The Georgia Bulldog baseball team will begin play in the SEC tournament in Hoover Alabama tomorrow, while the women’s softball team will take part in an NCAA Super Regional that opens Thursday in Tallahassee. Both teams advance by virtue of weekend wins in Athens.
From Christopher Lakos, UGA Sports Communications…
Georgia will face South Carolina in the opening game of the SEC Baseball Tournament Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. ET at the Hoover Met in Hoover, Ala.
The Bulldogs (29-26, 11-19) are the 11th seed while the 13th-ranked Gamecocks (38-17, 16-13 SEC) are the sixth seed. Tuesday’s action is single elimination and features eight teams as the top four squads earned first-round byes. Tuesday’s winners advance to the double-elimination part of the tournament.
USC swept Georgia in Athens to open SEC play in mid-March. It was part of a 1-9 league start for the Bulldogs who stormed back to go 10-10 over their final 20 SEC games to earn a spot in the 12-team field. The Gamecocks finished third in the Eastern Division.
This past weekend, Georgia dropped a home series to fifth-ranked LSU (42-13, 19-10 SEC) while the Gamecocks lost a home series to No. 18 Tennessee.
The USC-UT series concluded with a pair of seven-inning games Saturday.
In SEC Tournament history, Georgia is 31-49 in 27 appearances with its best finish being second three times (1985, 1986 and 1989). The Bulldogs are 3-1 against the Gamecocks at the SEC Tournament.
All games leading up to the final will be carried on the SEC Network and Georgia’s action will be available on the Georgia Bulldog Sports Network.
The SEC Tournament Championship next Sunday will be televised by ESPN2.
2023 SEC Baseball Tournament (All Times Are Central)
Tuesday-Sunday, May 23-28, Hoover Metropolitan Stadium, Hoover, Ala.
Tuesday, May 23
Game 1 (9:30 a.m. CT) - #6 South Carolina vs. #11 Georgia [SEC Network]
Game 2 (TBD) - #7 Tennessee vs. #10 Texas A&M [SEC Network]
Game 3 (4:30 p.m. CT) - #8 Kentucky vs. #9 Alabama [SEC Network]
Game 4 (TBD) - #5 Auburn vs. #12 Missouri [SEC Network]
Wednesday, May 24
Game 5 (9:30 a.m. CT) - #3 LSU vs. Winner Game 1 [SEC Network]
Game 6 (TBD) - #2 Arkansas vs. Winner Game 2 [SEC Network]
Game 7 (4:30 p.m. CT) - #1 Florida vs. Winner Game 3 [SEC Network]
Game 8 (TBD) - #4 Vanderbilt vs. Winner Game 4 [SEC Network]
Thursday, May 25
Game 9 (9:30 a.m. CT) - Loser Game 5 vs. Loser Game 6 [SEC Network]
Game 10 (TBD) - Loser Game 7 vs. Loser Game 8 [SEC Network]
Game 11 (4:30 p.m. CT) - Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6 [SEC Network]
Game 12 (TBD) - Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8 [SEC Network]
Friday, May 26
Game 13 (3 p.m. CT) - Winner Game 9 vs. Loser Game 11 [SEC Network]
Game 14 (TBD) - Winner Game 10 vs. Loser 12 [SEC Network]
Saturday, May 27
Game 15 (Noon CT) - Winner Game 13 vs. Winner Game 11 [SEC Network]
Game 16 ( TBD) - Winner Game 14 vs. Winner Game 12 [SEC Network]
Sunday, May 28
Game 17 (2 p.m. CT) - Winner Game 15 vs. Winner Game 16 [ESPN2]
All Times Central
The second game of each session will begin 30 minutes after the conclusion of the first game.
From Sean Stevenson, UGA Sports Communications…
The 14th-seeded Georgia softball team run ruled Virginia Tech Sunday afternoon at Jack Turner Stadium, 12-3, in six innings, punching its ticket to the Super Regional round of the NCAA Tournament.
Georgia improves to 42-13 on the season and will make its 12th NCAA Super Regional appearance in program history.
The Bulldogs will take on the winner of game seven in the Tallahassee Regional between (3) Florida State and South Carolina. Dates are TBD for next weekend’s Super Regional.
The Bulldogs’ 12 runs came on 13 hits, led by four hits, two home runs, and five RBI from junior Sydney Chambley. Dallis Goodnight and Sara Mosley each tallied two hits while Lyndi Rae Davis joined Mosely with a pair of RBI. Seven hitters of Georgia’s starting lineup each had a hit.
Chambley concludes the NCAA Regional hitting .778 (7-for-9), knocking four home runs, and driving in 13 runs. She slugged 2.111 and scored four times.
Graduate Shelby Walters pitched a complete game, going six innings, allowing three runs on five hits. She struck out five Hokies and walked none.
The Bulldogs wasted no time getting on the board in the opening frame. Goodnight led off the game with a double dropped into shallow left. After a flyout and a strikeout, Mosley drove in Goodnight with a double off the wall in left center. She immediately scored on an RBI hit off the bat of Sydney Kuma to go ahead 2-0. Chambley and Jaydyn Goodwin followed with back-to-back home runs to make it a five-run first for the Dogs.
Chambley’s fourth home run of the Regional, this one a two-run shot down the right field line, widened the lead to 7-0 in the top of the third.
A two-out solo blast off the bat of Davis brought the Bulldogs’ lead to 8-0 in the top of the fourth.
Virginia Tech (39-20) broke up Walters’ perfect game bid with a leadoff infield single in the bottom of the fourth. The leadoff single came in to score on a groundout to also break up the shutout, 8-1. The Hokies added another in the inning to cut into Georgia’s lead, 8-2.
A four spot in the top of the sixth made it a 10-run game. With runners in scoring position, an RBI fielder’s choice off the bat of Davis plated Ellie Armistead. Three-straight RBI singles from Jayda Kearney, Mosley, and Chambley extended the lead to 12-2. Chambley’s hit, her fourth of the game, tied Georgia’s NCAA Tournament single-game record.
A solo home run in the bottom of the inning finished the scoring in the game, 12-3.