USC takes two of three from Bulldogs at home
That changed in the third game, but it didn't stand in the way of the Gamecocks' series-clinching victory.
Despite an early departure from left-hander Adam Westmoreland, USC's bullpen managed to hold the Bulldogs at bay while the offense took advantage of poor UGA pitching to win the rubber game 8-3.
"I'm very happy to be able to win our first [SEC] series, especially after losing the opener and trailing most of the day [Saturday]," said coach Ray Tanner. "To be able to win the first series is big. I thought our guys battled hard, played hard; we got stellar pitching all weekend. They kept us in a position to win, and did once again today."
After a strong first inning, Westmoreland led off the second by hitting two batters and walking another to load the bases, leading pitching coach Jerry Meyers to put an end to the sophomore's day. Right-hander Forrest Koumas took his place in relief, but allowed two runners to score, giving Georgia an early lead.
"We haven't had anybody make a loud enough statement for that Sunday [starting pitching] job," Tanner said. "I think we've got some guys that are capable, but they just haven't been able to make it happen yet. We'll just have to keep working at it until we find a solution."
On the other end, however, UGA lefty Craig Gullickson was having problems of his own. After walking two in the first, Gullickson allowed a Scott Wingo single that scored outfielder Robert Beary and advanced shortstop Peter Mooney to third. Outfielder Adam Matthews made it 2-2 with a single to right two batters later, but Wingo was gunned down trying to reach third to end the inning.
Koumas settled down after the rocky start and proceeded to pitch 3.1 innings while allowing one hit and striking out a career-high six batters. He was lifted in the fifth for right-hander John Taylor, who continued to keep Georgia's bats silent, going 2.1 innings while allowing no hits and striking out one.
"[Koumas] got some big outs, but he's still trying to find his way a little bit," Tanner said. "Taylor is very resilient and can pitch even when he's probably thrown too many pitches. He had a lot in his tank today. I asked him before the game [if he felt good enough to pitch] and he said 'I can go as long as you want to leave me out there.'"
While the bullpen held the Bulldogs in check, the offense continued to do its part. Making the most of the UGA pitchers' 10 walks and two hit-batters, Carolina added three more runs on a Beary single and a pair of sacrifices from first baseman Christian Walker and third baseman Adrian Morales before a three-run eighth put Georgia away for good.
"We fight hard," Matthews said. "We show up together every day. We struggled a little bit Friday but came out Saturday and had the confidence that we're going to come out and compete and have a good game. This is a hard-working team and we have a lot of veteran guys like last year. It means a lot to us and shows what we're made of."
After the Bulldogs took game one of the series 4-2 behind 8.1 innings of work and six strikeouts from lefty Alex Wood, they appeared to be on their way to another win with a 1-0 lead in game two with two outs in the bottom of the eighth. Sparked by a Matthews triple, however, Walker drilled one down the left-field line for a double, scoring Matthews and tying the game 1-1.
Still deadlocked in the ninth, Morales led off the inning with a base-hit to left. Designated hitter Jake Williams followed with a single of his own, and a sacrifice bunt from outfielder Evan Marzilli a play later moved both runners into scoring position.
Mooney made contact in the next at-bat with a groundball toward right field, but UGA first baseman Jonathan Hester quickly corralled it and touched first before the runners could advance. It was then that Wingo stepped to the plate with a chance to be a hero less than 24 hours after coming up short when a fly-ball to right-center field was caught at the warning track for the final out of game one.
Facing a full count, the senior smacked one left of first base. Hester dove to stop it and managed to get control of the ball, but a streaking Wingo slid into the bag just before pitcher Patrick Boling could get there to cover, allowing Morales to score from third to give Carolina a walk-off 2-1 victory.
"It actually crossed my mind when he was up there at the end that he was up there [Friday night]," Tanner said. "You always preach that the game will even out. Their guy out on the mound at the end was throwing the ball well, but he's a left-hander, and sometimes those lefties fall off a little toward third. Wingo got out in front of that pitch so he got a good jump and was able to beat him to the bag."