Link to Article on The Red & Black
By Olivia Sayer
Georgia teammates celebrate the win during an NCAA college baseball game between Vanderbilt and Georgia at Foley Field in Athens, Georgia, on Saturday, May 4, 2024. Georgia won 14-4. (Photo/Mady Mertens; MadyMertensPhotography)
An entire team effort lifted Georgia baseball over Army Friday afternoon in game one of the NCAA Athens Regional. In what was Foley Field’s first time hosting a playoff game in five years, the Bulldogs and Black Nights gifted those in attendance with an exciting back-and-forth contest. Georgia’s depth made the difference in its 8-7 victory.
“I think that the moral of the story today for us and for so many of the games that we’ve had this year is just the offensive production one through nine,” Charlie Condon said.
With Army leading by one, Georgia had a runner at first in the top of the sixth for Condon. The Black Knights opted to intentionally walk the SEC Player of the Year for the second time in the game.
An entire team effort lifted Georgia baseball over Army Friday afternoon in game one of the NCAA Athens Regional. In what was Foley Field’s first time hosting a playoff game in five years, the Bulldogs and Black Nights gifted those in attendance with an exciting back-and-forth contest. Georgia’s depth made the difference in its 8-7 victory.
“I think that the moral of the story today for us and for so many of the games that we’ve had this year is just the offensive production one through nine,” Charlie Condon said.
With Army leading by one, Georgia had a runner at first in the top of the sixth for Condon. The Black Knights opted to intentionally walk the SEC Player of the Year for the second time in the game.
Finley, who made his first postseason start, had trouble locating the strike zone. Head coach Wes Johnson said he thought the sophomore right-hander was “a little nervous today.”
“It’s okay though,” Johnson said. “That means you’re in the right moment. So, now we’ll talk to him about his heartbeat. We’ll get him back under control.”
Despite the constant traffic on the basepaths, Finley only surrendered four runs in 3.2 innings. Johnson said Finley might pitch again this weekend.
With Georgia trailing by one in the bottom of the fifth, Clayton Chadwick laced a double down the left field line to score Dillon Carter and tie the game. Carter reached base in all five of his plate appearances with three walks and two hit by pitches. As a team, Army hit five Bulldog batters.
After Brian Zeldin threw the game’s only 1-2-3 inning in the top of the seventh, the Black Knights made him work. With one out and runners at first and second, Thomas Schreck rolled an infield single down the third base line.
After fielding it cleanly, Condon bluffed a throw to the bag. Once he saw the baserunner leaning, Condon decided to throw the ball. Quickly regretting the decision, he attempted to stop his motion. However, it was not before the ball went into the outfield to trim Georgia’s lead to one.
“I’m lucky to have a pitching staff and group of offensive bats that can keep us back in the game,” Condon said. “And [the miscue] ended up, thanks to those guys, not mattering a whole lot. But, it’s just how this group operates. Everybody’s got each others’ back, and I’m lucky to have that.”
Christian Mracna replaced Zeldin on the mound after a groundout to second base tied the game in the eighth. Despite getting tired at the end, it was a solid outing for Zeldin, who allowed three runs in four innings. With the bases loaded, Mracna struck out Army’s cleanup hitter to preserve the tie.
“I know how important it is to the team and how hard we work for those moments,” Mracna said. “So, I really just tried to do my best. And we’ve been preparing all year for moments like that, so I didn’t feel rushed at all.”
In the bottom of the eighth, a walk and two hit by pitches loaded the bases for Fernando Gonzalez. He flew out to left field to plate the go-ahead run. In the top of the ninth, Mracna worked around a walk and single to secure the win.
“I’ve been on the loss in game one [side] and had to come all the way back and win that Regional,” Johnson said. “It’s really really hard. It taxes your pitching staff and really starts to wear on your position players.”
The Bulldogs will face the winner of UNC-Wilmington and Georgia Tech Saturday at 6 p.m. in the winner’s bracket.