Softball Releases 2018 Season Schedule

MACON, Ga. – Mercer head softball coach Stephanie DeFeo has announced the team's complete 2018 schedule Thursday, revealing the 55-game regular season slate highlighted by a trio of home tournaments and 24 home contests altogether at Sikes Field.

To see the full schedule on MercerBears.com, click here.

"I am excited for our team to have the opportunity to compete against some of the best teams in the country," stated DeFeo. "We have a team with a ton of experience and I know they are up for the challenge. Our nonconference schedule early on will prepare us well for what we will face in conference."

TOUGH AS NAILS
The Bears' schedule features 13 teams that recorded 30 or more wins a season ago, 11 of which competed in postseason play. Six of the 11 teams that advanced to postseason play competed in the NCAA Regionals, while the other five partook in the inaugural National Invitational Softball Championships (NISC). Three of the six NCAA Regional teams are SEC opponents in South Carolina, Mississippi State and Georgia.

A TOUR OF THE TOURNAMENTS
Mercer will compete in six tournaments throughout the season, including three at Sikes Field. The Bears will play 27 of their first 32 games in various tournaments. Mercer kicks off the season hosting the Mercer Invitational, featuring Buffalo, Appalachian State and Central Michigan. The Bears will then partake in the South Carolina Invitational alongside Southern Illinois, Georgetown, Michigan State and South Carolina. Mercer will host its second tournament of the season in the Black & Orange Challenge, taking on Drexel, Akron, Eastern Kentucky and Radford. The fourth tournament of the season will be the Mississippi State Invitational, featuring Sam Houston State, Lamar, Mississippi State and Alcorn State. The final road tournament of the campaign will be the Rafter Memorial Tournament where Mercer will battle with Fort Wayne, Belmont and tournament host, Kennesaw State. The final regular season tournament will be the Mercer Bears Classic with Austin Peay, Rutgers and Bucknell.

PATH TO A SOCON TITLE
The Bears will open their 18-game SoCon schedule with a road series against Chattanooga on March 24-25. Mercer will then host defending SoCon champion ETSU on March 30-31. The Bears travel to UNCG (April 7-8) and Western Carolina (April 28-29), while hosting Samford (April 21-22) and Furman (May 5-6).

2018 OPPONENT SNAPSHOT (2017 Records)
Buffalo (9-46, 3-21 MAC)
Appalachian State (11-45, 2-22 Sun Belt)
Central Michigan (37-15, 18-5 MAC)
Southern Illinois (33-24, 17-8 MVC) *2017 NCAA Regional Team*
Georgetown (11-37, 4-16 Big East)
Michigan State (34-24, 11-11 Big 10) *2017 NISC Tournament Team*
South Carolina (34-25, 8-15 SEC) *2017 NCAA Regional Team*
Florida A&M (23-32-1, 14-2 MEAC) *2017 NCAA Regional Team*
Drexel (19-30, 4-16 CAA)
Akron (30-27, 12-12 MAC)
Eastern Kentucky (27-31, 11-9 OVC)
Radford (27-28, 8-13 Big South)
Sam Houston State (24-27, 14-13 Southland)
Lamar (34-31, 17-10 Southland) *2017 NISC Runner Up*
Mississippi State (36-22, 10-14 SEC) *2017 NCAA Regional Team*
Alcorn State (16-31, 13-5 SWAC)
Detroit Mercy (18-34, 12-10 Horizon)
Jacksonville (30-25, 8-10 A-Sun)
Fort Wayne (12-36, 4-11 Summit)
Belmont (35-22, 10-12 OVC)
Kennesaw State (40-20, 11-6 A-Sun) *2017 NISC Tournament Team*
Austin Peay (17-31, 5-15 OVC)
Rutgers (14-37, 5-15 Big 10)
Bucknell (23-20, 6-11 Patriot)
Georgia State (36-25, 18-9 Sun Belt) *2017 NISC Tournament Team*
Chattanooga (15-38, 4-14 SoCon)
ETSU (29-26, 10-7 SoCon) *2017 NCAA Regional Team*
UNCG (29-24, 11-6 SoCon)
Georgia (35-23, 6-18 SEC) *2017 NCAA Regional Team*
Alabama State (22-35, 10-8 SWAC) *2017 NISC Tournament Team*
Samford (25-36, 10-8 SoCon)
Western Carolina (18-30, 6-11 SoCon)
Furman (31-23, 11-6 SoCon)

FAMILIAR FACES
Mercer returns six of its top seven batters from a season ago, including Meghan Rud who batted .393 on the season with four doubles, four triples, one homerun and 13 runs batted in. Rud was joined by Megan Bilgri on the All-SoCon first team as Bilgri finished 13-7 in the circle with an ERA of 2.25, walking just 19 batters and punching out 41. Stella Preston, Quirisa Mauga and Taylor Miller each landed a spot on the All-SoCon second team, while Preston was named to the All-Freshman team. The Bears led the conference last season with five All-SoCon selections, each of which are returning to the squad this season.

Follow the Bears
For complete coverage of Mercer Softball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerUSoftball (Twitter), /MercerSoftball (Facebook) and @MercerUSoftball (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.

Players Mentioned

Megan Bilgri

Quirisa Mauga

Taylor Miller

Stella Preston

Meghan Rud

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