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BSB: Georgia defeats Kennesaw State, 9-3

The 18th-ranked Georgia Bulldogs defeated Kennesaw State 9-3 Tuesday at Stillwell Stadium in front of a crowd of 1,322.

Fast Facts

• With tonight’s win, Georgia posted a 22-1 non-conference record during the regular season.

• Redshirt sophomore Charlie Condon crushed his NCAA-leading 30th home run to give the Bulldogs a 2-0 lead in the first.

• Condon’s first-inning blast gave the Bulldogs a school-record 110 home runs this season and extended his hitting streak to 15 games. Georgia would hit three more home runs on the night.

• Senior Corey Collins, who entered the game leading the nation with a .586 on base percentage, reached in all five plate appearances, drawing four walks and was hit by a pitch.

• Sophomore right-hander Zach Harris made his second start of the season and provided three scoreless innings with five strikeouts to improve to 4-0 as part of a staff night.

• Sophomore Kolby Branch smashed his 14th home run while senior Fernando Gonzalez hit a two-run home run, his eighth of the year, as part of a five-run outburst in the fourth to build a 7-0 lead. Junior Slate Alford made it 8-1 in the seventh with his 12th home run.

• KSU scored a run before it notched his first hit as Brayden Eidson reached on a walk, stole second, took third on a groundout and scored on a sacrifice fly by Issac Bouton to make it 7-1 in the fourth. Jamarie Brooks broke up Georgia’s no-hit bid with a leadoff single in the eighth.

Key Quotes

Ike Cousins Head Baseball Coach Wes Johnson

“I challenged our team to bring the energy tonight and be locked in. Our routine was a little different today with the chance of rain here so we hit in Athens before coming over. All in all, I thought our guys played well. Zach (Harris) was real good again, that’s back-to-back starts where he has thrown the ball exceptionally well. He’s ready and has made that jump so a chance to see him on the weekend. The guys came in tonight and were attacking the strike zone and Zach set the tempo. It was good to get Matt Hoskins back out there too. It was nice our offense got us an early lead, and that helped.”

Up Next

Georgia (32-12, 10-11 SEC) returns to SEC action Friday when it plays host to No. 13 Vanderbilt with first pitch set for 6:02 p.m. ET. The game will be available on SECN+ and the Georgia Bulldog Sports Network.

TENNIS: Selections for men’s and women’s 2024 NCAA Singles and Doubles Tournaments

The University of Georgia men’s and women’s tennis teams will be represented in the 2024 NCAA Singles and Doubles Tournaments, as the selections were revealed on Tuesday evening.

On the men’s side, three Bulldogs were selected across singles and doubles. Thomas Paulsell earned an at-large selection in singles while the duo of Freddy Blaydes and Niels Ratiu earned a spot in the field in doubles.

Notching 15 singles wins on the season, Paulsell led the way for the Bulldogs on court one with eight victories in SEC play and six coming against ranked opponents. In doubles, Blaydes and Ratiu led Georgia in doubles wins with 11 on the year, posting 10 at the No. 1 spot and six resulting in wins against ranked duos.

For the women’s team, three Bulldogs earned at-large bids. Dasha Vidmanova and Alexandra Vecic were selected to represent Georgia in singles while the tandem of Aysegul Mert and Vidmanova qualified for the doubles field.

Vidmanova has been at the forefront for the Bulldogs all season, tallying 19 singles wins with eight ranked victories. Despite missing some time, Vecic has held in down on court two with nine wins, five of which came in SEC play with two against ranked opponents. In doubles, Mert and Vidmanova led the Bulldogs with 23 wins, posting 13 victories on court one while knocking off 10 ranked pairings.

For the men, Ryan Colby will serve as an alternate for the field of 64. Colby made an immediate impact in his first season in Athens, posting 19 wins on the year with 10 at the No. 2 slot with nine over ranked opponents. On the women’s side, Mell Reasco and Anastasiia Lopata will serve as alternates in singles. Reasco tallied 12 singles wins with three coming against ranked opponents while Lopata finished in a tie for most singles wins for Georgia this season at 24.

The NCAA singles and doubles competition will run from May 20-25 at the Greenwood Tennis Center in Stillwater, Okla., hosted by Oklahoma State University.

T/F: Riyon Rankin has earned a SEC Men’s Freshman of the Week

Bulldog high jumper Riyon Rankin has earned a Southeastern Conference weekly honor for the second time in three weeks following the LSU Invitational, according to a league announcement Tuesday.

Rankin was awarded the Men’s Freshman of the Week honors.  This marks Rankin’s second outdoor accolade of this kind in 2024.  In addition to junior high jumper Elena Kulichenko earning Women’s Field Athlete of the Week honors (April 16), graduate transfer javelin thrower Marc Minichello (Men’s Field Athlete of the Week – March 26) collected Georgia’s other outdoor SEC weekly award this year.

Rankin, a native of Brunswick, Ga., had four first attempt clearances in the high jump, including a mark of 2.20 meters/7 feet, 2 ½ inches that earned him runner-up honors in Baton Rouge. This matched the second-best mark of his season and is a performance that still tops any other freshman nationwide by ¾ inch.

Up Next: Georgia will train through the weekend before starting its postseason in the SEC Outdoor Championships in Gainesville. Fla., on May 9-11.  Those who qualify will then advance to the NCA East Prelims in Lexington, Ky., on May 22-25 before the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, Ore., on June 5-8.

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