Jump To Top of Page
SB: Florida takes series with 7-10 Sunday win
The 11th-ranked Georgia softball team fell to No. 12 Florida in Sunday’s series finale, 10-7, in front of 2,185 fans at Jack Turner Stadium. The Gators scored seven unearned runs to take a 10-4 lead in the seventh. Jayda Kearney knocked a three-run home run in the bottom of the inning, but the comeback fell short.
Fast Facts
• Seniors Hayley Eaton, Jayda Kearney, and Riley Orcutt were honored on the field before the game as part of Senior Weekend in Athens.
• Sara Mosley’s game-tying solo home run in the fourth was her third long ball of the series. She now has 61 career home runs and moves closer to the record of 68 held by Alyssa DiCarlo. She’s hit 16 this season.
• Jayda Kearney’s home run in the seventh was number 56 of her career, tying her for fourth all-time. She leads the team with 17 home runs this season.
• Georgia hit nine home runs in the series against Florida, the most by the Dogs in an SEC series this season. All but one of the nine were hit by seniors.
• Lilli Backes pitched five innings in her start, suffering a no-decision. She struck out three hitters in the game.
Key Quotes
Head Coach Tony Baldwin
On the team’s overall performance…
“My first impression is what an amazing atmosphere. The crowd was so awesome the whole weekend. I thought we competed really well. There’s just a couple moments there that we needed to win to get the outcome that we wanted. We didn’t win them. Hats off to Florida, they did. But all in all, really proud of the way that we fought. Super proud of the senior class and their fight all weekend. And we have a really good team. A chance to win the series and didn’t get it done, but we’ll work on getting better this week and go get after Mississippi State.”
Up Next
The 2024 regular season will end next weekend when Georgia travels to Starkville, Mississippi. The three-game series between Georgia and Mississippi State begins Friday evening at 5 p.m. ET.
BSB: Zac Kristofak promoted to the LA Angles
Former University of Georgia pitcher Zac Kristofak received a promotion to the Major Leagues Sunday when the Los Angeles Angels selected his contract from Triple-A Salt Lake.
Kristofak was a 14th-round pick of the Angels in the 2019 Major League Baseball (MLB) Draft. The Angels are playing host to the Minnesota Twins Sunday with the game set to begin at 4:07 p.m. ET.
A 5-9, 189-pound native of Marietta, Ga., Kristofak was 1-0 with a 3.38 ERA in six appearances including three starts in Triple-A this year. During his minor league career, he has appeared in 113 games with 18 starts, going 9-11 with a 4.67 ERA in 194.2 innings.
In his three seasons with the Bulldogs (2017-19), Kristofak registered a 12-3 record with 12 saves, making 81 appearances including three starts. He tallied 134.1 innings with 159 strikeouts and 56 walks. He helped the Bulldogs to a pair of NCAA Regional appearances as a national seed. As a sophomore, he led the team and ranked among the Southeastern Conference leaders with 31 relief appearances. One of his more memorable outings that year came in front of 17,741 fans at SunTrust Park where he fanned five Yellow Jackets as part of a two-inning save to complete a series sweep of Georgia Tech.
As a junior, Kristofak went 5-0 with six saves and a 3.80 ERA as the Bulldogs finished 46-17 including a school record 21-9 in the SEC. Also that year, Kristofak received the University of Georgia Athletic Association Inspiration Award at the annual Dawgs Choice Awards. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7Br4ttz2w8
In December of 2021, he earned his Georgia degree in consumer economics. Kristofak becomes the 42nd former Bulldog to reach the Major League level. He will be the second pitcher to make his debut this year, joining pitcher Jonathan Cannon. He has made three starts with the Chicago White Sox.
Jump To Today’s Discussion Thread