Sunday, May 26
Greenville, S.C.
4:40 p.m.
Mercer University
35-27
9
vs
5
Wofford
36-25
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Wofford College
1
0
0
0
1
3
0
0
0
5
10
3
Mercer
0
3
1
2
0
0
0
3
X
9
12
0
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Lobus, Taylor (2-0)
L: Jake Hershman (2-3)
S: Hall, Tanner (1)
Batting:
HR: Brett Rodriguez 1
RBI: Brett Rodriguez 3 ; Nolen Hester 1
SH: Andrew Orzel 1
SF: Nolen Hester 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Brett Rodriguez 1 ; John Dempsey 1 ; Colin Davis 1 ; Andrew Orzel 1 ; Michael Wynne 1
HBP: Hudson Byorick 1
Batting:
2B: Knight, Bill 1 ; Johnson, Kel 1 ; Dockus, Kyle 1
RBI: Austin, Trevor 2 ; Johnson, Kel 1 ; Ammons, Jordan 2 ; Yeager, RJ 2 ; Dockus, Kyle 1
SH: DiSpigna, Angelo 1 ; Crotty, Alex 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Knight, Bill 1 ; Austin, Trevor 1 ; Price, Collin 2 ; DiSpigna, Angelo 1 ; Crotty, Alex 1 ; Ammons, Jordan 1 ; Dockus, Kyle 2
SB: Yeager, RJ 1
Game Leaders
AB
3
R
1
H
2
RBI
2
AB
4
R
0
H
2
RBI
1
AB
5
R
1
H
2
RBI
2
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
1
Players Mentioned
OF
/ BaseballIF
/ Baseball
C
/ BaseballIF
/ Baseball
LHP
/ BaseballOF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
LHP
/ Baseball
C/OF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
Photo by: Gerrit Van Genderen
Mercer Defeats Wofford to Win #SoConBSB Championship
5/26/2019 9:54:00 PM | Baseball
Bears complete title run and earn SoCon’s automatic bid to NCAA Tournament
GREENVILLE, S.C. – Mercer defeated second-seeded Wofford, 9-5, for a second time on Sunday to win the 2019 Southern Conference Baseball Championship and clinch the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
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The fourth-seeded Bears (35-27) completed an impressive seven-game run through the conference tournament, winning their last five games – including four games in two days – while facing elimination. Mercer previously beat Wofford (36-25), 12-8, earlier on Sunday afternoon to force a winner-take-all contest. It was Mercer's fourth trip to the SoCon Championship title game in five years as a league member.
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Trevor Austin (2-for-3) was named the SoCon Championship's Most Outstanding Player. The redshirt freshman batted 13-for-27 (.481) with eight runs scored and six runs batted in seven games.
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With Mercer leading 6-5 in the top of the seventh inning, junior left-hander Tanner Hall came out of the bullpen on two days of rest to throw three shutout innings and earn his first career save. Hall's effort halted a Wofford rally that saw Mercer's early lead cut from five runs (6-1) to one over a two-inning span. Hall worked around two ninth-inning singles and fanned a pair over his three frames.
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After the Terriers held Mercer's bats scoreless in the fifth through seventh innings, Jordan Ammons delivered a pivotal two-run single in the bottom of the eighth. RJ Yeager then added a RBI single to make it a four-run contest.
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Wofford struck first with a solo home run by Brett Rodriguez off of Holton McGaha in the first inning. McGaha made his first career start on the mound, pitching 1.1 innings before Mercer made a move to the bullpen. Taylor Lobus relieved McGaha and stranded two inherited runners in the top of the second. Lobus would go on to toss 2.2 frames and allow just one run on a pair of hits.
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Mercer scored six runs over a three-inning period, starting with a three-spot in the second. A RBI groundout by Yeager tied the game before Kyle Dockus pushed Mercer ahead on a double off the left-center wall. Austin then plated Dockus with a RBI single.
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Collin Price scored with some help from a fielding error in the third. Austin tacked on his second RBI of the game with a groundout in the fourth and scored on a double in the gap by Kel Johnson.
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The Terriers gained steam with a pair of threatening innings in the fifth and sixth. One run came across on a bases-loaded double play in the fifth. Wofford then cut Mercer's lead to one, 6-5, with a three-run sixth. Andrew Kane, who relieved Lobus, left the game with two runners on and no outs in the sixth. The Bears turned to Nick Spear, who surrendered a two-run single but escaped the inning with Mercer in front.
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After Spear allowed a leadoff single in the seventh, Mercer called upon Hall to come out of the bullpen. The left-hander struck out a pair and got a flyout to right field to strand the potential tying run on first base. Hall went on to silence the Terriers' bats and seal the victory.
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Records Update
» #4 Mercer: 35-27
» #2 Wofford: 36-25
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Pitchers of Record
» Win: Taylor Lobus (2-0)
» Save: Tanner Hall (1)
» Loss: Jake Hershman (2-3)
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Notables
» Mercer has won six conference tournament titles – 1979, 1981, 1983, 2010, 2015 and 2019 – including two as a member of the SoCon. The Bears also won the SoCon Championship in '15.
» Mercer improved to 17-7 all-time at the SoCon Championship.
» With the SoCon's automatic bid clinched, Mercer will make its fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament this decade (2010, '13, '15, '19).
» Mercer has won 35 games in 10 consecutive seasons dating back to 2010. Mercer is one of just four NCAA Division I teams to do so, joining LSU, Vanderbilt and Florida State.
» Austin, the tournament's MOP, was joined by Jackson Kelley (SP), Alex Crotty (C) and Collin Price (OF) on the SoCon All-Tournament Team.
» Andrew Kane received the SoCon Pinnacle Award, given to the player with the highest GPA on the championship-winning team.
» Taylor Lobus earned his second win of the tournament with his 2.2 innings of relief.
» Eight batters tallied at least one hit. Austin, Johnson, Ammons and Dockus all had two apiece.
» Sunday marked Holton McGaha's first career start. It was his 23rd appearance of the year.
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Up Next
Mercer will discover its NCAA regional site and opponents during the NCAA Selection Show at noon (ET) on Monday, May 27. The selection show will be televised on ESPNU.
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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 fourth-seeded Bears (35-27) completed an impressive seven-game run through the conference tournament, winning their last five games – including four games in two days – while facing elimination. Mercer previously beat Wofford (36-25), 12-8, earlier on Sunday afternoon to force a winner-take-all contest. It was Mercer's fourth trip to the SoCon Championship title game in five years as a league member.
Â
Trevor Austin (2-for-3) was named the SoCon Championship's Most Outstanding Player. The redshirt freshman batted 13-for-27 (.481) with eight runs scored and six runs batted in seven games.
Â
With Mercer leading 6-5 in the top of the seventh inning, junior left-hander Tanner Hall came out of the bullpen on two days of rest to throw three shutout innings and earn his first career save. Hall's effort halted a Wofford rally that saw Mercer's early lead cut from five runs (6-1) to one over a two-inning span. Hall worked around two ninth-inning singles and fanned a pair over his three frames.
Â
After the Terriers held Mercer's bats scoreless in the fifth through seventh innings, Jordan Ammons delivered a pivotal two-run single in the bottom of the eighth. RJ Yeager then added a RBI single to make it a four-run contest.
Â
Wofford struck first with a solo home run by Brett Rodriguez off of Holton McGaha in the first inning. McGaha made his first career start on the mound, pitching 1.1 innings before Mercer made a move to the bullpen. Taylor Lobus relieved McGaha and stranded two inherited runners in the top of the second. Lobus would go on to toss 2.2 frames and allow just one run on a pair of hits.
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Mercer scored six runs over a three-inning period, starting with a three-spot in the second. A RBI groundout by Yeager tied the game before Kyle Dockus pushed Mercer ahead on a double off the left-center wall. Austin then plated Dockus with a RBI single.
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Collin Price scored with some help from a fielding error in the third. Austin tacked on his second RBI of the game with a groundout in the fourth and scored on a double in the gap by Kel Johnson.
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The Terriers gained steam with a pair of threatening innings in the fifth and sixth. One run came across on a bases-loaded double play in the fifth. Wofford then cut Mercer's lead to one, 6-5, with a three-run sixth. Andrew Kane, who relieved Lobus, left the game with two runners on and no outs in the sixth. The Bears turned to Nick Spear, who surrendered a two-run single but escaped the inning with Mercer in front.
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After Spear allowed a leadoff single in the seventh, Mercer called upon Hall to come out of the bullpen. The left-hander struck out a pair and got a flyout to right field to strand the potential tying run on first base. Hall went on to silence the Terriers' bats and seal the victory.
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Records Update
» #4 Mercer: 35-27
» #2 Wofford: 36-25
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Pitchers of Record
» Win: Taylor Lobus (2-0)
» Save: Tanner Hall (1)
» Loss: Jake Hershman (2-3)
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Notables
» Mercer has won six conference tournament titles – 1979, 1981, 1983, 2010, 2015 and 2019 – including two as a member of the SoCon. The Bears also won the SoCon Championship in '15.
» Mercer improved to 17-7 all-time at the SoCon Championship.
» With the SoCon's automatic bid clinched, Mercer will make its fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament this decade (2010, '13, '15, '19).
» Mercer has won 35 games in 10 consecutive seasons dating back to 2010. Mercer is one of just four NCAA Division I teams to do so, joining LSU, Vanderbilt and Florida State.
» Austin, the tournament's MOP, was joined by Jackson Kelley (SP), Alex Crotty (C) and Collin Price (OF) on the SoCon All-Tournament Team.
» Andrew Kane received the SoCon Pinnacle Award, given to the player with the highest GPA on the championship-winning team.
» Taylor Lobus earned his second win of the tournament with his 2.2 innings of relief.
» Eight batters tallied at least one hit. Austin, Johnson, Ammons and Dockus all had two apiece.
» Sunday marked Holton McGaha's first career start. It was his 23rd appearance of the year.
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Up Next
Mercer will discover its NCAA regional site and opponents during the NCAA Selection Show at noon (ET) on Monday, May 27. The selection show will be televised on ESPNU.
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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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