No. 23 Kentucky Scores Top Five Victory to Even Series

ATHENS, Ga. – No. 23 Kentucky scored seven early runs and then outlasted No. 3 Georgia for a 10-7 victory at Foley Field on Saturday afternoon in front of a sellout crowd. Scott Rouse earned the save by pitching the final four innings, striking out the tying run to end the game and send the series to a Sunday tiebreaker.

The teams continued to trade blows for the second consecutive day as the contest featured five home runs and eight hit by pitch. Although the Cats (14-3, 1-1 Southeastern Conference) left 14 men on base, including stranding the bases loaded in each of the first two innings, they also still came through with a number of clutch hits throughout the game.

Tyler Bell and Luke Lawrence each drove in three runs, Cole Hage had three hits and Patrick Herrera produced one of the best defensive plays you’ll see to lead the charge. Herrera also homered late to give the Cats more breathing room and the trio of Rouse, starter Ben Cleaver and Nile Adcock held the potent Bulldogs’ offense at bay.

With the Cats leading 9-5 in the seventh inning, Georgia put two runners on with no outs and looked poised to close the gap even further but Herrera made the play of the season thus far to help extinguish the threat. Facing a familiar face in Nolan McCarthy, Rouse induced a bounder down the third base line that looked like it might be a double before Herrera snared it with a dive. He somehow kept his toe on the bag and fired a bullet from his behind to first, doubling off McCarthy. Rouse then struck out the next batter to end the inning.

NOTES

• Kentucky is 14-3 (1-1 SEC) on the season.
• UK ended Georgia’s 18-game winning streak.
• UK has 100 wins since the beginning of the 2023 season (100-40).
• UK has been hit by a pitch 29 times in the last eight games.
• UK now has not been swept in its past 14 SEC series and 21 overall.
• UK Coach Nick Mingione is in his ninth season at the helm and now owns a 276-169 career record.
  • Mingione now is the second-winningest coach in school history.
  • UK is 109-39 in the month of March under Coach Mingione.
  • Mingione now is 12-11 vs. Georgia.
• Senior OF Cole Hage 3-for-6 with a run, two RBI and a steal.
• Junior IF Luke Lawrence went 1-for-3 with two runs, three RBI, a walk, a steal, a HBP and a SAC fly.
  • He stole home as part of a double steal with Hage.
• Senior IF Patrick Herrera went 1-for-2 with three runs, one RBI, two walks, a HBP and a solo home run.
• Senior C Devin Burkes went 2-for-4 with two runs, a HBP and a double.
• Freshman IF Tyler Bell went 2-for-5 with three RBI, a double and SAC fly.
• Sophomore LHP Ben Cleaver pitched 4.2 innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on five hits. He walked one and struck out six.
• Senior RHP Scott Rouse earned his first save.
  • He pitched the final 4.0 innings, allowing three runs on five hits with two walks and five strikeouts.

 ON DECK

Kentucky is at No. 3 Georgia again on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET. It will be streamed on SECN+ and radio will be carried by the UK Sports Network.