Sports

Final Score: Georgia 9, LSU 5. Palazzone improves to 3-1 with his first complete game. He gave up five runs on seven hits and struck out four. Gausman (2-2) gets the loss for LSU, giving up seven runs on six hits. Farmer had three RBIs on a bases-loaded double in the second inning. Welton went 2-3 and scored twice. Ruiz also scored twice and had the game’s only home run. Georgia’s record improves to 10-13 (2-3 SEC), while the Tigers have lost four of their first five SEC games. We have the second game of this doubleheader coming up in just a little bit. Stay tuned.

Top 7th: Georgia 9, LSU 5– Jones grounds out to short. Rhymes grounds out to third. Hanover bloops a single into shallow center. Mahtook grounds to second, and that’s the ballgame. Georgia ends its four-game losing streak with an impressive 9-5 win in the first game of this doubleheader.

Bottom 6th: Georgia 9, LSU 5– Farmer pops up to first. Cone flies out to center. Chase Davidson pinch-hits for the Bulldogs. He’s batting .280 on the year, goes down swinging. Three up, three down. LSU will have one more chance to score four runs in this seven-inning game. Georgia up, 9-5.

Top 6th: Georgia 9, LSU 5– Two defensive changes for Georgia: Jonathan Hester is in at first base, and Colby May is in at third. Palazzone strikes out Katz, who watches a pitch get the outside corner. Ross singles to center. Lowery lines out to right. Watkins grounds into a fielder’s choice; Ross is out at second. Palazzone has been great since that four-run third inning. He’s allowed two hits and struck out two in the last three innings.

Bottom 5th: Georgia 7, LSU 5– HOME RUN. Ruiz opens up the bottom of the fifth with a solo shot to right. That’s the second career home run for Ruiz and his first since last season. Welton hits a standup double to center. LSU makes a second change at the mound. Right-hander Kevin Barry is now pitching. Barry has pitched in 11 games this season, with one save. He has allowed just four hits in 8.2 innings pitched. Stephens heads to the plate with two hits in two at-bats. Stephens does his job on the bunt, getting Welton to third. One out. Powell earns a walk. Leadoff man Hyams flies out to center on a good catch by Mahtook; Welton scores. Powell steals second. Verdin flies out to short to end the inning. Bulldogs score twotrand one. The scoreboard reads 9-5, Georgia.

Top 5th: Georgia 7, LSU 5– Hanover flies out to left-centerfield. Mahtook is now 2-3 on the day after flying out to shallow center. Nola also flies out to center, making it three and out. It’s time for the fifth inning stretch.

Bottom 4th: Georgia 7, LSU 5– Hyams gets his first hit of the game with a single between first and second. Verdin bunts, gets to first on a fielder’s choice. Hyams is out at second. Verdin steals second and now has seven steals on the year. Farmer walks on four pitches. Cone advances the runners to second and third on a groundout to second. Two out, two on. DeLoach flies out to deep right to end the inning. Bulldogs strand two more in scoring position, leaving the score at 7-5 through four.

Top 4th: Georgia 7, LSU 5– Lowery strikes out swinging. Watkins gets an infield single. Jones flies out to center. Rhymes grounds out to short to end the inning quickly. Still 7-5, Georgia.

Bottom 3rd: Georgia 6, LSU 5– Ruiz leads off with a walk. And that will be all for Gausman. He lasts just two innings, giving up six runs on six hits with two walks. LSU brings in RHP Jimmy Dykstra from the bullpen. Dykstra has a 3-0 record in nine appearances, with a 3.38 ERA and 14 strikeouts. Ruiz slides into second for a stolen base. Welton grounds out to second; Ruiz goes to third. Stephens gets his second single of the game, scoring Ruiz. Katz makes a great play on a diving catch from Powell’s pop-up, then throws to first to get out Stephens for the double play. Georgia scores once and leads 7-5 through three.

Top 3rd: Georgia 6, LSU 1– Watkins hits a grounder to third, gets first on another throwing error by Powell, who brought Ruiz off the bag with his throw. Jones hits a hard one that Hyams can’t handle. Hyams is charged with the error. Men on first and second for the Tigers. Rhymes flies out to right, getting Watkins to third. Hanover gets Watkins home with a single to left. Jones to second. Mahtook hits a slow bouncer and takes first base when Ruiz can’t quite get the out. Jones scores for the Tigers. Nola hits a single to left, bringing Hanover and Mahtook home. Katz takes first on a fielder’s choice, Nola out at second. Two outs. Katz steals second easily. Ross flies out to right for the third out. The Tigers respond to Georgia’s big second inning with a four-run third. It’s now 6-5 in favor of the Bulldogs.

Bottom 2nd: LSU 1, Georgia 0– Cone, batting .291, takes four straight balls for a leadoff walk. DeLoach drives a double down the left-field line, scoring Cone. Ruiz bunts, getting DeLoach to third. Welton hits a single right down the middle of the infield. It’s now 2-1, Bulldogs. An error by the pitcher Gausman, who attempts to pick off Welton at first but throws it past the first baseman, and Welton gets all the way to third. Stephens scores Welton with a single to right. LSU coach out to talk to Gausman, who has given up three runs, three hits, and made a two-base error this inning with just one out. Another single to right, this one by Powell. Stephens gets to third. Back at the top of the order now. Hyams fouls off two pitches, then goes down looking. Verdin is hit by a pitch, loading the bases for Farmer. Farmer gets all three runners home with a double down the left line. Cone gets an infield single on a hit that third baseman Hanover can’t quite handle. Farmer is on third. Cone steals second standing up. Gausman strikes out DeLoach to finally end the inning. A huge inning for the Bulldogs. They sent 11 men to the plate, getting six runs on six hits and an error. The Bulldogs strand two in scoring position, but they lead, 6-1.

Top 2nd: LSU 1, Georgia 0– Katz has the second-most RBIs on the Tigers with 23, and he hits one deep into left field, but Welton makes the catch at the wall. Palazzone strikes out Ross with a pitch on the outside corner. Lowery flies to left. Three and out.

Bottom 1st: LSU 1, Georgia 0– Hyams leads off for the Dogs, lining a pitch right back into Gausman’s glove. Verdin is batting just .194 through 22 games, and he flies out to center. Farmer flies out to right. Three up, three down for the Bulldogs.

Top 1st: Georgia 0, LSU 0– On the first pitch of the game, Jones smacks one to shallow center, which Cone handles with ease. Rhymes hits a grounder to third, but Powell throws it right past the first baseman Ruiz, and Rhymes gets second base on the error. Hanover grounds to third, and Powell finishes the play this time. A wild pitch by Palazzone moves Rhymes to third. Mahtook drives a single to left-center field to score the run for the Tigers. Mahtook steals second base, the pickoff attempt from the catcher Stephens not even close. Mahtook now has 25 RBIs and 13 SB on the year. Nola is caught looking and goes down on strikes. LSU strands a runner at second but has the early 1-0 lead, helped by the Powell error.

Once again, the attendance at the game seems pretty close to 50-50 between Georgia and LSU fans.

LSU has made a change on the mound, opting for RHP Kevin Gausman (2-1, 2.76 ERA).

Hyams, with a .344 batting average, is the only Georgia starter batting over .300. Farmer’s 17 RBIs leads the team.

Starting lineup for the Bulldogs:

1. 2B Levi Hyams

2. RF Peter Verdin

3. SS Kyle Farmer

4. CF Zach Cone

5. DH Brett DeLoach

6. 1B Kevin Ruiz

7. LF Conor Welton

8. C Brandon Stephens

9. 3B Curt Powell

Jones has a .385 batting average heading into today. Rhymes bats .375 with 33 hits and eight doubles. Mahtook is the Tigers’ power guy, leading the team with seven home runs and 24 RBIs.

The Tigers have switched from their purple jerseys to their yellow ones in an attempt to get better weather today.

Here’s the predicted starting lineup for the Tigers:

1. 2B JaCoby Jones

2. DH Raph Rhymes

3. 3B Tyler Hanover

4. CF Mikie Mahtook

5. SS Austin Nola

6. RF Mason Katz

7. C Ty Ross

8. 1B Mike Lowery

9. LF Trey Watkins

To my knowledge, the teams plan on using the pitchers who were supposed to start yesterday. Georgia will start RHP Michael Palazzone (2-1, 2.64 ERA) in the first game. LSU goes with RHP Ben Alsup (3-2, 3.42 ERA).

Hello again. Ken Nasse here from Foley Field, ready to watch the Bulldogs take on the ninth-ranked LSU Tigers. The second game of this three-game series was supposed to be yesterday afternoon, but the weather prevented the teams from taking the field, and as a result, there will be two seven-inning games this afternoon. As I mentioned yesterday, the Bulldogs have lost five of six and are currently in last place in the SEC East. The Tigers had lost four straight before their Friday night 7-3 win over the Dogs. The temperature at the park is 46 degrees. We shouldn’t have a rain delay today, though. Sky is overcast, but at the worst, we should only get some light drizzle, according to Yahoo! Weather at least.