Mercer University
Ball St.
Mercer Drops Pair of Games at Tiger Invitational
2/14/2015 12:00:00 AM | Softball
AUBURN, Ala. – Mercer unable to get the bats going on day three of the Tiger Invitational, as the Bears were defeated by Ball State 9-1 in the opening game of the day and again to host No. 17 Auburn 9-1 in a rematch of Thursdays tournament opener.
Taylor Miller and Natalie Shiver led the Bears attack, posting five combined hits, while Shiver added two RBIs as Mercer fell in double-header action.
Ball State 9, Mercer 1
Ball State took control of the game early after a scoreless first, posting runs in each of the next four innings. Nicole Steinbach allowed only five hits through five innings for the Cardinals to move to 2-1 on the year. Shiver provided Mercer's lone RBI of the game in the fifth inning making the score 9-1. Kirsten Stevens threw four complete innings for the Bears as she picked up her second loss of the year.
Auburn 9, Mercer 1
In familiar fashion, Auburn jumped out to an early 6-0 first inning lead, adding another run in the second and a pair of runs in the third. Mercer got on the board in the third with another Shiver RBI, scoring Meghan Rud. Anna O'Neill provided a strong inning of relief in the fourth striking out the side. The Bears move to 5-4 on the year as Rachael Hugghins picks up her first loss of the season.
Mercer will be back in action tomorrow on the final day of tournament play, taking on Winthrop University at 1:15 p.m. EST, before heading to Gainesville, Fla. to take part in the University of Florida Lipton Invitational later this week.
Stay tuned to MercerBears.com for live stats and boxscores and be sure to follow Mercer softball on social media (Twitter / Facebook / Instagram) to keep up with all things Mercer Softball.
