OMAHA, NEB. — Through two games at the College World Series, Georgia has experienced both ends of postseason baseball.
The Bulldogs opened their visit to Nebraska with one of the most dominant pitching performances in program history, then found themselves on the wrong side of a one-run game two days later.
After a 7-1 victory over Texas on Saturday and a 4-3 loss to Oklahoma on Monday, Georgia entered Tuesday night’s rematch against the Longhorns (past press time) needing three straight wins to reach the College World Series Finals.
Still, Georgia’s postseason run could not have started much better.
Junior right-hander Joey Volchko delivered a masterpiece against Texas, throwing a complete-game four-hitter while striking out a career-high 15 batters. The performance marked Georgia’s first nine-inning complete game of the season and the program’s first complete game in the College World Series since Mike Rebhan accomplished the feat during the Bulldogs’ 1990 national championship run.
Volchko set the tone immediately, striking out the side in both the first and fourth innings. His 15 strikeouts established a Georgia record for a pitcher in a College World Series game.
“I felt a lot of confidence and comfort with the game plan we came in with tonight,” Volchko said afterward. “We had a very clear plan and executed.”
The Bulldogs provided plenty of early support.
Sophomore centerfielder Rylan Lujo blasted a two-run homer off the left-field foul pole in the first inning, giving Georgia a quick 2-0 lead. Texas compounded its problems with a pair of errors, two wild pitches, and two hit batters as Georgia erupted for four runs in the opening frame.
The Bulldogs added insurance in the seventh when Lujo drove in another run with a double before Kenny Ishikawa lined a two-run single to push the lead to 7-1.
With the victory, Georgia improved to 52-12 and matched the school record for wins in a season, tying the mark set by the 1990 national championship team.
“We got on the board early with Rylan’s home run, and then they had a couple miscues in the first, and you combine that with the way Joey was throwing tonight, and everybody could relax a bit,” head coach Wes Johnson said. “Obviously, the story tonight was Joey and the way he commanded pitches and hit spots. It was one of the most impressive complete-game performances that I’ve been a part of.”
Two nights later, the Bulldogs found themselves chasing from the start.
Oklahoma scored three runs in the first inning against Georgia starter Caden Aoki and never surrendered the lead, holding off a series of Bulldog rallies to secure the 4-3 victory and advance to the semifinals.
Despite the early damage, Aoki gave Georgia exactly what it needed. The graduate right-hander settled in and worked all eight innings, allowing eight hits, four earned runs, six strikeouts and no walks while preserving the Bulldogs’ bullpen for the elimination bracket.
“I thought Caden was awesome tonight,” Johnson said. “We had a hiccup there in the first and for him to finish the game for us was massive as you look forward in saving your bullpen.”
Georgia chipped away throughout the contest.
Ishikawa launched a solo home run in the fourth inning to cut the deficit to 3-1, but Oklahoma answered immediately with a solo shot from Brendan Brock in the bottom half of the inning.
Senior first baseman Brennan Hudson opened the fifth with his 22nd home run of the season to make it 4-2. Then in the eighth, catcher Daniel Jackson crushed his team-leading 32nd homer of the year, trimming the lead to a single run.
The Bulldogs had opportunities to draw even but couldn’t come up with the timely hit, snapping a nine-game winning streak and falling to 52-13.
Now, Georgia’s path forward is clear but difficult.
The Bulldogs face Texas at 8 p.m. Tuesday in an elimination game. The winner must then defeat Oklahoma on both Wednesday and Thursday to advance to the championship series.
Aoki said Georgia’s mindset remains unchanged despite facing elimination for the first time this postseason.
“It’s the same process. It’s the same mindset that we’ve had all season,” he said. “If we change something now, that’s when it all goes bad. We’re going to stick to our approach and stick to what we do. This team has the most courage in the country, and we’re going to come back strong.”