UGA Baseball Beats WKU 26-7
Mar 11, 2014; Sarasota, FL, USA; Baseballs are placed on the field for the Baltimore Orioles batting practice before the game against the Boston Red Sox at Ed Smith Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
The Georgia Bulldogs welcomed in the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers, and completely destroyed them, winning by a final score of 26-7.
The win increases the Dawgs’ winning streak to nine games, which is the longest since the 2009 season when UGA began the year 14-0. After two and a half innings, the game was a two run Bulldog lead at 8-6, then the Dawgs exploded for eight runs in the bottom of the third, and never looked back, allowing WKU to score just one more run, and Georgia would wind up scoring again in the 5th, and nine more times in the 8th to take the game.
No Bulldog had more than three hits all season until tonight, where three Dawgs – Conor Welton, Skyler Weber and Hunter Cole – reached that feat. Zack Bowers matched the entire Hilltopper output singlehandedly, as he hit a grand slam and a three-run home run to pitch in with the damage.
Luke Crumley got the start for Georgia, and went 2.1 innings, and gave up six runs on seven hits. He was bailed out by Jarrett Brown, who would get the win (his first career win for UGA, at that) after going 2.2 innings without allowing a run, struck out two and allowed three hits.
For Western Kentucky, Sam Higgs made his first start of the season, after six previous appearances out of the bullpen, and recorded only a single out, as he was pulled after giving up five runs on six hits and a pair of walks. Six of the seven Hilltopper pitchers gave up at least one run, with four of those pitchers allowing five or more runs, and two pitchers, Alex Mercer and Sam Melchior, didn’t record an out.
Leading hitter for WKU, catcher Ryan Messex, recorded two RBI, as did Anderson Miller, while Trevor Lowe and Georgia-native Cody Wofford each recorded a single RBI, and that’d be all she wrote for the Hilltoppers (one of the WKU runs was unearned, therefore, no RBI awarded).
The win moves the UGA record to 11-6, while WKU falls to 10-6.
The two teams will square off again in Athens, as the Hilltoppers, who came off a sweep against the Illinois Illini and beat Vanderbilt in Nashville a couple of weeks back, will look to redeem themselves. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.