Friday, May 7
Cullowhee, N.C.
3 p.m.
Mercer University
28-17, 0
11
at
9
Western Carolina
22-15, 0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Mercer
0
0
0
11
0
0
0
0
0
11
14
0
Western Carolina
0
3
4
1
0
0
0
1
0
9
12
1
Photo by: Judy Stapleton
Baseball Sweeps Doubleheader Against WCU
5/8/2021 1:01:00 AM | Baseball
Mercer used two comebacks to sweep the doubleheader
CULLOWHEE, N.C.  – The Mercer baseball team used two come-from-behind wins to defeat the Catamounts of Western Carolina. The Bears trailed by seven in the first game before using an 11-run fourth inning to come back and win 11-9. The Bears trailed again in the second game and forced extra innings before winning in the eleventh, 8-7.
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Game 1
Western Carolina got to the Bears starter early in the game. After a scoreless first, the Catamounts struck in the second inning. After a fly out to start the inning, Western Carolina tallied three straight hits, a triple, single and a home run. After a triple by Daniel Walsh, Will Prater singled home the first run of the game. Nate Stocum followed with a two-run home run to right-center taking a 3-0 lead.
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Mercer looked to get things going in the top of the third. With one out, David Burke singled to right field and Trevor Austin followed with a single putting two on. However, the Bears next two hitters would be retired and Mercer would leave two stranded.
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The Catamounts extended their lead in the bottom of the third inning. With the bases loaded, Daylan Nanny cleared them with a double to left-center extending the lead to 6-0. It looked as if Nanny would be stranded on second as Delano settled in and got a strikeout and pop-out. Stocum had another idea as he double down the right-field line growing the lead to 7-0.
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The Bears bats came to life in the top of the fourth inning as they scored 11 runs on 10 hits in the frame. Mercer opened the inning with three straight singles to load the bases. Collin Price followed with a walk scoring one and getting the Bears on the scoreboard. Colby Thomas followed with a bases-clearing double and Mercer trailed 7-4. Burke picked up his second hit of the game with a single putting runners on the corners.
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Austin followed with a single up the middle that scored another run and the Bears cut the Catamounts lead down to two, 7-5. The Bears were not done as Bill Knight added a single that plated another and Mercer had the WCU lead down to one, 7-6. After the first out of the inning, Brandon Michie tied the game at 7-7 on an RBI ground-rule double. Delano helped himself out and gave the Bears a lead as he singled home two and Mercer took their first lead 9-7. Angelo DiSpigna got into the hit parade in the fourth inning when he blasted a home run to straight away center-field and extended the lead to 11-7.
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Western Carolina tried to strike back in the bottom of the fifth as they put the first three batters on base. After a call to the pen, Zach Turner came in dealing. He got a strikeout to the first batter he faced before getting an inning-ending double play, holding the Catamounts scoreless in the fifth.
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It looked as if the Catamounts would get the bats going in the eighth inning. A single to start the inning and a walk put two runners on base. Ferreras singled home the ninth run of the game for the Catamounts and Mercer's lead was down to two, 11-9. Following the RBI single, Mercer went to the pen and brought in Luke Sutko. Sutko came in and got a ground out and a huge strikeout of Justice Bigbie for the second out of the inning. After an Intentional walk loaded the bases, Sutko got Danny Walsh to fly out and the Catamounts left the bases loaded.
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Sutko came out for the ninth inning and retired the Catamounts in order, giving the Bears an 11-9 win.
Game Two
Like game one, the Catamounts got the scoring going early in the contest. Ferreras led off the bottom of the first inning with a solo home run to left field. WCU tried to keep the inning going as they had the bases loaded with two outs, but Josh Farmer got a fly out to end the frame.
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DiSpigna looked as if he had a home run by the Catamounts right fielder who brought the ball back for the second out of the inning. Colby Thomas took the first pitch he saw out of the ballpark tying the game at 1-1.
Western Carolina came back and took the lead in the bottom of the third. With one out and one on, Nanny singled putting two on and Walsh followed singled, which loading on the bases. Will Prater followed with a single through the right side, which scored two, putting the Catamounts ahead 3-1.
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Mercer tied the game in the top of the fifth inning. With the shift on, Le Bassett singled to third getting the Bears going. Trevor Austin followed with a single putting two on base. The Orange & Black scored the second run of the game on a Knight single and scored on a Catamount error. With runners on second and third, the Bears tied the game on a passed ball.
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The Catamounts took the lead in the bottom of the fifth inning. With runners on second and third, Bears reliever David Moore threw a wild pitch that scored one. Following the wild pitch, Moore got two back-to-back strikeouts ending the inning.
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The Bears answered back and tied the game in the top of the sixth inning. With two outs, Colby Thomas hit his second blast of the game-tying the game at 4-4. However, the Catamounts answered back when Ferreras hit his second homer of the game, putting WCU ahead 7-4.
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The Bears got one run back in the top of the seventh inning. With two outs, Knight got hit by a pitch putting a runner on. Yeager was hit by the very next pitch putting two Bears on. Michie followed and worked his at-bat to a full count, where he drew a walk loading the bases. With Delano up, the Catamounts threw a wild pitch and Mercer cut the lead down to two, 7-5. Delano followed with a walk loading the bases. DiSIpigna came up and worked his to a full count and with the full count hit a high fly ball to right-center that caught at the wall ending the inning and leaving the bases loaded.
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The Orange & Black tied the game in the top of the eighth inning. Colby Thomas was hit by a pitch putting a runner on base. After he was lifted for a pinch-runner, Jordan Ammons, went to second on a wild pitch. Bassett came up the plate and he fell behind 0-2. He worked his count to a full count and answered the call with a two-home run tying the game at 7-7.
Mercer looked to take the lead in the top of the ninth inning as Michie led off with a single. After a line out, DiSpigna singled moving Michie to third with one out. After a strikeout and stolen base, the Bears had runners on second and third. WCU intentionally walked Bassett to load the bases but the Bears would leave the bases stranded.
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Green came back out for the ninth inning and had a one-two-three inning and we went to extra innings.
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After a scoreless tenth inning, Mercer took the lead in the top of the 11th. Michie led off with a double and Mercer put another runner on base after DiSipgna was walked intentionally. With Jordan Ammons coming up, he singled to shortstop and Michie came around to score on a Catamount error.
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Leading 8-7, Sutko came in looking for his second save of the night. He struck out the side handing the Bears the win and picking up his eighth save of the season.
Hear from Coach Gibson
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Records Update
» Mercer: 29-17, 14-6 SoCon
» Western Carolina: 22-16, 10-8 SoCon
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Pitchers of Record
Game 1
» Win: Zach Turner (1-0)
» Loss: Zach Franklin (5-4)
» Save: Luke Sutko (7)
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Game 2
» Win: Tommy Green (3-2)
» Loss: Nick Hyde (2-1)
» Save: Luke Sutko (8)
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Notables
» In the first game of the doubleheader, the Bears scored 11 runs in the fourth inning. This is the most runs scored in a single inning this season.
» Mercer used two comebacks to earn the doubleheader sweep on Friday.
» Le Bassett hit a two-run home run to tie game two in the eighth inning.
» With two saves tonight, Luke Sutko now leads the conference lead for saves.
» The Bears pitching tallied 21 strikeouts on the day. Tommy Green led the team with five and Luke Sutko followed with four.
» The Bears hit four home runs on the day and now have 75 on the season. Mercer is now tied for second in home runs in the nation and one behind Arkansas who leads the country.       Â
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Up Next
» Mercer: at Western Carolina (3 p.m., Saturday, May 8 at Hennon Stadium)
» Western Carolina: vs. Mercer (3 p.m., Saturday, May 8 at Hennon Stadium)
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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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Game 1
Western Carolina got to the Bears starter early in the game. After a scoreless first, the Catamounts struck in the second inning. After a fly out to start the inning, Western Carolina tallied three straight hits, a triple, single and a home run. After a triple by Daniel Walsh, Will Prater singled home the first run of the game. Nate Stocum followed with a two-run home run to right-center taking a 3-0 lead.
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Mercer looked to get things going in the top of the third. With one out, David Burke singled to right field and Trevor Austin followed with a single putting two on. However, the Bears next two hitters would be retired and Mercer would leave two stranded.
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The Catamounts extended their lead in the bottom of the third inning. With the bases loaded, Daylan Nanny cleared them with a double to left-center extending the lead to 6-0. It looked as if Nanny would be stranded on second as Delano settled in and got a strikeout and pop-out. Stocum had another idea as he double down the right-field line growing the lead to 7-0.
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The Bears bats came to life in the top of the fourth inning as they scored 11 runs on 10 hits in the frame. Mercer opened the inning with three straight singles to load the bases. Collin Price followed with a walk scoring one and getting the Bears on the scoreboard. Colby Thomas followed with a bases-clearing double and Mercer trailed 7-4. Burke picked up his second hit of the game with a single putting runners on the corners.
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Austin followed with a single up the middle that scored another run and the Bears cut the Catamounts lead down to two, 7-5. The Bears were not done as Bill Knight added a single that plated another and Mercer had the WCU lead down to one, 7-6. After the first out of the inning, Brandon Michie tied the game at 7-7 on an RBI ground-rule double. Delano helped himself out and gave the Bears a lead as he singled home two and Mercer took their first lead 9-7. Angelo DiSpigna got into the hit parade in the fourth inning when he blasted a home run to straight away center-field and extended the lead to 11-7.
The Catamounts got one back in the bottom of the fourth inning when Pascanel Ferreras hit a solo home run down the left-field line. That would be all they would get as Delano got the next two hitters retired to end the inning.Mercer continues to add to the lead in the 4th! This time @AngeloDiSpigna hits a bomb!#WinnersWin | #RoarTogether pic.twitter.com/JGwPw0RkbN
— Mercer Baseball (@MercerBaseball) May 7, 2021
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Western Carolina tried to strike back in the bottom of the fifth as they put the first three batters on base. After a call to the pen, Zach Turner came in dealing. He got a strikeout to the first batter he faced before getting an inning-ending double play, holding the Catamounts scoreless in the fifth.
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It looked as if the Catamounts would get the bats going in the eighth inning. A single to start the inning and a walk put two runners on base. Ferreras singled home the ninth run of the game for the Catamounts and Mercer's lead was down to two, 11-9. Following the RBI single, Mercer went to the pen and brought in Luke Sutko. Sutko came in and got a ground out and a huge strikeout of Justice Bigbie for the second out of the inning. After an Intentional walk loaded the bases, Sutko got Danny Walsh to fly out and the Catamounts left the bases loaded.
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Sutko came out for the ninth inning and retired the Catamounts in order, giving the Bears an 11-9 win.
Â.@lsutko25 paints the corner and picks up the K!#WinnersWin | #RoarTogether pic.twitter.com/COHzyk8M2W
— Mercer Baseball (@MercerBaseball) May 7, 2021
Game Two
Like game one, the Catamounts got the scoring going early in the contest. Ferreras led off the bottom of the first inning with a solo home run to left field. WCU tried to keep the inning going as they had the bases loaded with two outs, but Josh Farmer got a fly out to end the frame.
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DiSpigna looked as if he had a home run by the Catamounts right fielder who brought the ball back for the second out of the inning. Colby Thomas took the first pitch he saw out of the ballpark tying the game at 1-1.
Â.@colby_thomas2 shows off his 💪💪💪#WinnersWin | #RoarTogether pic.twitter.com/2xQg7oiGuT
— Mercer Baseball (@MercerBaseball) May 7, 2021
Western Carolina came back and took the lead in the bottom of the third. With one out and one on, Nanny singled putting two on and Walsh followed singled, which loading on the bases. Will Prater followed with a single through the right side, which scored two, putting the Catamounts ahead 3-1.
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Mercer tied the game in the top of the fifth inning. With the shift on, Le Bassett singled to third getting the Bears going. Trevor Austin followed with a single putting two on base. The Orange & Black scored the second run of the game on a Knight single and scored on a Catamount error. With runners on second and third, the Bears tied the game on a passed ball.
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The Catamounts took the lead in the bottom of the fifth inning. With runners on second and third, Bears reliever David Moore threw a wild pitch that scored one. Following the wild pitch, Moore got two back-to-back strikeouts ending the inning.
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The Bears answered back and tied the game in the top of the sixth inning. With two outs, Colby Thomas hit his second blast of the game-tying the game at 4-4. However, the Catamounts answered back when Ferreras hit his second homer of the game, putting WCU ahead 7-4.
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The Bears got one run back in the top of the seventh inning. With two outs, Knight got hit by a pitch putting a runner on. Yeager was hit by the very next pitch putting two Bears on. Michie followed and worked his at-bat to a full count, where he drew a walk loading the bases. With Delano up, the Catamounts threw a wild pitch and Mercer cut the lead down to two, 7-5. Delano followed with a walk loading the bases. DiSIpigna came up and worked his to a full count and with the full count hit a high fly ball to right-center that caught at the wall ending the inning and leaving the bases loaded.
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The Orange & Black tied the game in the top of the eighth inning. Colby Thomas was hit by a pitch putting a runner on base. After he was lifted for a pinch-runner, Jordan Ammons, went to second on a wild pitch. Bassett came up the plate and he fell behind 0-2. He worked his count to a full count and answered the call with a two-home run tying the game at 7-7.
ÂLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!! @Le_Bassett11 with the BLAST ties the game at 7-7!#WinnersWin | #RoarTogether pic.twitter.com/NeVblMiJXC
— Mercer Baseball (@MercerBaseball) May 8, 2021
Mercer looked to take the lead in the top of the ninth inning as Michie led off with a single. After a line out, DiSpigna singled moving Michie to third with one out. After a strikeout and stolen base, the Bears had runners on second and third. WCU intentionally walked Bassett to load the bases but the Bears would leave the bases stranded.
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Green came back out for the ninth inning and had a one-two-three inning and we went to extra innings.
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After a scoreless tenth inning, Mercer took the lead in the top of the 11th. Michie led off with a double and Mercer put another runner on base after DiSipgna was walked intentionally. With Jordan Ammons coming up, he singled to shortstop and Michie came around to score on a Catamount error.
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Leading 8-7, Sutko came in looking for his second save of the night. He struck out the side handing the Bears the win and picking up his eighth save of the season.
Hear from Coach Gibson
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.@CraigGibson_MU talks about the doubleheader sweep of WCU on Friday. #WinnersWin | #RoarTogether pic.twitter.com/UG6hPAa57Y
— Mercer Baseball (@MercerBaseball) May 8, 2021
Records Update
» Mercer: 29-17, 14-6 SoCon
» Western Carolina: 22-16, 10-8 SoCon
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Pitchers of Record
Game 1
» Win: Zach Turner (1-0)
» Loss: Zach Franklin (5-4)
» Save: Luke Sutko (7)
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Game 2
» Win: Tommy Green (3-2)
» Loss: Nick Hyde (2-1)
» Save: Luke Sutko (8)
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Notables
» In the first game of the doubleheader, the Bears scored 11 runs in the fourth inning. This is the most runs scored in a single inning this season.
» Mercer used two comebacks to earn the doubleheader sweep on Friday.
» Le Bassett hit a two-run home run to tie game two in the eighth inning.
» With two saves tonight, Luke Sutko now leads the conference lead for saves.
» The Bears pitching tallied 21 strikeouts on the day. Tommy Green led the team with five and Luke Sutko followed with four.
» The Bears hit four home runs on the day and now have 75 on the season. Mercer is now tied for second in home runs in the nation and one behind Arkansas who leads the country.       Â
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Up Next
» Mercer: at Western Carolina (3 p.m., Saturday, May 8 at Hennon Stadium)
» Western Carolina: vs. Mercer (3 p.m., Saturday, May 8 at Hennon Stadium)
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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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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Turner, Zach (1-0)
L: Zach Franklin (5-4)
S: Sutko, Luke (7)
Batting:
2B: Michie, Brandon 1 ; Delano, Garett 1 ; Thomas, Colby 1
HR: DiSpigna, Angelo 1
RBI: Knight, Bill 1 ; Michie, Brandon 1 ; Delano, Garett 2 ; DiSpigna, Angelo 2 ; Price, Collin 1 ; Thomas, Colby 3 ; Austin, Trevor 1
SH: Yeager, RJ 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Knight, Bill 1 ; Michie, Brandon 2 ; Delano, Garett 2 ; DiSpigna, Angelo 2 ; Price, Collin 1 ; Thomas, Colby 1 ; Burke, David 1 ; Austin, Trevor 1
Batting:
2B: Daylan Nanny 1 ; Nate Stocum 1
3B: Daniel Walsh 1
HR: Pascanel Ferreras 1 ; Nate Stocum 1
RBI: Pascanel Ferreras 2 ; Daylan Nanny 3 ; Will Prater 1 ; Nate Stocum 3
Base Running:
RUNS: Pascanel Ferreras 2 ; Luke Robinson 1 ; Justice Bigbie 1 ; Daylan Nanny 1 ; Daniel Walsh 1 ; Will Prater 1 ; Nate Stocum 1 ; Zach Ketterman 1
SB: Will Prater 1 ; Seth Graves 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
p/dh
AB
5
R
2
H
3
RBI
2
AB
5
R
1
H
2
RBI
1
AB
5
R
2
H
2
RBI
1
AB
5
R
2
H
2
RBI
2
Players Mentioned
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IF
/ Baseball
IF
/ BaseballIF
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RHP
/ Baseball
RHP
/ BaseballOF
/ BaseballIF/OF
/ Baseball
LHP
/ Baseball
C/OF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
RHP
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