Bears Split Doubleheader, Take Series Over Southern

Saturday, March 8

Macon, Ga.

2 p.m.

Mercer University

11-4

Southern

7-5

Southern

Mercer

Bears Split Doubleheader, Take Series Over Southern

3/8/2025 9:08:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

By: Donovan Schultz, donovan.schultz@live.mercer.edu

MACON – The Mercer baseball team dropped game one of Saturday's doubleheader but bounced back for a win in game two to take the weekend series over Southern at OrthoGeorgia Park.

Titan Kamaka and Bradley Frye were the stars of the day for the Bears, as Kamaka drove in six runs and Frye collected six hits between the two games. Braydon Kersey (1-1) earned his first career win in game two while Terry Busse slammed the door to pick up his fourth save of the season.

Game 1

The first game of the day provided offensive fireworks from the get-go, as Southern jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead through the first three innings. However, the Bears would not go down quietly. In the bottom of the fourth, Parker Lester got the Bears on the scoreboard with his fourth home run of the season, a solo shot to right field. With two outs in the inning, Kamaka drew a walk to get on base for Drew Johnson, who lined a double into the gap in right center to score Kamaka and chip into the deficit.

After entering for the final out in the third, Jeb Johnson put up his second zero of the afternoon in the fifth inning to keep the Bears within striking distance. In the bottom of the frame, Ely Brown got things going with a one-out single to bring up Frye, who put a line shot over the wall in center field to make the score 6-4. The Bears were not done, however. With two outs, Lester drew a walk and Brant Baughcum singled up the middle to spark another rally. In the next at-bat, Kamaka went the other way for a three-run home run to right center, his second home run in as many games, giving the Bears a 7-6.

In the sixth, Johnson put up another 1-2-3 inning to preserve the lead. The Bears loaded the bases to begin the home half, allowing a walk from Frye to plate another run. Ty Dalley stepped in next and lifted a fly ball to center field to score the runner from third, making the score 9-6.

Although the momentum appeared to be in Mercer's favor, Southern mounted a comeback of their own in the seventh. After leading off the inning with a solo home run, the Jaguars left the yard again for a three-run homer to regain the lead, 10-9. In the bottom of the seventh, the Bears put runners on the corners, but were unable to score the tying run.

The Jaguars came through with two big insurance runs in the ninth, using a pair of solo home runs to push the lead to three, before collecting the final three outs of the game in the bottom of the inning to take the 12-9 win.

Game 2

In game two of the twin bill, Braydon Kersey took the ball for the Bears and needed only nine pitches to get through the top of the first. Determined not to fall behind early for the second game in a row, the Bears used singles from Frye, Dalley and Lester to strike first with two runs in the bottom of the inning.

Kersey worked another quick inning in the second, again using only nine pitches to retire the side in order. After two quick outs in the bottom of the frame, Greyson Gegg – making his first caeer start - drew a walk to give fellow freshman Cade Norton an opportunity with a man on base. Norton made the most of his opportunity, driving his first career home run out to left field to extend the lead to four.

The Bears went back to work in the bottom of the third, starting the inning with three consecutive singles from Frye, Dalley and Kamaka to score twice more. Now working with a 6-0 lead, Kersey breezed through the fourth and fifth innings to get through five scoreless. It looked as if the Bears may extend their lead in the bottom of the fifth, but a leadoff double by Dalley was left stranded and the score remained 6-0.

Kersey finally ran into trouble in the sixth, as a three-run homer chased him from the ballgame. With two outs in the inning, Terry Busse entered from the bullpen and stranded a runner at second to limit the damage. Following a quiet half inning from the Mercer offense, Busse went back out for the seventh inning and sat down the Jaguars in order, keeping the score at 6-3.

Once again in the seventh, it appeared as if the Bears would break the game open when Frye led the inning off with a double and the Bears loaded the bases with one out. However, Southern was able to induce a double play to escape the jam. The bottom of the eighth saw more of the same, as the Bears loaded the bases with nobody out but were left empty-handed.

Nothing could phase Busse, however. The Bears' closer went back out to the mound in the ninth and worked around an RBI groundout to shut the door on the 6-4 win. In his first extended appearance of the season, Busse earned the save with 3.1 innings of hitless baseball, striking out three in the process.

The Bears remain OrthoGeorgia Park this week for five home games, beginning with a pair of midweek contests. The Bears will host Alabama State on Tuesday and Kennesaw State on Wednesday, with both games starting at 6 p.m. Looking ahead to the weekend, the Bears welcome Tennessee Tech for a three-game set starting on Friday. Fans can get their tickets ahead of time by visiting MercerBears.com/Tickets.