No. 22 South Carolina vs. No. 8 Georgia game 2 recap: Gamecocks fall to Bulldogs 8-7, drop series

After getting out to an early lead against the No. 8 Bulldogs, the No. 22 Gamecocks let UGA get back into the game and rally for a win, marking the first time this season USC will try to avoid being swept in a series.

The Gamecocks took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on a solo homer by Luke Berryhill, but the Bulldogs quickly tied things up with an RBI single from Aaron Schunk. That tie was short-lived though too, because South Carolina regained the lead in the bottom of the inning. Ian Jenkins started things off with a home run, then with one out, Quinntin Perez got hit by a pitch and Andrew Eyster followed with a homer to put the Gamecocks up 4-1. With two outs, Berryhill knocked a base hit, and Jacob Olson came through with an RBI double to make the score 5-1.

Unfortunately, Georgia got all the runs right back in the top of the fourth inning, re-tying the game. One run scored on an RBI single by Tucker Maxwell, two more came in on a base hit from Riley King, and the Bulldogs tied it at 5-5 with a Schunk sac fly. USC again regained the lead in the bottom of the inning, after Brady Allen walked to lead off and later came home on an RBI single by Callil, making it a 6-5 game.

UGA tied things back up in the top of the fifth, then took a lead they wouldn’t relinquish, thanks to an RBI double from Chaney Rogers and an RBI groundout by Maxwell, which made the score 7-6.

The Bulldogs’ final run of the game came in the sixth inning on a Mason Meadows RBI single. The Gamecocks tried to rally late, but were only able to push one run across in the ninth inning, when Olson got hit by a pitch, stole two bases on a wild pitch, and scored on a sac fly from Chris Cullen.

South Carolina starter Reid Morgan worked four innings and allowed eight hits and five runs. He walked two batters and struck out three. Daniel Lloyd, Gage Hinson, Dylan Harley, a and Cam Tringali also pitched in this game, and Lloyd took the loss, making him 2-1. Georgia reliever Will Proctor got the win and is now 3-0, while Schunk earned the save, his seventh of the season.

The Gamecocks are now 14-5 overall and 0-2 in the SEC, while the Bulldogs are 17-2 overall and 2-0 in conference play. First pitch in Sunday’s series finale game is set for 1:30 p.m. at Founders Park.