Mercer University
Florida State
Bears Prepare For Matchup With Fifth-Ranked Florida State On Tuesday
3/17/2025 4:53:00 PM | Baseball
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| Mercer at #5 Florida State | Tuesday, March 5 | 6 PM ET | ||
| Site | Location | Dick Howser Stadium | Tallahassee, Fla. | |
| Links | 6 p.m. ET: Live Stats | TV: ACCNX Expected Pitching Match-Up: MER RHP Jeb Johnson (2-0, 3.77 ERA) vs. FSU LHP Payton Manca (1-0, 2.45 ERA) |
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NotablesÂ
> Â Tuesday marks the Bears first matchup against a top-five team since taking on fourth-ranked Georgia in the opening round of the 2019 Athens Regional. Head coach Craig Gibson has taken down six teams ranked in the top five in the national polls while at the helm at Mercer
>  The Bears have had success against top-ten teams under Gibson. In his 21-plus year tenure as skipper, Mercer owns a 12-4 record against teams ranked in the top ten
> Â Mercer has taken down Florida State in their last two midweek contests, winning 13-6 in Tallahassee a year ago and 6-5 in Macon in 2022.Â
>  The Bears enter Tuesday's game fresh off of a series win over Tennessee Tech. After using a five-run first and a strong start from Colton Cosper to take Friday's series opener 9-1, the Bears limited the Golden Eagles to three hits and got big performances at the plate from Brant Baughcum, Titan Kamaka and Ely Brown to take Sunday's rubber match by a score of 6-3. The series victory was the fourth of the season for Mercer
>  Brant Baughcum enjoyed a strong stretch at the plate over five games last week, going 9-for-20 with four doubles, a home run and seven RBI. For the season, Baughcum is third on the team with a .308 batting average and 19 RBI
> Â Terry Busse continues to dominate in the closer role, picking up his fifth save of the season on Sunday. Busse retired all six hitters he faced to secure the save. In 11 - 2/3 innings this season, Busse has allowed just one earned run and two hits, good for an ERA of 0.77 and an opponent's batting average of .053
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Wednesday marks the 73rd all-time meeting between the Bears and Seminoles. Florida State brings an 18-1 record into the week, having most recently swept Boston College to open up ACC play.
Florida State has been dominant on both sides of the ball this season, holding a team batting average of .346 and a team ERA of 2.33. Alex Lodise leads the Seminoles with a .456 batting average, while Gage Harrelson also holds a batting average north of .400 at .420. Drew Faurot and Max Williams have each slugged seven home runs to tie for the team lead.Â
The Seminoles went 49-17 in 2024 and earned a berth to the College World Series, where they fell in the semifinals to eventual national champions Tennessee. Florida State was picked second in the ACC preseason poll and garnered two first-place votes.Â
