University of Georgia Athletics
University of Georgia
37-12, 11-9
Florida
38-12, 13-7
Five Home Runs Power Georgia to 11-6 Victory on Saturday
April 27, 2024 | Softball
Season Record: 36-12, 10-9 SEC
Winning pitcher: Lilli Backes (15-5)
Losing pitcher: Ava Brown (14-5)
Five Home Runs Power Georgia to 11-6 Victory on Saturday
ATHENS, Ga. – The 11th-ranked Georgia softball team hit five home runs, all by seniors, on Saturday to level the weekend series against No. 12 Florida in front of 1,847 fans at Jack Turner Stadium.
Fast Facts
• Seniors Ellie Armistead, Jaiden Fields, Sydney Kuma, and Sara Mosley were honored on the field before the game as part of Senior Weekend in Athens.
• Lilli Backes pitched her eighth complete game in the circle, striking out four Gators, en route to her 15th win.
• Georgia scored seven runs in the fifth inning and hit three home runs in the frame (Jayda Kearney, Mosley, Fields), to overcome a three-run deficit.
• The Bulldogs' five home runs tied a season-high, all hit by seniors – Kuma, Kearney, Mosley (2), and Fields.
• Mosley hit two home runs on her senior day, number 14 and 15 on the season. It's the eighth two-run home run game of her career. She now has hit 60 home runs, ranking second all-time. 68 is the record held by Alyssa DiCarlo.
• Georgia is 7-0 in game two of each SEC series this season. Sunday's series finale will be the fifth rubber game Georgia has played in SEC play. The Bulldogs are 1-3 in those games.
Key Quotes
Head Coach Tony Baldwin
On the team's overall performance...
"I'm just proud of the resilience that we showed. Sometimes when you're in a tough spot, the first sign of adversity just reverts back to you thinking, 'here we go again.' But I thought we really dug in today and competed. Really proud of our seniors. And you know, just fun to see them settle in and just play softball. To let some of the burden go and just compete. When we play with that kind of freedom, we can be a pretty good team and then really excited for Lilli [Backes]. We're a little short-staffed right now and she's carrying the load. She was out there just gritting her teeth and getting the job done. So super proud of her and good team win today."
Up Next
The rubber game of the weekend series between Georgia and Florida is set for 12 p.m. on Sunday at Jack Turner Stadium. The game will air live on ESPN2.
As part of senior weekend, Hayley Eaton, Jayda Kearney, and Riley Orcutt will be honored prior to the game.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Backes, Lilli (15-5)
L: Ava Brown (14-5)
Batting:
HR: Korbe Otis 1 ; Ava Brown 1 ; Ariel Kowalewski 1
RBI: Korbe Otis 1 ; Ava Brown 1 ; Ariel Kowalewski 4
Base Running:
RUNS: Korbe Otis 1 ; Skylar Wallace 1 ; Jocelyn Erickson 1 ; Baylee Goddard 1 ; Ava Brown 1 ; Ariel Kowalewski 1
SB: Skylar Wallace 1 ; Baylee Goddard 1
HBP: Baylee Goddard 2
Batting:
2B: Armistead, Ellie 1
3B: Kuma, Sydney 1
HR: Kearney, Jayda 1 ; Mosley, Sara 2 ; Kuma, Sydney 1 ; Fields, Jaiden 1
RBI: Kearney, Jayda 3 ; Mosley, Sara 2 ; Kuma, Sydney 3 ; Fields, Jaiden 2 ; Armistead, Ellie 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Goodwin, Jaydyn 1 ; Kearney, Jayda 1 ; Mosley, Sara 4 ; Kuma, Sydney 2 ; Fields, Jaiden 1 ; Eaton, Hayley 1 ; Armistead, Ellie 1
HBP: Kuma, Sydney 1
