Georgia softball finishes off Clemson, advances to fourth straight Super Regional
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Georgia softball is Super Regional-bound for the fourth straight year and for the sixth time in seven seasons.
The Bulldogs shut out Clemson, 5-0, on Sunday at the Turner Softball Complex to sweep the Athens Regional. Georgia topped the College of Charleston 5-2 on Friday and run-ruled UNC Greensboro 8-0 in five innings on Saturday before blanking the Tigers in Sunday’s final. The Bulldogs outscored opponents 18-2 over three days of action.
The game was scoreless until the Dawgs, the designated visiting team on Sunday despite playing on their home field, broke through with one out in the top of the fourth. That’s when Marisa Miller crushed a solo home run to left field to make it 1-0 Georgia.
The Bulldogs added to their lead in the top of the fifth as Clemson right-hander Lexie Hames walked in a run with the bases loaded and no one out as the Georgia lead grew to 2-0. Miller’s sacrifice fly to left field brought another run in to make it 3-0. Then, in the fourth, Sarah Gordon’s sac fly to right and Gabi Novickas’s RBI double gave the Dawgs a 5-0 lead.
That was more than enough for Addisen Fisher, who gave up just two hits on the day to silence the Tigers’ offense. The sophomore right-hander also walked two and struck out three, facing just three batters over the minimum.
Georgia, the No. 3 national seed in the NCAA Tournament, will host the winner of the Knoxville Regional final between Tennessee and Virginia.
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
