Bears, Eagles Set for Showdown in Statesboro

MACON, Ga. – The Bears will travel down Interstate 16 for the final midweek of the regular season as they will meet Georgia Southern in Statesboro on Tuesday night.

These two sides met earlier in the season – an 8-3 win by the Eagles at OrthoGeorgia Park, so the Mercer will look to avenge the last meeting and even the season series.

GAMEDAY LINEUP
Teams: Mercer (38-13, 11-7 SoCon) vs. Georgia Southern (34-17, 20-7 Sun Belt)
Location: Statesboro, Ga. | J.I. Clements Stadium
Friday: May 17 | 6 p.m. | Live Stats | ESPN+

Projected Starters:

Colton Cosper (LHP) vs. Hayden Harris (LHP)

Batting Practice

Mercer enters the contest with a 38-13 overall and 11-7 SoCon mark after taking two-of-three in their series with VMI.
The Bears have belted 99 home runs in 51 games during the 2022 season, the most in the conference and sixth-most in the nation. Colby Thomas and Collin Price have slugged 17 homers apiece – a mark that paces the SoCon and 24^th nationally. Bill Knight and Treyson Hughes each have tallied 14 – rounding out the conference's top four in the category.
Knight leads the SoCon in runs batted in with 55 and Price sits right behind with 54.
Thomas also leads the league in slugging percentage with .728.
Mercer leads the SoCon with the lowest ERA of 4.75. Jackson Kelley leads the team with a 1.54 ERA.
Mercer currently leads the conference with 501 strikeouts this season. Mercer is led by Josh Harlow and Kelley, who both have registered 78 and 75 Ks, respectively. 13 pitchers have tallied double-digit punchouts on the year.
Kelley has yielded just 29 hits and nine runs – the fewest in the league in both classifications.
Mercer has pitched five shutouts, a mark that ranks fifth in Division I.
The Bears' 9.9 strikeouts per nine innings ranks 30th in the country
The Bears' arms have held their conference opposition to just a .258 average, which leads the league.
Mercer is one of just three NCAA Division I programs to win at least 35 games in each of the past 11 full seasons, joining LSU and Vanderbilt.

A Look at the Series
The Eagles hold a commanding lead in the matchups between these two sides off Interstate 16. Georgia Southern took a 3-2 decision the last time they hosted the Bears at J.I. Clements Stadium.

Series: Georgia Southern leads, 113-46-1
Last Meeting: March 16, 2022 (GS, 8-3)
Streak: Georgia Southern, W1

Scouting Georgia Southern
Georgia Southern is coming off a 2-2 week and a series win over Little Rock as they enter their final homestand of 2022 with UT Arlington on tap for the weekend. Tomorrow's anticipated starter, Hayden Harris, pitched 2.1 frames in their midweek at Georgia Tech last week. Against the Yellow Jackets, he fanned three, walked a pair, and allowed three earned runs in the 13-12 loss. Jason Swan's .330 average and 65 knocks leads the GS offense entering the last week of the regular season.

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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Players Mentioned

Colton Cosper

Treyson Hughes

Bill Knight

Collin Price

Colby Thomas

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