Long Ball Powers Gamecocks Past #15 Georgia in Series Finale

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The South Carolina softball team took down the 15th ranked Georgia Bulldogs Sunday afternoon (Mar. 13), earning a 7-3 victory in the series finale. The Gamecocks finish the week with an overall record of 16-8 and 1-2 in SEC play.
 
Carolina’s No. 3-7 hitters had nine of the team’s 10 hits. Katie Prebble, Riley Blampied, Emma Sellers, and Maddie Gallagher each had two hits on the afternoon. Prebble drove in three runs, while Blampied and Carlie Henderson each scored two runs.
 
Bailey Betenbaugh earned the complete game victory, allowing three runs on five hits, and striking out two. 
 
Georgia opened the scoring with a two-out solo home run in the top of the first. The Gamecocks had an immediate answer in the bottom of the first. Jordan Fabian and Hannah Kumiyama led off the inning with a pair of walks. Prebble stepped in, and with an 0-1 count, clobbered her 10th home run of the season, a moon shot to left-center. Carolina added to their lead when Henderson reached on a fielder’s choice and came all the way around from first to score on Gallagher’s double over the leftfielder’s head.
 
South Carolina did more damage in the third. Blampied singled with one out, and after a single by Sellers, scored on a throwing error by the Bulldog’s catcher. 
 
Georgia’s final runs came in the fourth on two-run home run. The Gamecocks responded in the fifth as Henderson led off with a single. Following a hit batter and single by Aaliyah White to load the bases, Henderson crossed home on an RBI groundout by Fabian.
 
Blampied capped off the day with a solo home run in the sixth, her third of the season.
 
The Gamecocks return to action for a mid-week non-conference game against the College of Charleston March 16, with first pitch set for 6 p.m.
 
For the latest on South Carolina Softball, visit GamecockSoftball.com or follow the team’s social media accounts on Twitter @GamecockSoftbll, Facebook /GamecockSoftball, and Instagram @GamecockSoftball.