Why South Carolina baseball getting swept by Georgia may cost Gamecocks as NCAA regional host
South Carolina baseball did little to aid its cause for hosting an NCAA Tournament regional by suffering a three-game sweep by Georgia at Founders Park.
The No. 14 Gamecocks (33-18, 13-14 SEC) fell below .500 in SEC play with on regular-season series remaining at No. 1 Tennessee. South Carolina lost 14-10 on Thursday, 11-5 on Friday and 14-6 on Saturday.
South Carolina imploded in each game of the series. The Gamecocks allowed 39 runs in three games against Georgia (38-12, 16-11) and are likely to be projected to fall out of regional host designation, particularly with the road series at Tennessee looming.
Saturday’s series finale represented a dramatic turnabout from last season, when the Gamecocks swept Georgia in Athens, then won 9-0 in the first round of the SEC Tournament.
Here’s what we learned from the Georgia series:
Early deficits doomed South Carolina
The Gamecocks fell behind early and never recovered in dropping the first two games of the series, then led 4-1 in the third game before falling apart. This has been a troubling trend for South Carolina.
In the opening game, the Gamecocks fell behind 7-3 after two innings and were trailing 5-1 after three innings in Game 2. Georgia led 1-0 in the final game before the Gamecocks rallied for a 4-1 advantage but the Bulldogs put the series on ice by erupting for 10 runs in the final two innings.
South Carolina pitching didn't measure up
Georgia rivals Tennessee for the top home run hitting team in the SEC, and the Bulldogs showed why against South Carolina.
The Bulldogs hit five home runs in the opener, including one by Charlie Condon, who leads the nation in home runs with 35, and totaled 11 home runs in the series to the Gamecocks’ three.
Beyond the long ball, it was a rough few days for South Carolina pitchers. The Gamecocks used 16 different pitchers in the series, 10 of whom lasted less than 2/3 of an inning before being pulled.
Up next? No. 1 Tennessee
Talk about finishing the regular season with a bang – next up for South Carolina is No. 1-ranked Tennessee. The Volunteers lead the SEC in essentially every hitting category across the board and have enjoyed more than their share of success against the Gamecocks.
Tennessee has won nine of its last 12 games against South Carolina 81-34 during that span. The Gamecocks haven’t won a series at Tennessee since 2017.
Scott Keepfer covers Clemson athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at skeepfer@gannett.com and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @ScottKeepfer
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: South Carolina baseball swept by Georgia, could lose NCAA regional host
