*OCCASIONAL AUDIO ISSUES*
**GEORGIA STATE FIGHT SONG TO END GAME**
ATLANTA — Griffin Cheney homered twice and Dylan Matela earned his first win as Georgia State won its eighth straight game with a 9-5 victory at Georgia Tech Tuesday at Mac Nease Ballpark.
Josh Smith also homered for the Panthers, whose eight-game streak is Georgia State’s longest since 2013 and equals the second-longest streak in program history.
Off to their best start since 2011, the Panthers (23-10) won at Georgia Tech for the second straight year after a 10-1 victory last season.
Cheney’s two homers give him 12 on the season, tying teammate Max Ryerson for the Sun Belt Conference lead. Five of Cheney’s 12 homers have come against the ACC; he hit three in the Panthers’ win at Clemson.
Georgia State jumped in front in the second inning as Smith homered for the second straight game with a two-run blast to right center. The GSU right fielder went 3-for-5 on the night with a homer, double and single and three RBI.
Cheney led off the third with a solo shot to left for a 3-1 GSU lead.
Then the Panthers exploded for five runs in the fourth. Max Ryerson and Blaine Marchman led off with back-to-back singles, and with one out, Smith laced a single to left center to score Ryerson. Then DeAngelo Abboud doubled down the right field line to bring home two and give the Panthers a 6-1 lead.
That brought Cheney back up, and this time he went to right center, hitting the speaker tower and giving Georgia State an 8-1 advantage.
Ryerson added an RBI-single in the eighth.
Matela (1-1), the GSU starter, pitched a career-long five innings to pick up his first career win. He held the Yellow Jackets to just one run through 4.2 innings before allowing three runs. Then the GSU bullpen finished the job as relievers Camren Landry, Nick Lommen, Chad Treadway and Ryan Watson allowed just one run over the final four innings.
Georgia State, in first place in the Sun Belt Conference at 10-2, opens a series at third-place Georgia Southern Thursday at 6:30 p.m. in Statesboro, Ga.
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