UGA Softball: Bulldogs, Yellow Jackets Clash in Athens Wednesday

#13 Georgia (20-4)
vs. Georgia Tech (9-10)
Date: Mar. 4, 2020
First Pitch: 6 p.m.
Location: Athens, Ga.
Stadium: Jack Turner Stadium
Admission: FREE

Media Information
Streaming: SEC Network+
Play-by-play: Kaleb Frady
Analyst: Natalie Kerns
Live Stats: GeorgiaDogs.com
Audio: Mixlr
Twitter Updates: @UGAsoftball

The 13th-ranked Georgia softball team plays host to in-state rival Georgia Tech Wednesday at Jack Turner Stadium. First pitch against the Yellow Jackets is set for 6 p.m.

This Wednesday’s Promotions
» Admission to every home regular season Georgia softball game is FREE
» The first 250 fans will receive a Georgia softball replica jersey t-shirt.

Follow the Bulldogs
» Wednesday’s game will stream live on SEC Network+. Kaleb Frady will call play-by-play while Natalie Kerns will provide color analysis.
» Wednesday’s game can be heard on Mixlr. Audio streaming links can be found on the softball schedule at GeorgiaDogs.com.
» Live stats will be available for all games. Live stat links can be found on the softball schedule at GeorgiaDogs.com.
» Live Twitter updates will be available at the official Twitter page of Georgia softball, @UGAsoftball.

BULLDOGS BULLETIN
Series History
Georgia Tech
» Georgia leads the all-time series 32-10
» The Bulldogs have won the last 12 meetings and 16 of the last 17
» In Athens, Georgia is 17-4

Looking Back
The Bulldogs concluded a 5-0 weekend at home in the Bulldog Classic. Senior Mary Wilson Avant was stellar in the circle, going 3-0 and allowing just three hits in 18 shutout innings. In all, the pitching staff allowed only four runs in five games. Georgia recorded shutouts of Eastern Illinois, Boston College, and Western Carolina. Freshman Sydney Kuma hit .583 with five doubles and five RBI to lead the offense. Georgia shutout

A Look at What’s Ahead
The Bulldogs will then set their sights on Southeastern Conference play, hosting #15 South Carolina in a three-game series this weekend. The series begins Friday at 6 p.m. First pitch Saturday and Sunday is slated for 2 p.m.

Avant Pitches Lights Out in Bulldog Classic
Senior Mary Wilson Avant had a terrific weekend in the circle during the Bulldog Classic Feb. 28-Mar. 1. She finished 3-0 in the circle, allowing just three hits in 18 shutout innings. She worked back-to-back seven-inning, complete-game shutouts against Eastern Illinois and Boston College, becoming the first Bulldog to do so since Erin Arevalo in 2012. In the win over EIU, she recorded a new career-best 15 strikeouts, the first Bulldog to hit that mark since Chelsea Wilkinson against Western Kentucky in 2015. In the weekend finale against Western Carolina, she combined with fellow senior Amanda Ablan to no-hit the Catamounts. She concluded the weekend with 33 strikeouts.

Pitching Staff Locks In
With three shutouts over the weekend in the Bulldog Classic, Georgia moves into first in the nation with nine shutouts this season, tied with SEC foe LSU. Georgia ranks in the top-20 statically in ERA (1.82), and strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.64). Individually, Lauren Mathis ranks fourth in the country (first in the SEC) with 12.7 strikeouts per seven innings while Mary Wilson Avant ranks 15th. Avant (94) and Mathis (78) rank one and two in the SEC in total strikeouts.

Bulldogs Wrap a Full First Month of Play
The Bulldogs played 24 total games in the first four weeks of the 2020 season; that’s 42 percent of 56 scheduled games. Georgia played the most games in the SEC in the first month of play. Not only did Georgia play a lot of games, the Bulldogs also faced four top-25 opponents in Northwestern, Texas Tech, UCLA, and James Madison. 17 of Georgia’s first 24 games were played at home in Athens.

In as Few Innings as Possible 
Georgia opened the season with seven-straight run-rule victories. The Bulldogs last began the season with seven-straight run-rule victories in 2016 when they run-ruled their opponent in the first 10 games, the program record. During that span in 2016, Georgia outscored its opponents 108-7 with seven shutouts.

Most notably, Georgia run-ruled #21 James Madison in back-to-back games in the Georgia Classic. In all, Georgia has won in run-rule fashion 14 of its 20 victories.

Big Bat Bryan
Senior Ciara Bryan currently ranks seventh in the country with eight home runs, a figure that ranks second in the SEC. Bryan has nearly matched her 11 from last season, which is a career best for her.

Bryan knocked a total of three home runs in five games in Clearwater, Florida. Bryan’s tally was the most of any player from the 16 teams that competed in Clearwater. Her second home run led off the game against #21 Northwestern. It was the first time a Bulldog led off a game with a home run since Anna Swafford did it against Missouri on Mar. 28, 2014.

Puckett Calls Game… Again
Junior Mackenzie Puckett has been clutch in winning moments her first season at Georgia. Three times she has knocked a game-winning hit to run-rule the opponent. The first, she hit a three-run home against UNCW then followed it up the very next game with an RBI double to end the game against Howard the same day. In the Feb. 20 game against Samford, she hit a pinch-hit, walk-off grand slam to lift Georgia to an 8-0 victory in five innings.

Georgia in the Polls
In the Week 4 polls, Georgia climbed one spot to a ranking of #13 in the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll and #14 in the USA Softball/ESPN.com Poll. D1Softball and Softball America gave Georgia a #14 ranking.