ATHENS — Lu Harris-Champers’ Bulldogs are at it again.
In a thriller at Jack Turner Stadium, Georgia upset 13th-seeded Duke 10-9 on Sunday to win the NCAA Athens Regional. With the win, the Bulldogs (32-21) advance to an NCAA Super Regional for the 11th time in UGA history.
Georgia draws No. 4 Florida next weekend in Gainesville. They’ll play Friday at 5 p.m. (ESPNU), Saturday at noon (ESPN) and Sunday at noon (ESPN), if necessary in the best-of-three series.
It might take a day or two before the excitement of Sunday’s slugfest subsides.
“I couldn’t be prouder of the team,” said Harris-Champer, in her 21st season as the Bulldogs’ softball coach. “I just thought that their heart, their fight, their grit — just so much grit — was unbelievable.”
Georgia’s Sydney Chambley was particularly gritty. The freshman from Dallas, Ga., drove in the game-winning run in the sixth inning. It was one of three hits and two RBI for Chambley, who also made a diving catch in left field in the top of the sixth inning that preserved what was then a 9-all tie.
Graduate Mary Wilson Avant, Georgia’s primary starter, came off the bench in relief to give the Bulldogs two perfect innings and record the win.
“That’s the proof of Georgia softball,” said Chambley, who got the Bulldogs off to a hot start with a grand slam in the opening game Friday. “That’s what we do best — we fight. We fight hard and give everything on the field. The ‘G’ represents so much more than us or the name on the back of our jersey. It represents a program that is all or nothing. … We want that shot.”
The Bulldogs have it now. They will be considerable underdogs at Florida, where they lost two of three earlier this season. But they’re 2-1 all-time against the Gators in regional finals, having knocked them out in 2016 on their way to the Women’s College World Series.
Georgia will be looking to make its fifth appearance to the WCWS.
“Just have fun and play softball,” Chambley said. “Every girl would dream to be where you are, and that’s what we said the first day we had practice. ‘Did you ever think that you would be playing a college regional game?’ We all said, ‘no.’ But we did it. … Never count us out.”
The regional win validated Georgia’s controversial appointment as an NCAA regional host despite having what was for it a down season. The Bulldogs finished the season 7-17 in SEC play.
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