Josh Stinson isn’t an everyday starter, but the right fielder’s game-ending throw Tuesday night was one of Georgia’s best defensive plays this season.
Stinson played hero for the Bulldogs (20-17, 4-11 SEC), saving a team prone to late-game collapses by pinning Clemson runner Cam Cannarella in the bottom of the ninth inning.
The redshirt junior chased down a two-out double along the right-field line, spun and hurled the ball in to second baseman Mason LaPlante.
LaPlante’s throw turned Cannarella from the potential tying run into the game’s final out, deflating Clemson’s Kingsmore Stadium in a 5-4 victory.
“That play happened earlier in the game, and Josh threw it to second,” UGA coach Scott Stricklin said on 960 The Ref. “Josh being Josh, he said, ‘I was lulling him. I was deking him, trying to think he was going to get it to second.’”
The Bulldogs’ win over their nonconference neighbors also avenged their 8-1 home loss last week.
Stinson also contributed offensively with a fourth-inning RBI double that gave UGA the lead it never surrendered.
Georgia’s pitching staff dominated after the third inning, shutting Clemson (22-16, 6-9 ACC) out with just two hits.
An explosive first four innings gave way to five scoreless innings to end the game as both pitching staffs settled in. The Bulldogs and Tigers used 14 total pitchers in the contest.
“Bottom line, we win this game because of the bullpen,” Stricklin said. “After the rough start on the mound, we really settled in, and I thought we pitched it really well.”
Georgia improved to 3-2 against ACC competition this season.
Collin Caldwell calmed things down for the UGA staff after it surrendered four runs in the first two innings. The junior earned his third win and dealt 2.2 hitless innings with four strikeouts.
Leighton Finley shut the door for his team-leading third save.
Parks Harber led the way for the Bulldog lineup, hammering a two-run homer to spark the scoring. Harber finished 1-for-5 hitting with two RBI.
Charlie Condon smashed his team-leading 17th home run of the season to dead center field for Georgia’s third run.
The 6-foot-6, 211-pound redshirt freshman was tied for the most hits in the SEC (58) entering Tuesday. Condon’s 17 homers are tied for the fourth-most in the country.
UGA is back in action hosting No. 5. Arkansas at 7 p.m. on Thursday. The Razorbacks (29-7, 11-4) sit atop the SEC West and are Georgia’s fourth straight top-10 conference opponent.
