ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia scored six runs in the fifth inning, aided by three Mississippi State errors, and held on for a 6-3 victory over the Bulldogs on Friday night. The series opener took place at Jack Turner Stadium.
Mississippi State (28-5, 1-3 SEC) outhit Georgia (22-7, 2-2 SEC) 12-3 but left 11 runners on base. Most of its damage came with two outs, as the Bulldogs collected seven two-out singles and scored two runs with two outs on the board, according to postgame notes.
Head coach Samantha Ricketts said errors and walks hurt her team, which led to a snowball effect. “That’s just not what our expectations are, and it continued to snowball,” she said. “They’re going to take advantage when you put extra runners on base against a good team like that.”
Peja Goold started for Mississippi State, pitching five innings and allowing six runs, with only one earned run. Morgan Stiles led the offense with a 3-for-4 effort and two RBIs. Nadia Barbary, a Georgia native, and Des Rivera each had two hits, including a double.
The Bulldogs took an early 2-0 lead in the second inning. Tatum Silva and Abby Grace Richardson hit back-to-back singles. Silva scored on Morgan Stiles’ single, and Richardson later scored on Nadia Barbary’s single.
Mississippi State added another run in the fourth, with Rivera hitting a double and advancing to third on a wild pitch. Stiles then singled to score Rivera, extending the lead to 3-0.
Georgia responded in the bottom of the fifth with a big inning. After two walks, Emily Digby hit a sacrifice fly to score a run. An error by the catcher allowed two more runs to score, and Jaydyn Goodwin’s triple cleared the bases. Sarah Gordon then hit a two-run homer to make it 6-3.
The series continues Saturday with a 1 p.m. game from Jack Turner Stadium, which will air on SEC Network+.
