(Photo by John Kelley)
Junior pitcher David Sosebee provided a career-high eight innings and tied his career high with eight strikeouts improve to 3-2. He allowed just four hits and three never left the infield. After Florida grabbed a 1-0 lead in the second on a sacrifice fly by Mike Rivera, Georgia scored 11 unanswered runs. Sophomore second baseman Mike Bell went 4-for-4 with 4 RBI while senior first baseman Jared Walsh also enjoyed a four-hit night as the Bulldogs posted their biggest margin of victory over Florida since a 1989 SEC Tournament win in Gainesville (16-1).
[su_spacer size=”20″] [su_spacer size=”20″]Georgia (22-23, 7-14 SEC) tied the game in the second and broke open the contest with a four-run fourth. The Bulldogs added one run in the sixth and a five-spot in the seventh provided the final. Bell finished a double shy of the cycle and set a career-high with the four hits including his fourth home run of the year.
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(Photo by John Kelley)
“David was as good as he’s been in a long time,” Georgia coach Scott Stricklin said. “”It’s been awhile since he’s been 100 percent healthy. I think he’s all the way back now.”
Sosebee missed nearly a month with a back injury and slowly has returned to form, going six innings last week in a 4-2 loss at Auburn. Sophomore Logan Shore (6-4) took the loss for the Gators, allowing five runs, on five hits in 2.1 innings. Kirby Snead tossed three scoreless innings and the Bulldogs scored two runs off Shaun Anderson and four runs off Logan Browning to cap the scoring. Florida fell to 33-13 overall, 13-9 in the SEC. Meanwhile, junior right-hander Mike Mancuso took care of the ninth for the Bulldogs.
“We just started Monday with him (Mike Bell) making an adjustment with his hands, and his hands were probably about eight inches lower than what they were last week,” Stricklin said. “We felt that we’ve got to change something. His hands were more relaxed, and he looked comfortable at the plate tonight.”
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(Photo by John Kelley)
Game two of the series between the Bulldogs and Gators is scheduled for a 12:02 p.m. start at Foley Field and be televised by ESPNU. It will be Lettermen’s Day, and the 1990 National Championship team will be honored before the game. Tickets for Saturday’s game are sold out to the general public. Students will be admitted with a valid student ID on a first come, first served basis.