Georgia baseball: Bulldogs squeak out a pair of victories over Alabama

After a marathon game Friday night, Georgia baseball held on to win a pair of one-run games against Alabama on Saturday and Sunday.

Georgia baseball didn’t have a perfect weekend. They made mistakes, allowed unnecessary runs and failed to put Alabama away. But wins are all that matter and the Bulldogs picked up two wins over the Crimson Tide after a loss in a marathon game Friday night.

The Bulldogs are now 14-6 overall and 2-1 in SEC play. It’ll take more than just one series win to get the Dawgs in the top-25. But it definitely gets them more attention.

The question I asked going into SEC play was if Georgia’s close games in non-conference play was a sign that they would struggle in SEC play, or if they were a scrappy team who could steal wins from anyone? After three SEC games, It appears like the latter is true. That’s encouraging.

Georgia loses on a walk-off in 13 innings

Georgia was well on their way to a blowout victory Friday. They scored 5 runs in the first inning and they led 8-4 after seven and a half innings. But the Tide came back, Georgia needed a run in the top of the eighth to tie the game. Alabama eventually won in the 13th inning.

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Georgia came out swinging. Tucker Bradley hit a double and advanced to third on a ground ball to start the game. He scored and Cam Shepherd reached first base on an error. Michael Curry followed with a single to left field and then the runs began to pile up.

Adam Sasser singled to right field to drive home Shepherd. Curry scored on L.J. Talley’s single to right. he advanced to second on an error and third on a wild pitch that Sasser scored on. Talley came home for the fifth run on Mason Meadows’ single to third base.

Alabama cut the score to 5-1 with a home run in the bottom of the first, but Chase Adkins retired the rest of the batters. Georgia added to their lead with an RBI double by Aaron Schunk that drove home Curry. However, The Crimson Tide cut the lead to 6-4 in the bottom of the fifth. The Dawgs stretched the lead back to four runs in the sixth with a two-run homer by Keegan McGovern.

Alabama then pounded Georgia for five runs in the bottom of the seventh to take a 9-8 lead. C.J. Smith provided a game-tying run in the eighth inning after a lead-off single. He scored on an error.

With the game tied 9-9 after eighth innings, the offenses died. They weren’t without their chances though. Both teams loaded the bases at one point and still couldn’t bring home a run. Eventually Alabama found a better situation, runners on just second and third. No force at second, third or home, no pressure. Their last batter got the hit to bring home a run to win 10-9.

Bulldogs concede a comeback Saturday but hold on to win.

Georgia again had a highlight filled first inning on Saturday. The Dawgs scored four runs and later added two runs in the fifth. But Alabama scored five runs in the eighth to give Georgia a scare. Luckily Will Proctor got the third out before Alabama could walk-off again.

Tucker Bradley once again opened the game with a hit, this time a single to left field. Schunk walked and McGovern drove both Dawgs home with a double to left-center field. He went to third on a sacrifice fly and then scored on Sasser’s single up the middle. Talley grounded out, but he drove home Shepherd for the fourth run.

The Bulldogs scored two runs in the fifth all on two-outs. Schunk got things going with a single, he then reached second on a wild pitch. McGovern doubled down the right field line to bring him home. McGovern then scored on a hit by Curry. Dawgs led 6-0.

Emerson Hancock rolled through Alabama’s lineup by retiring the first 10 batters he faced. Only three Alabama batters got on base through the first seven innings.

His dream day turned into a nightmare in the eighth however. He hit the first batter and then gave up a single to place runners at the corners. He walked the next guy to load the bases. The following player singled to drive home a run, and Hancock’s day was over.

Blake Cairnes then came in and his effort wasn’t much better. He struck out the first batter but then gave up a grand slam to cut the lead to 6-5. Cairnes settled down for another strike out, but the next batter reached on an error and coach Scott Strickland decided to pull him.

Proctor came in and gave up a hit to the first player he faced. But Alabama ran out of magic after that. The next batter hit a pop fly and Georgia survived the inning with the lead intact. Proctor then retired the side in the ninth to get the save and secure the win for Georgia.

Dawgs wait for the last at-bat to put away Alabama on Sunday

On a wet and miserable Sunday afternoon in Tuscaloosa, Georgia held the lead all game long, but they couldn’t put Alabama away. The Bulldogs nearly gave it away again in the ninth. But they prevailed to win the series.

Schunk scored the first run for the Dawgs in the first inning on a wild pitch after drawing a walk. Alabama tied the game with a solo home run. But the Dawgs pulled away with three runs in the fifth. With bases load, a balk surrendered one run. Sasser drove home two more with a hit to center field. Dawgs on top at that point 4-1.

Alabama cut that lead to 4-3 in the bottom of the inning. The first run came when Ryan Webb hit a batter with bases loaded. That ended his evening and Tony Locey took over. He walked the first batter he saw for the second run, but he retired the next two batters to prevent Alabama from tying or taking a lead.

The Bulldogs extended the lead again to 6-3 in the eighth inning when Meadows crushed a two-run homer to right field. Kristofak pitched the last three innings and was solid until the ninth. There Alabama loaded the bases again with two outs and they hit a single to score two runs.  Kristofak wasn’t phased though and he pitched the next batter into a ground ball to get the save.

Next: Georgia softball dominates Florida

Upcoming schedule

Georgia travels to Georgia State tonight as they look to go 5-1 against the state of Georgia. First pitch is at 6:00 p.m. The Dawgs host South Carolina in a three-game series this weekend starting Friday night at 7:00 p.m. Game two is Saturday at 2:00 p.m. and game three is Sunday at 1:00 p.m. All three games are on the SEC Network Plus.