
Georgia Bulldogs defeated LSU Tigers 11-8, moving closer to the SEC title. With a 3.5-game lead and five SEC games remaining, Georgia's offense rallied after a slow start.
The Georgia Bulldogs overcame a slow start to defeat the LSU Tigers 11-8 on Friday night. Georgia's comeback win means the Bulldogs are closer to winning the SEC regular season crown. Entering Saturday's action, Georgia has a 3 1/2-game lead over Texas and Texas A&M, who both lost on Friday, with just five SEC games to go.
Georgia moved to 39-11 and 19-6 in SEC action, while LSU fell to 29-22 and 9-16 in SEC play. The Bulldogs had a subpar outing from pitcher Dylan Volchko, who threw 3 1/3-innings and allowed seven earned runs. Georgia's bullpen did a good job of limiting damage and kept the LSU offense at bay for the rest of the night.
Georgia's offense immediately responded with a run in the bottom of the fourth and three runs in the bottom of the fifth after UGA trailed 7-3. Tre Phelps, Daniel Jackson, Kolby Branch and Ryan Black all had home runs for Georgia in the win.
Georgia's offense responded again after LSU scored a run in the top of the seventh to tie the game at eight. The Bulldogs scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh.
"I try to put in our players' heads the importance of never panicking," Georgia baseball manager Wes Johnson said after the game. "The importance of just playing the game. Our game is so different from other sports, and you just have to grind it out.
"You have to continue to take your at bats, you can't lose focus, and you can't get so caught up in the scoreboard that it causes panic. I think it helps when we're older, we have an older team, and we try to stay calm and continue to stay in our approach and play the game."
Georgia is going to look to take things one game at a time, but if Georgia sweeps LSU, then the Bulldogs will clinch the SEC regular season title at home, which would be special for this group.
Georgia secured their win by overcoming a 7-3 deficit, scoring three runs in the seventh inning after LSU tied the game.
Georgia currently holds a 3.5-game lead in the SEC standings with a record of 19-6 in conference play.
Tre Phelps, Daniel Jackson, Kolby Branch, and Ryan Black all hit home runs during Georgia's victory over LSU.

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This article originally appeared on UGA Wire: Georgia baseball closing in on SEC title after comeback win over LSU