April 4, 2006
ATLANTA – Georgia Southern (16-15) erupted for 11 runs in the first three innings as the Eagles defeated ninth-ranked Georgia Tech (22-7), 19-7, on Tuesday night at Russ Chandler Stadium.
After winning 22 of their first 26 games, the Yellow Jackets lost their third straight contest.
David Richardson paced the Eagles with three hits, including a home run, and three RBI. Chris Shehan went 4-for-6 with three RBI, and Jeremiah Parker drove in three runs. Matt Miller and Greg Dowling each hit two-run home runs.
Reliever A.J. Battisto (3-0), one of four Georgia Southern pitchers in the game, was credited with the win after working two scoreless innings.
Mike Trapani and Danny Payne hit home runs for the Yellow Jackets. Tech committed four errors that led to four unearned runs, and the Jackets were 5-for-15 with runners in scoring position.
The 10-run margin was Georgia Tech’s worst home loss since May 1, 1999.
The Eagles batted around and struck for five runs in the top of the first inning, highlighted by a two-run single from Mike Economos and RBI singles from Richardson and Brian Pierce.
After the Yellow Jackets pulled to within 5-2 in the bottom of the first inning on a RBI single from Jeff Kindel and a RBI groundout from Whit Robbins, the Eagles answered with two runs in the second inning and four runs in the third to take an 11-2 lead. Tech committed two errors that led to two runs in the second. Georgia Southern batted around for the second time in the third inning, including a two-run single from Parker, a RBI single from Chris Shehan and a bases loaded walk to Brett Pelfrey.
Trapani hit a three-run homer, his first of the season, to pull the Yellow Jackets to within 11-5 in the fourth inning.
Georgia Southern extended the lead to 13-5 on Richardson’s two-run home run in the sixth inning, his second of the year. The Yellow Jackets answered with a two-run homer from Payne, his fifth of the season, to make the score 13-7 in the seventh inning.
Georgia Southern added six runs in the ninth inning to provide the final 19-7 margin. Miller and Dowling hit a pair of two-run homers in the inning.
Georgia Tech starter Tim Ladd (2-2), one of seven pitchers used in the game, allowed eight runs in two-plus innings and was charged with the loss.
Georgia Tech and Georgia Southern conclude the two-game series on Wednesday at 4 p.m.
