As the rain fell into Sewell-Thomas Stadium, the Georgia offense delivered a downpour of its own. The Bulldogs’ bats, powered by a two-home run game by Kolby Branch and career-high six-RBI performance from Tre Phelps, showed no mercy en route to a 19-3, mercy rule dismantling of Alabama.
After a slow start offensively that allowed the Crimson Tide to take command of the game early, Georgia blew the game wide open in the fifth inning. The Bulldogs loaded up the bases before Henry Hunter poked a double down the left field line that scored two and tied the game at 3.
Two batters later, Slate Alford drew a bases-loaded walk to give Georgia the lead, and Robbie Burnett hit a sacrifice fly to extend it. Phelps and Branch then delivered back-to-back bombs, both landing in the Georgia bullpen beyond the right center wall, capping off an eight-run inning and putting the Bulldogs in front 9-3.
Following consecutive walks from Alford and Burnett in the sixth inning, the Phelps-Branch duo combined once again. Phelps hammered a double down the left field line to plate Alford and Burnett, then Branch brought Phelps around with a single to extend the lead to 12-3.
Georgia teed off again in the seventh inning, beginning with a Hunter two-run, 452-ft shot that left the stadium and then some — sparking another rally. After Alford and Burnett reached base, Phelps drove in his sixth RBI of the day with a single up the middle.
The Bulldogs continued the onslaught with their second pair of back-to-back home runs of the game, as Branch plated three with another home run into the Georgia bullpen and Ryan Black crushed a moonshot to right field to put Georgia ahead by 16 runs.
Georgia finished the game with 15 hits, six home runs and seven walks, and its 19 runs were the most it has scored in SEC play this season. The Bulldogs batted 1.000 with runners in scoring position — something the team has struggled with throughout the season, especially in away games.
“You can look all the way up and down the lineup the way we swung it in game one with six home runs,” head coach Wes Johnson said. “Tre (Phelps), Ryan Black, Henry Hunter, Kolby Branch, Slate Alford — they all had some good at bats.”
The offense’s outburst overshadowed a hard-nosed performance from Brian Curley, who picked up his 11th win of the season. Despite walking four batters and pitching with runners in scoring position seven times, the junior right-hander tied his career high with nine strikeouts across his five innings of work and allowed just three runs.
The final game of the series is scheduled for 4 p.m. on Saturday, with Leighton Finley expected to take the mound for Georgia.