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BSB: UGA Opens SEC Action with Tennessee

Sixth-ranked Georgia faces No. 21 Tennessee to open Southeastern Conference action Friday at Foley Field. First pitch will be at 6:02 p.m. and will be available on SECN+ and the Georgia Bulldog Sports Network.

Game two of the series will be Saturday at 5:02 p.m. (SEC Network), and the final game of the series, Sunday, will begin at 1:02 p.m. (SECN+).

Georgia (15-3, 0-0 SEC) has an NCAA-leading 61 home runs and .731 SLG% plus a .487 OB% and .992 FLDG%. For the season, Georgia is batting .353 and ranks second nationally in runs (205). Meanwhile, UT (13-4, 0-0 SEC) is batting .283 with 27 home runs, 115 runs scored, a .517 SLG%, a .391 OB% and .982 FLDG%.

The Georgia-UT series dates to 1909, and the Vols hold a 128-123 edge. Georgia is 3-3 against UT the past two seasons, with each team winning its home series 2-1 after dropping the opener. The Bulldogs are 14-3 at home this year. They posted a 10-2 mark in a season-opening 12-game stretch at Foley Field. Georgia hit the road for the first time on March 3rd and dispatched Kennesaw State 11-1 in eight innings (run-rule). The next day, the Bulldogs were back at Foley Field and lost a 10-9 thriller to Western Carolina as the teams exchanged the lead on grand slams in the bottom of the eighth and top of the ninth. Recently, Georgia swept a four-game set from Queens and did not have a midweek contest this week after playing 11 games in 12 days.

The SEC coaches predicted the Bulldogs to finish ninth in the league while UT was projected to land in the sixth spot. Georgia opened the season claiming a three-game set from Horizon League preseason favorite Wright State 2-1, while the Vols just wrapped up a weekend series going 2-1 against the Raiders in Knoxville. On Tuesday, they defeated Tennessee Tech 20-2.  

Did You Know? Georgia’s Ike Cousins head baseball coach Wes Johnson and UT head coach Josh Elander were part of Dave Van Horn’s Arkansas staff in 2017. Johnson was the pitching coach while Elander was the volunteer assistant coach. Former UT coach Tony Vitello was the other assistant coach on that staff.

Georgia-UT Pitching Matchup

Fri.: Joey Volchko (4-0, 3.00 ERA), RHP, Jr., vs. Tegan Kuhns (1-1, 3.09 ERA), RHP, So.

Sat.: Dylan Vigue (3-1, 1.93 ERA), RHP, Jr., vs. Landon Mack (3-1, 2.38 ERA), RHP, So.

Sun: Kenny Ishikawa (1-0, 0.00 ERA), LHP, So., vs. Evan Blanco (1-2, 2.75 ERA), LHP, Sr.

*The Bulldogs sport a 3.31 ERA with 199 strikeouts and 57 walks. Opponents are batting .210.             

*Georgia leads the nation with five shutouts and is seventh nationally in strikeouts/nine innings (12.2).

*UT has a 3.10 ERA with 197 strikeouts and 50 walks. Opponents are hitting .200. 

Georgia Hitters To Watch

*Junior C/OF Daniel Jackson (.408-14-33, 10 SB) lead the nation in home runs, runs (31) and total bases (75) and is second in RBI. Jackson has a career-best 15-game hitting streak while INF/OF Ryan Black (.327-3-10) and INF Michael O’Shaughnessy (.361-4-15) have career-high 10-game hitting streaks. Black had led off eight of the past 10 games and reached base to start in all those games.

*Senior UTIL Brennan Hudson (.351-10-22) has an NCAA-leading 1.162 SLG%. Of his 13 hits on the year, 10 are home runs.

*Junior 3B Tre Phelps (.406-8-22) is the lone Bulldog to reach base in every game this year (32 straight dating to 2025) and leads the team with a .552 OB% and the nation with 14 HBP. He saw his 27-game hitting streak dating to the 2025 season end against WCU on March 4 (0-3 with a BB and HBP). 

*Sophomore INF/OF Henry Allen (.415-7-26) leads the team in batting and is 2nd in OB% (.535).

Friday @ 6:02 p.m. ET

Radio: 960TheRef (Jeff Dantzler & David Johnston): https://georgiadogs.com/watch/?Live=4978&type=Live

SECN+ (Kaleb Frady, Brett DeLoach): https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/a2fc4193-4355-4d7e-a3b7-4bd81e1c4c08

Live Stats: https://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=631906

Saturday @ 5:02 p.m. ET

Radio: 960TheRef (Jeff Dantzler & David Johnston): https://georgiadogs.com/watch/?Live=4979&type=Live

SEC Network (Richard Cross, Gregg Olson):https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/6f0f8aeb-1889-4bcc-9b6e-d6a827b60e77

Live Stats: http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=631907

Sunday @ 1:02 p.m. ET

Radio/TV: 960TheRef (Jeff Dantzler & David Johnston): https://georgiadogs.com/watch/?Live=4980&type=Live

SECN+ (Kaleb Frady, Brett DeLoach): https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/536ad689-6564-4529-bc97-89d890a48b6b

Live Stats: http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=631908

Foley Field In 2026

• Foley Field Gates Open 1 hour before first pitch 
• Tickets –Limited Availability; Also Available on SeatGeek: https://seatgeek.com/georgia-bulldogs-baseball-tickets
• UGA STUDENTS:  Free Admission and please enter at 3^rd Base Gate
• Promotions: 
• Friday: Beverage Bat to the first 500 students, Texas Roadhouse item to the first 150 students; First Pitch: UGA junior wide receiver London Humphreys
• Saturday: Feed the Trees Koozie to the first 1,000 fans; First Pitch: Georgia DNR rep/game sponsor
• Sunday Pregame: Anthem Buddies; Kolby Branch shirsey to the first 1,000 fans; Braves Country Roadshow on Rutherford Street; First Pitch: Bulldog fan Nolan McGill; Postgame: Kids Run The Bases

Selected Quotes From Thursday Media Availability

Ike Cousins Head Baseball Coach Wes Johnson

On Kenny Ishikawa’s return after injury…

“He’s still day-to-day. I announced our rotation for the weekend, and Kenny’s starting on Sunday. We’re going to make sure he’s ready to do that. We don’t want to do anything to jeopardize him not being able to go there. The bat’s in play all weekend. I’m the one being conservative. There’s no concern there. I’m not ready to just run him out there and have him play center, right or left field and bat eight innings. After this weekend, we still have 27 more conference games, so you’ve got to play the long game a little bit there. I’m not saying he’s not going to start, hit or pitch, but to go a full nine innings, I am being a little conservative on my end. I do think he’s ready to pitch and give us a good quality start.”

On Kenny Ishikawa’s road to recovery…

“He’s been awesome these past couple of weeks. He’s a very diligent and hard worker. He’s been in the mindset of asking what he can do to get better. Sometimes when guys get injured, it’s more like going to the trainer to see what they can get. He’s always asking for more and just wants to get back as fast as possible.”

On Daniel Jackson’s home run power this season…

“We knew he had that kind of juice. He’s been slowing the game down and not thinking about whether he has to swing at every pitch. His plate discipline has gotten better, and he’s not chasing nearly as much as he used to last year. When you don’t chase, you get things in more of a favorable count. Now the pitcher has to decide whether to attack him or try to get him to chase. His chase rate being lower has helped his home run power.”

#9 Kolby Branch | Sr. | INF

On entering the first weekend of conference play…

“I think we’re in a good spot. I think that we’ve had those close games, and we’ve dominated most games. It’s good to have a conference opponent, and we’re ready to get in there and fight.”

On playing 11 games in 12 days…

“We’ve played a lot of baseball in a short amount of time. It’s important to get through that stretch so that we can be ready for the gauntlet of SEC play. Now that we’re here, I think we’re prepared for it.”

#2 Ryan Black | Sr. | INF

On the comfort of batting leadoff…

“Growing up, I’ve always been a leadoff guy. I like to see pitches and get on base, and I feel like I really embrace that role.”

On staying calm entering conference play…

“It all goes back to your routine. You’ve got to stick with your plan. The approach these guys set for us every day and the things we do in practice slows down the game for us.”

MBB: UGA Falls To Ole Miss in SEC Tourney

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Georgia Bulldogs (22-10) fell to the Ole Miss Rebels (14-19) on Thursday evening at Bridgestone Arena, 76-72. 

Fast Facts:

• Georgia finished 10-8 in SEC play and entered today’s game as the No.7 seed in the SEC Tournament, its highest since being No. 6 in 2016.
• Georgia is 78-50 all-time versus Ole Miss, including a 9-3 advantage in SEC Tournament meetings.
• Sophomore Kanon Catchings led the Bulldogs with 19 points. Marcus “Smurf” Millender tallied 11 points, while Kareem Stagg, Dylan James and Jeremiah Wilkinson chipped in eight apiece.
• After trailing by as many as 23 points in the second half, Georgia went on a 20–2 run over a 4:36 span. A steal and a three-point jumper from Catchings cut the deficit to five with 8:09 left to play.
• A dunk from James trimmed the margin to two with five seconds remaining.
• A pair of free throws from Ole Miss gave them the win. 

Key Quotes:

Head Coach Mike White

On the factors that led to the comeback…

“Creating turnovers, just getting out, extending our pressure. I thought the way we started the second half, a couple minutes into the second half, our energy level just elevated without having to make a shot. It seemed like early on with our offensive struggles and Ole Miss’ defensive prowess, two games in a row, they defended at a really high level. They were elite last night in watching that game. Shot selection led to it, too. You have a couple empty trips. You go one to 12 from three early on in the game. We just put our head down against a really solid, physical, disciplined defense that swarms the basketball. We kind of went rogue there, three or four possessions, jump up in the paint, try to make something happen, throw some bad stuff up at the rim. Then it’s like the rim got smaller for us when we had those empty possessions. We never played hard defensively in the first half, but weren’t able to create those turnovers that we did early second half, which got us going, got us in space, forced a low turnover team to 15 turnovers, played really, really hard down the stretch, gave ourselves a chance. It’s a resilient group, down 23, have a chance to steal it. Did a lot of good things and didn’t shoot the ball particularly well from three or from the foul line. Credit to Ole Miss, they’ve got momentum and they’re playing really well.”

Up Next: 

Georgia awaits its seeding for the NCAA Tournament. The committee will announce the selected teams on Sunday, March 15 at 6:00 p.m ET.

WTEN: No. 1 Georgia Takes Down No. 5 Texas A&M, 5-2

COLLEGE STATION, Texas — The No. 1 Georgia women’s tennis team (10-2, 5-1 SEC) defeated No. 5 Texas A&M (13-3, 5-1 SEC), 5-2 on Thursday evening at the Mitchell Tennis Center, snapping the Aggies’ 78-match home winning streak and handing them their first SEC loss of the season.

Fast Facts

• Georgia extended its all-time series lead to 24-6 against the Aggies.
• The Bulldogs have now won three straight meetings against the Aggies.
• Texas A&M’s No. 11 duo of Mia Kupres and Lucciana Perez opened doubles play with a 6-0 win over Georgia’s No. 8 pair of Deniz Dilek and Aysegul Mert on court one.
• Georgia answered on court two as Anastasiia Lopata and Patricija Paukstyte defeated Lexington Reed and Daria Smetannikov, 6-3.
• The Bulldogs clinched the doubles point on court three, where Emma Dong and Anastasiia Gureva earned a 6-4 win over Violeta Martinez and Anna Perelman.
• In singles play, Texas A&M’s No. 5 Perez defeated Georgia’s No. 6 Mert, 6-1, 6-0, on court one. 
• Georgia evened the match on court four as No. 36 Gureva posted a 6-3, 6-4 victory over No. 86 Martinez. 
• Texas A&M regained the lead when Reed defeated No. 48 Dilek, 6-4, 6-3, on court three.
• Georgia responded with back-to-back wins, beginning on court five where Dong topped Smetannikov, 6-4, 6-3. 
• On court two, No. 37 Lopata rallied for a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 win over No. 28 Kupres. 
• No. 61 Sofia Rojas closed out the match for the Bulldogs with a 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 victory over Anna Perelman on court six.

https://twitter.com/UGAWomensTennis/status/2032270800988864849

Results

Doubles:

1. #11 Mia Kupres/Lucciana Perez (TAMU) def. #8 Deniz Dilek/Aysegul Mert (UGA): 6-0

2. Anastasiia Lopata/Patricija Paukstyte (UGA) def. Lexington Reed/Daria Smetannikov (TAMU): 6-3

3. Emma Dong/Anastasiia Gureva (UGA) def. Violeta Martinez/Anna Perelman (TAMU): 6-4

Singles:

1. # 5 Lucciana Perez (TAMU) def. #6 Aysegul Mert (UGA): 6-1, 6-0

2. #37 Anastasiia Lopata (UGA) def. #28 Mia Kupres (TAMU): 4-6, 6-4, 6-3

3. Lexington Reed (TAMU) def. #48 Deniz Dilek (UGA): 6-4, 6-3

4. #36 Anastasiia Gureva (UGA) def. #86 Violeta Martinez (TAMU): 6-3, 6-4

5. Emma Dong (UGA) def. Daria Smetannikov (TAMU): 6-4, 6-3

6. #61 Sofia Rojas (UGA) def. Anna Perelman (TAMU) 6-3, 5-7, 6-2

Order of finish: Doubles (1, 2, 3) ; Singles (1,3,4,5,2,6)

Up Next

The No. 1 Bulldogs wrap up their road stretch at No. 9 Texas on Saturday, March 14 at 1 p.m. ET at the Texas Tennis Center.

Match 13 – No. 1 Georgia vs No. 9 Texas

Date: Saturday, March 14, 2026

Time: 1 p.m. ET

Location: Austin, Texas

Site: Texas Tennis Center

Live Stats: https://gado.gs/ec5

Live Stream: https://gado.gs/e91

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