LAWRENCEVILLE - Although winning the first two games of the series with Georgia Tech certainly qualified as sweet, winning Sunday’s finale at Coolray Field to earn a sweep qualified as a huge deal for Georgia outfielder Ben Anderson.

The sophomore from LaGrange did his part, going 3 for 5 with a pair of doubles and two RBI to help the No. 4 Bulldogs to a 9-3 win.

“We didn’t want to have them feel like they were any better than us or give them any hope, so we took it to them all three games,” Anderson said. “We showed them we’re the best team in the state.”

Georgia (11-1) outscored the Yellow Jackets (7-4) in the three victories, 27-8.

Head coach Scott Stricklin liked what he saw.

“I thought (Saturday) was the best game (a 12-0 win) we’ve played all year long, and I thought today was the second,” Stricklin said. “Our guys really wanted to finish it off. Winning the series was a great feeling since they [Georgia Tech] won the series last year, so getting that back on our side to get the sweep today was big for us.”

Anderson wasn’t the only Bulldog with a big day at the plate.

Junior Tucker Bradley’s hot start continued, as he too went 3 for 5 with his 18th and 19th RBI, when he served a two-run single in the sixth to lift to give the Bulldogs a three-run cushion after Georgia Tech cut what was a 4-1 lead to 4-3 in the fifth.

“That’s what we’ve talked about—we can’t let teams shift on him,” Stricklin said. “Fans watch the shift and ask why doesn’t he hit the ball the other way? Well, Tucker can really hit the ball the other way, that’s one of his strengths. His newfound power sometimes intoxicates you where you want to hit home runs. But we talked about today; it’s a really big part. It’s not going to carry to right.You need to hit some balls to shortstop today to get them out of the shift.”

The other big story in the game was freshman pitcher Jonathan Cannon.

After taking over for starter C.J.Smith in the fifth, Cannon held the Yellow Jackets to just three hits and one walk, with five strikeouts to earn his third win.

“When it was 4-3, my defense did a heck of a job behind me,” Cannon said. “But after that, getting those runs like we did makes it so much easier on a pitcher.”

With Sunday’s effort, Cannon still has now allowed a run and has only given up four hits, two walks, and 12 strikeouts in 11 innings out of the bullpen so far.

“You’ve got Emerson Hancock and Cole Wilcox, who people talk about, but Jonathan Cannon is a guy people are going to be talking about really soon,” Stricklin said.

It took Georgia Tech starter Zach Maxwell (1-1)—all 6-foot-7 and 270 pounds of him—31 pitches to get through the bottom of the first. By that time, the Bulldogs had struck for three early runs.

Although the Bulldogs managed just one hit in the inning, a wild pitch brought home Cam Shepherd for Georgia’s first run, followed by a throwing error by Tech shortstop Luke Waddell. His throw sailed down the right field line, bringing home Riley King and Connor Tate all the way from first.

The Yellow Jackets would answer in the second when Jackson Webb doubled home Baron Radcliff, before the Bulldogs got the run back in the third on a sacrifice fly to right by Connor Tate.

However, Smith couldn’t make it through the fifth, as the Yellow Jackets struck for two before Stricklin reached for Cannon with one out in the inning.

Cannon would keep the score 4-3 until the bats added some insurance in the sixth, scoring three times, the big-hit a bases-loaded single by Bradley for his 18th and 19th RBI in 12 games.

That would be all the 6-foot-6 freshman from Alpharetta would need as Cannon (3-0) controlled the Yellow Jackets the rest of the way, allowing just three hits and one walk, with five strikeouts over the final 4.2 innings.

Anderson's RBI double in the eighth accounted for Georgia's final run.

Boxscore

…With his third-inning single, Tucker Bradley has now hit safely in all 12 of Georgia’s games.

…Bradley and Shepherd worked the team’s fifth double steal of the year in the sixth. Shepherd and Bradley are now 7 for in steals this year.

…Sunday’s announced attendance was 10,299, although there were a number of empty seats.

Georgia returns to action on Tuesday when instate rival Georgia Southern pays a visit to Foley Field. The Bulldogs and Eagles are also scheduled to play Wednesday at SRP Park in North Augusta, S.C. before the Bulldogs return home for a three-game set with UMass starting Friday afternoon.