Baseball Hosts Harvard for Four-Game Series at Claude Smith Field
3/5/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
MACON, Ga. – The Mercer University baseball team welcomes Harvard to town this weekend for a four-game series at Claude Smith Field. The action kicks off on Friday, March 6, with first pitch scheduled for 6 p.m.
THIS WEEKEND'S MATCHUP
Teams: Mercer (8-5) at Harvard (2-2)
Location: Macon, Ga. | Claude Smith Field
Schedule: Friday, Mar. 6 – 6 p.m. | LIVE STATS
Saturday, Mar. 7 – 1 p.m. | LIVE STATS
Saturday, Mar. 7 – 4:30 p.m. | LIVE STATS
Sunday, Mar. 8 – 1 p.m. | LIVE STATS
Twitter Updates: @MercerBaseball
THIS WEEKEND'S PROBABLE STARTING PITCHERS
RHP Ryan Askew (2-0, 3.12 ERA) vs. RHP Sean Poppen (0-1, 11.57 ERA)
LHP Connor Herd (1-1, 3.65 ERA) vs. RHP Nick Gruener (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
RHP DJ Johnson (1-1, 5.28 ERA) vs. RHP Matt Timoney (1-0, 0.00 ERA)
RHP Eric Nyquist (1-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. RHP Tanner Anderson (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
SERIES HISTORY
Mercer owns a 1-0 lead in the all-time series between the two schools, posting a 14-3 victory in Macon during the 2011 season.
SCOUTING THE CRIMSON
Harvard enters this weekend's series with a 2-2 record and a No. 6 ranking in WarrenNolan.com's RPI ratings. The Crimson split their season-opening series with Wofford in Spartanburg, after going 11-28 in 2014.
Sophomore Drew Reid paces Harvard's lineup with five hits on the season, while seniors Jake McGuiggan and Ethan Ferreira each had two RBI in the Wofford series. The Crimson got a pair of great pitching performances in last Saturday's doubleheader, as starters Nick Gruener and Matt Timoney combined for 11 scoreless innings in the day's sweep.
MERCER'S LAST TIME OUT
- Eric Nyquist recorded the victory in his first start of the season, giving up just two hits in five scoreless innings on the mound.
- Mercer's bullpen was just as dominant, as Morgan Pittman tossed three scoreless innings before giving up the team's only run of the game in the ninth. Ben Lumsden retired the final two batters for his first save of 2015.
- The Bears fell one hit shy of their seventh double-digit hit performance of the year. Howard Joe paced the team with a 3-for-4 performance at the plate, while Nate Moorhouse went 2-for-4 with two RBI.
- Devin Bonin pushed his hit streak to nine games with a single to left field in the seventh inning.
THE BEARS' STORYLINES
- Mercer returns to Claude Smith Field, having won seven of its last eight games including a 3-1 mark at home.
- The Bears' bullpen has been dominant during the team's impressive eight-game stretch, accounting for two victories and two saves with a 1.60 ERA during that span.
- The last eight games have also been kind to the Bears' lineup. Mercer is hitting .284 as a team during that stretch including seven individuals above .300. The Bears have also tallied 24 extra-base hits while posting a .381 on-base percentage in that span.
- Mercer comes into the weekend ranked 13th in the nation in doubles with 29 on the year. The Bears lead the SoCon with that number, while having three individuals among the league's top six. Kyle Lewis leads the way with a conference-leading six two-base hits in 2015.
