Columbia, S.C. – The No. 9 South Carolina softball team (21-5, 1-4 SEC) earned its first conference win in dramatic fashion, defeating No. 13 Georgia (21-5, 2-3 SEC) with a 4-3 walk-off victory on Saturday afternoon (March 15).
Starting pitcher Sam Gress (4-2) delivered a strong performance, holding Georgia scoreless through the first five innings. She completed the full seven innings, giving up two earned runs in the sixth while recording five strikeouts.
Offensively, Ella Chancey and Lexi Winters paced the Gamecocks with two hits each. Winters and Abigail Knight drove in two runs apiece, while Arianna Rodi extended her on-base streak to 21 games with three walks. Rodi, who leads the team with 28 walks this season, played a key role in the Gamecocks’ offensive efforts.
South Carolina wasted no time getting on the scoreboard, as Winters and Knight each delivered RBI singles to right field in the first inning. Winters later added another RBI with a sacrifice fly in the fifth, plating Karley Shelton to extend the lead.
Georgia responded with a three-run sixth inning to even the score, but South Carolina had the final say in the seventh. Gress ended her outing with a crucial strikeout before the Gamecocks mounted their walk-off rally.
Rodi’s leadoff walk, followed by consecutive singles from Chancey and Winters, loaded the bases with one out. Knight stepped up and hit a grounder up the middle, which the Georgia shortstop fielded cleanly, but her throw to the plate was too late to prevent Rodi from scoring the game-winning run. The Gamecocks stormed the field in celebration of the hard-fought victory.
South Carolina will aim to clinch the series win in the rubber match on Sunday at 2 p.m.
