No. 10 Georgia Tops Tigers 6-3

NORTH AUGUSTA, S.C. – No. 10 Georgia scored five runs in the third inning and held on for a 6-3 victory over No. 3 Clemson in the inaugural game at SRP Park on Tuesday night. The Bulldogs, who took a 1-0 lead in the season series, improved to 24-9, while the Tigers dropped to 25-8. The two teams are scheduled to meet at Athens, Ga., on April 17.

Clemson scored three runs in the second inning on two long balls. Drew Wharton’s two-run homer was his fifth home run of the year and Jordan Greene’s solo homer was his fourth home run of the season and fourth in the last six games. The Bulldogs responded with five runs on three hits and three walks in the third inning, capped by Michael Curry’s three-run homer. Georgia added an insurance run in the eighth inning.

Kevin Smith (5-1) pitched 3.1 strong innings in relief to earn the win. He gave up one hit, no runs and one walk with five strikeouts. Aaron Schunk pitched the ninth inning to record his fifth save of the season. Tiger starter Spencer Strider (3-1) suffered the loss. He surrendered three hits, four runs and three walks with four strikeouts in 2.1 innings pitched.

The Tigers host Miami (Fla.) in a three-game series beginning Friday at 6:30 p.m., on ACC Network Extra. The first 1,000 fans receive trading cards of Tiger players and coaches.