CLEMSON – Mac Pavese and Marian Collins, two Georgia natives, along with Kylee Johnson, each launched two-run homers as Clemson rode a five-run fifth inning to its first-ever win at Jack Turner Stadium over No. 11 Georgia in a 10-1 run-rule victory Wednesday night.
Clemson has now outscored its opponents 37-1 in its last five games, with four coming from run-rule victories. After a 6-5 start, Clemson has won five straight in five days, dating back to a win over Lipscomb on Feb. 20
The Tigers have now outscored opponents 92-56 through 16 contests. The win extended Clemson’s all-time lead over Georgia 4-2, and marked the Tigers’ third ranked win of the season. The victory was Clemson’s first over a top-25 opponent since Feb. 6, the second day of the season.
Jamison Brockenbrough, Clemson’s (11-5) leadoff hitter, got the offense rolling with a first-inning double on a 3-1 count to put the Tigers in immediate scoring position. Pavese, a true freshman, sent her second home run of the season on the first pitch she saw in her home state to take a 2-0 lead early.
After Pavese’s blast in the top of the first, Georgia (13-5) answered quickly, loading the bases on a passed ball, a fielder’s choice, and a walk. The Bulldogs knocked in a run on a sacrifice ground out, and Manness escaped any more damage with a four-pitch strike out.
Tigers’ shortstop Kiley Channell punched back in the second with a leadoff single, but was caught stealing at home. Corri Hicks added a single, the fourth Clemson hit, and was driven home on a sacrifice ground out from Macey Cintron and a wild pitch to extend the lead 3-1.
Both teams stagnated in the third and fourth innings, totaling zero combined hits, but right fielder Macey Cintron, last season’s ACC Rookie of the Year, got things going again for the Tigers in the fifth with a leadoff single up the middle.
Left fielder Kylee Johnson followed Cintron’s seventh hit of the year with a double to the wall, and Brockenbrough drove both runs home with her second double of the night. It marked the Locust Grove, Ga., native’s fifth double of the young season.
Designated player Julia Knowler singled to send Brockenbrough home run her second run of the night, extending the lead 6-1. Collins finished off Clemson’s big inning with her fourth homer of the season, sending Knowler home into a screaming dugout.
One inning after her double, Johnson sent her first home run of the year out of the park to extend Clemson’s lead 10-1, putting the Bulldogs in immediate danger of a midweek run-rule.
Manness followed up a shutout performance against Baylor at the Clemson Classic last weekend with only one run in six innings. She allowed four hits, walked three and struck out eight in her tenth appearance with the Tigers. After one earned run in the first, she remained nearly perfect through five frames.
Three Tigers– Pavese, Brockenbrough, and Johnson, each finished 2-for-4 on the evening, while six other Clemson players recorded hits. Clemson now has two players, Collins and Pavese, batting above .400, with two more above the .300 mark.
Up Next
Clemson will return to McWhorter Stadium Friday to try and extend its win streak to six games against Wofford. First pitch for the Tigers and Terriers is set for 12:30 in the first game of the Tiger Invitational Tournament.