ATLANTA – No. 13 Georgia Tech baseball (29-8) dropped a 5-2 contest to No. 3 Georgia (33-6) on Tuesday night from Truist Park, in Atlanta. The bullpen allowed only three runs over 8.2 innings, thanks to strong outings from Carson Ballard, Porter Buursema and Connor Chicoli but the bats couldn’t muster enough to avoid the loss.
Freshman Will Baker was the offensive highlight, going 2-for-4 with two RBI, including a solo home run in the top of the third that went 404 feet into the Chop House down the right field line.
Will Baker got ALL of that one 🤩
His 3rd HR of the year and 2nd in the past four days
404 feet / 106 exit velo#StingEm🐝 x #WreckHavoc🇦🇺 x #THWg pic.twitter.com/xDHrgDHBa7
— Georgia Tech Baseball (@GTBaseball) April 16, 2025
QUICK HITS: THE TEAM
- Tech is now 29-8, still the best start to a season in 15 years (since 2010) and tied for the fifth-best start in the Danny Hall era (since 1994).
- GT falls to Tech is 6-1 against in-state opponents this season and saw its 10-game regular season win streak against in0state programs snapped.
- The Jackets continue to lead the nation in doubles, now with 107 as a team, after Caleb Daniel posted his 12th double of the year.
- Tech is the only program across Division I to have four players at 12 or more doubles: Drew Burress (19 – most in Power 4), Kyle Lodise (17), Carson Kerce (14), and Daniel (12).
- Georgia Tech is averaging 2.89 doubles per game this season (107 in 37 games) – the program record for doubles/game is 2.51, set in the 1987 season.
- The Jackets tied their season high by executing three double plays. Tech has turned multiple double plays in four of its last seven games after only doing so in only two of the prior 30.
- The Yellow Jackets were without two of their top bats as Kyle Lodise missed his fifth straight game of the year while Kent Schmidt missed his 16th game in a row.
- Tech leads the ACC with a 14-4 conference record, 1.5 games in front of Clemson and Florida State.
QUICK HITS: THE BATS
- Freshman Will Baker recorded both of GT’s RBI – hitting a solo home run in the third inning before driving in the game-tying run in the top of the fourth.
- He hit his third home run of the season and second in his last four games, a massive 404-foot blast down the right field line.
- Baker later drove in John Giesler with an RBI single. It was his fourth multi-RBI game and his third multi-hit game of the season.
- The Australian has put together a four-game hit streak, the longest of his collegiate career.
- Tech freshmen have combined for 22 home runs now in 2025, accounting for more than a third of Tech’s HRs (37.3 %).
- R-Freshman Nathanael Coupet extended his career-best on-base streak to six games with a single in the fourth.
- Sophomore Drew Burress extended his on-base streak to 55 games dating back to last season, with a walk in the first inning. He is one game away from tying Richard Lewis for the 5th-longest on-base streak in program history.
- Freshman Caleb Daniel recorded his 12th double of the year, tied for the 2nd-most among Power 4 freshmen.
- Senior John Giesler came around to score. He has scored at least one run in seven of his last eight games.
- Junior Parker Brosius extended his on-base streak to six games with a walk tonight.
QUICK HITS: THE ARMS
- Junior Brett Barfield made his first-career start, recording one out before giving way to the bullpen.
- R-Sophomore Carson Ballard tied his career high with six strikeouts, coming out of the bullpen for 4.2 innings of work.
- He entered the game with the bases loaded and one out in the bottom of the first, inducing an inning ending double play to keep the Jackets in it before allowing a pair of homers in the bottom of the fourth, ultimately taking the tough luck loss.
- Sophomore Porter Buursema made his first appearance since February, showing no signs of rust, working 1.1 innings and striking out three while only allowing one hit.
- Buursema has now struck out nine over 4.0 innings this season, recording nine of his 12 outs via punchout.
- Freshman Connor Chicoli pitched the final 1.2 innings of scoreless baseball. He has allowed only two earned runs over his last 5.1 innings in relief.
UP NEXT
The Jackets return to ACC play this weekend, traveling to Miami (20-17, 6-9 ACC) for a three-game series. Friday (8 p.m.) and Saturday (4 p.m.) will be broadcast on ACC Network while the series finale on Sunday (1 p.m.) will be streamed on ACCNX.
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.
For the latest information on the Georgia Tech baseball team, follow us on Twitter (@GTBaseball), Facebook, Instagram (@gt_baseball) or visit us at www.ramblinwreck.com.
