Offense sparks UGA to a 7-0 start, with Jackets coming up

ATHENS — At the start of each week throughout the regular season, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution will take a closer look at the Geor- gia baseball team. Here’s a breakdown of the Bulldogs going into the third week of the campaign:

Record: 7-0, 0-0 SEC. Streak: Won 7. Last week (4-0): Tuesday, won at Geor- gia State 15-0; Friday, beat Northern Kentucky 15-5 (7 innings); Saturday, beat NK 7-6; Sunday, Beat NK 12-11.

This week: Today, vs. Presbyterian, 3 p.m.; Wednesday, vs. Michigan State, 6 p.m.; Friday, at Geor- gia Tech, 6 p.m.; Saturday, vs. Georgia Tech, 2 p.m.; Sunday, vs. Georgia Tech, 3 p.m. (Coolray Field, Law- renceville).

Week in review: The Bull- dogs look like an offensive team so far. Off to its best start since Ron Polk’s team went 8-0 in 2000, coach Wes Johnson’s first Georgia team is leading the SEC with a .355 average with 22 home runs and an on-base percentage (OBP) of .500.

Leading the way is All-American Charlie Con- don, the sophomore infielder/outfielder, hitting .643 and slugging 1.179 after tallying three home runs and six RBIs.

Interestingly, pitching is of concern for the Bulldogs. Johnson came to Georgia from LSU as one of the preeminent pitching coaches in baseball. Yet UGA pitchers rank ninth in the SEC with a collective ERA of 4.34.

The Norsemen were responsible for driving up that number. After falling behind 10-0 in the first inning on the way to a 15-5 run-rule loss on Friday, Northern Ken- tucky slugged its way to late leads on Saturday and Sun- day. The Bulldogs rallied from a 6-3 deficit on Satur- day before winning 7-6 on back-to-back homers in the ninth by Kolby Branch and Dillon Carter.

On Sunday, the Bulldogs trailed 5-2 in the fifth. They hit back-to-back-to-back homers for the first time since 2021, then got another walk-off victory, 12-11, when freshman Tre Phelps was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth. It was the third HBP of the game for the freshman from Kennesaw, who earlier in the day got his first career hit — a home run.

Week ahead: The compe- tition ramps up considerably for the Bulldogs as they play six games over seven days. Presbyterian (5-3) visits Foley Field today, followed by Mich- igan State (2-5) on Wednesday.

Then comes the annual three-game set against arch-rival Georgia Tech (6-1): Friday night in Atlanta at Mac Nease Baseball Park at Russ Chandler Stadium, Saturday in Athens at Foley Field and Sunday at Coolray Field in Lawrenceville. The Sunday game is known as the “Spring Baseball Classic for Kids,” which Tech and Georgia have played annually for 21 years to benefit Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. All proceeds are donated to CHOA’s Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center. For ticket and parking information, follow this link: https://gado.gs/a66