Branch Slams The Door For Bulldogs
June 01, 2024 | Baseball, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
To hit one grand slam home run in your collegiate career feels like a special achievement and a memorable moment. To hit two, that's more joy, more novelty, more good fortune to have the bases packed when you put a really good swing on a pitch in your zone.
If you're Georgia shortstop Kolby Branch, distinguishing one grand slam from another is going to start to get difficult if he keeps collecting them like Pokemon cards. Last year, when he was a freshman at Baylor, Branch's first collegiate homer was a grand slam.
"I think that was against Houston Christian, and I think it was a grand slam. Is that right?" Branch asked during a recent Quick Chat.
It was.
Did he remember anything about his second collegiate home run, which came two weeks later? No, he did not. But it also was a grand slam, against Youngstown State.
"Was it really? I knew my first one was a grand slam, but I'd forgotten about my second one. That's wild," he said with a big smile.
How's this for wild? With the bases loaded in the bottom of the second inning of Georgia's 11-2 NCAA Athens Regional win over UNC Wilmington on Saturday night, Branch sent a Jacob Shafer pitch over the Foley Field fence in center field. The slam was Branch's fourth of the season — a school record — and, more importantly, put Georgia head 5-1. The Bulldogs were in control the rest of the way.
Branch made Collegiate Baseball's Freshman All-American team last year, leading the Bears in batting average (.325), home runs (6) and RBIs (41), so it's not like his production for the Bulldogs this season is out of nowhere. Still, Saturday's homer was his 16th of the season, and he's now driven in 56 runs.
Maybe it's the gospel music. Branch is listening to gospel music on the way to games this season, a bit of a departure from last season's selection, the R&B singer-songwriter SZA.
"I was kind of on a rough streak, so then I was like, let's listen to some gospel music," he said of making the switch. "And then I started doing a little bit better."
Maybe the whole team is listening to gospel music before games. The Bulldogs have pounded a school-record 143 homers this season, Charlie Condon owns the Georgia season and career home run records, and as a team, the Bulldogs have also set a school record with 12 grand slams. Oddly enough, none of Condon's 36 blasts this season have come with the bases loaded.
Branch's homer was Georgia's second of the game Saturday. Corey Collins led off the bottom of the first with a rocket to right field, his 19th blast of the season.
The Skyhawks had a shot at their own grand moment in the top of the fourth. Georgia starting pitcher Kolten Smith struck out the first two batters in the inning before running into trouble. Soon, the bases were full and Ike Cousins Head Baseball Coach Wes Johnson was out to chat with his hurler.
Jac Croom dug in and sent Smith's second pitch hit into foul territory by third base. It was good that the 6-foot-6 Condon was playing third because he was able to reach up over a high fence and make the catch for the third out of the inning.
Instead of Wilmington closing the gap in the fourth, once Smith & Co. got out of the jam, Georgia was able to widen it just a little.
Clayton Chadwick opened the bottom of the fourth inning by getting hit by a pitch. Branch then reached on a fielder's choice, followed by Collins getting hit by a pitch for the 26th time this season. Condon then drew a walk to load the bases with one out, and Dylan Goldstein's fly ball to left allowed Branch to tag from third and score, pushing the Bulldog lead to 6-1.
The Skyhawks had the bases loaded again in the top of the sixth, and while they did get a run across with a sacrifice fly, that was the extent of the damage. Smith left the game after walking two to start the fifth and was replaced by DJ Radtke, who used two strikeouts and a foul pop to end the threat.
Georgia added two runs in the fifth when Chadwick and Carter scored after a throwing error on a hard-hit grounder by Branch, pushing the Bulldogs' lead to 8-2. Chadwick scored again in the seventh after singling, moving to second on a wild pitch, stealing third and heading for home on another wild pitch (that led to Branch walking), making it a 9-2 game. Georgia added two more runs in the eighth on bases-loaded walks.
It was a busy game — another grand game — for Branch, who made several good plays in the field and was involved in nearly every Georgia scoring play. He finished with a homer, a walk, four RBIs and two runs scored.
The Bulldogs will be back in action Sunday at 6 p.m., looking to secure a spot in the Super Regional. They will face the winner of Sunday's noon game between Georgia Tech and Wilmington.
Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
