Torrential rain and flooding the Nashville area has cancelled the remainder of the Georgia-Vanderbilt baseball series.

Sunday's scheduled action was to feature the completion of a suspended game from Saturday when Georgia was leading 4-2 in the bottom of the fourth followed by a seven-inning game to complete the series.

The Bulldogs (13-30, 3-16 SEC) will be back in action Friday for the start of a three-game set with Tennessee.

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Freshman Alison Owen pitched a complete-game in her first-career start to lead the eighth-ranked Georgia softball team past 12^th-ranked LSU, 3-2, Friday night at Tiger Park in front of 1,663.

With the win, Georgia avoided a sweep at the hands of the Tigers, improved to 41-10 overall and concluded the Southeastern Conference portion of its 2010 schedule at 18-8. LSU fell to 41-11 overall and 19-6 in league play.

Owen was given the start in game three of the series after making her first 23 career appearances in relief, and the freshman made the most of the opportunity outdueling LSU's Cody Trahan to improve to 11-1 on the year. Owen allowed two runs, both unearned, on six hits while walking none and striking out three. Trahan (12-3) also worked a complete game but suffered the loss having allowed three runs, one earned, on six hits while striking out eight.

Georgia scored all three of its runs in the third inning with a trio of two-out hits and an LSU error. Junior Taylor Schlopy started the rally with a single through the left side, and junior Megan Wiggins followed with a single to center moving Schlopy to second. Junior Alisa Goler then singled to left and Schlopy came around to score beating the throw from LSU left fielder Ashley Langoni. On the play, Wiggins advanced to third and Goler took second on the throw to the plate. Next, sophomore Ashley Razey hit a fly ball to left that would have ended the inning, but Langoni dropped ball allowing both Wiggins and Goler to score. Wiggins single in the inning extended her career-best hitting streak to 12 games, and she has now reached base safely in 22-straight contests.

Friday's action was part of LSU's Swing for the Cure as both teams' uniforms included pink in support of breast cancer awareness, and a crowd of 1,663 turned out for the event. It marked the fifth-largest home crowd in LSU history.

Up next, Georgia will return to Athens for final exams, May 3-7, before traveling to Austin, Texas, to conclude the regular season with a two-game series against the Texas Longhorns (38-10), May 9-10.

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RALEIGH, N.C. - Jed Bradley scattered three runs - two earned - over 6.0 innings, and Matt Skole drove in four runs at the plate to lead No. 4 Georgia Tech over NC State, 5-3, in the series finale Sunday at Doak Field.

The Jackets improved to 36-9 overall and 17-7 in the Atlantic Coast Conference with the win. NC State falls to 28-18 and 11-13 in ACC play.

"We played much better defensively today," Head coach Danny Hall said. "We didn't walk too many guys, and we didn't give them a chance to put pressure on us. Anytime we don't walk guys and we play good defense, we have a great chance to win."

Bradley worked six innings Sunday, allowing the three runs on seven hits to improve to 7-2 on the season. The junior left-hander has been victorious in each of his last three starts, not allowing more than three runs in each outing.

"Jed [Bradley] has pitched great for us and given us a chance to win every Sunday," Hall said. "We needed him to pitch well today because we are going through a little bit of a funk. I thought he threw the ball well given that he held a good hitting team like NC State to just three runs."

Skole was 2-for-4 with four RBI on the day, and hit his 14th homer on the season with a deep shot right center in the top of the first off of NC State starter Alex Sogard.

"He [Matt Skole] had a big day," Hall added. "He got down two strikes on the count, and their pitcher made a mistake, so he made him pay. I was really surprised it went out because the ball hasn't been traveling well here today."

Sogard (0-2) picked up the loss after allowing four runs on five hits in 3.1 innings.

NC State got a run back in the bottom half of the first as Drew Poulk hit a RBI double to center. The Wolfpack added two more in the third, one on a groundout and another on a sac fly, to tie the game at 3-3.

The Jackets broke a 3-3 tie in the fourth inning, when Cole Leonida sent a solo shot to left field off of Sogard. It was Leonida's 10th homer of the season, as he became the fifth Tech player to reach the double-digit home run total this season.

The Jackets added another run in the seventh inning on some clutch two-out hitting by Skole. With senior Plagman stealing second to put himself in scoring position, Skole sent a grounder through the right side to drive Plagman home for a 5-3 cushion.

Sophomore Mark Pope relieved Bradley in the seventh, and recorded his first save of the season after holding the Wolfpack scoreless on just one hit in the final three innings. Pope, Tech's midweek starter, made his first relief appearance of the season.

"Mark [Pope] is pitching as good as anyone we have right now," Hall said. "We wanted to use him as a setup guy today, but he was throwing so good that we decided to leave him in there."

The Jackets will take the midweek off for exams before returning to action next weekend with a three-game series against Illinois-Chicago at Russ Chandler Stadium. First pitch Friday is at 7 p.m.

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ATHENS --- Powered by an eight-run outburst, Georgia slugged past Western Carolina 13-10 Wednesday in front of a Foley Field crowd of 2,257.

The Bulldogs (13-29) got home runs from Levi Hyams (3-for-4, 3 RBI), Zach Taylor, Christian Glisson and Todd Hankins (3-for-4, 3 RBI) as part of an 18-hit attack to defeat the Catamounts (25-14-1). Wednesday's contest was just the second game in the past 18 that the Bulldogs did not face a ranked opponent. During this stretch, Georgia went 4-14.

Third baseman Tyler Kirkpatrick (4-for-5, 5 RBI) gave the Catamounts a 1-0 lead in the first when with two outs he connected for his team-leading 12th home run off senior Alex McRee. Taylor tied the game in the second with his first career home run.

McRee, who has been a reliever this season, was making his first start since May 15, 2009 at South Carolina. On Wednesday, he went two innings with two strikeouts and was lifted following a leadoff walk in the third. Redshirt freshman Zach Laughlin came on and recorded an out, gave up a single and hit a batter to load the bases for Kirkpatrick. He promptly cleared the bases with a three-run double to make it 4-1. At that point, Georgia turned to junior Eric Swegman who retired the next two Catamounts to end the outburst. In the bottom of the third, Hankins and sophomore Johnathan Taylor (4-for-5) registered base hits. With one out, Hyams brought Hankins in with a run-scoring single that extended his hitting streak to seven games. Then for the second time in the contest, a double steal attempt was thwarted by the Catamounts who threw out Taylor at third. After a walk to freshman Robert Shipman, WCU went to the bullpen and brought in right-hander Jeremy Sluder who retired freshman Kyle Farmer to keep it 4-2.
WCU got the run back in the fourth as Trevor Collias led off with a single, stole second and scored on a base hit by Tyler White. With a 2-2 count on Bryant Noteboom, Georgia turned to senior Steve Esmonde. He struck out Noteboom but then allowed an RBI-double to Dylan de Graaf and WCU extended its lead to 6-2. In the bottom of the inning, Glisson smashed a two-out, solo home run. It was his third of the year and made it 6-3.

In the fifth, Taylor tied his career-high with his third hit of the contest, a double off Sluder. WCU turned to Vance Chavis. A wild pitch got Taylor third and then he scored on a pinch-hit single by sophomore Zach Cone to make it 6-4. WCU responded in the sixth as Trevor Collias greeted freshman Malcolm Clapsaddle with a solo home run, his 10th of the year. Then, White nearly made it back-to-back shots if not for a great catch by Taylor who jumped up at the wall and brought it back for the first out of the frame. Pinch-hitter Cameron Dullnig notched a single, stole second and third and scored on a base hit by de Graaf and it was 9-4. They added one more run before Clapsaddle was replaced by junior Ben Cornwell. After a flare hit to load the bases, he got an inning-ending double play.

With one out in the sixth, Hankins launched his first career home run, a three-run shot off the camera stand in left center to bring the Bulldogs to within two at 9-7. After a bunt single by Taylor for his fourth hit of the evening, WCU went to the bullpen in Andrew Chilcoat. He struck out Peter Verdin for the second out and then Hyams tied the game when he crushed a two-run shot off the batter's eye to make it 9-9. After Cone worked a walk, Farmer moved him to third with a double. Kevin Ruiz's high chopper to shortstop allowed Cone to score to give Georgia a 10-9 advantage. Farmer scored on a wild pitch by Andrew Blackwell. Then, DeLoach laced an RBI-double to left to make it 12-9 to cap the scoring. The eight-run inning tied the most by the Bulldogs since the home opener against Presbyterian on Feb. 24 when Georgia struck for eight runs on eight hits in an 11-3 win.

WCU got a run in the eighth off Cecil Tanner as Kirkpatrick collected his fourth hit and fifth RBI on the night. Georgia got the run back on a wild pitch as Hyams scored to make it 13-10.

Freshman Cooper Moseley came on in the ninth and registered his fourth save. He struck out two and preserved the win for Cornwell (1-1). Chilcoat took the loss to fall to 1-1 as he allowed four runs on three hits.

"Tonight's win was huge, what's ironic is that someone else finally walked more guys than we did," said Georgia coach David Perno. "We were down and (Todd) Hankins' three-run home run got life back to the team. I wanted to show this team that we're going to go for it. Regardless of the score, it's good to get our guys in motion and get balls in play. We've played three tough games in a row in South Carolina, Georgia Tech and Western Carolina, and we had chances to win all three and it's great to get a win."

Georgia gets back in to Southeastern Conference action Friday in Nashville, Tenn. The Bulldogs face Vanderbilt (32-12, 9-9 SEC) with first pitch slated for 7 p.m. ET.

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TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - No. 4/4 Alabama (40-9) scored in every inning and defeated No. 9/7 Georgia Tech (43-9), 13-1 in five innings, Wednesday night at the Alabama Softball Complex. Junior Kristine Priebe had a RBI double to account for the Yellow Jackets' only run.

Freshman Hope Rush (24-6) took the loss as she was charged with five earned runs in just one-plus inning of work. It was the shortest start of her career. Rush allowed three hits, walked four and struck out one. Sophomore Jessica Coan went the rest of the way for Georgia Tech and was charged with eight runs (six earned) on nine hits and five walks. She also fanned five batters.

Junior Christy Jones had the only other hit off Alabama starter Kelsi Dunne (21-4). Dunne gave up one earned run on two hits. She walked one and fanned eight.

Alabama pounded out 12 hits on the night. Charlotte Morgan got the Crimson Tide going in the first inning with a two-run triple and then they broke the game open with a five-run second inning. The big blow was a three-run home run by Amanda Locke.

Alabama went on to add three more runs in the third and two in the fourth to cruise to the win.

Tech's lone run came in the fourth inning. Sophomore Kelsi Weseman led off with a walk and scored all the way from first base on a RBI double by Priebe to the wall in left-center field. Priebe.

Georgia Tech closes out the regular season this weekend in Raleigh, N.C. against NC State. The Yellow Jackets and Wolfpack will play a doubleheader at 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 1 and then close out the series the following day with a single game at 1 p.m. Tech has won an ACC record 16 straight series' in league play heading into this weekend. Live audio and stats for all three games will be available at www.RamblinWreck.com.

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Eighth-ranked Georgia Tech used a six-run outburst in the eighth inning to rally past Georgia 6-4 Tuesday in front of a Turner Field crowd of 16,194 in the eighth annual Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Spring Classic for Kids.

Bulldog freshman left-hander Blake Dieterich had the best outing of his career as he provided five shutout innings before giving way to sophomore Michael Palazzone. Dieterich allowed a double with two walks and two strikeouts in his third career start. Georgia threatened in the fifth, putting runners at second and third with one out. However Georgia Tech sophomore Mark Pope registered back-to-back strikeouts of Chase Davidson and Carson Schilling to keep it a scoreless game.

The Yellow Jackets (35-7) had a chance to score in the first, putting runners at the corners with two outs but Dieterich retired Matt Skole on a popout. In the sixth, Jeff Rowland reached on a one-out base hit, stole second and was stranded at third when Palazzone struck out Tony Plagman.

Georgia (12-29) pushed across a couple of runs in the sixth inning on five hits including four that didn’t leave the infield. Freshman third baseman Todd Hankins started the rally with a bunt single. Sophomore left fielder Johnathan Taylor followed with a base hit to left. Sophomore right fielder Peter Verdin reached on an infield single to load the bases for sophomore second baseman Levi Hyams. He registered a run-scoring single. Pope retired sophomore centerfielder Zach Cone on a pop out and struck out freshman shortstop Kyle Farmer to bring up freshman designated hitter Robert Shipman. He lined a sharp single off Pope’s leg that scored Taylor for a 2-0 edge. Then, Pope collected his ninth strikeout by getting Davidson for the third time on the night and avoided a big inning by the Bulldogs.

Palazzone got the first out of the seventh and Georgia looked to senior left-hander Justin Earls. He gave up back-to-back singles to Skole and Chase Burnette. He retired Thomas Nichols on a popout and then second baseman Jacob Esch flew out to center to keep it a 2-0 contest.

In the eighth, Jeff Rowland reached with a one-out double and Derek Dieterich hit a sinking line drive to center for a base hit as Rowland took third. Plagman delivered a sacrifice fly to put the Yellow Jackets on the board and make it 2-1. At that point, Georgia brought in senior Jeff Walters and Cole Leonida lined his first offering up the middle for a base hit. Skole worked the count full and smashed a two-run triple to right and the Yellow Jackets grabbed their first lead at 3-2. Burnette hit the next pitch to center for a run-scoring double to make it 4-2. The inning continued when Nichols and Esch reached on walks to load the bases for Evan Martin. He smashed a two-run double to right and it was 6-2 as Georgia lifted Walters in favor of junior Justin Grimm. Walters did not retire a batter and surrendered four runs on four hits with two walks. Grimm made his first relief appearance since the 2008 College World Series Finals. Since then, he started 15 games in 2009 and 10 starts this season. He pitched the final 1.1 innings and allowed one hit, a walk and struck out two.

In the bottom of the eighth, Bulldog freshman Brett DeLoach came through with a pinch-hit, two-run double off Andrew Robinson to cut the deficit to 6-4. Pope ran his record to 8-0, going seven innings and allowing just two runs on seven hits with a walk and nine strikeouts. Walter took the loss to fall to 1-5.
“It’s obvious that we’re missing a couple of big boppers in the middle of our lineup to help us score some runs,” said Georgia coach David Perno. “But it’s evident that our guys are trying hard out there and are continuing to fight. (Mark) Pope was great but we were able to hang in there and fight against him.”
“(Blake) Dieterich did a great job tonight, and both (Carson) Schilling and (Brett) DeLoach helped us at the plate. We had the chance to score some runs but really missed some opportunities. I’m just proud that this group is hanging in there. For having gone what these guys have gone through, I’m very pleased with the way that they’ve hung in there and are still playing hard.”

Georgia will be back in action Wednesday when it plays host to Western Carolina. First pitch at Foley Field is slated for 5 p.m.

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - A two-run single by Danielle Dike led a three-run fifth inning as the No. 8/6 Georgia Tech Softball team (43-8, 16-2 ACC) erased a 2-0 deficit and came back to beat No. 24/20 Florida State (39-14, 10-8) 5-2 on Sunday afternoon at JoAnne Graf Field. The win clinched the Yellow Jackets' second straight ACC regular season title and was just their third ever in school history.

Dike was 2-for-4 in the game, while sophomore Kelsi Weseman also had two hits for the Yellow Jackets. Redshirt senior Jen Yee tied two more records in the game. She was intentionally walked three times this afternoon giving her 29 on the season which tied Arizona State's Katie Cochran for the most in NCAA history. Cochran was issued a free pass 29 times in 2008. Yee also scored the 216th run of her career moving into a tie with current Assistant Coach Aileen Morales atop the all-time Tech chart. Yee has done it in one less season.

Freshman Hope Rush improved to 24-5 on the season as she got the win in relief. Rush shut out the Seminoles on just two hits over four innings. She did not walk a batter and struck out one. Sophomore Jessica Coan started and gave up two runs in three innings, although both FSU runs scored on bloop singles. She allowed three total hits, walked two and fanned three.

The Yellow Jackets also set an ACC record by winning their 16th straight series. It broke Virginia Tech's mark of 15 straight from 2006 to 2008. The Jackets have not lost an ACC series since April 5-6, 2008.

FSU scored its only two runs of the game with two outs in the second inning. Ashley Stager and Kristie McConn each walked and came around to score on RBI singles by Monica Montez and Courtney Rosen.

The Jackets got on the scoreboard in the top of the third inning. Junior Christy Jones got the inning started with a bunt single and went to second base when Yee was intentionally walked. That's when FSU made a pitching change and Sarah Hamitlon came in to relieve Terese Gober. Weseman sacrificed both runners over for the first out of the inning and then junior Kristine Priebe was hit by a pitch to load the bases.

With Rush at the plate, Hamilton uncorked a wild pitch allowing Jones to score Tech's first run. After Hamilton struck Rush out, sophomore Kate Kuzma was robbed of a home run by Morgan Bullock in left field helping to preserve FSU's lead.

It was still a 2-1 game until the top of the fifth inning when the Jackets scored three runs to take the lead for good. With the bases loaded and two outs, Hamilton walked Kuzma forcing in the tying run. Dike then delivered a RBI single to left field scoring two runs and making it a 4-2 game. The second run was able to score when Bullock bobbled the ball in left field. The Yellow Jackets added an insurance run in the seventh inning when Kuzma scored on a wild pitch.

Rush pitched a perfect seventh inning to clinch the regular season title for the Yellow Jackets.

Georgia Tech's eight-game road trip continues on Wednesday, April 28 with a single game at No. 5 Alabama. First pitch from Tuscaloosa is set for 7 p.m. ET.

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ATHENS, Ga. - Georgia softball head coach Lu Harris-Champer reached and surpassed 700 career coaching victories Sunday as the 10^th-ranked Bulldogs completed a series sweep over South Carolina with two wins at the UGA Softball Stadium in front of a season-best crowd of 1,606.

Sunday's first game was a continuation of a suspended contest from Saturday evening, and the Bulldogs came out on top 3-1 to give Harris-Champer her 700^th collegiate career coaching victory. Then in game three of the series, Georgia posted a 10-2, six-inning victory to make it 701 victories for Harris-Champer, who is in her 14^thseason overall and 10^th year at UGA, where she's recorded 492 of the wins.

The three-game Southeastern Conference series sweep over South Carolina also extended the Bulldogs current winning streak to 15 games, which is the fifth-best winning streak in school history. On the year, Georgia now stands at 40-8 overall and 17-6 in SEC action while South Carolina moves to 11-37 overall and 1-24 in league play. It marks the ninth-straight season the Bulldogs have won at least 40 games.

Sunday's continuation of game two in the series saw all of the scoring come in the third inning. South Carolina plated its only run off of junior starter Katie Murphy (3-2) on an RBI double form April Borchardt, but Murphy would earn the win as Georgia answered with three runs off of South Carolina starter Kierstyn White (0-2). Junior Taylor Schlopy leadoff with a walk and moved to second on a single up the middle from junior Megan Wiggins. Next, junior Brianna Hesson drove in Georgia's first run of the game with a single to right. After the Bulldogs proceeded to load the bases, sophomore Kristyn Sandberg delivered a two-run single up the middle. Georgia sophomore pitcher Erin Arevalo relieved Murphy in the fifth and worked the final three innings for the first save of her career.

In game three of the series and the second contest of the day, sophomore Ashley Razey hit a game-ending, two-run home run to right center in the bottom of the sixth as UGA won 10-2 by run-rule. Razey finished the game 3-for-4 with a career-high six RBI and her 11^th home run was the team's 80^th of the season, which marks the fourth time in SEC history a team has recorded 80 or more home runs in a single year. Florida holds the SEC record with 86 (2009), while Georgia hit 85 in 2009 and Alabama has hit 82 this season.

With 10 runs of support, junior Sarah McCloud worked a complete-game to earn the win and improve to 8-1. South Carolina utilized three pitchers in the contest with starter Ashley Chastain taking the loss after surrendering three runs, two earned, without recording an out in the first. Borchardt then worked two innings giving up two runs before White pitched the final 3.1 innings for the Gamecocks allowing five runs.

After Borchardt provided USC with an RBI single in the top of the first in game three, Georgia answered with three runs in the bottom of the frame. Schlopy led off with a single, Wiggins reached on a throwing error and junior Alisa Goler drew a walk to load the bases for Razey, who delivered a two-run single up the middle. Goler later scored the third run of the inning on a wild pitch.

In the bottom of the second, Goler extended the Georgia advantage with a two-run home run to right center. It was her 11^th long ball of the year, and Wiggins was aboard after singling up the middle with two outs.

After South Carolina scored its final run of the series on a double from Hannah Milks in the third, the Bulldogs added two more in the fourth on another two-run hit from Razey, this time a double off of the left field wall.

In the fifth, UGA's lead was pushed to six runs at 8-2. Sandberg led off with a single up the middle, and freshman pinch runner Macie Couey advance to second on a groundout and third on a wild pitch. Sophomore Ashley Pauly followed with an RBI single to right.

In the sixth, Goler drew a one-out walk to set up Razey's game-ending home run.

Sunday's crowd of 1,606 was the fourth largest home crowd in school history.

The series with South Carolina concluded the home portion of Georgia's 2010 regular season schedule. The Bulldogs will play their final five regular season contests on the road with a three-game, SEC series at 12^th-ranked LSU, April 29-30, and a two-game series after final exams at 14^th-ranked Texas, May 9-10. Postseason play begins with the SEC Tournament, May 13-15, in Fayetteville, Ark.

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DAHLONEGA, GA – North Georgia put up one of their biggest comebacks of the year on Sunday afternoon, but Truett-McConnell College rallied for an 11-10 extra innings victory over the Saints in non-conference action on Bob Stein Stadium dedication day.
The Saints fall to 31-15 overall on the season, while the cross-town rival Bears improve to 24-21 on the year.

Before first pitch, a dedication for Bob Stein Stadium took place in front of a packed house as more than 500 spectators were on hand for the event. North Georgia president Dr. David Potter and Director of Athletics Randy Dunn recognized Bob Stein with a plaque on the field before unveiling letting on the newly built facility.

With North Georgia trailing by six and down to their final out in the ninth, the Saints loaded the bases and Daniel Petitti came to the dish with two outs and belted a double off the base of the fence in center field to plate a pair of runs and make it a 10-6 game.

After Craig Brisson was hit by a pitch to load the bases again, Jordan Erisman stepped to the plate representing the tying run and coaxed a four-pitch walk to send Adam Baker to the plate and cut the lead to three at 10-7. Airich followed with a chance to tie the game and the senior did just that, belting a double to right field that cleared the bases and tied the game 10-10 to force extra innings.
Jacob Rickett was on the mound in the 10th inning and was unable to find the zone as the sophomore walked in what turned out to be the winning run. Rickett was tagged with the loss in the game, falling to 1-1 on the year, while Ethan Seagraves tossed the final out of the ninth inning and closed out the Saints in the 10th for the victory out of the pen.

The Bears took the lead early as Tyler Bourdo, the second hitter of the game, launched a home run to right field to send Truett-McConell up 1-0 in the first inning. Teddy Leverett tacked on two more runs for the Bears in the second inning with a two-run blast to left center, extending the lead to 3-0.
After TMC made it a 4-0 lead with a run in the fourth, the Saints came back in the bottom half of the inning and Troy Snitker singled through the left side to plate Kenny Bellavance, and Chad Sage scored later in the frame on a groundout to cut the Bears’ lead in half at 4-2.
Andre Airich cut into the lead again in the fifth inning as the senior led off the frame with a solo bomb to left field that landed half way up the mountain to make it a 4-3 Truett-McConnell lead.
The Bears answered with a pair of runs in each of the two innings as Leverett continued his hot streak with a two-run double to right field in the sixth inning, while the center fielder came to the dish again in the seventh inning and sent two more runs home with a triple down the right field line to make it 8-4.
TMC added two more runs in the ninth as Daniel Ficarrotta locked in on a hanging breaking ball and launched the team’s third long ball of the year, this time to left center to give the Bears a 10-4 lead to set up the Saints’ fireworks in the last of the ninth.

The Saints return to action next weekend, traveling to St. Augustine, Florida, to take on Flagler College in a three-game non-conference series. The two teams are also set to battle in the first round of the Peach Belt Conference tournament on May 8, in Aiken, South Carolina.

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ATLANTA - No. 3 Georgia Tech (34-7, 16-5 ACC) belted four home runs, and held off a late rally by No. 20 Virginia Tech (28-14, 11-10 ACC) for a 14-12 win in the series finale Sunday at Russ Chandler Stadium.

The Hokies, however, clinched the series with a 10-3 win earlier in the day in the resumption of Saturday's suspended game.

"I'm proud of the way our guys hung in there," head coach Danny Hall said. "Virginia Tech is a very good team. It looked like we had it under control and then they scored a bunch of runs, right after we scored a bunch. I think anytime you win in the league, you have to be happy about it. We beat a good team in our last game of the series."

Chase Burnette (12), Derek Dietrich (14), Cole Leonida (9) and Matt Skole (13) all homered in the game to give the Jackets 90 overall on the year. The Jackets had 13 hits in the win, after a total of 12 combined in the previous two games.

Dietrich was 2-for-2 with three runs and three RBI to close out the series. The Parma, Ohio native reached base five times in the game.

Junior left-hander Jed Bradley (6-2) allowed just three runs on six hits in 6.0 innings Sunday, striking out six in the process. He picked up his sixth win of the season.

"I think he's had two good outings in a row and gave us a good chance to win," said Hall of Bradley. "I'm very proud of the way he's pitched the last two times out."

Leonida broke a 2-2 tie in the third inning with a two-run homer to center field off of Virginia Tech right-hander Marc Zecchino. Zecchino (0-1) recorded his first loss of the season after allowing the two runs in 2.1 innings.

The Jackets extended their lead to 13-3 with six runs on four hits in the seventh, all coming on doubles.Tony Plagman drove in three of them with a two-bagger to the wall in left field to cap the scoring in the inning.

The Hokies attempted a strong rally with seven runs in the eighth (three coming on a pinch-hit home run by Anthony Sosnoskie) and two in the ninth, but freshman Luke Bard was able to close the game on the mound to help the Jackets avoid the sweep. Bard registered his second save of the season.

Mathew Price scattered two runs on six hits in 7.0 innings to give Virginia Tech a 10-3 win and series clinch over Georgia Tech in game two of the series earlier on Sunday.

Price fanned eight batters in the outing and improved to 5-3 on the season with the win. Georgia Tech's Brandon Cumpton (6-1) was credited with his first loss of the season after allowing six runs - three earned - on four hits in 4.0 innings.

Chase Burnette went 2-for-4 to lead Georgia Tech at the plate, but the Jackets had just seven total hits as they lost consecutive games for the first time this season

Almost 24 hours after Saturday's game was suspended due to severe weather, game two picked up in the bottom of the fourth with Virginia Tech on top 6-0.

Freshman Buck Farmer relieved Cumpton to begin Sunday, and was hit for four runs in 5.0 innings.

The Hokies added three runs in the sixth, two coming on a single to left field by Michael Seaborn to extend the lead to 9-0.

The Jackets finally broke through on the scoreboard for two runs in the bottom half. Plagman brought one home on a sac fly to center and Leonida drove in the second with a grounder to short.

VT's Joe Mantiply was able to hold Georgia Tech to just one run on one hit in the final 2.0 innings to end the game.

The Jackets return to action Tuesday, as they take on Georgia at 7 p.m. in the annual "Spring Classic for Kids" at Turner Field. The game will be televised live on Sports South.

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ATHENS, Ga. --- Tenth-ranked South Carolina completed a Southeastern Conference series sweep of Georgia by taking a doubleheader 5-0 and 8-7 Sunday at Foley Field.
The Gamecocks improve to 32-8 overall, 14-4 in the SEC while the Bulldogs fall to 12-28, 3-15 in the SEC as Sunday’s action featured a pair of seven-inning games after Saturday’s contest was postponed due to rain.

In game one, USC got a complete game three-hit shutout from Sam Dyson while the offense provided a couple of solo home runs to highlight the scoring. USC took a 1-0 lead in the second on a solo home run by Adrian Morales, his third of the year. In the fourth, designated hitter Jeffrey Jones reached on a leadoff walk. Pinch-runner Robert Beary stole second and a throwing error on the play by catcher Christian Glisson allowed him to advance to third. Morales made it 2-0 when he collected his second RBI with a chopper over second baseman Levi Hyams as the Bulldogs had the infield in on the play.

After a one-out double by Bobby Haney in the fifth, senior right-hander Jeff Walters was lifted in favor of senior left-hander Justin Earls. A wild pitch moved Haney to third. With the infield in, Earls registered back-to-back strikeouts of Scott Wingo and Whit Merrifield to keep it 2-0. In the sixth, first baseman Nick Ebert added another solo home run for the Gamecocks for a 3-0 lead. It was the fourth home run of the year for him. That two-out shot ended Earls outing as Georgia looked to freshman Cooper Moseley. He loaded the bases, hitting a batter and issuing two straight walks to bring up shortstop Bobby Haney who drilled a two-run single to extend the Gamecocks advantage to 5-0. Then, the Bulldogs turned to sophomore Chase Hawkins who walked Scott Wingo on four bases to load the bases again. He retired Merrifield to end the top of the sixth and finished the game with a scoreless inning in the seventh.
Dyson raised his record to 4-2 while Walters dropped to 1-4. Dyson did not walk a batter and registered five strikeouts. Walters allowed two runs on five hits with a walk and two strikeouts.

In game two, USC used three straight hits and a sacrifice fly off sophomore right-hander Michael Palazzone to build a 2-0 lead in the first inning. Then with one out, Morales connected for a two-run blast, his second of the afternoon and it was 4-0. In the second, the first three Gamecocks reached on a two singles and a hit batter to bring up Morales. He got a sacrifice fly for a 5-0 lead and that ended Palazzone’s outing as Earls came on for him, and it marked his 100th career appearance, which ranks third in school history. He struck out Brady Thomas and Evan Marzilli to send it to the bottom of the second. Palazzone allowed five runs on seven hits in 1.1 innings.

Georgia responded with a two-run outburst in the bottom of the frame. With one out, freshmanRobert Shipman reached on a walk. Catcher Brett DeLoach (2-for-4, 4 RBI) delivered a run-scoring double and sophomore designated hitter Chase Davidson smacked an RBI-double off pitcher Jay Brown’s chest that rolled in to right field to make it 5-2. Brown remained in the game and retired the next two Bulldogs. In the third, Georgia made it a one-run contest and chased Brown. Peter Verdin and Levi Hyams started the rally with base hits and USC went to the bullpen in Matt Price. Sophomore Zach Cone laced a run-scoring single to right and on the play Merrifield threw to second and got Hyams who made a wide turn and failed to get back to the bag in time. Freshman Kyle Farmer lined an RBI-double down the left field line to make it 5-4. South Carolina answered with a leadoff home run from Jackie Bradley Junior, his third of the year, and the Gamecocks added one more run in the inning for a 7-4 edge.

Georgia produced a two-out rally in the fifth. Hyams drew a walk and with one out Kyle Farmer was hit by pitch. Then on 3-2 pitch, DeLoach crushed a Matt Price offering off the batter’s eye to tie the game. It gave DeLoach a career-best four RBI on the day. In the seventh, Moseley issued a leadoff walk to Merrifield, who stole second and scored on a base hit by Jackie Bradley Junior for an 8-7 lead. Moseley retired Walker and then Matthews reached on an error by Hyams. Georgia brought in sophomore left-hander Chase Hawkins to face Morales. He got him to fly out and then a diving catch by Cone on pinch-hitter Parker Bangs kept it a one-run affair. Georgia tried to rally again in the bottom of the frame.
Hyams singled to start the Georgia seventh. Cone followed with an infield hit. Farmer put down a sacrifice bunt as the runners advanced. Shipman was intentionally walked to load the bases . Then, freshman Ethan Carter struck out DeLoach and got pinch-hitter Zach Taylor to pop out to give USC a sweep. It marked the sixth one-run loss in SEC action for the Bulldogs.

“We can’t win close games playing like we play,” said Georgia coach David Perno. “We walk too many guys especially leadoff walks and you can’t do that against good teams. We have no consistency on the mound or offensively. Unfortunately, we’re not good, I hate it, and we’re going to keep fighting and playing hard. I was proud of how they battled back today but we didn’t execute in key situations.”
Carter (2-0) got the win with two scoreless innings of relief while Moseley dropped to 0-2.
Georgia will be back in action Tuesday when it faces Georgia Tech at Turner Field. First pitch is slated for 7:00 p.m., and the game will be televised live by SportSouth.

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Georgia Tech's Derrick Morgan and Demaryius Thomas were both selected in the first round of the 2010 NFL draft Thursday night.

The last time two Yellow Jackets were taken in the first round of the draft came in 1979 when Eddie Lee Ivery (Green Bay) and Kent Hill (Los Angeles Rams) were drafted 15th and 26th overall, respectively.

Morgan and Thomas are the first of at least four Georgia Tech players expected to be drafted in the next few days.

Morgan, an All-American defensive end, was the 16th overall selection by the Tennessee Titans. Morgan was the first Tech player to be selected in the first round since Calvin Johnson was the second overall pick in the 2007 draft by the Detroit Lions.

Thomas, the first wide receiver to be selected in the 2010 draft, was taken 22nd overall by the Denver Broncos.

Morgan and Thomas give Tech six draft picks over the last two years combined. Morgan is the fourth Yellow Jacket defensive lineman to be drafted over the last two years.

Morgan is the first Georgia Tech player ever drafted by Tennessee. Tech's Mike Mooney was selected by that franchise, the Houston Oilers, in the fourth round of the 1992 draft. Thomas is the first Yellow Jacket taken by Denver since 2002 when Chris Young was selected in the seventh round. Thomas is just the second Tech player the Broncos have drafted since 1970.

Georgia Tech's Jonathan Dwyer (RB) and Morgan Burnett (S) are highly expected to go later in the draft. Cord Howard (OL) is another draft candidate.

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DAHLONEGA, GA – The North Georgia baseball team rallied from a pair of deficits on Wednesday evening, including a 10th inning run that sent the Saints to a 5-4 victory over the University of West Georgia at Bob Stein Stadium in non-conference action.

The Saints sweep the season series from West Georgia, improving to 30-14 on the year, now winners in four of their last five games, while the Wolves fall to 13-37 on the season.
West Georgia scored the game’s first run in the second inning off a Mike Markakis single to center field, sending Brandon Mainor home to give the Wolves’ a 1-0 lead.

UWG added two more runs in the fourth frame with Markakis’ second RBI hit of the game, and Michael Hornsby lifted a sacrifice fly to left center, sending Michael Hollis racing to the plate without a throw and stretching the Wolves’ lead to 3-0.

The North Georgia bats finally came alive in the sixth inning with a trio a runs to knot the score 3-3. Andre Airich led off the inning with the 70th double of his career, a mark that is now the best in Peach Belt Conference history. After a single from Anders Oster, Kenny Bellavance came to the dish and lined a double down the left field line, sending Airich to the plate and Oster to third with still nobody out in the inning. Chad Sage and Brad Hall followed with sacrifice flies later in the frame to cap the three-run sixth inning.

Both teams put up zeros until the ninth inning when Hornsby drove in his second run of the game, a two-out seeing-eye single through the right side, sending Hollis home and giving the Wolves a 3-2 lead with just three outs to get.

With one out in the ninth, Jordan Erisman stepped to the plate and took the second pitch he saw and planted it halfway up the hill past the fence in left field to deadlock the score once again, this time at 4-4.
The Wolves had a chance in the 10th inning to take the lead again with a runner on third and two outs, but Oster ranged to his left on a slow grounder and threw on to first where Troy Snitker made the scoop to send the game to bottom half of the inning still tied.

In the last of the 10th, Chad Sage led off the frame with a single up the middle to start the rally, and after Troy Snitker executed a perfect sacrifice bunt to send Sage to second, Brad Hall came to dish and ran the count full before lining a single to right field to score the winning run in a 5-4 victory.
Jacob Rickett (1-0) picked up the win in 2.0 innings of work, allowing two hits and no runs, while Alex Simmons tossed 5.0 innings, and Michael Patton got the start and lasted 3.0 innings, allowing three runs on three hits, while walking one.

North Georgia returns to action over the weekend with their final home games of the 2010 season. The Saints will welcome Truett-McConnell to town for single games on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.
Saturday evening will serve as Senior Day as North Georgia will recognize 10 graduating players, while the Bob Stein Stadium dedication will take play on Sunday afternoon.

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Demorest, GA -- Loudermilk Field on the campus of Piedmont College will serve as the host site for the upcoming Great South Athletic Conference Baseball championship.  Play will open this Friday, April 23 with two games already set and continue through the weekend culminating with a championship round on Sunday, April 25.

The first game is a 2:00 match-up between top seed LaGrange College and the #4 seed Huntingdon College Hawks.  The Panthers of LaGrange earned their #1 seed by virtue of a 6-3 conference mark but dropped two of three earlier this season to their Friday night opponent as Huntingdon took the season series from the Panthers.  The Hawks take the #4 seed into this weekend's championship claiming a 4-5 record in GSAC play.

The nightcap game on Friday night will see the home team Lions of Piedmont College take on a familiar foe in the Maryville College Scots.

Piedmont carries the #2 seed into the tournament while Maryville arrives in town as the #3 seed with the game set for 7:00.   Though the two schools have identical 4-5 records in GSAC play, the Lions will claim the higher seed of the two as PC took two of three at Maryville College earlier this season.

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ATHENS, Ga. --- Eight Georgia pitchers held Winthrop to just two runs on six hits in a 4-2 win over the Eagles Wednesday at Foley Field.

In his fourth start of the season, sophomoreChase Hawkins (1-3) allowed one run on two hits in three innings to pick up his first win. Steve Esmond, Cecil Tanner, Jeff Walters and Michael Palazzone each tossed an inning of scoreless relief.

Alex McRee recorded the first two outs in the ninth before Cooper Moseley came in to pick up his third save. It was the fewest runs allowed by the Bulldogs since a 12-2 win over Stetson on Feb. 26.
“We were able to do some good things tonight,” said Georgia head coach David Perno. “Cecil was very good and that was very encouraging. Chase didn’t throw great but he was good enough. This is something to build off going into the second half of SEC play.”

Kyle Farmer and Levi Hyams each had three hits to lead Georgia followed by Peter Verdin and Chrisitian Glisson with two apiece.

Georgia (12-25) scored a run in the first inning to take a 1-0 lead. Verdin led off with a double, moved to third on a groundout, then scored on a sacrifice fly by Zach Cone. It was the third time in the last four games the Bulldogs have scored in the first inning.

Winthrop (18-18) plated a run in the top of the second on an infield single by Matt Pierpont that scored Chas Crane.

Georgia came back with two runs in the bottom of the second to regain the lead. Farmer led off with his second career triple, then scored on an RBI single by Glisson, who came around to score on a two-out single by Johnathan Taylor.

After the Eagles scored a run in the fourth to make it 3-2, Georgia added a run in the fifth on an RBI double by Hyams.

Dom Patterozzi (0-3) took the loss for Winthrop, allowing four runs on 10 hits in five innings.
The win was Georgia’s first in a midweek game since beating Presbyterian 11-3 on Feb. 24.

The Bulldogs return to action this weekend when 10th-ranked and SEC East-leading South Carolina visits Foley Field for a three game series beginning Friday at 6:30 p.m. Saturday’s game is slated for 1:06 p.m. and will air on CSS, while Sunday’s series finale will start at 2:00 p.m.

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ATLANTA - Thomas Nichols had five hits, including two doubles and two home runs, to lead the third-ranked Georgia Tech baseball team (33-5) to an 18-4 victory over Georgia Southern (21-17) in midweek action Wednesday at Russ Chandler Stadium.

The five hits were a career-high for Nichols, who also added a career high five RBI in his 5-for-5 performance. Four of his hits went for extra bases, as he grabbed two doubles in addition to his sixth and seventh home runs of the season.

"I just tried to take advantage of pitchers attacking me because they don't want to face other guys in our lineup," said junior Thomas Nichols, who hits in the No. 7 spot for Georgia Tech. "We have a really dangerous lineup, and I kind of take it personal that pitchers are attacking me with a bunch of fastballs. I guess the results are going good right now, but I have to keep the same mentality and just pick up our teammates."

Not to be overshadowed by Nichols performance, was a 4-for-5 day at the plate by senior Tony Plagman.

It was the third time in the last six games (eight days) that Plagman had four hits. The senior first baseman drove in four runs, and hit his team-leading 14th home run of the season.

The Jackets completed a four-game midweek series sweep of Georgia Southern, and improved to 10-1 against in-state opponents this season.

Freshman Buck Farmer (4-1) recorded the win after allowing two runs on one hit in 3.0 innings of a designated staff day on the mound. Farmer struck out three batters.

Tech jumped out to a 4-0 lead on five hits in the first inning off of Georgia Southern starter Justin Hess. Junior Derek Dietrich plated the first run of the game with the single to right field before Plagman's solo shot to right field. Tech scored the other two on a wild pitch and a sac fly RBI to center by junior Chase Burnette.

Tech returns to action this weekend with a three-game Atlantic Coast Conference series against Virginia Tech at Russ Chandler Stadium. Game times are 7 p.m. Friday, 4 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday.

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ATLANTA -Mark Pope picked up his sixth win of the season, allowing just two runs over 8.0 innings as No. 3 Georgia Tech defeated Georgia Southern, 6-2, Tuesday evening at Russ Chandler Stadium.

With the win, the Jackets improved to 32-5 overall while the Eagles fell to 21-16.

Pope (6-0) joins teammate Brandon Cumpton to give Tech two six-game winners on the season.

After allowing two runs through the first three innings, the sophomore right-hander went on to pitch five scoreless innings while yielding just four hits from the fourth inning through the eighth. His 8.0 innings pitched tie a season and career high.

"I thought he [Mark Pope] threw the ball really well," head coach Danny Hall said. "I know that they got some hits, but some of them weren't that great and just happened to find some holes. I thought really after the first few innings that he was pretty dominant."

Junior Derek Dietrich went 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBI to pace the Jackets at the plate. Dietrich, along with juniors Chase Burnette and Thomas Nichols combined to drive in all six of the teams runs on the day.

Kyle Blackburn led the Eagles with two hits, one coming on an RBI double to right field.

Defensively, the Jackets turned three double plays on the day to tie a season high.

"I think the double plays were really big in the win," Hall added. When we got [Kyle] Blackburn on that double play in the eighth inning, I thought that was a key play. We made most of the plays, and the three double plays were definitely rally killers."

Both teams traded runs in the first and third frames, with Tech evening up the score at 2-2 in the third on a RBI single to center Burnette.

The Jackets broke the 2-2 tie in the fifth inning, plating four runs off of Georgia Southern reliever Chris Beck. Dietrich and Nichols belted home runs to right-center around a fielder's choice RBI by Burnette for the 6-2 lead. Dietrich's solo blast was his 13th of the season, while Nichols' two-run round-tripper was his fifth.

Beck dropped to 2-4 on the season after allowing five runs on five hits in 4.1 innings. He entered the game with two outs in the second for Georgia Southern starter Matt Murray.

Senior Patrick Long struck out two batters to close out the game for the Jackets in the ninth.

The midweek series concludes Wednesday with a 4 p.m. start at Russ Chandler Stadium. Freshman Buck Farmer will take the mound for Tech against Georgia Southern right-hander Justin Hess.

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