Mercer University
Stetson
Mercer Splits Doubleheader with Stetson
3/31/2012 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
MACON, Ga. – Despite three home runs on the day by junior Logan Gaines, the Mercer baseball team settled for a doubleheader split against Stetson on Saturday afternoon at Claude Smith Field.
After taking home a 7-4 victory over the Hatters in game one, Stetson fought back for a 7-6 win in the nightcap.
The game one win against the Hatters was Mercer's (17-11, 2-6 A-Sun) first in over two years after Stetson swept the season series from the Bears in 2011 and 2010.
In game one, after Stetson pushed a run across against Mercer starter Brandon Love in the first inning, the Bears offense exploded to the tune of five runs over the next two frames.
A three-run home run by Gaines, his first of the day, highlighted the barrage that saw Mercer take a 5-1 lead over the Hatters through three innings.
That would be all the run support Love needed as he settled down nicely for the Orange and Black over the next few innings of play. The Augusta, Ga. native ended up going 5.1 innings and allowed just two earned runs to go along with five strikeouts to pick up his third win of the season.
In game two, it was Stetson who jumped out to a big early lead. A three-run home run by junior Sam Kimmel off Bears starter Dimitri Kourtis in the fifth inning put the Hatters up by a 7-3 margin.
Mercer tried to make a late comeback using a solo home run and a two-run home run by Gaines to make the score 7-6 going into the ninth. Stetson closer Robbie Powell came on in the ninth, however, and shut the door on the Bears pitching a scoreless inning of relief to secure the win for the visitors.
Gaines was the story offensively for Mercer on the day, going 5-for-6 with the three home runs, four runs scored and seven RBI combined in the doubleheader.
Mercer returns to the field tomorrow afternoon to conclude its three-game series with Stetson. Game time on Sunday afternoon is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Claude Smith Field.
