Georgia rallies in 9th inning to edge Gamecocks in series opener
The South Carolina baseball team couldn’t take advantage of a sterling outing by starter Noah Hall on Friday night, falling late in a series-opening tilt against No. 14 Georgia.
After Hall held the Bulldogs at bay for seven innings, Georgia (23-7, 7-3 SEC) rallied for two runs off of reliever Cade Austin in the ninth to seal a 3-2 win over the Gamecocks.
Austin, who relived Hall in the eighth, walked two batters in the ninth and allowed the game-tying run to score on a single by Georgia shortstop Cole Tate. The go-ahead run scored on a fielder’s choice to third baseman Kevin Madden, who tried to start an inning-ending double play at second base instead of trying to throw out the runner at home.
“The Kevin play, it’s a split-second decision that he has to make,” head coach Mark Kingston said after the game. “He tried to get a double play and end the inning. And obviously, in hindsight, he probably wishes he had gone home now because it’s a tie ballgame.”
The loss knocks South Carolina (14-15, 3-7 SEC) below .500 on the season.
Much has been made of USC’s pitching injuries this season, with starters Julian Bosnic and James Hicks and reliever Wesley Sweatt all on the shelf. But with the Gamecocks hurting on the mound, Hall has stepped up in recent weeks, turning in consecutive strong starts.
A week after leading the Gamecocks to victory at Missouri with seven innings of one-run ball, Hall was even sharper against the Bulldogs on Friday, striking out 10 and allowing just one run on seven hits in seven innings.
The junior transfer from Appalachian State has provided some much-needed stability in the weekend rotation for the Gamecocks, who are trying to finish the conference season on a strong note and push their way into the postseason picture.
“He’s been our best pitcher for the last few weeks,” Kingston said. “Clearly, he’s been our best pitcher. And that’s no disrespect to anybody else. But statistically, I think that it bears out that he has been our best pitcher. And he’s done everything we want a Friday night guy to do.”
Kingston said before the series that the team’s success begins on the pitcher’s mound, and that’s especially the case with the team’s lack of offensive production.
USC has statistically been one of the worst offenses in the SEC this season, coming into the game ranking last in the 14-team conference in team batting average, slugging percentage, on-base percentage, runs scored, hits and home runs.
It was another offensive struggle for the Gamecocks against Georgia starter Nolan Crisp, who worked quickly and pounded the zone with a fastball hovering around 89 miles per hour. After allowing a lead off single to Brandt Belk, Crisp retired the next 11 Gamecocks in a row and kept USC off balance.
The Gamecocks finally broke through in the fifth inning, when left fielder Josiah Sightler singled to lead off the frame and catcher Colin Burgess doubled him home to tie the game. With the bases loaded and two outs, Braylen Wimmer smoked a line drive up the middle that reliever Jaden Woods tried to barehand. The ball got by both Woods and the second baseman to allow the then-go-ahead run to score.
“Honestly, we’re hitting a lot of balls right at people, and we are just not getting the luck we need right now,” Sightler said. “Just a couple more balls find holes, and we’re fine.”
Next USC baseball game
Who: South Carolina vs. No. 14 Georgia
When: 4 p.m. Saturday
Where: Founders Park in Columbia
Watch: Streaming on SEC Network Plus
This story was originally published April 8, 2022 at 9:58 PM.
