Sophomore Emerson Hancock struck out a career-high 12 as eighth-ranked  Georgia defeated No. 22 South Carolina 6-1 Friday in front of a crowd of 6,435 at Founders Park.

With the SEC-opening victory, the Bulldogs (16-2, 1-0 SEC) extended their winning streak to seven, and the starting pitching improved to 14-1 overall with a 1.76 ERA. Hancock earned the win to move his record to 5-0 with a 0.58 ERA as he matched his career high by going seven innings. The lone run he allowed came on a solo home run as Bulldog pitchers combined to register a season-high 15 strikeouts. Junior Justin Glover took care of the final two frames for Georgia.

In the second, Bulldog senior LJ Talley led off with a single up the middle against a defensive shift to extend his hitting streak to a career-best 11 games. Then, graduate transfer John Cable capped a nine-pitch at bat with a two-run blast to centerfield in his SEC debut. It was his second home run of the year, gave him a six-game hitting streak and provided a 2-0 lead. In the third, USC freshman Brady Allen connected for his third home run of the year to make it 2-1. It was only the seventh home run allowed by the Bulldogs this year, all solo shots.

Georgia broke the game open with a four-run sixth as the Gamecocks made a pair of pitching changes. Junior Aaron Schunk started the scoring with a two-run triple, sophomore Mason Meadow had a sacrifice fly and junior Patrick Sullivan had an RBI-double to extend the lead to 6-1. It marked the 14^th time this season that the Bulldogs scored four or more runs in an inning. The Gamecocks dropped to 14-4 (0-1 SEC) with Wesley Sweatt (1-1) taking the loss, allowing five runs on five hits in five innings.

Game two of the series is set for Saturday at 4 p.m. and be on SEC Network+ and the Georgia Bulldog Sports Network.

Dawg Tracks

• Sophomore right-handed pitcher Emerson Hancock tied his career high with his 10^th strikeout by the fifth inning and finished with a career-high 12 in seven innings.
• In his SEC debut, graduate transfer DH John Cable smashed a two-run home run to cap a nine-pitch at bat in the second inning for a 2-0 lead.
• Senior 2B LJ Talley extended his hitting streak to a career-best 11 games with a single in the second inning.
• Junior third baseman Aaron Schunk picked up his second triple in as many games, delivering a two-run triple for a 4-1 lead in the 6^th. He has an eight-game hitting streak.
• Junior LHP Justin Glover pitched the final two innings and struck out the side in the 8th.
• Redshirt sophomore Rile King tied his career high with a three-hit game.

Coach’s Corner

• Ike Cousins Head Baseball Coach Scott Stricklin

On Emerson Hancock’s outing…
“I thought that was Emerson’s best outing of his career and there’s a lot more good wins left in him. He was dialed in from the first pitch that was 98 miles per hour, and he held his velocity the entire game. He never got rattled. They got a home run, it was hit well, but he didn’t give them any chances to breathe. He was all around the strike zone.”

On the offense…
“John (Cable) had a great at bat. He hit a line drive, you can’t hit a ball any harder than that. It was a big one to put us on top. Then (Aaron) Schunk comes up with 1^st and 2^nd and nobody out, and he’s in the 3-hole for a reason. I’m sure probably someone at home was screaming bunt, bunt, and he came through with that big triple and it gave us a bigger lead.”