AUGUSTA, Ga. — Georgia Southwestern spent the final eight innings trying to climb out of a first-inning hole Saturday afternoon.
The Hurricanes never quite made it all the way back.
A four-run opening frame from Augusta University proved decisive in a 7-3 Peach Belt Conference loss, setting up the rubber game of the series Sunday with both teams sitting at 11-7 overall. GSW moves to 6-2 in PBC play, while Augusta improves to 7-1.
First-Inning Surge
The Jaguars capitalized quickly in the bottom of the first.
A leadoff walk, a pair of wild pitches and two hit batters helped load the bases, and Augusta made the Hurricanes pay. An RBI single and a two-run knock pushed across four runs before GSW could record the third out.
That early cushion allowed Augusta to dictate the pace the rest of the afternoon.
Gipson Stays Hot
The Hurricanes began to chip away in the third.
Caleb Gipson continued his torrid stretch, launching a solo home run to left field to get GSW on the board. The blast, his second of the series and third of the spring, extended his on-base streak to all 18 games this season, and he added a single later in the contest — giving him multiple hits in three of his last four outings.
GSW threatened further in the inning, loading the bases with one out, but Augusta worked out of the jam to keep the margin at three.
Espinoza Settles In
After the rocky first,
Derek Espinoza steadied things on the mound.
The right-hander delivered six strong innings in relief — his longest outing of the season — allowing just one run on four hits while striking out six. He kept the Jaguars quiet long enough for the Hurricanes to stay within striking distance.
Augusta scratched across a run in the seventh on a sacrifice fly to stretch the lead to 5-1.
Murphy's Eighth Multi-RBI Game
GSW made its most serious push in the eighth.
Kelsen Johnson singled to start the inning, and
Devon Murphy followed with a towering two-run homer to left-center, trimming the deficit to 5-3. It marked Murphy's team-leading eighth multi-RBI game of the season and fourth home run of the year.
Carson Shaw later singled and
Drew Reaves reached on an error to keep the inning alive, but Augusta escaped without further damage.
The Jaguars responded immediately in the bottom half with a two-run single to push the lead back to four, halting the Hurricanes' momentum for good.
Looking Ahead
Johnson finished 2-for-5 to pace GSW's nine-hit effort, while Gipson also recorded multiple base knocks. The Hurricanes out-hit Augusta 9-7 but left eight runners stranded and were unable to overcome the early deficit.
With the series even at one game apiece, Georgia Southwestern will look to regroup for Sunday's decisive matchup at 1 p.m. in Augusta.
