Sunday, April 29
Macon, Ga.
1 p.m.
Mercer University
31-15, 0
11
vs
3
VMI
23-20, 0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
VMI
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
3
6
0
Mercer
2
1
3
0
0
0
0
5
X
11
11
1
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Vann, Christian (4-2)
L: Kyle Staats (4-4)
Batting:
2B: Matt Dunlevy 1
HR: Collin Fleischer 1 ; Matt Dunlevy 1
RBI: Collin Fleischer 1 ; Matt Dunlevy 1 ; Peyton Maddox 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Collin Fleischer 1 ; Matt Dunlevy 2
HBP: Matt Dunlevy 1
Batting:
HR: Yeager, RJ 1 ; Ware, Jackson 1 ; Thomas, JT 2 ; Bassett, Le 1 ; Michie, Brandon 1
RBI: Yeager, RJ 2 ; Ware, Jackson 2 ; Thomas, JT 4 ; Bassett, Le 1 ; Michie, Brandon 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Yeager, RJ 2 ; Truitt, Trey 1 ; Ware, Jackson 2 ; Thomas, JT 2 ; Bassett, Le 2 ; Michie, Brandon 1 ; Dockus, Kyle 1
HBP: Bassett, Le 1
Game Leaders
AB
4
R
1
H
3
RBI
2
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
2
Players Mentioned
IF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ BaseballIF
/ Baseball
LHP
/ BaseballOF
/ BaseballBears Bash Keydets, Take Series with Six Home Runs
4/29/2018 5:30:00 PM | Baseball
Mercer takes down VMI, 11-3, in series finale Sunday
MACON, Ga. – Six home runs by five different Bears backed a strong start on the mound from Christian Vann as Mercer clinched a Southern Conference series with a 11-3 win over VMI on Sunday at OrthoGeorgia Park.
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Vann struck out a career-high 10 batters over seven innings while Jackson Ware, Le Bassett and JT Thomas, Brandon Michie and RJ Yeager all homered to produce 10 of Mercer's 11 runs scored. Mercer (31-15, 10-8) won its fourth SoCon series and eighth overall this season while VMI dropped to 23-20 overall and 10-8 in conference play.
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Ware started the long-ball frenzy with a two-run shot in the bottom of the first. VMI responded with back-to-back home runs by Collin Fleischer and Matt Dunlevy in the second to tie the contest, but the Bears' bats showed no signs of slowing down. A solo home run by Le Bassett – his third of the series – reclaimed the lead in the home half of the second.
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Thomas joined the derby with his first of two, two-run blasts in the third inning and was followed by a RBI single from Michie later in the frame that extended Mercer's lead to 6-2. VMI reliever Corey Johnson held Mercer hitless over the following 3.1 innings, but the Bears came alive once again in the eighth with five runs on four hits, three of which were long balls by Michie, Yeager and Thomas.
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Vann was relieved by Robert Broom after seven complete innings; it was the third time this season Vann made it through the seventh. who struck out four Keydets while allowing one run over two innings. It was the third time this season Vann (4-2) pitched through the seventh inning; he has earned the win in all three instances.
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Stat of the Game
Mercer's six home runs Sunday are its most in a single game since hitting six against The Citadel in the opening round of the 2016 SoCon Tournament on May 25, 2016 in Greenville, S.C. The Bears have hit six or more home runs just three times this decade (8 vs. Liberty on Feb. 19, 2011 at Claude Smith Field).
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The Bears belted 10 home runs against VMI this weekend and have a SoCon-leading 58 through 46 games played.
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Player of the Game
JT Thomas capped a monster weekend in powerful fashion, going 2-for-4 with a pair of two-run home runs to lead Mercer offensively. The senior finished the weekend with six hits – three of which were round-trippers – to raise his season batting average .13 points (.284).
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Postgame Quotes
Coach Gibson's opening statement:
"It was a great win today led by a pair of impressive performances on the mound from Christian Vann and Robert Broom along with six home runs from our bats," said head coach Craig Gibson. "You can't say enough about some of our older guys stepping up for us…Jackson Ware and JT Thomas really got it rolling.
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"Brandon Michie seems to be getting back into the mix. Our two freshmen [RJ Yeager and Le Bassett] are the two best freshmen in the league right now if you ask me. We'll look to keep this rolling into an important weekend at UNCG next week."
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Records Update
» Mercer: 31-15 (10-8 SoCon)
» VMI: 23-20 (10-8 SoCon)
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Pitchers of Record
» Win: Christian Vann (4-2)
» Loss: Kyle Staats (4-4)
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Up Next
» Mercer: At UNCG (6 p.m. Saturday, May 5 in Greensboro, Ga.)
» VMI: At Virginia Tech (6 p.m. Tuesday, May 1 in Blacksburg, Va.)
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Notables
» Mercer's six home runs are its most since hitting six against The Citadel on May 25, 2016.
» Six Bears have at least five home runs this season.
» Opponents are hitting just .181 against Vann in 52.0 innings pitched this season.
» Thomas has three career two-home run performances, including a pair this season.
» Broom tossed 16 strikeouts in eight innings of relief this week.
» Bassett is tied for the team lead with 10 home runs. He has four long balls in the last five games.
» Mercer has won seven of the last eight games against VMI.
» Michie went 3-for-4 with two RBI for his first multi-hit performance since April 10.
» Ware extended his reached base streak to 12 games with his 19th multi-hit performance.
» Mercer's 14 strikeouts Sunday marked the 24th time the Bears have tossed 10-plus strikeouts.
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Follow the Bears
For complete coverage of Mercer Baseball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerBaseball (Twitter), /MercerBaseball (Facebook) and @Mercer.Baseball (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
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Vann struck out a career-high 10 batters over seven innings while Jackson Ware, Le Bassett and JT Thomas, Brandon Michie and RJ Yeager all homered to produce 10 of Mercer's 11 runs scored. Mercer (31-15, 10-8) won its fourth SoCon series and eighth overall this season while VMI dropped to 23-20 overall and 10-8 in conference play.
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Ware started the long-ball frenzy with a two-run shot in the bottom of the first. VMI responded with back-to-back home runs by Collin Fleischer and Matt Dunlevy in the second to tie the contest, but the Bears' bats showed no signs of slowing down. A solo home run by Le Bassett – his third of the series – reclaimed the lead in the home half of the second.
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Thomas joined the derby with his first of two, two-run blasts in the third inning and was followed by a RBI single from Michie later in the frame that extended Mercer's lead to 6-2. VMI reliever Corey Johnson held Mercer hitless over the following 3.1 innings, but the Bears came alive once again in the eighth with five runs on four hits, three of which were long balls by Michie, Yeager and Thomas.
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Vann was relieved by Robert Broom after seven complete innings; it was the third time this season Vann made it through the seventh. who struck out four Keydets while allowing one run over two innings. It was the third time this season Vann (4-2) pitched through the seventh inning; he has earned the win in all three instances.
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Stat of the Game
Mercer's six home runs Sunday are its most in a single game since hitting six against The Citadel in the opening round of the 2016 SoCon Tournament on May 25, 2016 in Greenville, S.C. The Bears have hit six or more home runs just three times this decade (8 vs. Liberty on Feb. 19, 2011 at Claude Smith Field).
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The Bears belted 10 home runs against VMI this weekend and have a SoCon-leading 58 through 46 games played.
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Player of the Game
JT Thomas capped a monster weekend in powerful fashion, going 2-for-4 with a pair of two-run home runs to lead Mercer offensively. The senior finished the weekend with six hits – three of which were round-trippers – to raise his season batting average .13 points (.284).
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Postgame Quotes
Coach Gibson's opening statement:
"It was a great win today led by a pair of impressive performances on the mound from Christian Vann and Robert Broom along with six home runs from our bats," said head coach Craig Gibson. "You can't say enough about some of our older guys stepping up for us…Jackson Ware and JT Thomas really got it rolling.
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"Brandon Michie seems to be getting back into the mix. Our two freshmen [RJ Yeager and Le Bassett] are the two best freshmen in the league right now if you ask me. We'll look to keep this rolling into an important weekend at UNCG next week."
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Records Update
» Mercer: 31-15 (10-8 SoCon)
» VMI: 23-20 (10-8 SoCon)
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Pitchers of Record
» Win: Christian Vann (4-2)
» Loss: Kyle Staats (4-4)
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Up Next
» Mercer: At UNCG (6 p.m. Saturday, May 5 in Greensboro, Ga.)
» VMI: At Virginia Tech (6 p.m. Tuesday, May 1 in Blacksburg, Va.)
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Notables
» Mercer's six home runs are its most since hitting six against The Citadel on May 25, 2016.
» Six Bears have at least five home runs this season.
» Opponents are hitting just .181 against Vann in 52.0 innings pitched this season.
» Thomas has three career two-home run performances, including a pair this season.
» Broom tossed 16 strikeouts in eight innings of relief this week.
» Bassett is tied for the team lead with 10 home runs. He has four long balls in the last five games.
» Mercer has won seven of the last eight games against VMI.
» Michie went 3-for-4 with two RBI for his first multi-hit performance since April 10.
» Ware extended his reached base streak to 12 games with his 19th multi-hit performance.
» Mercer's 14 strikeouts Sunday marked the 24th time the Bears have tossed 10-plus strikeouts.
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Follow the Bears
For complete coverage of Mercer Baseball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerBaseball (Twitter), /MercerBaseball (Facebook) and @Mercer.Baseball (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
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