Baseball Sweeps FAMU

Wednesday, March 17

Tallahassee, Fla.

4 p.m.

Mercer University

7-9

Florida A&M

3-14

Mercer

Florida A&M

Photo by: Mitch Robinson

3/17/2021 9:12:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

The Orange & Black won game two, 10-6

By: Travis Rae

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The Mercer baseball team earned a two-game sweep of Florida A&M on Wednesday night with a 10-6 victory for its seventh win of the season.

Mercer had five players – Bill Knight, Brandon Michie, Collin Price, Colby Thomas and Trevor Austin – lead the team with two hits. RJ Yeager hit his second bomb of the season, and Wesley Franklin picked up his first career win.

The Orange & Black scored early and often in the contest. Knight singled to lead off the game and went to second on a wild pitch. DiSpigna followed with an RBI single to right-center, scoring the first run of the game. DiSpigna then proceeded to steal second before taking third on a wild pitch. He scored on a passed ball, which put Mercer ahead 2-0.

The lead grew to 3-0 in the top of the third inning. With the bases loaded, DiSpigna came to the plate and drew a bases loaded walk, but the Rattlers got one back in the bottom of the inning with an RBI groundout.

Mercer scored one run in both the third and fourth innings. With runners on the corners, Price dropped down a safety bunt that scored one and moved the runner up. In the fourth inning, Yeager hit a solo home run, putting the Bears ahead 5-1.

In the bottom of the third, freshman Garrett Sloan gave up a leadoff hit to the Rattlers. After the hit, he retired the next three hitters, including two via strikeouts, to end the frame.

Florida A&M started making a comeback in the bottom of the fourth inning. The Rattlers scored two runs on two hits, and Mercer saw its lead trimmed to 5-3. Wesley Franklin came in and got the final out of the fourth inning, and did not allow the Rattlers to pick up a hit.

After the Bears were held scoreless in the fifth, they came back and scored a pair of runs in the sixth frame. Trevor Austin led off with a single and Knight hit a triple to right-center for another Bear run. Knight came in to score on a MIchie single, extending Mercer's lead to 7-3.

Mercer's bats continued to stay hot as the visitors added another run in the seventh inning. With two outs and Thomas on third, Austin struck out, but reached on a Rattlers error. Thomas quickly scurried home to increase Mercer's lead to five runs, 8-3,

FAMU continued to chip away at the Orange & Black's lead, and in the bottom of the seventh inning, the Rattlers had the bases loaded on a walk and two hit by pitches. They scored two on a single, cutting the Bears' lead to 8-5. Luke Sutko got the final three outs on a ground out and two strikeouts, effectively ending the inning.

Mercer scored two runs in the top of the eighth inning. After the first two hitters were retired, Michie, Delano and Blake Schmitt drew walks to load the bases. Thomas produced a two-run single up the middle, which putt the Bears ahead by a 10-5 score.

Florida A&M loaded the bases in the bottom of the frame with two hits and a walk, but Sutko settled back in and retired the next three hitters. He retired the Rattlers in order in the ninth, giving the Bears a 10-6 win.

Coach Gibson's Take
"I am proud of our club. These were two quality wins in two midweek games on the road. This should get us ready for our weekend set against Bradley. Bradley is a solid team out of the Missouri Valley Conference. I can't say enough about our hitting as we had multiple guys contribute tonight. I am happy that RJ Yeager hit a home run in his last trip down to Moore-Kittles Field. I thought our pitchers threw well tonight, and I am happy that Wesley Franklin picked up his first collegiate win."

Records Update
» Mercer: 7-9
» Florida A&M: 3-14

Pitchers of Record
» Win: Wesley Franklin (1-0)
» Loss: Khalil Wilson (0-2)
» Save: Luke Sutko (2)

Notables
» Five Bears had a team-high two hits. Bill Knight, Brandon Michie, Collin Price, Colby Thomas and Trevor Austin all had two hits.
» Mercer has scored runs in 14 of its last 18 innings.
» Mercer's DiSpigna and Thomas had two RBI in the game to win.
» Franklin came out of the bullpen and picked up his first collegiate win.
» Garrett Sloan and Franklin had a team-high three punch outs.
» Yeager hit his second home run of the season with a home run to left center.
» Knight picked up his first triple of the season.
» Mercer improved to 3-0 on the season against Florida A&M.

Up Next
» Mercer: vs. Bradley (6 p.m. Friday, March 19 at OrthoGeorgia Park)
» Florida A&M: vs. FGCU (5 p.m. Friday, March 19 at Moore-Kittles 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.

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Next Event

Bradley

W, 11-9

Mar 19 (Fri)

6 p.m.

Box Score Recap Preview Live stats Tickets

Full Schedule

Team Stats

Pitching:

W: Franklin, Wesley (1-0)

L: Wilson,Khalil (0-2)

S: Sutko, Luke (2)

Mercer

Batting:

3B: Knight, Bill 1

HR: Yeager, RJ 1

RBI: Knight, Bill 1 ; DiSpigna, Angelo 2 ; Yeager, RJ 1 ; Michie, Brandon 1 ; Price, Collin 1 ; Thomas, Colby 2

SH: Price, Collin 1

Base Running:

RUNS: Knight, Bill 2 ; DiSpigna, Angelo 1 ; Yeager, RJ 1 ; Michie, Brandon 2 ; Delano, Garett 1 ; Price, Collin 1 ; Thomas, Colby 1 ; Austin, Trevor 1