Georgia Tech comeback falls short against Murray State

OXFORD, Miss. – Georgia Tech (41-18) was unable to pull off the comeback on Saturday night, dropping a 13-11 final score to Murray State (41-13) at Swayze Field on the campus of Ole Miss. The Jackets clawed back from a 3-10 deficit with a seven-run fifth inning but ultimately came up short and will play Ole Miss tomorrow at 3 p.m. ET in an elimination game.

With a win in the elimination game tomorrow, the Jackets will take on Murray State once again, at approximately 7 p.m. ET.

QUICK HITS: THE TEAM

·         The Jackets fall to 1-1 in regional play for the 20^th time in program history. They will attempt to win three-straight games and win the regional for the first time in program history, beginning against Ole Miss, tomorrow at 3 p.m.

·         Tech is now 41-18, the best record since 2019.

·         Tech pitching struck out eight batters today – The Jacket arms have accounted for at least one strikeout per inning pitched in 39 of 59 games this season (66.1 %)

·         Tech hit four doubles today – thanks to three pinch-hit doubles from Connor Shouse (2) and John Giesler.

·         The Jackets have now hit 146 doubles this season, the most of any team still in the NCAA Tournament field.

QUICK HITS: THE BATS

·         Freshman Alex Hernandez posted two RBI, breaking Matt Wieters Georgia Tech freshman RBI record from 2005. Hernandez now has 69 doubles – the most by any freshman in program history.

·         He leads the team with 8 RBI this regional, the most of any player in the regional.

·         Sophomore Vahn Lackey matched his career-best with 4 RBI tonight, connecting for an RBI single in the Jackets’ three-run first inning before hitting a three-run homer in the seven run fifth inning.

·         He brings his total to 42 RBI for the year, nearly triple his output from his freshman season (15).

·         Lackey also stole his team-leading 18^th base of the season. He has stolen 18 bases while also catching 14 runners attempting to steal against him this season.

·         Junior Kyle Lodise delivered his 21^st multi-hit game of the year, going 2-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored.

·         It was his team-leading 21^st multi-RBI game of the year, driving in one in the fifth inning before adding another in the eighth.

·         Lodise becomes the third Yellow Jacket to breach 60 RBI for the season – marking the first time in three seasons that Tech has had three players at 60+ RBI: Lodise (60), Burress (61) and Hernandez (67).

·         Senior, and two-time Tech graduate, John Giesler came off the bench to pinch hit in the fifth inning, connecting for a two-RBI double that tied the game at 10-10. It was his fourth multi-RBI game of the season and first RBU since May 2^nd against Western Carolina.

·         Giesler has recorded at least one RBI in three of his last four NCAA Tournament games dating back to last season.

·         Freshman Connor Shouse had a phenomenal day at the plate, taking over in the seven hole when Giesler was pinch-ran for, and hitting two doubles. It was his second-career multi-XBH day as a Yellow Jacket after hitting a double and a home run against Virginia on April 26.

·         Freshman Drew Rogers delivered his third-career multi-hit performance, hitting a leadoff double in the seven-run fifth before connecting for a single in the 8^th inning, eventually being stranded at third.

QUICK HITS: THE ARMS

·         Junior Brady Jones made his 16^th start of the season but was unable to get out of the first inning, being saddled with five earned runs.

·         Junior Kayden Campbell made one of his best appearances of the season, entering the game with runners at first and second and escaping the fifth inning without allowing a run and delivering the Jackets one, and only, 1-2-3 inning in the sixth. He would finish with a season high five strikeouts, allowing one run on a solo home run in the seventh to be saddled with the tough-luck loss.

·         Junior Caden Spivey returned to the mound after missing the last 10 games due to injury. He recorded the final five outs of the game on 22 pitches.

UP NEXT­­
The Jackets will play No. 1 seed Ole Miss in an elimination game, today at 3 p.m. ET. With a win, they will take on Murray State at approx. 7 p.m. for a chance at forcing a championship Monday against the Racers. Both games tomorrow will be streamed live on ESPN+.  The Jackets are expected to start Jaylen Paden in the elimination game tomorrow, he leads the team with a 1.88 ERA.