One crazy comeback as Georgia tops Tech again
LAWRENCEVILLE – When asked about his team in a recent post-game interview, head coach Wes Johnson used the term “grit” to describe his first Georgia team.
Sunday at Coolray Field, the Bulldogs showed that grit, rallying back from a seven-run deficit to beat Georgia Tech, 11-9.
“I tell guys all the time, my No. 1 rule in life is simple–you better believe in yourself. If you don’t, you’re never going to accomplish anything that’s hard,” Johnson said. “This game’s hard. You get 27 outs. We just kept telling them this is a long game. We’ve got to get 27; they’ve got to get 27 on us. You’ve got to believe in yourself, and we did.”
The win boosts Georgia to 10-1 on the year.
With Georgia down by one in the ninth, a sacrifice fly by Sebastian Murillo on an 0-2 pitch scored pinch-runner Trey King from third, before Fernando Gonzalez doubled in Josh Stinson from first for the go-ahead run.
Kolby Branch gave his team an important insurance run when he singled off pitcher Carsten Sabathia, scoring pinch-runner Henry Hunter.
Of Georgia’s ninth-inning at-bats, two were key. Left-handed hitting Corey Collins went down 0-2 before coaxing a leadoff walk by Yellow Jacket reliever Cam Jones (1-1). Murillo’s sacrifice fly also came on an 0-2 pitch.
“Great to see that,” Branch said. “I’m always cheering for those guys, no matter what happens. Just proud of those guys.”
Brian Zeldin closed out the game with a scoreless ninth, striking out two of the four batters he faced for his third save.
Down 9-3 after two errors accounted for seven unearned runs, a five-run seventh inning put the Bulldogs right back in the game. The key hit was a bases-clearing double on an 0-2 pitch by Clayton Chadwick, followed by an RBI single by Murillo to make the score 9-8.
It might have been more, but unfortunately for Georgia, on Murillo’s hit, Stinson overran the bag and was thrown out. A fly out to short center by Gonzalez ended the inning with Georgia trailing by just one.
“I can’t say they were beating us; I can say we were beating ourselves,” Johnson said. “I called the guys up and I told the guys: I don’t care how this game finishes, but we’ve got to lock in, we’ve got to focus, we’ve got to quit chasing, we’ve got to attack without being attacked, and we’ve got to throw strikes.”
That’s just what freshman Luke Wiltrakis did as he gave the Bulldogs a shutdown inning in the bottom of the seventh.
Josh Roberge (2-0) replaced Wiltrakis after a one-out walk in the eighth and retired the side before Georgia’s bats went to work against Georgia Tech in the ninth.
Georgia started its comeback on homers by Branch and Charlie Condon (No. 8) to bring the Bulldogs within 6-3 before three more unearned runs in the bottom of the sixth extended the lead to 9-3.
The game did not start quite as Johnson hoped.
Starter Leighton Finley only lasted 2 2/3 innings, although his defense did not do him any favors.
A one-out throwing error by Branch set the Yellow Jackets on their way to a four-run third, all with four runs being unearned.
Catcher Matthew Ellis’ long home run over the wall in the right keyed the inning.
Meanwhile, Georgia Tech starter Logan McGuire had his pitches working.
At least early on.
The right-hander struck out eight Bulldogs over the first four innings, stranding a pair in the second before the Branch atoned for his earlier error with a two-run homer to bring Georgia within 5-2. The teams then traded runs with Georgia Tech leading 6-3 heading to the seventh.
Three more unearned runs in the sixth pushed the lead to 9-3.
“You looked around and everybody was like, ‘We’re good. We’ve got this,’” said Branch. “That’s the identity of this team, and it’s kind of grown into everybody’s lives.”
The Bulldogs return to action Tuesday when they travel to North Augusta to take on Georgia Southern.