Jackson Finley had hoped he might have a chance for an at-bat against his brother Leighton. He was denied but had an acceptable consolation – a leading role in a Georgia Tech win over Georgia on Sunday at Coolray Field in the finale of the annual series between the in-state archrivals.
After dropping the first two games Friday and Saturday in Athens and Atlanta, respectively, the Yellow Jackets salvaged the third game, defeating the Bulldogs 4-1 before a crowd of 8,411 in the annual Spring Classic fundraiser for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. In a rivalry that often splits families, Sunday’s matchup took it to a rare level.
“Pretty special moment, especially with the family here,” Jackson Finley said. “I’m glad we both got to pitch. It was a cool experience.”
In his third pitching start of the season, Finley took the Jackets through the fourth inning, leaving with a 2-1 lead. He may have been at his best in the bottom of the fourth after putting two on with one out and allowing one run to score. He doused the threat with back-to-back three-pitch strikeouts of Parks Harber and Cole Wagner to end the inning.
“I ended up walking a couple, so that hurt a little bit, but it helped me focus and lock in there to get out of there with the least amount of damage as possible,” Finley said.
Finley, a rarity as a two-way player who serves as the Jackets’ DH when he doesn’t pitch, had hoped to face Leighton. However, in the top of the fifth, Tech coach Danny Hall pinch-hit for him, ending his day. An inning later, in the top of the sixth, UGA coach Scott Stricklin brought in his Finley from the bullpen, too late for a brother-brother confrontation. Leighton faced three batters, getting a groundout, walking a batter and hitting another before being relieved.
Still, it was the first time that the two had competed against one another at this level. The two were teammates for one year at Richmond Hill High when Jackson was a senior and Leighton (also a two-way player) was a freshman. Both wear No. 12.
“A lot of similarities between us two,” Jackson said. “It was good to see him and how well he’s doing. I wish him all the best.”
After the game, as night began to fall, the two brothers visited on the field along with parents Beth and Mitch and sister Kyra, sharing hugs before going their separate ways. Mom and Dad wore gray “House Divided” shirts with the family name and their sons’ jersey number on the back.
Finley, who gave up two hits, two walks, one earned run with four strikeouts for the Jackets, also contributed a single. He is hitting .433 with six home runs and has an ERA of 1.38.
“It was a big win, especially coming off of two losses to them,” Finley said. “Our main goal (Sunday) was to not get swept, so it’s a good push for the upcoming weekend.”
Finley and relievers Ben King and Terry Busse limited Georgia to four hits – all singles – and the lone run after the Bulldogs had battered Tech for 23 runs and 26 hits in winning the first two games of the series. King earned the win with three shutout innings, and UGA starter Nolan Crisp took the loss.
“I think we’re a really good offensive club,” Stricklin said. “I think we’re going to score a lot of runs this year, but sometimes good pitching shuts down good hitting. That’s what happened (Sunday). I just thought they pitched really well and shut our hitters down.”
Their lineup littered with injuries, the Jackets were limited at the plate in the three games, hitting .184 and scoring 12 runs. Tech first baseman Angelo DiSpigna, a transfer from Mercer, furnished the game’s biggest hit, a two-run single pulled to right in the top of the third inning off Crisp that put the Jackets ahead 2-0.
“I think (Sunday) was a step in the right direction,” Hall said. “I’ll just say it like that. The first two days, they outhit us, they outpitched us. (Sunday), a little different story. We pitched outstanding, got hits when we needed it, and so we’ve just got to keep moving forward.”
For both teams, the weekend represented the toughest competition faced so far this season. Tech (10-2) will begin ACC play this coming weekend with a home series against Notre Dame, while Georgia (8-3) has one more nonconference weekend series (Charleston Southern) before beginning SEC play at home vs. South Carolina March 17-19.
Credit: Ken Sugiura
Credit: Ken Sugiura
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