When speaking with the media on Wednesday, Tennessee softball’s co-head coach Ralph Weekly said that no team is going to go through SEC play undefeated. It comes with the territory when you play in the premier conference in college softball.

Another aspect of playing in the league is not having time to dwell on a loss — especially when you have another top-10 team on the docket the following week.

Such is the case for the Lady Vols, who fell from No. 2 to No. 7 in the latest USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll after being on the losing end of a series sweep for the first time since 2016 due to dropping three straight contests to No. 8 South Carolina last week.

“We have a good team,” Weekly said. “We have a really good team. And the best thing you can do when something like this happens is just dust off and get back to work. You can’t dwell on it.”

Getting back to work is what Tennessee (30-4, 3-3) plans to do as they welcome the No. 6 Georgia Bulldogs (29-3, 7-2) to Knoxville this weekend for a battle of two top-10 programs.

Georgia is one of the hottest teams in the country right now, winning six of its last eight games, including a series victory over then-No. 2 Florida earlier this month.

“We’re getting ready to go into the fire,” Weekly said. “We’ve got Georgia, here. This is one of the best Georgia teams I have ever seen. This conference is the toughest I’ve ever seen.”

One of the most instrumental pieces to Georgia’s success — like most teams — is its pitching, and the Bulldogs have one of the best pitchers in senior right-hander Brittany Gray, who has a 15-0 mark this season.

Gray also is tops among conference pitchers with an ERA of 0.47.

“They have good pitching,” Weekly said. “Gray hasn’t been defeated on the season. They have a very fast outfield. They are just a good, solid team. They play good defense.”

Tennessee’s hitters will look to do something against Gray that many teams haven’t had success doing this season. One of those hitters is junior Brooke Vines, who has picked up right where she left off after returning from injury two weeks ago.

Vines believes her and her teammates will use last weekend’s loss as a motivator going into this week’s daunting match up.

“I think our energy is up,” said Vines. “Even more than it was before. I think we have more of a fire in our hearts to come out and play. It really just sparked a deep fire in us.”

Vines is batting .429 with seven RBIs and a home run since her season debut against Cleveland State on March 14.

In addition to Vines, Tennessee’s batting order certainly has some proven firepower that will present a challenge for Georgia’s pitchers.

Senior Meghan Gregg and sophomore Chelsea Seggern are both ranked first and second in the country, with 50 and 49 RBI, respectively.

Gregg is just one RBI and two home runs away from taking her place in program history as the all-time leader in both categories.

While every game in the SEC matters, playing the Bulldogs means a little bit more than other games for a handful of players on Tennessee’s roster.

In fact, the Lady Vols have three players who brought their talents from the Peach State to the rolling foothills of East Tennessee.

One of those players is freshman first baseman Ashley Morgan, who had an up-and-down series in Columbia last week. Morgan hit a three-run homer on offense and gave up three runs in the circle during Sunday’s loss.

The Douglasville, Georgia, native will look to bounce back with a big performance against the hometown Bulldogs.

“It’s really exciting,” Morgan said. “It would be really cool to get a win against them. I know two or three girls (on Georgia’s roster), and knowing them just makes it more competitive.”

Like Meghan Gregg (Williamson, Georgia) and junior Savannah Huffstetler (Suwanee, Georgia), Morgan opted to play out-of-state, and it’s a decision she doesn’t regret.

“There was some pressure (to stay in-state),” Morgan said. “But when I came here I knew this is where I wanted to be. I’m sure some people were upset I came here, but I’m glad I did.”

The series will start with game one on Saturday with first pitch slated for 5 p.m. at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium. The series will conclude on Monday night.

For the first time this season, all three games will be nationally televised on the SEC Network.