Baseball Sweeps UT Martin

Sunday, March 1

Macon, Ga.

1 p.m.

Mercer University

11-0

UT Martin

4-7

UT Martin

Mercer

Photo by: Mitch Robinson

3/1/2020 7:19:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

The Bears earned a sweep of UT Martin with an 11-4 win on Sunday

By: Travis Rae

MACON, Ga. – The Mercer baseball team continued its winning ways on Sunday afternoon with an 11-4 win over UT Martin at OrthoGeorgia Park. With the win, the Bears earned a three-game sweep of the Skyhawks.

Jordan Ammons led the Bears with three hits in the contest, while Le Bassett followed with two hits and four RBI in the game. Taylor Lobus picked up the win for the Bears as he went five innings and limited the Skyhawks to four hits while striking out four.

After a quick top of the first, the Bears' bats came to life in the bottom of the inning. Mercer exploded for seven runs on five hits in the frame. The first eight batters reached base before an out was recorded. Brandon Michie picked up the first RBI of the game with a bases loaded single. Ammons followed with a walk, and Bassett drove home two with a double down the right field line. Mercer scored three more in the inning and led 7-0 after one.

The Skyhawks got one run back in the top of the second inning. Ethan Whitley doubled to lead off the inning. With runners on the corners, Blake Davis singled to score one. Following the Davis single, Lobus locked in and struck out the next two hitters to end the inning.

With two outs and Michie on first base, Bassett picked up two more RBI in the contest with a bomb down the right field line as Mercer extended its lead to 9-1.

UT Martin recorded its second run of the game in the top of the fourth inning on a Blake Daniels sac fly.

Mercer continued to score runs as they plated another run in the bottom of the fourth inning. After an RJ Yeager double, Ammons drove him in with a double of his own.

Making his Bear debut in the sixth inning was Joe Molettiere. Molettiere was dominant in the inning as he recorded four strikeouts in the frame. The first batter he faced he struck out but reached on a Mercer error. The Skyhawks got to the Bears' pen in the top of the seventh inning as they plated three runs but, after an appeal, a run was taken off the board as a runner who touched home plate missed third base.

Mercer tacked on one more run in the contest when Kyle Dockus recorded an RBI single to right field. The Bears came away with an 11-4 win for their 11th straight victory.

Coach Gibson's Take
"I am really happy with how the weekend series went as we had a lot of guys contribute in the sweep. Taylor Lobus had another quality start for us on Sunday as he limited the Skyhawks to four hits. I am happy Zach Graveno was able to get back on the mound after he overcame some injuries. We are excited about the wins, and anytime you get a sweep it is great. I am pleased with our performance over the weekend. We are excited for Tuesday as we host Florida State and playing well over Spring Break."

Players of the Game
The Bears duo of Jordan Ammons and Le Bassett led the Bears at the plate as they combined to go 5-for-7 in the game with six RBI. They were the only players on the Bears lineup with two or more hits in the game. They combined for three of Mercer's four extra base hits on the day.

Records Update
» Mercer: 11-0
» UT Martin: 4-7

Pitchers of Record
» Win: Taylor Lobus (1-0)
» Loss: Jefferey O'Doherty (0-1)

Notables
» Mercer improved to 11-0 on the season. This is the best start in program history.
» The Bears are one of six undefeated teams left in the nation.
» Mercer scored seven runs in the bottom of the first inning against the Skyhawks. This is the most runs they have scored in a single inning this season.
» Le Bassett drove in four runs in the contest. He had a two-run RBI double and a two-run home run in the win.
» The Bears' pitching limited UT Martin to eight hits in the game.
» Joe Molettiere made his Bears' debut and recorded four strikeouts in one inning of work.
» Mercer picked up 11 hits in the game, with four hits being for extra bases.

Up Next
» Mercer: vs. Florida State (6 p.m. Tuesday, March 3 at OrthoGeorgia Park)
» UT Martin: vs. Evansville (6 p.m. Tuesday, March 3 at Skyhawk Baseball Field)

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.