LEXINGTON, KY — Kentucky clinched the opening SEC series Saturday over Georgia with a 9-3 victory at Proud Park.
Kentucky (16-3, 2-0 SEC) built a 3-0 lead after two innings, getting a pair of runs in the second and one in the second. Sophomore right-hander Leighton Finley got out of a jam as the Wildcats loaded the bases with one out and managed just an infield run-scoring single before leaving them loaded. Finely provided two scoreless innings after that but with his pitch count at 88, Georgia looked to graduate Daniel Padysak to start the fifth. He did not retire a batter. After issuing a pair of back-to-back walks, Ryan Nicholson laced a two-run double to make it 5-0. Then, Georgia turned to graduate Josh Roberge, who took care of the Wildcats without any further damage until they added a run in the sixth and three more in the eighth.
The Bulldogs (17-3, 0-2 SEC) were held to a season-low three hits and finished 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position (RISP), while Kentucky tallied 14 hits, including 5-for-10 with RISP. Senior Sebastian Murillo got Georgia’s first hit, a single in the second to put two on with one out, but the Bulldogs came up empty. Then, in the fourth, graduate Paul Toetz smacked a leadoff double but was stranded there.
Georgia finally broke through in the seventh, scoring three runs on one hit, including a bases-loaded walk to Condon for the first run. It was one of three walks issued to Condon Saturday, who now has five in the series, plus he has been hit twice. Junior Slate Alford delivered a two-run single to make it a 6-3 contest. Kentucky hit a pair of home runs in the eighth for the final.
“We got to learn how to win on the road in this league because it’s really tough,” said Georgia’s Ike Cousins head baseball coach Wes Johnson. “We’re not making pitches at the right time. We’re not catching the ball at the right time or getting the hits when we need them. We didn’t strike out a bunch today, but we have to be better at-bats, too. Leighton (Finley) battled, and there’s some things we can build off like how he settled down in the third and fourth innings. There were some positives today. We have to be ready to rock tomorrow, play a complete game and that needs to be our mindset.”
Kentucky left-hander Dominic Niman pitched 6.2 innings with four walks and five strikeouts, allowing three unearned runs to move to 4-1, while Jackson Nove pitched the final 2.1 innings for his second save. Finley dropped to 2-1, surrendering three runs on seven hits over four innings.
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