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BSB Photos/Video: Dawgs sweep Vandy with 11- 7 Sunday win

The No. 18 Georgia Bulldogs completed their first sweep of No. 13 Vanderbilt since 2003 after posting an 11-7 victory Sunday in front of a crowd of 3,333 at Foley Field. 

Fast Facts

● Top-ranked  MLB draft prospect Charlie Condon made it seven straight games with a home run when he blasted his NCAA-leading 33rd in the sixth inning. It ranks tied for second in SEC single season history with Jac Caglianone (UF) who did it 71 games last year. Condon has 33 home runs in 47 games.

● Today’s victory over the Commodores marked the first time the Bulldogs have swept Vanderbilt in a three-game series since 2003.

● Corey Collins tallied his 23rd hit by pitch of the season in his first plate appearance of the game, further adding to his lead as the record holder for Georgia’s program.

● Pitcher Zach Harris tied his career high strikeouts with five in his four-inning appearance this afternoon remaining undefeated on the mound with a 5-0 record. After starting and getting a win against KSU on April 30th, his line for the week spanned seven innings, no hits, no runs, three walks, and 10 strikeouts. Junior Chandler Marsh got the final four outs for his first save.

● Vanderbilt (32-16, 11-13 SEC) starter JD Thompson dropped to 3-1 after allowing five runs, five hits, and three walks to the Bulldogs in his two-inning stint.

Key Quotes

Ike Cousins Head Baseball Coach Wes Johnson

On the series sweep…

“It’s massive. As you know, every win in this league is hard. For these guys to win three in a row shows that they have a lot of heart and a lot of toughness. You’ve got to tip your hat to Vanderbilt. We had them down and they could have checked out, but they didn’t. They came back and they fought hard to make it tough on us. I’m fired up with the way our guys responded back.”

On looking ahead at the postseason…

“If you don’t ever think about it, if you don’t ever lay in your bed at night and see yourself doing things here, then how are you ever going to do them? You’ve got to talk about it. It shouldn’t be this unicorn. You first have to talk about it, then you have to think about it, then you’ve got to believe that you can do it, and that is where we’re at. We’ve got six tough ones left. South Carolina is really good at home and the Florida Gators are fighting for their life so we’ve just got to take one pitch at a time on Thursday.”

Charlie Condon, 3B

On the potential to host the regional tournament….

“We control our own destiny as far as the post-season goes. We’re focused on the next series but that’s a big part of what we’re playing for right now. Taking care of business when we have an SEC opponent in our own place is super important. We just played three really solid baseball games this weekend. We’re in control of what we want. We can still do anything. We can host. We can bring the playoffs back to us and that would be really fun.”

On the series sweep…

“It’s been really good to see this team compete on both sides of the ball as well as we did this weekend. It’s the most complete we’ve played as a group this season which is really exciting to see this time of year.”

Zach Harris, RHP

On turning the corner in his performance…

“Coach has been preaching all season on having confidence and conviction in my pitches and knowing that our team is feared in general. The G has some fear to it and other teams don’t go out there scared. That’s the biggest thing, having confidence that I’m a good pitcher at the end of the day. Having belief in myself and in my pitches to go out there and execute them.”

On Wes’ faith in this team…

“It lights a fire under you a little bit. Knowing you have someone back there to support you no matter what, no matter the situation, and remind you that you’re a great ball player, that everyone is here for a reason, and that every single person on this team has a great ability. It’s an asset to have a coach that is always there to back you up, if you have questions, go ask him and he’ll know. He’s a very knowledgeable guy and he’s taught us a bunch. Just having someone in your corner at all times, even when you’re struggling really helps. He believes in me more than I do sometimes.”

Up Next

Georgia (35-12, 13-11 SEC) will take on No. 14 South Carolina on the road for a three-game series beginning on Thursday, May 9th. First pitch will be at 8:02 p.m on ESPNU.

Box Score

Video Highlights

SB: Georgia drops season finale, 2-1

 The 14th-ranked Georgia softball team dropped a one-run decision to No. 20 Mississippi State in Sunday’s regular-season finale, 2-1.

Fast Facts

• Georgia concludes the regular season 38-15 with an even 12-12 record in SEC play.

• Georgia has finished .500 or better in all three seasons under Tony Baldwin.

• Jaiden Fields provided Georgia’s lone run in a pinch-hit opportunity in the fifth inning.

• Sara Mosley was responsible for two of Georgia’s four hits, recording her 17th multi-hit game to move into the team lead.

• This was the fifth time Georgia had been held to one run in a game.

SEC Tournament Next

 The University of Georgia softball team will be the No. 7 seed in the upcoming SEC Tournament in Auburn, Alabama, and will face off against No. 10 Auburn in the first round on Wednesday, May 8 at 5 p.m. ET.

The winner will advance to the quarterfinal round and will face No. 2 seed Florida on Thursday at 5 p.m. ET

The 2024 SEC Tournament will be played at Jane. B Moore Field in Auburn. Tuesday and Wednesday’s first-round games and Thursday’s quarterfinals will air live on SEC Network. The semifinals and championship will air on ESPN2.

Georgia concluded the 2024 regular season with a 38-15 overall record and a 12-12 record in SEC play. The Bulldogs accumulated 14 wins over top 25 opponents in 2024.

Georgia’s record in the SEC Tournament is 21-25 in 22 appearances. The Bulldogs’ lone title was 10 years ago in 2014.

WGOLF: UGA opens play at Auburn Regional today

Dates: May 6-8

Course: Auburn University Club

Location: Auburn, Ala.

Par/Yardage: 72/6456

Live Scoring: golfstat.com

The Bulldogs’ Lineup

1. Napat Lertsadwattana – 5-5; Grad. Transfer; Bangkok, Thailand; Tr. – New Mexico

• Grad transfer from New Mexico who was medalist at 2023 MWC Championships & a three-time All-MWC

• Finished 18th individually at the 2023 NCAA Championships

• Missed fall finale while competing in 2nd stage of LPGA Q School

2. Caterina Don – 5-6; 5th Year Senior; Pinerolo, Italy; Istituto Maria Immacolata in Scuola Paritaria DM

• Three-time All-SEC honoree

• UGA’s top individual at nine of 12 events during the 2023-24 season

• Current stroke average (71.35) would be third-best ever by a Bulldog

• Three-time runner up this season, with seven top-10s and 10 top-20s

3. Savannah De Bock – 5-5; Freshman; Ecaussinnes-d’enghien, Belgium; Institut de l’Enfant-Jésus – Lycée

• Joined the Bulldogs in January

• Posted a 3-0 record to help Europe win the 2023 Junior Solheim Cup

• Won the 2022 European Ladies’ Amateur in a 4-hole playoff

• Top-5s at the ‘22 & ‘23 World Junior Girls Championships

4. LoraLie Cowart – 5-4; Junior; Carrollton, Ga.; Carrollton High School

• Enjoying a breakout junior season

• Posted three par-or-better scores in 42 rounds as a freshman and sophomore before notching 15 in 34 loops this season.

• Entered 2023-24 with a career stroke average of 76.50…73.00 this year

5. Bernice Olivarez Ilas – 5-2; Graduate Transfer; Ayala Alabang, Philippines; Tr. – San Diego State

• Grad transfer from San Diego State who was All-MWC in 2022

• Played in only five tournaments in 2023-24 due to injuries

• Strong showing at the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic, where she shot 2-over and tied for 12th

SUB. Natachanok Tunwannarux – 5-7; Freshman; Bangkok, Thailand; IMG Academy

• Posted two counting rounds and went 2-0 in match play at SECs

• Opened her collegiate career with a 4-under effort to tie for 20th at the Cougar Classic

• Shot season-low 5-under 66 in the 2nd round of the Darius Rucker

Bulldogs Set To Open NCAA Play At Auburn Regional

The No. 23-ranked Georgia Bulldogs begin pursuit of a fourth straight top-20 finish at the national championships on Monday when they tee off in the NCAA Auburn Regional.

Georgia is the No. 4 seed among 12 teams competing at the Auburn University Club for five spots in the field for the NCAA Championships. The Bulldogs will be paired with fifth-seeded North Carolina and sixth-seeded Michigan on Monday, teeing off from No. 10 between 9:00-9:44 am ET. 

“It’s why you work all year,” head coach Josh Brewer said. “It’s why you start in August, and we are still practicing and trying to improve. At the SECs, we showed what we can do when he have a test. We have another test in front of us. We seem to play well under that pressure so we’re excited.”

The Bulldogs will stick with the same lineup that advanced to the semifinals of match play at the SEC Championships three weeks ago. Georgia will open the Regional with the quintet of Napat “Jenny” Lertsadwattana, Caterina Don, Savannah De Bock, LoraLie Cowart and Bernice Olivarez Ilas. Natachanok “Drive” Tunwannarux, who played second and third rounds of stroke play and went 2-0 in match play at the SECs, is a potential sub.

There was no doubt the Bulldogs would receive a Regional bid; however, Don said seeing “Georgia” on the screen during the NCAA selection show was still a thrill.

“You expect to be in because you’ve worked hard all season, but you don’t know you’re going to be in when you step foot on campus in August,” Don said. “It takes a lot of work to get here, and I think it’s worth celebrating seeing your name up there. We knew we were going to go, but it’s still exciting to see your name up there and know where you’re going to go and who you’re going to be competing with.”

The next step toward another top-20 effort is advancing from Auburn, which Don is confident the Bulldogs are prepared to do.

“I think we play a really tough schedule so all year we compete against some really hard teams and prepare for these moments,” Don said. “Josh always tells us you could be in position and need a final push to make nationals so I think we prepare throughout the whole season for this. 

“And playing in the SECs – it’s the toughest conference in golf right now – it’s also very good preparation to go out there and succeed at Regionals and NCAAs,” Don added.

A nation-leading and record-setting 13 SEC teams are in Regional fields, tying the league’s totals in 2013 and 2023 for the most ever by any conference. Ten SEC teams currently are ranked in the top-25 nationally.

The Pac 12 ranked second nationally with nine teams in Regional fields, followed by the ACC and Big 12 with eight each and the Big Ten with seven.

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