Diamond Dawg weekly recap: Georgia drops 2 out of 3 to the Tide in messy weekend series

The Georgia Bulldogs wrapped up another week of play yesterday, with the end of the regular season drawing near. Prior to the weekend series against the Crimson Tide, the Dawgs were riding a six-game win streak, starting with a series win over the Oklahoma Sooners, followed by a win against Kennesaw State, and a series sweep against the Missouri Tigers in Colombia, earning Georgia the number one spot in the national rankings in the process.

Georgia would extend their win streak to seven games in game one against Alabama, as it was an offensive explosion at the plate for the Dawgs. The Dawgs put up 19 total runs through seven innings, scoring seven or more runs in both the fifth and seventh innings, capturing the 19-3 win. Five Georgia hitters had home runs on the day, with Kolby Branch leading the charge with two, while Slate Alford, Ryan Black, Henry Hunter, and Tre Phelps also added their own.

The Dawgs and the Tide would roll right into game two on Friday Night due to possible bad weather on Saturday. Kolten Smith received the game two start, but struggled, giving up four earned runs through just 0.2 innings pitched as he could not find his stuff.

Game two would be suspended after the third inning and later postponed until Sunday due to terrible weather on Saturday for a doubleheader to cap off the series.

Game two would pick up in the top of the fourth on Sunday with the Dawgs down 4-2 against the Tide. Alabama responded well in game two and got after the Dawgs following the multi-day delay, chipping away two more runs in the fourth, and three in the eighth to take down the Dawgs by a final score of 9-3.

Tre Phelps put together a solid three-hit game, but Georgia would be unable to get things rolling to catch the Tide due to a poor performance from the pitching staff and, to much surprise, no home runs from the Dawgs’ lineup.

The weather would hold off just enough in game three for Georgia to conclude the series doubleheader against the Tide. Game three would end up being the best game throughout the entire series, as it was a competitive showing from both teams till the very end. Alabama put up four runs through the first two innings, due to another poor start from the Dawgs’ pitching staff. The Dawgs’ bats would respond in the third, thanks to a solo shot from the bat of Bryce Clavon and an RBI single by Tre Phelps, putting the score at 4-2.

The Tide would respond in the bottom half of the fourth, with Justin Lebron scoring Brady Neal on an RBI double, extending their lead to 5-2. Following a short rain delay after the fourth inning, both teams resumed play, and the Dawgs continued to fight. In the top of the sixth, Daniel Jackson launched a 2-run home run over the right field bullpen to bring Georgia within one with a score of 5-4.

Unfortunately, that would be the last run scored for the Dawgs as they fell to the Tide by a final score of 5-4, with both bullpens turning in solid showings to keep the score deadlocked following the sixth.

Georgia now sits at 40-13 on the season with a SEC record of 16-11, having dropped from their #1 spot down to #10 in the National rankings. The Dawgs will now rest up and get ready for their regular season series finale against the Texas A&M Aggies at Foley Field. Following that series, Georgia will travel over to Hoover, Alabama, for the SEC Championship Tournament, set to start on the 20th.

That’s all for this edition of Diamond Dawg weekly recap. As always, Go Dawgs!!