Next Game: at Georgia 5/17/2019 | 6 p.m. CT SEC Network+

ATHENS, Ga. – Alabama baseball fell, 9-4, to sixth-ranked Georgia in a back-and-forth contest that saw the Bulldogs pull away late. Thursday's opener at Foley Field moved the Crimson Tide's record to 30-24 overall and 7-21 in Southeastern Conference play.

"We actually played a pretty good game tonight, but it got away from us there in the bottom of the eighth," said Alabama head coach Brad Bohannon . "It was a really competitive game against a really good team. To Georgia's credit, they did a good job of limiting us to one run in each of the four innings we scored. They're a very good team, very worthy of their ranking, and we're going to have to play our absolute best baseball to get a win tomorrow."

The two teams traded runs all night, with the Bulldogs posting crooked numbers in the third, sixth and eighth innings to secure the win. Georgia starter Cole Wilcox (3-1) got the victory while freshman Tyler Ras (1-3) suffered the loss for the Crimson Tide.

Georgia got on the board first thanks to a solo home run in the bottom of the second to gain a 1-0 advantage. Alabama came right back in the top of the third to even the score at one apiece. A pair of singles from juniors Justin King and Kolby Robinson got the first two on before the duo moved into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt. Brett Auerbach delivered on the opportunity, with the junior sending a sacrifice fly to right for the Tide's first run.

The Bulldogs regained the lead with three runs in the home half of the third to make it a 4-1 affair, but the Tide would continue to battle. In the fifth, a solo home run from junior Kobe Morris cut into the Georgia lead. One inning later, Alabama added another run to pull within one at 4-3. A single from Morgan McCullough led off the inning, with the junior then putting himself in scoring position with a stolen base. The extra base would prove crucial, as a two-out single from senior Joe Breaux scored McCullough to cut the deficit down.

Georgia answered once again with two runs in the bottom of the sixth to push the lead back to three at 6-3 through six full. In the eighth, Alabama drew closer with a solo home run from Tyler Gentry . The roundtripper was the junior's team-leading 12th of the year and got Alabama to within two at 6-4, but UA would get no closer. The Bulldogs put up three in the eighth to make it a 9-4 game, the eventual final.

Alabama and Georgia return to the diamond on Friday for another 6 p.m. CT start at Foley Field. The game-two pitching matchup will feature a pair of righties in Brock Love , a redshirt junior, for the Crimson Tide, and junior Tony Locey for the Bulldogs. Fans can catch Friday's pairing live on SEC Network+.

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