Bases on balls haunted No. 14-ranked Georgia baseball all day long in a Game Two loss.

The Bulldogs (22-8, 7-4 SEC), who walked 11 batters Saturday, still hold the second-best record in the SEC East. They will aim to take the series from the Gamecocks (15-15, 4-7) at noon Sunday at Founders Park in Columbia.

South Carolina scored eight runs in the first five innings and never surrendered the lead.

“We had a chance after getting down 8-2, as we made it 8-4 and then 8-6, and we just needed to close the door in the eighth inning, and then I would’ve liked our chances,” UGA coach Scott Stricklin said. “There was too many free passes and free opportunities, and luck is not going to go your way when you do that.”

Garrett Brown gave up four walks and three hits for five earned runs in 3.1 innings. Brown, who did not play last year while recovering from elbow surgery, is yet to take the Bulldogs through four innings in seven starts this season.

Luke Wagner, who pitched the next 1.2 innings, surrendered another three earned runs on two hits and two more walks Five of the six batters that Wagner and Brown walked scored for the Gamecocks.

South Carolina did its best to make sure Georgia could not repeat its ninth inning heroics from Game One. After Bulldogs cut their deficit to 8-6 in the top of the eighth, the Gamecocks exploded for a five more runs in the following side to put Georgia comfortably behind.

Georgia was kept quiet offensively until the fifth inning thanks to a magnificent start from South Carolina’s Will Sanders. Sanders, who allowed three earned runs in 6.1 innings, fanned nine Bulldogs.

Between Noah Hall Friday night and Sanders on Saturday, South Carolina’s starting pitchers have fanned 19 batters this weekend.

UGA picked up its first runs in the fifth inning thanks to a two-run shot from Cole Tate. Tate, whose clutch RBI single in the ninth inning helped Georgia take Game One, thumped the first pitch he saw over the right-field wall.

Tate and Corey Collins both came up with sacrifice flies in the seventh inning to trim South Carolina’s lead to 8-4.

Parks Harber scorched a two-run shot to right field in the eighth inning, making the score 8-6. Ben Anderson hit a solo shot in the ninth to score Georgia’s seven run of the game.

Tate led the Bulldogs at the plate, hitting 1 for 3 with three RBI, a home run, and a walk.