Mercer University
Bradley
Baseball Evens Series with 3-2 Win Over Bradley
3/14/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
MACON, Ga. – The Mercer University baseball team led from start to finish in its 3-2 victory over Bradley on Saturday afternoon at Claude Smith Field.
"We got a great effort on the mound today from Connor Herd as well as no errors in an incredible effort in the field and timely hitting in run-scoring opportunities," said head coach Craig Gibson. "Matt Meeder was outstanding this afternoon, playing a part in two of our three runs. Our bullpen was also great with Morgan Pittman and Mitchell Wade coming up with tremendous innings for us down the stretch."
Mercer (11-10) got another impressive performance from its starting pitcher today, as Herd opened the game with six scoreless frames en route to his second win of the year. The freshman finished the day with two runs on six hits while striking out five in 6.2 innings of work.
Wade and Pittman combined for 2.1 scoreless innings to close out the contest, retiring all seven batters they faced. Pittman recorded the game's final four outs, three via strikeout, for his second save of the season.
The Bears provided just enough run support to even their series with Bradley (12-3), as Kyle Lewis' three-hit performance led the team to eight hits in the contest. Meeder had his best outing of the year, going 2-for-4 at the plate with a run scored and a RBI to go along with handful of impressive plays in the field.
Mercer jumped to an early 1-0 lead for the second-straight game, as Howard Joe plated Meeder for the game's first score in the bottom of the first.
The Bears added two more runs in the middle frames, as Meeder drove in Nate Moorhouse with a double in the fifth before Danny Edgeworth's sixth-inning RBI handed Mercer a three-run advantage.
Bradley broke up Herd's shutout bid in top of the seventh on Isaac Smith's two-run shot, but the Bears' bullpen shutdown the Braves' offense the rest of the way for the team's 11th win.
"It was a great college baseball game today with a 3-2 win over a talented club," added Gibson. "We know that we will have to give them our best shot tomorrow in game three to try to take the series."
Mercer will conclude its series with Bradley tomorrow afternoon with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. at Claude Smith Field.
