The 14th-ranked Georgia Gwinnett baseball team split its doubleheader action against USC Beaufort (S.C.) on Saturday as the Grizzlies fell in game one 8-3 but responded with a 13-4 victory in the nightcap to improve to 34-19 on the year.
While the Sand Sharks' win in game one snapped GGC's five-game winning streak against USCB, the Grizzlies still lead the all-time series 10-4.
"We had some mental errors in game one but refocused in game two, and the win was the result," said GGC head coach Brad Stromdahl. "We have had a lot of great hits as of late. We just need more to fall in timely situations, taking advantage of runners in scoring position."
The Grizzlies outhit USCB 8-7; however, defensive errors by Georgia Gwinnett carried the Sand Sharks to the 8-3 victory in game one.
USCB (32-19) jumped out to a 6-0 advantage after the first two innings of play. In the bottom of the first, center fielder Thomas Estopare scored on a Grizzly fielding error at short on a grounder hit by shortstop Brandon Joyce to make it 1-0. Two batters later, the Sand Sharks pushed their advantage to 4-0 with a three-run home run over the right-center field fence by first baseman Bobby Wenthe. An inning later, Joyce gave USCB the 6-0 lead with a two-run double to the right-center field gap.
Georgia Gwinnett cut the Sand Sharks' advantage to 6-1 in the top of the fourth with a solo home run by first baseman Alex Garland.
With a 6-1 lead heading into the bottom of the fourth, an RBI-double by left fielder Kal Davis and a sacrifice fly to deep center by Wenthe increased USCB's gap to 8-1.
While GGC rallied for two runs in the top of the seventh, scoring runs on a wild pitch and a sacrifice fly to right by designated hitter Marcus McCorkle, the Grizzlies could not overcome USCB's early lead in the 8-3 loss.
GGC's Tyler Souris (6-3) suffered the loss, surrendering eight runs, three earned, on seven hits while USCB's Wade Arduini (7-2) collected the win. Arduini allowed just one run on six hits while striking out six in the contest.
In game two, the Grizzlies rebounded from game one's loss with a 13-4 win over USCB. GGC jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning of play. McCorkle started the scoring rally with an RBI-double down the right field line. The Grizzlies then received back-to-back RBI-singles from Jean Paul Rodriguez and Garland, pushing their lead to 3-0. Georgia Gwinnett scored its final run of the opening inning when third baseman Brandon Frazier pushed a seeing-eye RBI-single through the left side of the infield.
The Sand Sharks rallied to score three runs in the bottom of the second, cutting GGC's lead to 4-3. Right fielder Alex Murphy made it 4-2, splitting the Grizzly lead in half, with a two-run home run over the left-center field fence. Three batters later, second baseman Mclean Hartz moved the Sand Sharks within one, 4-3, with an RBI-single to center.
An inning later, the Sand Sharks tied the game at 4-4 when a single hit to right by Wenthe was bobbled by GGC right fielder Kyler Timmerman.
Fueled by an RBI-single by center fielder Chris Jones and a two-run double by Rodriguez, the Grizzlies responded with a three-run fourth inning to regain a 7-4 lead.
Georgia Gwinnett's offense continued to thrive as the Grizzlies scored six more runs over the last two innings of play to increase their lead over USCB to 13-4.
In the sixth, GGC scored four runs behind a two-run triple by Jones, an RBI-double by McCorkle, and an RBI-single by Frazier to center.
Stromdahl's squad plated two final runs in the top of the seventh with a sacrifice fly by second baseman Deion Sellers and an RBI-single by Garland.
GGC's starter Trevor Bradley (6-4) picked up the win, throwing a complete game in the 13-4 victory. Bradley allowed just four runs, three earned, on seven hits while striking out five. USCB's Zac Burke (6-4) was credited with the loss, allowing seven earned runs on nine hits in five innings of work.
The same two teams will meet in the rubber game on Sunday, April 30 at 1:00 p.m. in the Grizzlies' regular season finale. Georgia Gwinnett will then return to Lawrenceville where it will host the A.I.I. tournament May 6-8 at the Grizzly Baseball Complex.
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