Friday, March 23
Macon, Ga.
6 p.m.
Mercer University
18-5, 0
7
vs
5
Wofford
15-8, 0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Wofford
0
2
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
5
8
2
Mercer
0
1
1
4
1
0
0
0
X
7
12
2
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Cox, Austin (5-0)
L: Austin Higginbotham (2-2)
S: Coulter, Kevin (1)
Batting:
2B: Colin Davis 1
3B: Colin Davis 1
HR: Colin Davis 1
RBI: Colin Davis 1 ; Max McDougald 1 ; Lawson Hill 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Mack Nathanson 1 ; Colin Davis 3 ; Lawson Hill 1
SB: Brett Rodriguez 1 ; Mack Nathanson 2 ; Cody Miller 1
HBP: Mack Nathanson 1
Batting:
2B: Yeager, RJ 1
HR: Truitt, Trey 1 ; Yeager, RJ 1
RBI: Thomas, JT 1 ; Truitt, Trey 1 ; Yeager, RJ 1 ; Bassett, Le 1 ; Lingo, Drew 1
SH: Dockus, Kyle 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Hanson, Alex 2 ; Truitt, Trey 1 ; Ware, Jackson 1 ; Yeager, RJ 2 ; Lingo, Drew 1
Game Leaders
AB
5
R
2
H
2
RBI
0
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
0
AB
4
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
IF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
LHP
/ BaseballOF
/ Baseball
IF
/ Baseball
OF
/ BaseballOF
/ BaseballPhoto by: Woody Marshall
Bears Open SoCon Play with Win over Wofford
3/23/2018 10:13:00 PM | Baseball
Austin Cox stays undefeated, Kevin Coulter earns save
MACON, Ga. – Mercer got off to a strong start in Southern Conference action as it defeated Wofford, 7-5, for its sixth straight victory in a gritty league opener Friday night at OrthoGeorgia Park.
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Austin Cox notched 11 of Mercer's 14 strikeouts to earn his fifth win on the mound as the Bears (18-5, 1-0 SoCon) used a four-run fourth inning and late pitching heroics from Kevin Coulter to put away the Terriers.
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Coulter, who earned his first save of the season, entered the game in the eighth inning with no outs and the tying run on first base. The junior escaped the jam with a strikeout and 4-6-3 double play before cruising through the ninth with three straight outs.
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Wofford (15-8, 0-1) claimed an early 2-0 lead in the second inning before Trey Truitt's eighth home run of the season halved that advantage the following half inning. Mercer would tie it, 2-2, the next inning as JT Thomas singled home Alex Hanson from first base on a perfectly executed hit-and-run.
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The Terriers would retake the lead with a solo home run in the fourth, but Mercer would once again respond, this time with a four-run frame. Jackson Ware (single) and RJ Yeager (double) opened the bottom of the fourth with hits and were followed by a game-tying RBI groundout from Le Bassett. Mercer took the lead for good on a RBI single by Drew Lingo in the next at bat and later capitalized on two Wofford fielding errors, making it a 6-3 game.
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Yeager would add a solo home run in the fifth as Mercer withstood two Wofford runs in the fifth and sixth frames.
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Coach Gibson's Take
Opening statement:
"It was a great win for us to get and start off Southern Conference play on the right foot," said head coach Craig Gibson. "Wofford's starting pitcher was good against us and Austin Cox was up for the challenge…Wofford is an aggressive club and I thought they planned well for attacking Cox.
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"Our bullpen was solid tonight as well, especially Kevin Coulter late in the game. Kevin is the winningest pitcher on our club; he has a lot of experience and poise. I know he loves to start [on the mound], but he's a tremendous piece to have at the back of your staff."
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On Mercer's offensive approach:
"We once again had a lot of hitters taking quality two-out and two-strike approaches at the plate. RJ Yeager got his first career home run and Trey Truitt added another one as well. A handful of big hits from seniors like Drew Lingo, JT Thomas and Jackson Ware were encouraging."
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Player of the Game
Cox and Coulter combined for 13 strikeouts over eight innings on the mound Friday. Both stepped up in key situations with runners on base; Cox stranded five Terriers in scoring position while Coulter forced the 4-6-3 double play to end a serious threat.
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Records Update
» Mercer: 18-5 (1-0 SoCon)
» Wofford: 15-8 (0-1 SoCon)
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Pitchers of Record
» Win: Austin Cox (5-0)
» Loss: Austin Higginbotham (2-2)
» Save: Kevin Coulter (1)
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Up Next
» Mercer: Hosts Wofford (2 p.m. Saturday, March 24 at OrthoGeorgia Park)
» Wofford: At Mercer (2 p.m. Saturday, March 24 at OrthoGeorgia Park)
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Notables
» Mercer improved to 15-3 at OrthoGeorgia Park.
» Mercer is 18-10 all-time against Wofford.
» Yeager (2-for-4 extended his hit streak to 11 games
» Mercer struck out 10 or more batters (14) four the 18th time this season.
» Jackson Ware (2-for-4) had the 47th multi-hit game of his career.
» Hanson scored twice to give him 21 runs scored. He and Truitt are the only Bears with 20-plus runs scored, hits and runs batted in.
» Truitt and Hanson extended their reached base streaks to 21 games.
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Follow the Bears
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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Austin Cox notched 11 of Mercer's 14 strikeouts to earn his fifth win on the mound as the Bears (18-5, 1-0 SoCon) used a four-run fourth inning and late pitching heroics from Kevin Coulter to put away the Terriers.
Â
Coulter, who earned his first save of the season, entered the game in the eighth inning with no outs and the tying run on first base. The junior escaped the jam with a strikeout and 4-6-3 double play before cruising through the ninth with three straight outs.
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Wofford (15-8, 0-1) claimed an early 2-0 lead in the second inning before Trey Truitt's eighth home run of the season halved that advantage the following half inning. Mercer would tie it, 2-2, the next inning as JT Thomas singled home Alex Hanson from first base on a perfectly executed hit-and-run.
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The Terriers would retake the lead with a solo home run in the fourth, but Mercer would once again respond, this time with a four-run frame. Jackson Ware (single) and RJ Yeager (double) opened the bottom of the fourth with hits and were followed by a game-tying RBI groundout from Le Bassett. Mercer took the lead for good on a RBI single by Drew Lingo in the next at bat and later capitalized on two Wofford fielding errors, making it a 6-3 game.
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Yeager would add a solo home run in the fifth as Mercer withstood two Wofford runs in the fifth and sixth frames.
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Coach Gibson's Take
Opening statement:
"It was a great win for us to get and start off Southern Conference play on the right foot," said head coach Craig Gibson. "Wofford's starting pitcher was good against us and Austin Cox was up for the challenge…Wofford is an aggressive club and I thought they planned well for attacking Cox.
Â
"Our bullpen was solid tonight as well, especially Kevin Coulter late in the game. Kevin is the winningest pitcher on our club; he has a lot of experience and poise. I know he loves to start [on the mound], but he's a tremendous piece to have at the back of your staff."
Â
On Mercer's offensive approach:
"We once again had a lot of hitters taking quality two-out and two-strike approaches at the plate. RJ Yeager got his first career home run and Trey Truitt added another one as well. A handful of big hits from seniors like Drew Lingo, JT Thomas and Jackson Ware were encouraging."
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Player of the Game
Cox and Coulter combined for 13 strikeouts over eight innings on the mound Friday. Both stepped up in key situations with runners on base; Cox stranded five Terriers in scoring position while Coulter forced the 4-6-3 double play to end a serious threat.
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Records Update
» Mercer: 18-5 (1-0 SoCon)
» Wofford: 15-8 (0-1 SoCon)
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Pitchers of Record
» Win: Austin Cox (5-0)
» Loss: Austin Higginbotham (2-2)
» Save: Kevin Coulter (1)
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Up Next
» Mercer: Hosts Wofford (2 p.m. Saturday, March 24 at OrthoGeorgia Park)
» Wofford: At Mercer (2 p.m. Saturday, March 24 at OrthoGeorgia Park)
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Notables
» Mercer improved to 15-3 at OrthoGeorgia Park.
» Mercer is 18-10 all-time against Wofford.
» Yeager (2-for-4 extended his hit streak to 11 games
» Mercer struck out 10 or more batters (14) four the 18th time this season.
» Jackson Ware (2-for-4) had the 47th multi-hit game of his career.
» Hanson scored twice to give him 21 runs scored. He and Truitt are the only Bears with 20-plus runs scored, hits and runs batted in.
» Truitt and Hanson extended their reached base streaks to 21 games.
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Follow the Bears
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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