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SB: Dawgs handle Jacksonville State and Miami (Ohio) Saturday

A no-hitter by No. 6/7 Georgia’s Madison Kerpics highlighted two Bulldog wins Saturday at Jack Turner Stadium. Georgia no-hit Jacksonville State in five innings, 9-0, then defeated Miami (Ohio), 6-4, to close day two of the Bulldog Classic.

Georgia climbs to 18-3 on the season.

No. 6/7 Georgia 9, Jacksonville State 0 (5 inn.)

In the first game of the day, Kerpics pitched the 50th no-hitter in the program’s history, no-hitting Jacksonville State (9-14) in five innings. It was also her birthday on Saturday. She allowed just two walks in the contest.

At the plate, Lyndi Rae Davis and Sarah Gordon each drove in three runs, each going deep. Sara Mosley and Jayda Kearney each had a pair of hits.

A five spot in the third put Georgia ahead in the contest. Davis started the scoring with a two-run home run to center then Gordon followed later in the inning with a three-run blast of her own to go ahead 5-0.

Four more came in to score in the fourth. With a runner on first, Dallis Goodnight’s bunt caused chaos in the infield when no one was covering first. Ellie Armistead scored on the play and Goodnight pulled up at third. She scored on a groundout to short by Davis, 7-0. Kearney knocked her ninth home run later in the inning, a two-run shot, to widen the lead to 9-0.

Kerpics worked around a one-out walk in the fifth to secure the run-rule no-hitter.

No. 6/7 Georgia 6, Miami (Ohio) 4

Sydney Kuma and Armistead each had two hits against the RedHawks (13-6), while Kuma recorded three RBI.

Shelby Walters worked four and a third innings, suffering a no-decision in her start. She allowed four runs on four hits. She struck out six RedHawks. Lilli Backes (7-1) earned the win out of the pen, pitching the last two and two-thirds innings scoreless innings. She fanned three hitters.

The RedHawks jumped on the board quickly in the game, plating two on a double in the opening frame to go ahead 2-0.

Following one-out walks to Mosley and Kearney, Kuma stepped up and hit a three-run home run to center to give Georgia a 3-2 lead after one inning.

Miami scratched across two runs in the top of the fifth to retake the lead, 4-3.

Base hits by Kuma and Jaydyn Goodwin put the first two on in the bottom of the sixth for Georgia. Jaiden Fields plugged the right-center gap with a double to score Kuma and tie the game. A sac fly to right off the bat of Emily Digby put Georgia back in front, 5-4. Davis added another with an RBI hit poked through the left side, 6-4.

Backes worked around a one-out single in the seventh to wrap up Georgia’s second win of the day.

Georgia will close play of the Bulldog Classic on Sunday, taking on Jacksonville State at 1 p.m., followed by Furman at 3:30 p.m.

Head Coach Tony Baldwin

On Madison Kerpic’ no-hitter… 

“I’m proud of the resilience and competitiveness today. I thought [Madison Kerpics’] mindset overall was pretty good; I couldn’t be happier for her. I just told the team that a lot of these outcomes that they make so important when they are young, you won’t remember them. But you remember throwing a no-hitter on your birthday, and that’s pretty cool. It’s been improving each weekend, and I am so excited about what she did today and where she is. She dug in, stayed in it, and built her own momentum with their mindset, and Jacksonville State has a really good offensive team.”

BSB: Dawgs score 33 runs sweeping a doubleheader from N. Colorado

Georgia’s bats enjoyed another productive day as the Bulldogs swept a doubleheader over Northern Colorado Saturday at Foley Field, winning 19-1 and 14-6.

The Bulldogs (15-1) hit seven home runs to raise their NCAA-leading total to 46 this season. Georgia hit for the home run cycle in the first contest that ended in seven innings due to the run rule.

In game one, Georgia was leading 1-0 when it exploded for eight runs on six hits in the second inning. The outburst included a three-run home run by junior Henry Hunter and a grand slam by senior Corey Collins (2-for-4, 6 RBI). It marked the fourth straight game that a Bulldog had connected for a grand slam. Then in the fifth with a 10-1 lead, Georgia erupted for nine runs including hitting four home runs in the frame, two by Slate Alford (3-for-5, 7 RBI) including a grand slam. Charlie Condon hit his team-leading 12^th home run in the inning. The Bears pushed across their lone run on a sacrifice fly by Jake King in the fifth.

Georgia sophomore Leighton Finley pitched a career-long five innings to improve to 2-0. He allowed one unearned run with no walks and four strikeouts. Bears starter Kevin Sharp fell to 0-2, allowing nine runs on six hits in the first 1.1 innings.

4️⃣ GRAND SLAMS IN 4️⃣ GAMES 🤯@CoreyGJ6 is swingin’ absolutely ridiculous right now!@BaseballUGA x @NCAABaseball pic.twitter.com/gQB4knaQDy

— Southeastern Conference (@SEC) March 9, 2024

 In game two, Georgia’s offense produced another fast start, scoring seven runs in the first. Senior Fernando Gonzalez got the inning going with a two-run double, Kolby Branch and Clayton Chadwick extended the lead to 5-0 and senior Sebastian Murillo capped the scoring with a two-run home run. The Bears (0-15) got a solo home run from Garret Fisher in the top of the second only to see Georgia answer with a four-spot to extend its lead to 11-1. Paul Toetz and Gonzalez had back-to-back run-scoring doubles while Chadwick and Murillo collected another RBI on the day. The Bears would push across single runs in the third, fourth and sixth innings to close the gap to 11-4.  Collins drew four walks in game two.

“I’ve just been taking them (walks) all season,” said Collins. “I’m just taking what they give me. I was glad to get some pitches in the first game. I’m trying a new approach and sticking to it.”

In the eighth, Northern Colorado made it 11-6 but Georgia answered with three runs in the bottom of the frame to push its lead to the eventual final of 14-6. In a staff afternoon on the mound, graduate Daniel Padysak notched the win for his first as a Bulldog. He went three innings while six Bulldogs followed with an inning apiece. DJ Radtke collected three strikeouts in the seventh as one of three Bulldog relievers to toss a shutout frame.

“If you can get a doubleheader on your schedule before your start conference play, you can see how your guys respond,” said Georgia’s Ike Cousins head baseball coach Wes Johnson. “You can see how their focus level is because in my years in the SEC, we’ve had to play a doubleheader in conference play at least one weekend.”

MBB: UGA ends regular season with loss at Auburn

The Georgia men’s basketball team wrapped up its regular season schedule as it fell 92-78 on the road against No. 13 Auburn at Neville Arena on Saturday.

Silas Demary Jr. led the Bulldogs (16-15, 6-12 SEC) in scoring with 15 points paired with five rebounds on the night, marking his seventh career performance with 15 or more points. Russel Tchewa recorded a double-double in back-to-back games for the second time this season, posting 14 points and 10 rebounds while Noah Thomasson added 12 points to the scoring effort. Blue Cain tallied eight points while also setting a new career-high in steals with three against the Tigers (24-7, 13-5 SEC).

Early offensive woes plagued the Bulldogs early as they trailed 14-4 heading into the first media timeout. Georgia came back to spark a 7-0 run, cutting the deficit to three points before Auburn responded with a 14-3 run to lead 28-14. Despite another 7-0 run by the Bulldogs, the Tigers would regain momentum and extend their lead to 45-31 heading into the locker room. Auburn held the upper hand offensively early in the second half, but Georgia managed to keep the deficit to as close as 10 points. The Bulldogs battled back and pushed to cut their deficit to within single digits, but the Tigers held on to its double-digit lead as time expired on the night.

Georgia will now shift focus as it will begin postseason play at the SEC Men’s Basketball Championships starting on Wednesday, Mar. 13, running through Sunday, March 17 at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn.

Five Fast Facts

• Silas Demary Jr. led the Bulldogs with 15 points, marking his seventh 15+ point performance of the season.

• Russel Tchewa finished the game with 14 points and 10 rebounds, marking his 14^th career double-double and fifth with the Bulldogs.

• With his performance against Auburn, Russel Tchewa posted back-to-back double-doubles for the second time this season (vs LSU, at Florida)

• Blue Cain set a new career-high in steals with three on the night.

• Georgia outrebounded Auburn 38-36 on the night.

Key Quote

Head Coach Mike White: “It could’ve gotten ugly, and it has gotten ugly against in this building against other teams. Auburn is terrific, they executed at a really high level. The hole that we dug ourselves early on in the game was the difference. I loved our fight in the second 20 [minutes]. To come in here and outrebound these guys shows you that our guys left a lot out there on the floor physically.”

T&F: Christopher Morales Williams won Georgia’s second straight 400-meter dash title at the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships Saturday

Bulldog sophomore sprinter Christopher Morales Williams ran the fifth-fastest collegiate time in history to capture his first 400-meter dash title on the final day of the NCAA Indoor Championships at The Track at New Balance in Boston Saturday.

In the team race, the Georgia women scored 32 points and finished third.  Arkansas (65) and Florida (50) made up the top three.  The Lady Bulldogs have finished in the top five at the NCAA Indoor Championships for three out of the last four completed seasons.

Morales Williams, a native of Vaughn, Ontario, sped to the second-fastest time of his life (44.67) to win the Bulldogs’ their second straight crown in the event (Elija Godwin, 2023) and third overall for Georgia (Torrin Lawrence, 2010).  Morales Williams’ time was the fourth fastest in NCAA meet history.

The Bulldog men tied with Ole Miss and Florida State for 15^th place with 14 points on the men’s ide while Texas Tech (50.5), Arkansas (41) and Florida (39) made up the top three.

In addition to Morales Williams, Georgia had xxx more scoring All-Americans on the meet’s second and final day. 

• Sophomore Kaila Jackson copied her 2023 finish to the hundredth of a second to lock down another silver in the 60m final.  Minutes later, Jackson returned in the 200m final and a career best 22.63 gave her fourth place a year after she was eighth as a true freshman.
• For the second year in a row, junior Elena Kulichenko scored six points for the Lady Bulldogs with a third-place finish in the high jump.  She equaled her exact performance from two weeks ago with a bronze medal at the height of 1.91 meters/6 feet, 3 ¼ inches. 
• Senior Mikeisha Welcome steadily improved in her triple jump series before traveling a season-best distance to retake the bronze medal spot on her final try a year after finishing fourth.
• Sophomore Aaliyah Butler made her debut as an individual at the NCAA indoor meet and left with a fourth-place finish in the 400m final.  This is the best finish for a Lady Bulldog since Olympian Lynna Irby earned the bronze medal at the 2018 meet en route to the Georgia women winning their first team national championship.
• On the men’s side, true freshman Riyon Rankin made his first appearance at NCAAs and scored two points with a seventh-place finish after flying over the high jump bar at higher than seven feet for the fourth time this season.  Rankin is the first Bulldog to score in the men’s high jump since 2019 (Keenon Laine). 
• Alex Kolesnikoff had his top mark on his third throw of his shot put series and managed a seventh-place.  This marks the Harvard graduate transfer’s first First Team All-American showing at Nationals.  Kolesnikoff is the first Bulldog putter to finish in the top eight in doors since Denzel Comenentia earned bronze in 2019.
• The Lady Bulldogs concluded the meet with a seventh-place finish in the 4x400m relay to help assure their team third-place finish.  This marked the best showing for Georgia in the event since taking fourth in 2019.

Where To Catch The NCAA Championships: The broadcast talent includes Dwight Stones, Dan O’Brien, Larra Overton and John Anderson.  A tape delay special of the Championships will air on ESPNU on Monday at 9 p.m.

Full Results: For full results, please visit: http://gado.gs/bha

The Lowdown: Two weeks departed from running the world’s fastest indoor 400m in world history (collegiate record 44.49) to win the SEC championship, Morales Williams ran out of lane six in the final and topped Texas A&M’s Auhmad Robinson (44.91) with the fastest finish.  Morales Williams, who arrived in Athens in January 2024 midway through his freshman year, blew away the former facility record (45.40) set on Friday.

Jackson, who hails from Redford, Mich., came out of lane five in the 60m final and finished just .01 off her school record personal record with a 7.08 for a runner-up finish.  She had the exact same time and finish at last year’s NCAA meet.  Four events later, Jackson lined up in lane six and shot ahead the nearest competitor in her group in the final steps to finish in 23.63 for fourth.  This improved her No. 3 mark on Georgia’s all-time top-10 list set at last year’s meet and was the best finish for the Lady Bulldogs since Autumn Wilson was third last year.

Kulichenko, a native of Odintsovo, Russia, passed at 1.75m/5-8.75 and promptly cleared 1.80m/5-10.75 and then 1.85m/6-0.75 on her first try at the heights.  Despite grazing the bar on jump number one, she cleared 1.88m/6-2, matching her 2023 height at the meet.  Kulichenko then became the second jumper over at 1.91m/6-3.25 on her second time trying at the height.  The next height, 1.94m/6-4.25, would have been both a school record and a career best for the junior.  However, she finished with a top mark of 1.91m/6-3.25 for the bronze.

Butler, a native of Fort Lauderdale, shot out of lane five in the 400m final and finished second in her heat and fourth overall.  After a fifth-place finish at SECs, Butler continued to make sub-52 second finishes the norm with her 51.64.

Welcome, who owns the St. Vincent national record after her performance at the 2023 NCAA Championships, bumped from 13.48m/44-2.75 on her opening attempt to 13.53m/44-4.75 on her second try.  Following a pair of shorter jumps, Welcome went to work in the fifth and sixth rounds, first flying 13.63m/44-8.75 on her fifth try.  Then, she surged from fourth to third on her last attempt with a mark of 13.71m/44-11.75.

Rankin, a native of Brunswick, Ga., plowed through the bar on his opening attempt in the men’s high jump at 2.10m/6-10.75 before soaring over the bar with room to spare on his second attempt.  He missed his first two tries at 2.15m/7-0.50 and before securing a clean jump on his third attempt.  Almost simultaneous with Kulichenko going over the bar at 6-2, Rankin nudged the bar on his first try but cleared 2.18m/7-1.75.  He then worked to match his personal record at 2.21m/7-3 but missed his three tries, barely clipping the bar on the third.  Rankin scored two points after finishing just where he was ranked coming into the meet.

Kolesnikoff, a native of Strathfield, Australia, was hanging in 11^th and in danger of not making the nine-man final before recovering for a scoring spot for the Bulldogs.  He launched his third throw 19.16m/62-10.50, an effort which ended up being his best and putting him in seventh overall. 

With Kimberly Harris as the lead-off, the Lady Bulldogs relay battled for a seventh-place finish in the meet’s final event, the 4x400m relay.  Harris handed to Butler and then Haley Tate and Dominique Mustin, respectively, to cross the line in 3:30.07 for sixth.  Butler highlighted the relay with a 50.72 split on her second leg.

Wolfe, a native of Memphis, Tenn., earned expected Second Team All-America honors with a 12^th-place finish in the triple jump.  In just his sixth collegiate meet, Wolfe worked up to a third try of 15.47m/50-9.25 to slide past a number of the more seasoned competition. 

What’s Next For The Bulldogs?: Following the NCAA Championships, the Bulldogs start their outdoor season a week later at the Yellow Jacket Invitational in Atlanta on March 15-16. 

UGA Sports Today

University of Georgia Baseball vs Northern Colorado

Sunday, March 10⋅1:00 – 4:00pm

Location: Athens, Ga., Foley Field

University of Georgia Baseball vs Northern Colorado TV: SECN+ Streaming Video: https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/7f1dbb7f-62a5-4616-a541-058953646144

treaming Audio: https://admin.georgiadogs.com/showcase?Live=4574https://admin.georgiadogs.com/calendar.aspx?game_id=24872&sport_id=1

University of Georgia Men’s Tennis vs No. 31 Auburn

Sunday, March 10⋅1:00 – 4:00pm

Location: Athens, Ga., Dan Magill Tennis Complex

University of Georgia Men’s Tennis vs No. 31 Auburn Streaming Video: https://georgiadogs.com/sports/2017/6/17/sports-m-tennis-spec-rel-vid-stream-html.aspxhttps://admin.georgiadogs.com/calendar.aspx?game_id=24755&sport_id=11

University of Georgia Women’s Tennis at South Carolina

Sunday, March 10⋅1:00 – 4:00pm

Location: Columbia, SC

University of Georgia Women’s Tennis at South Carolina Streaming Video: https://gamecocksonline.com/womens-tennis-live-streaming/https://admin.georgiadogs.com/calendar.aspx?game_id=24974&sport_id=21

University of Georgia Softball vs Jacksonville State

Sunday, March 10⋅1:00 – 3:00pm

Location: Athens, Ga., Turner Softball Stadium

University of Georgia Softball vs Jacksonville State TV: SECN+ Streaming Video: https://www.espn.com/watch/player?id=171b3480-bec0-4ed6-b454-d79601c32298https://admin.georgiadogs.com/calendar.aspx?game_id=24939&sport_id=13

University of Georgia Softball vs Furman

Sunday, March 10⋅3:30 – 5:30pm

Location: Athens, Ga., Turner Softball Stadium

University of Georgia Softball vs Furman TV: SECN+ Streaming Video: https://www.espn.com/watch/player?id=80671e2a-efd2-4495-bb18-af02e6474e8bhttps://admin.georgiadogs.com/calendar.aspx?game_id=24940&sport_id=13

University of Georgia Men’s Tennis vs Georgia St.

Sunday, March 10⋅5:00 – 8:00pm

Location: Athens, Ga., Dan Magill Tennis Complex

University of Georgia Men’s Tennis vs Georgia St. Streaming Video: https://georgiadogs.com/sports/2017/6/17/sports-m-tennis-spec-rel-vid-stream-html.aspxhttps://admin.georgiadogs.com/calendar.aspx?game_id=24964&sport_id=11

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