#5/6 Georgia (32-4) at Georgia Tech (19-15)
Date: Apr. 4, 2018
Time: 7 p.m., EDT
Location: Atlanta, Ga.
Stadium: Shirley Clements Mewborn Field
Media Information
Streaming Video: ACC Network Extra
Play-by-play: Kyle Tait
Analysis: Hayley Downs
Live Stats: GeorgiaDogs.com
Twitter Updates: @UGAsoftball
#5/6 Georgia travels to in-state rival Georgia Tech for a midweek matchup Wednesday evening. First pitch against the Yellow Jackets is slated for 7 p.m. at Shirley Clements Mewborn Field in Atlanta.
Follow the Bulldogs
» Wednesday’s game will stream live on the ACC Network Extra. Kyle Tait will provide play-by-play while Hayley Down will be the color analyst.
» Live stats will be available. Live stat links can be found on the softball schedule at GeorgiaDogs.com.
» Live Twitter updates will be available all season long at @UGAsoftball.
Georgia Softball Notebook
Series History
Georgia Tech – Georgia leads 29-10
» The Bulldogs lead the series in Atlanta, 12-6
» Georgia has won 14 of the last 15 meetings with its in-state rival including nine straight
A Look Back
Georgia won its series at Tennessee over the weekend, the first series win over the Lady Vols since 2010, also in Knoxville. Georgia dropped the series opener by a score of 1-0 on a walk-off hit-by-pitch. Georgia bounced back with a 9-1, six-inning victory to even up the series. Georgia took the series with an 8-0 shutout in six innings. It was first time Tennessee has been run-ruled in back-to-back games at home ever in the program’s history. The last time Tennessee was run-ruled in back-to-back games was at Alabama in 2008.
A Look Ahead
The Bulldogs will return to Athens for an eight-game homestand beginning with a series against Missouri Apr. 6-8. The series with the Tigers begins 6 p.m. Friday evening. Saturday’s 6 p.m. will air nationally on ESPNU. The finale is set for 2 p.m. Georgia State then comes to town for a midweek game on May 11.
Georgia in the Top 25
The Bulldogs stayed steady at #6 in the week eight USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll. Georgia climbed to #5 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Poll. Both are Georgia’s highest ranking since being top five much of the 2011 season.
Georgia’s rankings this season:
Preseason: 25
Week 1: 17
Week 2: 14
Week 3: 14
Week 4: 11
Week 5: 10/12
Week 6: 7
Week 7: 6
Week 8: 5/6
Despite finishing last in the SEC a season ago with a 6-18 record, the Bulldogs dropped out of the NFCA Poll only one week. It was the first time Georgia had been outside the top 25 since 2013.
Milz Earns SEC Player of the Week
The SEC named second baseman Justice Milz its Player of the Week. Milz hit three home runs, driving in seven runs, at Tennessee, guiding the Bulldogs to their first series win over the Lady Vols since 2010. The junior from Kearney, Missouri hit .462 on the week, going 6-for-13 at the plate. In Sunday’s game, she knocked a three-run home run, finishing the game with four RBI and a pair of runs scored. She concluded the series on Monday with two home runs and three runs scored, both tying career bests. She led the team with six runs (29% of the team’s run on the week) and eight RBI and co-led in hits. She began the week going 2-for-4 with an RBI in a midweek matchup with Kennesaw State.
Winning Series is Key
Georgia has opened Southeastern Conference play winning four-straight series. Georgia won all but one league series in 2006, a season after winning all 10 series in 2005.
Down But Not Out
In the road series at Mississippi State, Georgia found itself down a run in the top seventh with two out in every game. The Bulldogs either tied or took a lead in each game with one out left, winning games Friday and Sunday.
Georgia has come back to win three games when trailing after six innings this season, the other in the series opener against Florida. The Bulldogs are 4-2 when tied or trailing after six innings in league play.
A Run for the Ages
Georgia softball’s 25-game win streak tied the all-time record. The streak ran from Feb. 9 to Mar. 17. The Bulldogs tied the record from May 6, 2001-Mar. 3, 2002 of the same mark. Georgia opened the 2002 season 24-0.
Dawg Nation, This Is You
Georgia softball set a new attendance record twice against #2 Florida. The record was broken during game two when 2,011 were on hand. The record was topped the next day as 2,457 faithful packed the stadium to capacity.
There’s No Place Like The Jack
Georgia has played 25 games at Jack Turner Stadium this season, winning 24 of said contests. The Bulldogs have nearly topped their home winning total from the past three seasons (24, 2017; 23, 2016; 26, 2015). Georgia is .783 at home with 560 wins.
Solid in the Circle
The Georgia pitching staff has been sharp this season, recording a 1.05 ERA through 36 games and 232.2 innings. Georgia’s ERA is the second-best in the SEC and fourth in the nation. The staff has struck out 264 opposing hitters, allowing only 35 earned runs and putting 17 shutouts in the books.
Brittany Gray has the second-best ERA in the country at 0.51. She did not allow an earned run until her 14th appearance this season. She has allowed just 3.16 hits per seven innings pitched, ranking seventh in NCAA.
A Power-Packed Offense
At the plate, Georgia leads the SEC in five offensive categories including batting average (.357), slugging (.584), runs scored (253), home runs (48), and total bases (555).
In the country, Georgia’s team batting average ranks second to UCLA. The Bulldogs lead the NCAA in slugging while coming in fourth in on-base pct. and in second scoring (7.03 runs/game).
It Begins at the Top
The top of Georgia’s lineup features two hitters batting north of .400 through 36 games in Cortni Emanuel (.423) and Alysen Febrey (.417). Justice Milz and Alyssa DiCarlo are each hitting just under .400 at .387.
The first inning is the second-highest run-producing inning for Georgia, scoring 48 runs in the opening stanza. The Bulldogs have scored in the first 20 times, winning all 18 of said games.
The RUNdown
The Bulldogs have outscored opponents 253-48 this season. Nationally, Georgia ranks fourth in scoring with 7.03 runs per game. Georgia’s .357 batting average is second-best in the NCAA.
Individually, Cortni Emanuel leads the team with 42 runs scored while Alyssa DiCarlo is a close second with 35. Emanuel ranks sixth in the nation with 1.17 runs scored per game.
The Iron Woman
Senior pitcher Brittany Gray has worked a team-leading 95.1 innings in the circle, 41% of Georgia’s innings. Through 95.1 innings, she has allowed just seven earned runs. She is 15-1, shutting out six opponents in 11 complete games. She has also struck out 129 batters. Her 3.16 hits allowed per seven innings ranks seventh nationally while her 9.5 strikeouts per seven innings comes in at 16th.
Her 490 strikeouts ranks sixth all-time at Georgia. She is only the sixth Georgia pitcher to pitch 500 innings in her career.
Zoom, Zoom
Senior Cortni Emanuel tied a Georgia record with five stolen bases against Charleston, Feb. 24. Her mark tied Kellie Middleton’s record vs. McNeese State on Feb. 11, 2007. Emanuel swiped 12 total bags in four games of the Georgia Classic.
Now in her fourth season, she has 153 stolen bases, a figure that ranks second all-time at Georgia. Her 0.89 stolen bases per game this season ranks sixth in the country.
Over the Edge
Georgia has hit 48 home runs in 2018. In 2017, Georgia had 28 in 58 games. Georgia’s 1.33 home runs per game average ranks fourth of all of NCAA DI softball teams.
In the series opener against Florida, Mar. 16, Georgia hit back-to-back-to-back home runs in the first inning. It was the first time Georgia had hit three-straight home runs since Mar. 17, 2013 (vs. Auburn) and the three home runs in an inning since Mar. 7, 2015 (at Mississippi State).
Bulldog pitchers have allowed nine home runs this season. Two hitters have hit more home runs than opponents (DiCarlo, Milz).