The No. 12 Georgia Bulldogs play host to Kennesaw State Tuesday with first pitch set for 5:02 p.m. and be available on SEC Network+ and the Georgia Bulldog Sports Network.
The Bulldogs (14-5, 1-2 SEC) are ranked No. 12 this week by Collegiate Baseball newspaper which is the oldest college baseball poll as it began in 1959. The Bulldogs went 1-2 last week, dropping a home series to No. 10 Tennessee. Georgia was without Ike Cousins head baseball coach Scott Stricklin after it was announced Friday that he had tested positive for COVID-19. Pitching and defense, two hallmarks of the club in the early going, were inconsistent against the Vols. The Bulldogs entered SEC play with the top fielding percentage in the league and ranked second in Earned Run Average (ERA). However, Georgia made six errors in the first two games against UT and posted a 5.67 ERA in the series with 20 walks. Georgia and UT both hit .240.
A total of 14 Bulldogs including nine pitchers made their SEC debut in the series. At this point in the season, Georgia is batting .290 with a 2.88 ERA and a .979 Fielding Percentage. Georgia is holding its opponents to a .199 batting average. Freshman Jaden Woods (0-0, 4.57 ERA) ranks third in the SEC as opponents are hitting just .127 against him. He has allowed only nine hits in 21.2 innings.
After facing Kennesaw State (11-7), Georgia hits the road for an SEC series at Texas A&M (15-7, 0-3 SEC) starting Friday. The Aggies were swept last weekend at No. 5 Florida. The Owls rallied for a 6-4 win over the Bulldogs back on March 3 in Kennesaw. Georgia leads the all-time series with KSU 17-11. The Aggies hold a 9-5 series edge over Georgia. The Bulldogs won the last meeting on a two-run walk-off home run by Cam Shepherd at the 2019 SEC Tournament.
Georgia will start redshirt freshman LHP Charlie Goldstein (0-0, 4.76 ERA) against the Owls. This will be his third career start and second against the Owls. He started at Kennesaw earlier this month and did not factor in the decision (3.2 IP, 2H, 3R, 3ER, 2BB, 6K). Goldstein tossed an “immaculate inning” in the first at KSU before allowing three runs in the second courtesy of a home run by Alex Carballo.
Redshirt junior OF Connor Tate leads the Bulldogs and ranks second in the SEC in batting at .384 (28-for-73) with a double, triple, two home runs and 13 RBI. Nine of his 13 RBI have come with two outs. Freshman DH/C Corey Collins, Georgia’s leading run producer, missed his first two games of the season after pulling a hamstring on a base hit in the fourth inning of Friday’s SEC opener. For the year, he is batting .368. (good for ninth in the SEC) with four home runs and 16 RBI.
Georgia redshirt junior RHP Darryn Pasqua (1-0, 2.45 ERA) has been of the team’s top relievers and strike-throwers. In eight appearances covering 14.2 innings this year, he has 20 strikeouts and zero walks.
The Owls are 11-7 and dropped a weekend road series with Lipscomb, losing two of three. They are batting .276 with a 5.73 ERA and fielding .976. Junior LHP Ryan Kennedy (1-0, 11.91 ERA) gets the start. He did not face the Bulldogs earlier this year, a 6-4 win on March 9. KSU rallied for three runs in the eighth for the victory. Mike Sansing has led the Owls since the fall of 1991 as this is his 29th season. Senior OF Terrance Norman has a team-best 20 RBI and is tied for the team lead in home runs with four to go with a .315 batting average. Carballo has a team-best .328 batting average.
Pitching Matchups: UGA vs. KSU
#29 Charlie Goldstein (0-0, 4.76 ERA), LHP, RFr. vs. #31 Ryan Kennedy (1-0, 11.91 ERA), LHP, Jr.
Radio Links: Georgia Bulldog Sports Network (Announcers: Jeff Dantzler, David Johnston)
Tuesday: https://georgiadogs.com/watch/?Live=3927&type=Live
All regular season Bulldog games will be available on the Georgia Bulldog Sports Network with Jeff Dantzler and David Johnston bringing you the action. Georgia home games along with SEC road games will be available on the SEC Network+ platform too.
All Georgia baseball games will be carried locally on WRFC 960 AM as it will serve as the primary home for all broadcasts. In Atlanta, Bulldogs fans can tune in to WFOM 1230 AM. Fans can listen to every game online for free through the official website of the Bulldogs, georgiadogs.com and the Georgia Bulldogs app. Also, games that do not conflict with basketball broadcasts will be available on TuneIn. Live Stats are available via the Bulldogs app too.
TV: SEC Network+ Link: (Announcers: Simulcast with Jeff Dantzler and David Johnston)
Tuesday at 5:02 pm: TBA