Sunday, April 8
Macon, Ga.
4 p.m.
Mercer University
26-8, 0
3
vs
2
Furman
16-16, 0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Furman
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
7
2
Mercer
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
3
7
1
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Broom, Robert (7-1)
L: Jordan Beatson (1-1)
Batting:
HR: Jared Mihalik 1
RBI: Jared Mihalik 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Jason Costa 1 ; Jared Mihalik 1
CS: Ben Anderson 1
HBP: Jake Crawford 1 ; Sims Griffith 1
Batting:
2B: Lingo, Drew 1
HR: Yeager, RJ 1 ; Ammons, Jordan 1
RBI: Ware, Jackson 1 ; Yeager, RJ 1 ; Ammons, Jordan 1
SF: Ware, Jackson 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Hanson, Alex 1 ; Yeager, RJ 1 ; Ammons, Jordan 1
HBP: Hanson, Alex 1
Game Leaders
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
4
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
OF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
C
/ BaseballOF
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
Mercer Wins Series Finale Behind Yeager’s Walk-Off
4/8/2018 8:59:00 PM | Baseball
Bears salvage the series behind Yeager’s long ball, Broom’s pitching
MACON, Ga. – RJ Yeager led off the bottom of the ninth with a walk-off home run to give Mercer a 3-2 Southern Conference victory over Furman in the series finale Sunday at OrthoGeorgia Park.
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The contest was the second of two games played between the teams Sunday after a rainout on Saturday forced a doubleheader. Despite losing the series to the visiting Paladins (16-16, 2-4 SoCon), Mercer (26-8, 6-3) ended the weekend on a high note to avoid a sweep at home.
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Robert Broom (7-1) tossed 4.1 innings of one-hit relief and struck out six Paladins to earn his seventh win on the mound. Broom replaced starter Kevin Coulter in the fifth after the latter allowed just two runs in the opening inning and scattered six hits. With the bases loaded and two outs in the fifth, Broom stranded three Paladins with a pop-out to end Furman's final threat of the afternoon.
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Furman took a two-run lead in the top of the first on Jared Mihalik's third home run of the series. Mercer responded with one run in both the first and second frames on a sacrifice fly by Jackson Ware and Jordan Ammons' first career home run.
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Yeager's home run came on a 2-0 count off of Furman's Jordan Beatson, who replaced Grant Schuermann after eight effective innings. It was Yeager's fourth home run of the season and capped a 3-for-4 offensive performance.
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Coach Gibson's Take
"Winning on Sunday and in game three is tough…it's something we haven't been very good at this season," said head coach Craig Gibson. "We were able to get it today behind great pitching from Kevin Coulter and Robert Broom.
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"We continue to throw strikes and not allow free passes and we cleaned it up defensively in today's second game as well. Tip your cap to [Grant] Schuermann; to hold our lineup to two runs in this park is a great job.
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"RJ [Yeager] came through with a big hit at the end for us. He's been doing that all year and this one was as big as any."
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Player of the Game
While Yeager had the walk-off glory, it was Broom who bridged the gap by holding Furman to just one hit over the final 4.1 innings. It was the fourth time this season he has tossed at least four innings as he lowered his season earned run average to 1.52.
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Records Update
» Mercer: 26-8 (6-3 SoCon)
» Furman: 16-16 (2-4 SoCon)
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Pitchers of Record
» Win: Robert Broom (7-1)
» Loss: Jordan Beatson (1-1)
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Notables
» Alex Hanson went 1-for-3 to extend his reached base streak to 32 games.
» Yeager's three-hit performance extended his hit streak to 10 games. It's his second hit streak of 10 or more games this season.
» Craig Gibson (496-339) is four wins away from career victory No. 500.
» Ammons, who started in left field, tallied his first career home run.
» Alex Crotty made his seventh start of the season, catching all nine innings.
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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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The contest was the second of two games played between the teams Sunday after a rainout on Saturday forced a doubleheader. Despite losing the series to the visiting Paladins (16-16, 2-4 SoCon), Mercer (26-8, 6-3) ended the weekend on a high note to avoid a sweep at home.
Â
Robert Broom (7-1) tossed 4.1 innings of one-hit relief and struck out six Paladins to earn his seventh win on the mound. Broom replaced starter Kevin Coulter in the fifth after the latter allowed just two runs in the opening inning and scattered six hits. With the bases loaded and two outs in the fifth, Broom stranded three Paladins with a pop-out to end Furman's final threat of the afternoon.
Â
Furman took a two-run lead in the top of the first on Jared Mihalik's third home run of the series. Mercer responded with one run in both the first and second frames on a sacrifice fly by Jackson Ware and Jordan Ammons' first career home run.
Â
Yeager's home run came on a 2-0 count off of Furman's Jordan Beatson, who replaced Grant Schuermann after eight effective innings. It was Yeager's fourth home run of the season and capped a 3-for-4 offensive performance.
Â
Coach Gibson's Take
"Winning on Sunday and in game three is tough…it's something we haven't been very good at this season," said head coach Craig Gibson. "We were able to get it today behind great pitching from Kevin Coulter and Robert Broom.
Â
"We continue to throw strikes and not allow free passes and we cleaned it up defensively in today's second game as well. Tip your cap to [Grant] Schuermann; to hold our lineup to two runs in this park is a great job.
Â
"RJ [Yeager] came through with a big hit at the end for us. He's been doing that all year and this one was as big as any."
Â
Player of the Game
While Yeager had the walk-off glory, it was Broom who bridged the gap by holding Furman to just one hit over the final 4.1 innings. It was the fourth time this season he has tossed at least four innings as he lowered his season earned run average to 1.52.
Â
Records Update
» Mercer: 26-8 (6-3 SoCon)
» Furman: 16-16 (2-4 SoCon)
Â
Pitchers of Record
» Win: Robert Broom (7-1)
» Loss: Jordan Beatson (1-1)
Â
Notables
» Alex Hanson went 1-for-3 to extend his reached base streak to 32 games.
» Yeager's three-hit performance extended his hit streak to 10 games. It's his second hit streak of 10 or more games this season.
» Craig Gibson (496-339) is four wins away from career victory No. 500.
» Ammons, who started in left field, tallied his first career home run.
» Alex Crotty made his seventh start of the season, catching all nine innings.
Â
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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