Wednesday, April 2
Athens, Ga.
6 p.m.
Mercer University
at
#16 Georgia
Bears Head To Athens To Battle No. 16 Georgia
4/1/2025 11:23:00 AM | Softball
MACON – The Mercer softball team will open up a four-game road trip on Wednesday when the Bears pack up their show and head to Athens to battle 16th-ranked Georgia at Turner Softball Stadium. Start time is slated for 6 p.m.
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Fans unable to make the trip to Athens can still follow all of the action in progress for free via a live statistics link provided by the UGA athletics department. The game is also slated to be streamed live on the SEC Network/ESPN+.
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The Bears (18-18, 1-4 SoCon) opened a bag of mixed emotions last week. Mercer pounded out a dozen hits and scored eight times on the way to a Tuesday victory over Georgia Tech – its first triumph over the Yellow Jackets since 2013 – but combined for just five hits on the way to dropping the first two games of its league series with Chattanooga. Sunday's series finale was rained out.
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Despite Saturday's offensive lull, Mercer is still exhibiting a bit of a hot streak since concluding its Spring Break trip through central Florida. The Bears are just 5-6 over the last three weeks, but four of their setbacks have been of the one-run variety, including 2-1 heartbreakers amid each of their last three series. MU has still recorded 7.3 hits and 5.1 runs per game over its last 11 contests, including 22 extra-base hits (11 HR).
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Fingers of optimism are pointed at the circle as well where Mercer's 5-armed staff has limited opponents to just a .258 batting clip over the last three weeks, while surrendering just 23 extra-base hits. Redshirt junior Hannah Pitts, as well as sophomore Gabby Ellis, have tallied a pair of wins over that stretch as well. Sophomore Grace Roark has limited opponents to just 15 hits in 19-2/3 innings pitched.
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Fans unable to make the trip to Athens can still follow all of the action in progress for free via a live statistics link provided by the UGA athletics department. The game is also slated to be streamed live on the SEC Network/ESPN+.
Â
The Bears (18-18, 1-4 SoCon) opened a bag of mixed emotions last week. Mercer pounded out a dozen hits and scored eight times on the way to a Tuesday victory over Georgia Tech – its first triumph over the Yellow Jackets since 2013 – but combined for just five hits on the way to dropping the first two games of its league series with Chattanooga. Sunday's series finale was rained out.
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Despite Saturday's offensive lull, Mercer is still exhibiting a bit of a hot streak since concluding its Spring Break trip through central Florida. The Bears are just 5-6 over the last three weeks, but four of their setbacks have been of the one-run variety, including 2-1 heartbreakers amid each of their last three series. MU has still recorded 7.3 hits and 5.1 runs per game over its last 11 contests, including 22 extra-base hits (11 HR).
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Fingers of optimism are pointed at the circle as well where Mercer's 5-armed staff has limited opponents to just a .258 batting clip over the last three weeks, while surrendering just 23 extra-base hits. Redshirt junior Hannah Pitts, as well as sophomore Gabby Ellis, have tallied a pair of wins over that stretch as well. Sophomore Grace Roark has limited opponents to just 15 hits in 19-2/3 innings pitched.
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| SERIES HISTORY |
| Georgia leads the 28-year-old series, 23-1, and will ride a six-game series win streak into Wednesday's matchup in Athens. MU's lone victory in the series came on April 14, 2018, when the Bears broke a 2-2 tie with three runs in the top of the seventh inning to down the Bulldogs, 5-2, in Athens. Eighteen of the 24 series meetings have come at Turner Softball Stadium. |
| SCOUTING GEORGIA |
| The Bulldogs (25-10, 4-8 SEC) will look to right their ship after dropping the last two games of their road series with then-No. 25 Alabama over the weekend. Georgia opened the weekend set with a 4-3 victory over the Crimson Tide on Friday in Tuscaloosa, Ala., but dropped the second and third games of the set, 5-4 and 8-5, respectively. Â Defense has been key for Georgia this season as the Bulldogs boast the nation's 26th-best fielding percentage (.973) and have committed one or fewer errors in 31 outings this season, including 16 error-free games. That defensive prowess has allowed UGA to excel in closely-contested contests this year as evidenced by a 7-3 clip in games decided by just a lone run. Â Junior outfielder Jaydyn Goodwin has compiled a team-leading .372 batting average to go along with 17 extra-base hits (6 HR), 32 RBI and 28 runs scored, while junior infielder Tyler Ellison is hitting .362 with six homers and 20 RBI. The Bulldogs are led in the circle by senior southpaw Lilli Backes (10-4, 3.04 ERA) who has struck out 83 batters in as many innings of work. |
| UP NEXT FOR THE BEARS |
| Mercer will wrap up its four-game road trip on Saturday and Sunday when they trek to Spartanburg, S.C., to take on Southern Conference rival Wofford (19-14, 2-4 SoCon) in a three-game series at Hope Field. |
| STAY CONNECTED |
| Follow Mercer Softball on Twitter and Instagram and "Like" Mercer Softball 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. |
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