ATHENS-----The Georgia Bulldogs (15-9) are in the middle of a nine-game stretch that features just one home date and that is Wednesday versus Georgia Southern (12-12) at Foley Field. First pitch will be at 6:02 p.m. (SECN+) and be available on the Georgia Bulldog Sports Network.

Last week, Georgia went 2-2, beating Georgia State at Coolray Field in Lawrenceville and then went 1-2 at Auburn. The Eagles dropped a Sun Belt Conference road series to Southern Miss this past weekend. After the midweek game with the Eagles, Georgia heads to Nashville to face No. 4 Vanderbilt (19-5, 6-0 SEC). The Commodores have opened SEC play with sweeps of No. 3 Ole Miss in Nashville and Mississippi State in Starkville.

Series History: Georgia leads the all-time series with GS 62-53-1 in records dating to 1972. The Bulldogs won both meetings earlier this month, posting a 17-11 win in front of an SRP Park record crowd of 6,015 in N. Augusta, S.C. on March 7 and then 9-4 the following day in Statesboro before a capacity crowd of 3,732. Georgia claimed the 2022 series 2-1.

Georgia’s top hitters in the GS series this year have been Mason LaPlante (4-for-7, HR, 2 RBI) and Connor Tate (4-for-7, three RBI) while Charlie Condon is just 3-for-10 but those hits have been a triple and two home runs with nine RBI!  Also, Georgia has been hit 12 times by GS with 17 walks.

Bombs Away: This week, Georgia stands ninth nationally with 49 home runs, and it could challenge the school record by the end of the season. The top three totals in Bulldog history are 109 (2009), 102 (1987) and 96 (2008). The most home runs in a season during the Scott Stricklin era has been 81 last season in 59 games.

Georgia redshirt-freshman OF/1B Charlie Condon (.472-10-40) ranks among the national leaders in several categories. He has hit safely in 23 games and has a team-leading 15 multi-hit games and 11 multi-RBI games. Graduate OF Connor Tate (.443-9-28) ranks among the national leaders with 43 hits and 81 total bases. He had a 22-game hitting streak end last week. Tate’s 36 career home runs rank sixth in school history. He hit a pair in the 24-7 road rout of Auburn last Saturday.

Junior 3B/1B Parks Harber (.352-9-29) has been the most consistent Bulldog in league play, batting an SEC-leading .542 with three home runs and 11 RBI. He had the best series against USC, hitting .556 (5-for-9) with a double, two home runs and four RBI and then against Auburn, he batted .533 (8-for-15) with three doubles, a home run and seven RBI. Harber has a career-best 12-game hitting streak.

On The Mound: The Bulldogs have a 5.81 ERA with 255 strikeouts and 116 walks. GS sports a 5.93 ERA with 200 strikeouts and 100 walks. On Wednesday, the Bulldogs are slated to start freshman Kolten Smith (1-0, 4.50 ERA) as both teams will likely employ a staff night with a conference series beginning Friday. Smith made his first career start and notched his first win against the Eagles in Statesboro. He went 3.1 innings and allowed one run on two hits with two walks and four strikeouts as part of a staff night.  The Eagles will counter with junior RHP Ga’von Wray (0-1, 9.00 ERA).

NCAA Record-Tying 8th Inning Outburst: Georgia secured its first SEC win this past Saturday at Auburn with a record 16-run outburst in the eighth inning of a 24-7 rout of the Tigers. The game ended after eight innings due to the SEC 10-run mercy rule.

In the NCAA record book, the only other team to score 16 runs in an 8th inning was Southern Illinois in 1988 versus Murray State and Saint Mary’s (Minn). The NCAA mark for runs in an inning is 21 by three teams, most recently by Valparaiso in the fifth inning versus Chicago State on April 2, 2010.

Tickets/Parking/Promotion Information

* A limited number of tickets are available in the Left Field Bleachers and in the Right Field Bleachers.

* Fans with tickets who are unable to come are encouraged to transfer them to other Bulldog fans, return them to UGAAA or resell them on StubHub.

* Foley Field Gates open one hour before game time.

* Free parking is available in the commuter surface lot behind the outfield.

* Promotions: Fans are encouraged to wear white. The first 500 fans will receive a 90s-themed baseball shirt.

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