UGA Baseball: Bulldogs Sweep A Doubleheader Over Santa Clara
| Team | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | 1 | |
| 6 | 5 | 0 |
ATHENS, Ga. — Fourth-ranked Georgia improved to 7-0 after sweeping a doubleheader from Santa Clara Saturday in front of a Foley Field crowd of 3,109, winning 5-4 (12) and 6-1.
Before the game, the Bulldog baseball team honored their “Star” Nicholas Chaclan and his family as part of their support for the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation’s Vs. Cancer program. The Bulldogs presented a $10,000 check to the organization and wore gold shoelaces in their cleats to help shine a light on the thousands of children who have experienced a cancer diagnosis. Gold is the signature color for childhood cancer.
Game One: Bradley Delivers 12th-Inning Walk-Off Home Run
Tucker Bradley’s two-out walk-off home run to centerfield lifted Georgia past Santa Clara 5-4 in 12 innings. Georgia erased a early 3-0 deficit and then rallied after being down 4-3 in the 10th.
Bradley entered the contest batting .588 and went 3-for-6 including his team-leading third home run. Freshman Jonathan Cannon notched the win, pitching the final frame with two strikeouts. Bronco reliever Travis Howard went 5.2 innings with no walks and seven strikeouts but gave up the home run to take the loss and fall to 2-1. Georgia improved to 6-0 while the Broncos fell to 5-2. Santa Clara led 3-0 at one point.
Sophomore right fielder Matt Jew gave the Broncos a 1-0 lead in the second inning when he connected for a solo home run. Santa Clara added a two-out run in the fourth and a solo home run by Eamonn Lance to start the fifth extended its lead to 3-0. The Bulldogs cut the deficit to 3-1 in the sixth on a sacrifice fly by Riley King.
In the seventh, Georgia put runners at the corners with nobody out for pinch-hitter Ben Anderson. He put down a safety squeeze to make it 3-2 as Connor Tate scored. He had led off the frame with a base hit and took third on a single by Chaney Rogers. With one out and Rogers at second, a wild pitch got him to third. Then the Broncos brought the infield in, and pinch-hitter Buddy Floyd lined a 3-1 offering from Howard into left field for a game-tying RBI-single.
At 3-all, Georgia turned to junior left-hander Ryan Webb to start the eighth. He struck out the side. In the ninth, the Broncos put runners at the corners and one out for pinch-hitter Austin Reyes. He squared to bunt and popped it up to Webb who caught it for the second out. Then, he retired leadoff batter Dawson Brigman on a fly out.
In the 10th, Connor Henriques led off with a bunt and advanced to second on a throwing error by Webb. Coleman Brigman followed with another bunt to move him to third with one out. The Bulldogs opted to intentionally walk Jason Dicochea to bring up Jake MacNichols. Bradley saved a home run as it tipped off his glove and the top of the wall before bouncing back into left field for an RBI-double for a 4-3 lead. With the infield in, Webb struck out Ryan McCarthy. Then with two outs, he fanned Mike Bowes. In the bottom of the 10th, Cam Shepherd reached on leadoff error by third baseman Connor Henriques. Bradley smashed a single to right field as Shepherd raced to third. On King’s sharp grounder to shortstop, Shepherd scored to make it 4-all on a fielder’s choice and send it to the 11th.
Georgia sophomore Cole Wilcox started and did not factor in the decision. He allowed three runs on six hits with no walks and seven strikeouts in six innings and got the loss. Bronco starter Russell Grant pitched two scoreless innings with two strikeouts. Georgia freshman Michael Polk pitched a scoreless inning and Webb tossed four innings with seven strikeouts before the Bulldogs looked to freshman Cannon to start the 12th.
Game Two Saturday: Bulldogs Post 6-1 Win In Nightcap
Senior Justin Glover picked up his first win of the season after throwing a career-high 3.2 scoreless innings with three strike outs as Georgia completed a doubleheader sweep by winning the nightcap 6-1.
Tucker Bradley pitched the final two innings with a career-high four strikeouts to complete an eventful day after making a pair of highlight plays in game one. Junior Garret Blaylock hit his fourth home run of the season in the sixth to retake his spot as the team’s leader in home runs and break a 1-1 tie. This was Blaylock’s third blast this week after hitting two at Kennesaw State. Also, sophomore Ben Anderson chipoped in by driving in in three runs.
The Broncos struck first in the top of the fourth on a single by Matt Jew to score Ryan McCarthy. Glover would come in relief after true freshman Will Childers’ first career start. In the bottom of the fifth, a sacrifice fly by sophomore Ben Anderson would score Patrick Sullivan to knot the ballgame up at one.
In the bottom of the sixth, Blaylock’s homer along with a Randon Jernigan double and a Cam Shepherd sacrifice fly as part of a three-run seventh, would be the scoring surge to secure the victory.
Player Perspective:
Junior Tucker Bradley, OF/LHP
On his walk-off home run in game one…
“He made a couple good pitches, but I was honestly just trying to go for it with two outs to end it. Finally, I saw my pitch and was just able to get a good swing on it.”
Senior LHP Justin Glover
On his career high innings pitched…
“It was a little bit of everything is what really helped me out there today. I was able to get ahead of a lot of guys. I think the defense was really good. I would not have been able to do what I did without them doing what they do best. I just trusted myself to go out there and compete and that really worked out for me.”
Ike Cousins Head Baseball Coach Scott Stricklin
On sweeping the doubleheader…
“I thought that we pitched really well in both games. Both starting pitchers did really well. I thought Will Childers in game two did a good job for us especially with it being his first start for us as a freshman. Cole Wilcox was very good and didn’t walk anybody, he gave up a couple home runs but that’s it. And Tucker Bradley, he’s just a story, he always finds a way to get it done. The walk-off home run in the first game and then continuing to hit through every game we have played. But then to come in and pitch the way he does he’s a big-time story. We win the first game because he robbed the home run defensively. If he hadn’t grabbed that home run we would have seen them with a three-run home run, and we most likely would have lost the first game.”
Up Next: Georgia closes out the four-game series with Santa Clara on Sunday with first pitch at 1:02 p.m. (SECN+).