Mercer Baseball Releases 2015 Schedule
11/24/2014 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
2015 Mercer Baseball Schedule
MACON, Ga. – Mercer University baseball will look to add another chapter to the most successful stretch in program history, as head coach Craig Gibson announced the team's 56-game schedule for its first season in the Southern Conference.
The Bears are coming off their program record fifth-straight season of 38 wins or more, as they are just one of four programs in the country to achieve the feat. Mercer's bid to reach the milestone for a sixth consecutive season starts with a 2015 schedule that is highlighted by a 33-game slate at Claude Smith Field, the program's most home contests since 2004.
"It will be an exciting season with our first year in the Southern Conference and an ACC/SEC flair to the schedule with teams like Alabama, Georgia, Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech," said Gibson. "We also play each of the NCAA Division I teams from Georgia this season, which is fun for our players who grew up playing with and against most of the guys on those teams. Overall though, we're really looking forward to competing in a new league against some great teams in the Southern Conference."
The Bears will play 15 contests against teams that finished last season ranked inside the RPI Top 100, including matchups with Atlantic Coast Conference's Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech and Southeastern Conference powers Alabama and Georgia.
Mercer opens the 2015 season with a five-game home stand, beginning with a three-game series with Virginia Tech on February 13-15. The Bears wrap up the stand with a pair of weekday contests against Georgia State (Feb. 17) and Kennesaw State (Feb. 18).
The first road trip of the season comes on Feb. 20-22, as the Bears travel to Daytona Beach, Fla. for a three-game series at Bethune-Cookman. Following the road trip, Mercer plays nine of its next 10 games at Claude Smith Field. The Bears start the stretch with consecutive series against non-conference opponents, as Florida A&M (Feb. 24-25) and Belmont (Feb. 27-Mar. 1) come to town.
A one-game road swing to Georgia Southern (Mar. 3) sets up a four-game home weekend series against Harvard (Mar. 6-8), before the Bears head south to take on Florida A&M in Tallahassee, Fla. on Mar. 10-11.
Mercer will start its final preparations for conference play with a three-game series against Bradley (Mar. 13-15), which kicks-off a season-long seven-game home stand. The Bears' last tune-up is set for Mar. 17, as Georgia comes to Claude Smith Field for the first part of a two-game series in 2015.
SoCon play kicks off on March 20-22, as Mercer welcomes East Tennessee State to Macon for a three-game series. The Bears travel to Georgia (Mar. 24) to wrap up the season series, before making their way to Greenville, S.C. for a three-game conference series against Furman (Mar. 27-29).
A 6 p.m. home contest against Savannah State (Mar. 31) sets up a four-game road trip that includes a trio of conference games at The Citadel (Apr. 2-4) and a stop in Atlanta on Apr. 7 for the first part of two-game series with Georgia Tech.
The Bears continue SoCon play the following weekend at Claude Smith Field, as they welcome the 2014 SoCon regular-season champions, Western Carolina, for a three-game series on April 10-12.
Mercer continues the 2015 season against non-conference opponents Georgia State (Apr. 14) and Georgia Southern (Apr. 15), before returning to league play at Wofford (Apr. 17-19). The Bears then wrap up the season series with Savannah State (Apr. 21) and close out the month of April with a weekend series at home against UNC Greensboro (Apr. 24-26).
A three-game road trip to VMI (May 1-3) kicks off May for the Bears, who then finish up their series with Georgia Tech at home on May 6. To close the regular season, Mercer travels to SEC power Alabama (May 12) and hosts 2014 SoCon Tournament runner-up Samford for a three-game series on May 14-16.
The 2015 Southern Conference Championship begins May 20 in Charleston, S.C.
Fans can follow Mercer baseball online at MercerBears.com or via Twitter (@MercerBaseball).
