, 22-8) will play at 10:30 a.m. ET/9:30 local time on Wednesday.

A quick turnaround from Friday night’s historic moment did not go UK’s way as a proud Vanderbilt team perhaps playing for its own postseason life broke open a tie game late to score a 12-4 victory on Saturday at Kentucky Proud Park.

It was a blip on an otherwise successful weekend and record-breaking regular season.

Still, the bright spots on Saturday included Emilien Pitre reaching base safely for the 28^th consecutive game and homering for the second time in as many days. Ryan Nicholson clubbed his 17^th blast of the season, the third-most in a single-season in the Mingione era.

Ryan Waldschmidt finished a scorching weekend 7-for-12 with four extra base hits and a significant hand in both victories that gave UK its eighth series victory in 10 conference weekends.

NOTES

• Kentucky is a 2024 SEC regular season champion.
  • It is the second time in school history (2006).
• Kentucky has 22 SEC wins, setting the school record that was previously set in 2006 (20).
  • This is the 83^rd season UK has played SEC competition.
• Kentucky now is 39-12 in 2024, 22-8 in Southeastern Conference play.
• Kentucky is 23-9 in night games.
• Kentucky is 6-3 in May.
• Kentucky finishes the season 11-4 in SEC home games.
• Kentucky is 12-5 vs. ranked teams and 19-6 vs. Quad 1 opponents.
• Kentucky owns the most Quad 1 wins in Division I.
• UK Coach Nick Mingione is in his eighth season at the helm and now owns a 255-162 career record.
• Mingione needs four victories to become the second-winningest coach in school history.
• UK is 46-44 in the month of May under Coach Mingione.
• Mingione now is 7-15 vs. Vanderbilt.
• Junior INF Emilien Pitre extended his streak of games reaching base safely to 28.
  • He homered for the second time in as many days.
• Junior OF Ryan Waldschmidt went 7-for-12 with two doubles, two home runs, seven runs, five RBI and three stolen bases in the series.
• Senior INF Ryan Nicholson doubled and homered.
  • The HR was his 17^th of the season, the third-most in a single-season in the Mingione era.

ON DECK

Kentucky will open SEC Tournament play with a bye into the double elimination portion of the event. It will play Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. ET/9:30 CT.