Thursday, February 13
Nashville, Tenn.
6:30 p.m.
Mercer University
4-2
8
vs
3
Illinois
2-5
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
Illinois
2
0
0
0
0
1
0
3
12
2
Mercer
3
0
2
3
0
0
X
8
8
1
Rearley, Mercer Steamroll Fighting Illini In Nashville
2/13/2025 11:43:00 PM | Softball
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Freshman KiKi Daniels hit a go-ahead 3-run homer in the bottom of the first inning to help support junior Katheryn Rearley's first complete game of the season that led Mercer to a big 8-3 win over Big 10 foe Illinois on Thursday evening at the Tennessee State-hosted Roar City Invitational.
It was the fourth win in the last five outings for the Bears (4-2) who also registered their first win over a Power 5 opponent since posting a 2-1 triumph over Michigan State on Feb. 17, 2018, at the South Carolina-hosted Gamecock Invitational. It was Mercer's first win over Illinois (2-5) since March 23, 2002.
It was the fourth win in the last five outings for the Bears (4-2) who also registered their first win over a Power 5 opponent since posting a 2-1 triumph over Michigan State on Feb. 17, 2018, at the South Carolina-hosted Gamecock Invitational. It was Mercer's first win over Illinois (2-5) since March 23, 2002.
| GAME SUMMARY | |
| FINAL | Mercer 8, Illinois 3 |
| PITCHERS | WP: Katheryn Rearley (1-1) LP: Karley Yergler (0-2) |
| RECORDS | Records: Mercer 4-2 (0-0 SoCon); Illinois 2-5 (0-0 Big 10) |
| KEY INNINGS | |
| BOT 1 | Grace Jones reached on a 1-out throwing error and Tori Hedgecock followed with a single to right field to set the table for KiKi Daniels who deposited a go-ahead homer to straightaway centerfield. |
| BOT 3 | Tori Hedgecock reached base on a dropped third strike, and KiKi Daniels (single) and Sietske Drijvers (double) followed with base hits to give the Bears more than enough offense to fuel the final outcome. |
| MU LEADERS | UI LEADERS |
| KiKi Daniels 2-3, BB, HR, 4 RBI Laura Vigna 2-3, R Hallie Langford 1-3, RBI Katheryn Rearley CG, 2 K |
Paige Berkmeyer 3-4, RBI Eileen Donahue 2-4, RBI Yazzy Avila 2-4 Ava Moore 1-2, 2B, R |
| UP NEXT | |
| Mercer will close out its stay at the Roar City Invitational with a pair of games on Friday. The Bears are scheduled to take on Stony Brook (1-4) at 11 a.m. ET, and follow with a matchup against the host Tigers (2-4) at approximately 1 p.m. | |
| STAY CONNECTED | |
| Follow Mercer Softball on Twitter and Instagram and "Like" Mercer Football on Facebook. | |
| SUPPORT THE BEARS | |
| Fans can help support the Mercer athletics department by making a gift to the Mercer Athletic Foundation. To find out more information about the Mercer Athletic Foundation, visit SupportMAF.com or email maf@mercer.edu. | |
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Rearley, Katheryn (1-1)
L: Karley Yergler (0-2)
Batting:
2B: Ava Moore 1
RBI: Eileen Donahue 1 ; Keirys Click 1 ; Paige Berkmeyer 1
SH: Ava Moore 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Alaina Miller 1 ; Ava Moore 1 ; Eileen Donahue 1
SB: Alaina Miller 1 ; Yazzy Avila 2
HBP: Gabrielle Debevec 1 ; Keirys Click 1
Batting:
2B: Drijvers, Sietske 1
HR: Daniels, KiKi 1
RBI: Jones, Grace 1 ; Daniels, KiKi 4 ; Drijvers, Sietske 1 ; Langford, Hallie 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Fernandez, Isabel 1 ; Jones, Grace 2 ; Hedgecock, Tori 2 ; Daniels, KiKi 2 ; Vigna, Laura 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
2
H
2
RBI
4
AB
3
R
1
H
2
RBI
0
AB
4
R
2
H
1
RBI
1
AB
3
R
2
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
C/OF
/ Softball
C
/ SoftballINF
/ SoftballRHP/INF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
RHP
/ SoftballOF
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