Not all mistakes show up as errors and Georgia’s 6-4 loss Wednesday at Kennesaw State was a good example of that.
It was just one of those nights.
Five walks did not do the Bulldogs (7-2) any favors, but neither did another key base-running mistake when Connor Tate was throwing out at second trying to stretch an RBI single to a double. Three double plays were the capper, and as a result, Georgia saw its seven-game winning streak come to an end after the Owls scored three runs in the bottom of the eighth.
“It was a disappointing loss after having the lead in the eighth, and you have to credit Kennesaw State for coming back,” said head coach Scott Stricklin. “They made a lot of defensive plays and kept it close. We hit into a couple of double plays and made some base-running mistakes and that can get you beat, and it did.”
The Bulldogs got on the board first when Garrett Blaylock blasted his third home of the season in the second inning, only to have KSU answer in the bottom half of the inning.
Alex Caraballo was the man responsible when he blasted a three-run home run before Georgia reclaimed the lead in the fifth on RBI singles from Riley King and Tate.
Redshirt freshman Charlie Goldstein started for the Bulldogs and got off to a great start when he struck out the side in the first on nine pitches.
Goldstein went 3.2 innings before being replaced by Ben Harris, who went 1.2 innings. After a one-out, pinch-hit double in the eighth, Georgia lifted Harris for Collin Caldwell. He got the second out before Caraballo struck again with a two-out run-scoring double to tie the game at 4, bringing Jack Gowen into the game.
Tyler Simons gave the Owls (5-3) the lead with an RBI-triple and came home on an infield smash by Jake Coro for the final score. Jared Rhine (1-0) pitched three shutout innings for the win while Kolby Johnson pitched the ninth for his third save. Caldwell dropped to 1-1 with the loss.
Georgia returns to action Friday at 5:00 for the first of three against North Florida.
