#14 Bulldogs Host 15th Annual Georgia Classic This Weekend

#14 Georgia (9-1) Hosts 15^th Annual Georgia Classic
Dates: Feb. 23-24, 2018
Location: Athens, Ga.
Stadium: Jack Turner Stadium
Teams:
     #14 Georgia (9-1)
     College of Charleston (5-3)
     ETSU (3-4)
     Gardner-Webb (9-4)
Georgia's Schedule:
     Feb. 23 – vs. College of Charleston, 3:30 p.m.
     Feb. 23 – Gardner-Webb, 6 p.m.
     Feb. 24 – vs. College of Charleston, 3:30 p.m.
     Feb. 24 – vs. ETSU, 6 p.m.

Media Information
TV: n/a
Streaming Video: n/a
Radio: n/a
Live Stats: GeorgiaDogs.com
Twitter Updates: @UGAsoftball

Tournament Central Page: http://gado.gs/8h9

#14 Georgia will play host to College of Charleston, ETSU, and Gardner-Webb this weekend as part of the 15th Annual Georgia Classic. The eight-game tournament begins Friday at 10:30 a.m. at Jack Turner Stadium. Georgia opens tournament play Friday afternoon at 3:30 p.m. against College of Charleston.

The schedule of the tournament was altered due to the threat of rain on Sunday. It will now be played Friday and Saturday with four games being played each day.

Follow the Bulldogs
» Live stats will be available for all games of the Georgia Classic. Live stat links can be found on the softball schedule on GeorgiaDogs.com.
» Live Twitter updates will be available all season long at @UGAsoftball.

This Weekend's Promotions
» Admission to every home Georgia softball game is FREE
» Saturday, Feb. 24
     - National Tortilla Chip Day: $1 Nachos

Georgia Softball Notebook
Series Histories
College of Charleston – Georgia leads 10-1
» Georgia leads the series 8-0 in Athens
» Lone loss came on the road in 2016, the last meeting
ETSU – Georgia leads 2-0
» Only meeting was in 2002 in Athens as part of the Georgia Bulldog Classic
Gardner-Webb – Georgia 3-0
» All three meetings have been in Athens, coming in consecutive seasons from 2012-14

A Look Back
Georgia softball opened the 2018 home schedule over the weekend, playing five games as part of the Red & Black Showcase. The Bulldogs went undefeated on the weekend, moving to 9-1 to begin the season. The Georgia bats were hot and the pitching was on point as the Bulldogs put up 39 runs while opponents only scored twice. Mahlena O'Neal and Justice Milz combined for 17 RBI and four of Georgia's seven home runs on the weekend. In the circle, Kylie Bass pitched a no-hitter of Samford in her outing on Friday then followed with a seven-inning shutout of Evansville. Brittany Gray and Bass worked 23 combined scoreless innings, allowing only five hits, and striking out 39 batters on the weekend.

Georgia in the Top 25
The Bulldogs jumped to #14 in both the USA Today/NFCA and ESPN.com/USA Softball Coaches Polls this week. The Bulldogs entered the season with a preseason #25 ranking and sat at #17 in the week one polls.

Despite finishing last in the SEC a season ago with a 6-18 record, the Bulldogs dropped out of the NFCA Poll only one week. It was the first time Georgia had been outside the top 25 since 2013.

Head of the Pack
At the plate, Georgia leads the SEC in seven offensive categories including batting average (.396), slugging (.705), hits (110), RBI (83), doubles (23), home runs (19), and total bases (196).

Approaching a Strikeout Milestone
Entering the weekend, senior Brittany Gray is just three strikeouts shy of recording the 400th of her career. She currently ranks eighth all-time at Georgia. She set a career-best mark with 12 against Evansville on Feb. 17 and is the team leader in the category with 36.

The RUNdown
The Bulldogs have outscored opponents 90-14 in 10 games this season. Nationally, Georgia ranks fourth in scoring, top in the SEC. Georgia's .396 batting average is the best in the conference and sixth-best in the nation.

Over the Edge
Georgia has hit 19 home runs in just 10 games in 2018. In 2017, Georgia had 28 in 58 games. The total leads the league, five more than second-place Missouri.

Seeing Double
With 2.3 doubles per game, Georgia ranks second in the country in doubles per game, the most in the SEC. Justice Milz and Alysen Febrey have each knocked five doubles to lead the team and ranking eighth in the country early in the season.

Solid in the Circle
The Georgia pitching staff has been sharp to start the season, recording a 1.13 ERA in 10 games. The staff has struck out 81 opposing hitters, allowing only 10 earned runs and putting five shutouts in the books. Kylie Bass and Brittany Gray have been staples in the circle, pitching a combined 40.2 of 62 innings played.

#14 Bulldogs Host 15th Annual Georgia Classic This Weekend

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Players Mentioned

Kylie Bass

Alysen Febrey

Brittany Gray

Justice Milz

Mahlena O'Neal

University of Georgia Athletics