Thursday, April 13
Lexington, Va.
6 p.m.
Mercer University
30-6, 9-1
10
at
6
VMI
17-17, 4-6
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercer | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 8 | 0 |
| VMI | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 11 | 1 |
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Broom, Robert (6-1)
L: Eagle (3-2)
Batting:
2B: Hanson, Alex 1 ; Crotty, Alex 2
HR: Hagan, Ryan 1 ; Hanson, Alex 1 ; Thomas, JT 1
RBI: Hagan, Ryan 1 ; Hanson, Alex 3 ; Thomas, JT 4 ; Crotty, Alex 2
SH: Ware, Jackson 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Hagan, Ryan 2 ; Hanson, Alex 2 ; Thomas, JT 1 ; Bening, Hunter 3 ; Truitt, Trey 1 ; Crotty, Alex 1
SB: Hagan, Ryan 2 ; Thomas, JT 1 ; Bening, Hunter 1
CS: Hagan, Ryan 1
Batting:
2B: Jaye 1 ; Maddox 1 ; Huggins 1
3B: Tharp 1
HR: Jaye 1 ; Fleischer 1 ; Adamson 1
RBI: Jaye 1 ; Fleischer 1 ; Maddox 1 ; Huggins 1 ; Adamson 2
SH: Dunlevy 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Jaye 1 ; Fleischer 2 ; Tharp 1 ; Huggins 1 ; Adamson 1
SB: Hatten 1
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
RHP
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Photo by: Bill Hirsh
Bears Defeat VMI 10-6, Notch Win No. 30
4/13/2017 11:17:00 PM | Baseball
Early power surge, Broom’s career-high eight strikeouts lead the way
MACON, Ga. – JT Thomas and Alex Hanson combined for four hits and seven RBIs to power Mercer to its nation-leading 30th win of the year and ninth straight since March 31 as it defeated VMI, 10-6, at Gray-Minor Stadium Thursday night.
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Mercer's seventh straight Southern Conference victory was also the team's ninth series-opening win of the year. VMI dropped to 17-17 (4-6 SoCon). Robert Broom earned the win with 4.2 innings of two-hit relief as he struck out a career-high eight batters.
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Four combined first-inning long balls were an early indicator of how the series opener would unfold. Ryan Hagan led the game off with a solo shot, only to be topped by a two-run blast from Thomas two at bats later for an early 3-0 lead.
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However, VMI opened the home half of the first with back-to-back home runs off Ryan Askew and eventually took a 5-3 advantage after three innings of play. Askew (4-0) went 3.2 innings before Mercer went to the bullpen and earned a no-decision.
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Askew's final run support came in the fourth when Mercer took advantage of three consecutive walks by Hunter Bening, Trey Truitt and Alex Crotty. A bases-loaded walk by Alex Hanson gave way to Thomas, who singled up the middle to score a pair and give the Bears a 6-5 lead. Hanson would extend the lead later on with a two-run home run of his own while Alex Crotty deposited a pair of RBI doubles in the seventh and ninth innings.
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PLAYER OF THE GAME
Despite the offensive fireworks from multiple Bears, the nod goes to Robert Broom. The sophomore improved to 6-1 as he quieted a VMI lineup that had scored five runs in just over four innings before he took the mound.
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Two of Broom's eight strikeouts came against his first two battered faced, helping Mercer escape a fifth-inning jam with runners on the corners.
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STAT OF THE GAME
Mercer proved its patience yet again with 13 walks drawn on the night. The Bears have forced double-digit walks in four of the last six games and have 224 on the season.
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COACH GIBSON'S TAKE
"This was a good ball game tonight; VMI has a very offensive ball park. Ryan Hagan got us off to a good start as we had a couple long balls in the first inning. I can't say enough about Ryan Askew…he was one short rest today and has been so good the last three or four weeks. He's just a competitor. Robert Boom was great again and is proving he's one of the best in the country.
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"Our guys come ready to compete every series and this was a great way to start off a difficult road trip."Â
PITCHER'S OF RECORD
For complete coverage of Mercer Baseball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerBaseball (Twitter), /MercerBaseball (Facebook) and @Mercer.Baseball (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
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Mercer's seventh straight Southern Conference victory was also the team's ninth series-opening win of the year. VMI dropped to 17-17 (4-6 SoCon). Robert Broom earned the win with 4.2 innings of two-hit relief as he struck out a career-high eight batters.
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Four combined first-inning long balls were an early indicator of how the series opener would unfold. Ryan Hagan led the game off with a solo shot, only to be topped by a two-run blast from Thomas two at bats later for an early 3-0 lead.
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However, VMI opened the home half of the first with back-to-back home runs off Ryan Askew and eventually took a 5-3 advantage after three innings of play. Askew (4-0) went 3.2 innings before Mercer went to the bullpen and earned a no-decision.
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Askew's final run support came in the fourth when Mercer took advantage of three consecutive walks by Hunter Bening, Trey Truitt and Alex Crotty. A bases-loaded walk by Alex Hanson gave way to Thomas, who singled up the middle to score a pair and give the Bears a 6-5 lead. Hanson would extend the lead later on with a two-run home run of his own while Alex Crotty deposited a pair of RBI doubles in the seventh and ninth innings.
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PLAYER OF THE GAME
Despite the offensive fireworks from multiple Bears, the nod goes to Robert Broom. The sophomore improved to 6-1 as he quieted a VMI lineup that had scored five runs in just over four innings before he took the mound.
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Two of Broom's eight strikeouts came against his first two battered faced, helping Mercer escape a fifth-inning jam with runners on the corners.
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STAT OF THE GAME
Mercer proved its patience yet again with 13 walks drawn on the night. The Bears have forced double-digit walks in four of the last six games and have 224 on the season.
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COACH GIBSON'S TAKE
"This was a good ball game tonight; VMI has a very offensive ball park. Ryan Hagan got us off to a good start as we had a couple long balls in the first inning. I can't say enough about Ryan Askew…he was one short rest today and has been so good the last three or four weeks. He's just a competitor. Robert Boom was great again and is proving he's one of the best in the country.
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"Our guys come ready to compete every series and this was a great way to start off a difficult road trip."Â
PITCHER'S OF RECORD
- Win: Robert Broom, Mercer (6-1)
- Loss: Matt Eagle, VMI (3-2)
- Mercer: 30-6 (9-1 SoCon)
- VMI: 17-17 (4-6 SoCon)
- Mercer: At VMI (6 p.m., Friday, April 14 in Lexington, Va.)
- VMI: Hosts Mercer (6 p.m., Friday, April 14 in Lexington, Va.)
- The Bears are 13-3 on the road.
- Jackson Ware dropped his nation-leading 17th sacrifice bunt in the fifth.
- Hagan now has two game-opening leadoff home runs this season.
- Hagan drew three walks and swiped a pair of bases for the fourth time in his career.
- "Big Hit" Hunter Bening stole his first career base in the ninth, setting up a RBI double by Crotty.
- Despite going 0-for-3, Bening scored three times.
For complete coverage of Mercer Baseball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerBaseball (Twitter), /MercerBaseball (Facebook) and @Mercer.Baseball (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
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