COLUMBIA, S.C.-----Nick Ebert hit two home runs including a two-out grand slam in the bottom of the seventh to lead South Carolina to a 7-2 win over No. 15 Georgia Thursday at Carolina Stadium. The Bulldogs (35-18, 15-13 SEC) and Gamecocks (35-19, 15-13 SEC) are now tied for second in the SEC East with the winner of the series getting the higher seed in next week's SEC Tournament. South Carolina led 3-2 entering the seventh and a Georgia fielding error extended the inning for Ebert who opened a five-run lead for the Gamecocks with his grand slam. Sam Dyson (8-4) tossed a complete game and allowed just four hits with 13 strikeouts for South Carolina. After Joey Lewis singled in the first, Dyson retired 24 of the final 26 batters. Georgia starter Trevor Holder (7-4) limited South Carolina to three earned runs on five hits in 6.2 innings. "We had our chance in the first inning and couldn't capitalize," Georgia coach David Perno said. "We came out and had three of the four hits in the first inning and put pressure on them. Dyson made the adjustments and we didn't make enough. We aren't taking care of the ball. In my eyes we had three big errors. We have to take care of the baseball and we have to play better. I'm very proud of Trevor. He really competed, threw all three pitches and got the tough outs when he needed it." Matt Cerione led off the game with his ninth home run to give Georgia a 1-0 lead, then Justin Dalles led off the bottom of the second inning with a home run of his own for the Gamecocks to tie the score. South Carolina took a 3-1 lead in the bottom of the third on a two-run blast to left field by Ebert, then Georgia came back in the fourth as Lyle Allen launched a solo home run to center, cutting the lead to 3-2. Neither team scored again until Ebert's grand slam in the seventh. He was the only player on either side with mutiple hits in the game. The two teams will play the second game of the series Friday at 7:05. Alex McRee (4-2, 4.35) will start for Georgia and Nolan Belcher (3-3, 5.48 ERA) will start for South Carolina.
Ebert Leads South Carolina To 7-2 Win Over No. 15 Georgia
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