Georgia hit four home runs, including two in the first three innings, en route to an 11-2 Game 2 victory against NC State in its best-of-three super regional in Athens.
The Georgia win sets up a decisive Game 3 on Monday with the winner earning a spot in the College World Series in Omaha, Neb. The game will start at noon or 7 p.m., ESPN announced.
NC State clobbered Georgia 18-1 on Saturday in the series opener.
But it was the Bulldogs who struck early in Game 2, grabbing a 2-0 lead in the first inning and extending it to 5-0 in the third. Georgia extended its lead to 10-0.
Georgia 11, NC State 2 (bottom of 8th inning): NC State catcher Jacob Cozart hit his third home run of the super regional.
Georgia 11, NC State 1 (top of 8th inning): Corey Collins hit a solo home run to lead off the inning.
Georgia 10, NC State 1 (bottom of 7th inning): Luke Nixon singled, advanced to third on a single by Matt Heavner and scored on a groundout by Noah Soles, getting the Wolfpack on the board.
NC State has been shut out once this season and held to one run on three other occasions.
Georgia starting pitcher Leighton Finley tossed 6.2 innings, allowing eight hits and one run. He struck out five and walked two.
Georgia 10, NC State 0 (top of 7th inning): Fernando Gonzalez singled to center, driving home Clayton Chadwick with Georgia’s 10th run of the game. Gonzalez was thrown out trying to stretch it into a double.
NC State relief pitcher Ryan Marohn has pitched four innings, helping preserve the rest of the bullpen for a likely Game 3 on Monday.
Georgia 9, NC State 0 (top of 6th inning): Paul Toetz hit a solo home run to extend the Bulldogs’ lead.
Georgia 8, NC State 0 (top of 4th inning): Georgia added to its lead with a RBI double from Kolby Branch and a run-scoring groundout by Corey Collins.
Tre Phelps drove in another run on a hit by pitch.
NC State starting pitcher Dominic Fritton was taken out after three-plus innings pitched. He allowed seven hits and seven runs (all earned).
Georgia 5, NC State 0 (top of 3rd inning): Tre Phelps smacked a three-run home run to center field, extending the Bulldogs’ lead. It was the 11th home run of the season for Phelps, a freshman.
It was Georgia’s third hit of the inning and sixth of the game. NC State held the Bulldogs to four hits in Saturday’s Game 1.
Georgia 2, NC State 0 (top of 1st inning): Georgia grabbed an early lead in its must-win Game 2 against NC State on Sunday afternoon. The Bulldogs are the visiting team even through the game is in Athens.
Second baseman Slate Alford hit a two-run home run off NC State starter Dominic Fritton.
NC State never trailed in Saturday’s 18-1 victory in Game 1, erupting for 11 runs in the second inning. The Wolfpack need just one more win to advance to the College World Series for the third time.
NC State is the No. 10 national seed and Georgia is the No. 7 national seed.
Wolfpack clobber Georgia in Game 1
Noah Soles had two doubles and five RBIs in N.C. State’s 11-run second inning, and the Wolfpack routed Georgia 18-1 on Saturday in Game 1 of the best-of-three Athens Super Regional.
Luke Nixon and Matt Heavner had back-to-back bunt singles in the top of the second inning, the former to drive in Brandon Butterworth and open the scoring and the latter to load the bases with nobody out.
Soles followed with a three-RBI double down the line in right and Eli Serrano III hit the next pitch over the wall in right center. Butterworth added an RBI single before Nixon and Soles each hit two-RBI doubles to give No. 10 seed N.C. State (37-20) an 11-0 lead.
“Hitting is contagious,” catcher Jacob Cozart sad. “You start out the game having a quick inning, then the second inning came around and we got two really, really good bunts down. They found the hole, chaos unloaded and we just started to roll. We got to the top of our lineup, and then that’s what we do. Once they turn that lineup around, they start to roll.”
Sam Highfill (7-2) gave up a run on four hits and three walks over six innings to earn the win for the Wolfpack. Andrew Shaffner pitched three scoreless innings of no-hit relief for his first save of the season.
“He was unbelievable today,”Soles said of Highfill. “He’s very tough. I personally look up to him and I think he’s a great leader, on and off the field. He’s just someone everyone looks up to and I think he’s a really, really good leader for the clubhouse.”
N.C. State can clinch a berth in the College World Series with a win Sunday in Game 2. The Wolfpack have made three appearances at the CWS, the most recent in 2021.
“It’s good to get that first one, but obviously we have to get one more,” NC State coach Elliott Avent said. “They’re tough to get but obviously we played really well today. We obviously also had that one inning that got things out of kilter for them.”
Corey Collins singled to right in the bottom of the fifth for seventh-seeded Georgia (42-16) to make it 13-1.
“Here’s the great thing about our game: nothing carries over to tomorrow,” Georgia coach Wes Johnson said. “The scoreboard goes back to 0-0, and we’re going to come out, and we’re going to be ready to respond.”
FINAL: NC State 18, Georgia 1: Shaffner gets another 1-2-3 inning and the Wolfpack complete a convincing win in Game 1 of the Athens Super Regional.
Game 2 is set for Sunday at 12 p.m. A potential Game 3 would be played on Monday. Another win would send the Wolfpack to their fourth College World Series and first since 2021.
NC State 18, Georgia 1 (top of 9th inning): Andrew Shaffner gets a 1-2-3 eighth inning and we head to the ninth with State holding a commanding lead.
Jacob Cozart and Alec Makarewicz hit back-to-back home runs to make it an 18-1 lead in the top of the ninth. The Wolfpack now have five home runs on the day and Cozart has two.
NC State 16, Georgia 1 (top of 7th inning): Garrett Pennington hit a solo home run to left field to extend the Wolfpack’s lead.
Every NC State batter in the starting lineup has at least one hit and at least one run scored. Seven players, including Pennington, have at least two hits. Five players, including Pennington, have at least two runs scored.
Alec Makarewicz doubled and scored on a wild pitch to make it 16-1.
NC State 14, Georgia 1 (top of 6th inning): Luke Nixon scored on a throwing error by Georgia, adding to the Wolfpack’s lead. Nixon singled, advanced to second on a wild pitch and moved to third on a fly out.
NC State 13, Georgia 1 (bottom of 5th inning): Georgia finally scratched a run off NC State starting pitcher Sam Highfill on an RBI single by Corey Collins. The Bulldogs loaded the bases with two outs after a walk to star Charlie Condon walked, but Highfill pitched out of the jam.
Through five innings, Highfill allowed three hits and one run. He walked three and struck out two.
NC State 13, Georgia 0 (top of 5th inning): Jacob Cozart’s two-out single to right field drove home Eli Serrano III, who doubled to start the inning.
NC State 12, Georgia 0 (top of 3rd inning): Jacob Cozart homered to right field, extending the Wolfpack edge. It was his 17th home run of the season.
NC State 11, Georgia 0 (top of 2nd inning): NC State jumped out to a big early lead against Georgia with a barrage of hits in the second inning.
Brandon Butterworth and Alex Sosa started the inning with singles. Luke Nixon scored Butterworth with a bunt single. Another bunt single from Matt Heavner loaded the bases.
Then Noah Soles delivered a bases-clearing double to extend the lead to 4-0.
Eli Serrarno III homered to bring in Soles and extend the lead to 6-0 with no outs.
With the bases loaded again, Butterworth delivered a long single to make it 7-0, chasing Georgia starter Kolten Smith, who failed to record an out in the second inning.
Nixon followed with a one-out, two-run double to extend the lead to 9-0. Soles then blooped a two-run double to left field, giving him five RBIs in the inning and pushing the lead to 11-0 before Georgia finally got out of the inning.
The record for runs in a single inning in a super regional is 13.
Athens Super Regional Schedule
Saturday, June 8
Game 1 – No. 10 NC State 18, No. 7 Georgia 1 (NC State leads 1-0)
Sunday, June 9
Game 2 – No. 7 Georgia 11, No. 10 NC State 2 (Series tied 1-1)
Monday, June 10 (If Necessary)
Game 3 – No. 10 NC State vs. No. 7 Georgia| Time TBD | TV TBD
