Georgia took it personally.

After hitting a two-run go-ahead home run in the eighth inning, Albany shortstop Brad Malm admired his work. He slammed his helmet into the ground as he neared home plate. The Bulldogs took notice in the dugout.

That incident helped spur Georgia (2-0) to a come-from-behind 7-6 victory over the Great Danes (0-2) thanks to a walkoff single from senior shortstop Cole Tate.

"This is our home field, and we don’t want anyone acting like that on our field," head coach Scott Stricklin said after the game. "If they do, you just respond. The way you respond is by winning, and that’s what we did."

After Malm's home run, Albany led 6-4 heading to the bottom of the eighth.

A one-out home run from Cole Tate brought the score to 6-5. A sacrifice fly from senior first baseman Chaney Rogers later in the inning tied the game at six.

The score remained the same heading to the bottom of the ninth. With two outs and no one on base, senior left fielder Connor Tate roped a double to right-center.

Albany chose to intentionally walk sophomore catcher Corey Collins. That brought Cole Tate up to the dish.

"I’m a very aggressive swinger, I would say," Cole Tate said. "I was thinking anything in the zone."

He got what he wanted on the first pitch. Tate ripped a single to left, scoring his brother and giving the Bulldogs the 7-6 win.

"I tell them they’re 15-year seniors," Stricklin said of the Tate twins. "Combined, they’ve been here 10 years. They’re 23-year-old, experienced, really good baseball players. We’re very fortunate to have them on our team."

The final pitch saw Georgia take its first and only lead of the game. The Bulldogs fell behind 4-0 after the top of the third.

Georgia starting pitcher Liam Sullivan allowed a home run, a single, and another home run to begin the inning. Another double and a walk ended his day after two-plus innings. Sullivan allowed five hits and four earned runs in his short season debut.

"I thought Liam just fell behind in the count a little bit too much," Stricklin said. "He wasn’t hitting his breaking ball as much as he normally does. Even though it’s 91, 92, he pitches a lot off his breaking ball and his changeup. He just wasn’t landing his offspeed, falling behind a little bit. The wind’s blowing out and you’ve got experienced hitters. They hit a couple balls hard."

Sophomore Will Pearson held the Great Danes scoreless over the next three innings. Stricklin called him the MVP of the game for his ability to hold Albany from adding to the lead.

The Bulldogs chipped away starting in the fourth. Connor Tate hit a one-out home run to center field. An RBI double from Collins made it 4-2 in the sixth. Sophomore third baseman Parks Harber then tied the game at four with a 2-run home run off the batter's eye in the bottom of the seventh.

All told, the Bulldogs and Great Danes combined for six home runs on a day where the wind blew straight out of Foley Field.

Junior reliever Nolan Crisp surrendered the go-ahead home run to Malm in the eighth. But thanks to some resilience and a helmet slam, the Bulldogs rallied for the win.

"That’s what you want to see. You want to see some toughness," Stricklin said. "We just didn’t stop fighting. Really encouraged by our kids just not giving up."

- Center fielder Ben Anderson left the game in the eighth inning with a groin injury. He tweaked it before the game and it got worse as the day went on. Anderson told the coaches he felt sore, and they removed him from the game. Stricklin said he's day-to-day.

- Josh McAllister left Friday's season opener with a cramp. He returned for a pinch-hit appearance on Saturday, lining out to second.

- Freshman Cole Wagner collected his first two collegiate hits.

- Georgia goes for the sweep tomorrow at 1:00. Right-hander Dylan Ross will start the series finale for the Bulldogs.