The No. 16 Georgia women’s softball team kicked off its season with a doubleheader on Feb.7 against Howard and Kent State. 

The Bulldogs won their first game in five innings against Howard 11-1 and then proceeded to win their second game against Kent State in five innings 10-1. 

“They came out and played fast today and we never looked back,” head coach Lu Harris-Champer said.

Two freshmen, Sara Mosley and Sydney Kuma, made their Georgia debut in the starting lineup. Senior Jordan Doggett said that she could not have been more proud of the freshmen and the rest of the team. 

“I am proud of the team as a whole,” Doggett said. “We brought everything that we had been doing in practice on the field tonight. Everyone was calm, cool and collected. It is for sure a confidence boost for the season.” 

Mosley and Kuma came out to play with a strong first inning. They ignited the Bulldogs to secure three runs in the first inning and two more runs in the second, to provide Georgia with a 5-1 lead going into the third inning.

“I’ve been working my tail off and it paid off tonight,” Mosley said. 

In the second inning, Kuma had a strong play switching places with Mosley for a double of her own in the left-center gap. Mosley finished her night with three hits — a double and a home run. She also had four RBIs.

“I was a little bit nervous, but I just played for myself and my team,” Mosley said. “I put my heart on the line out there.”

The third inning is what secured the win for Georgia with six runs. Lacy Fincher and Doggett each had three RBIs in the inning.

In the fourth inning, Mackenzie Puckett made her Bulldog debut with a pinch-hit single up the middle in her only at-bat of the game.

In the second game of the evening, the Bulldogs started with an early 1-0 deficit after a Kent State home run in the first inning. However, they started a comeback in the third and fourth innings from a triple and single by Savanna Sikes and Justice Milz. By the end of the third, Georgia led 2-1. 

The Bulldogs used their third inning momentum to score eight more runs in the fourth, leading to the 10-1 final score after the fifth inning. 

Georgia will play another doubleheader tomorrow beginning with Kent State at 1 p.m. and UNCW at 3:30 p.m.

Printed with permission from The Red & Black independent student media organization based in Athens, Georgia; redandblack.com/sports