Ohio State Battles No. 15 Georgia, Falls in Season Opener

Friday, February 10

Orlando, Fla.

Ohio State

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Georgia

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Ohio State

Georgia

Ohio State Battles No. 15 Georgia, Falls in Season Opener

2/10/2023 1:35:33 PM | Softball

Box Score

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COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio State traded big hits with No. 15-ranked Georgia in its season opener on Friday afternoon but eventually fell to the Bulldogs, 11-4, at the UCF Softball Complex in Orlando.

The Short Story
Six different Buckeyes recorded hits and Ohio State twice led in the early innings before a five-run fifth for Georgia gave it enough separation. In the circle, redshirt freshman Kennedy Kay earned the start and went 1.1 innings before giving way to Allison Smith, who pitched 3.1 innings. A total of four pitchers saw action, as Lexi Paulsen and Emily Ruck were also called upon in relief.

Georgia’s Jayda Kearney went 4-for-4 with three home runs and six RBI.

How the Runs Were Scored

Tegan Cortelletti wasted no time giving Ohio State a scoring opportunity, taking the first pitch of the game – and the season – to the left centerfield wall for a triple.
It was the first triple of Cortelletti’s 106-game career.
One batter later, Melina Wilkson brought Cortelletti home with a sacrifice fly.
Georgia brought home two runners in the bottom half of the first on a Sara Mosley triple and RBI single from Jayda Kearney.
The Buckeyes retook the lead in the top half of the second inning when Kaitlyn Farley brought two runs home on a single to right field. The inning was highlighted by a double down the left field line off the bat of Kami Kortokoax, which put two runners in scoring position.
Georgia answered back to tie the game at 3-3 in the bottom of the second on a wild pitch and then went ahead 4-3 in the third inning on a solo home run from Kearney.
Meggie Otte led off the fourth inning with her first hit of the day – a single to right field – and was moved up to third on a sac bunt and ground out before coming home on a wild pitch that tied the game at four-all.
A one-out, two run Kearney home run for Georgia put the Bulldogs up 6-4 in the bottom of the fifth and was part of a five-run inning for UGA.
Kearney’s third home run of the afternoon gave Georgia an 11-4 lead in the bottom of the sixth inning.

That and That

In addition to Kay making her Ohio State debut in the circle, the other newcomer in Ohio State’s lineup on Friday was freshman catcher Hannah Church.
A native of Tampa, Fla., Church did not record a hit but did throw out a runner attempting to steal in the first inning.
Freshman pitcher Lexi Paulsen also made her first appearance in a Buckeye uniform. She recorded the final out of the fifth inning.
A pair of Sam Hackenbracht hits on Friday gives her 97 for her career. Dating back to last season, she’s hit safely in 17 of the last 19 games she’s played in.

What’s Next
The Buckeyes are right back at UCF Softball Stadium tomorrow for two more games. The Buckeyes face Boise State at 2:30 p.m. and then host and No. 18-ranked UCF at approximately 5 p.m.

The game versus Boise State will stream on ESPN3 while Ohio State’s contest against UCF will be on ESPN+. Live stats to both games are available on the schedule page of OhioStateBuckeyes.com.