Johnson Throws Complete Game, Bears Clinch Series Over UNCG

Saturday, April 26

Macon, Ga.

2 p.m.

Mercer University

28-17, 8-6

UNC Greensboro

18-23, 7-4

UNC Greensboro

Mercer

Johnson Throws Complete Game, Bears Clinch Series Over UNCG

4/26/2025 5:25:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

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

MACON – Senior right-hander Jeb Johnson threw his first career complete game on Saturday, leading the Bears to a 9-1 series-clinching victory over UNCG at OrthoGeorgia Park.

Ely Brown (2-for-3) and Bradley Frye (2-for-5) had multi-hit days, while Titan Kamaka (2-for-3) homered and scored three runs to power the Bears at the plate. Johnson (4-3) threw a career-high 126 pitches to go the distance, striking out seven and limiting the Spartans to six hits and one walk. Rob Ready (1-6) took the loss for UNCG.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Johnson was locked in from the start, allowing just a single through his first two innings of work. The Mercer offense went to work in the bottom of the second, using a walk, single and hit by pitch to load the bases. The Bears got on the board with a wild pitch, as Zack Thompson crossed home to get the scoring started. After the UNCG starter left with an injury, Eli Stephens drove in the game's second run with an RBI knock to right field. Stepping in next, Brown laid down a bunt and showed off his wheels, beating the toss to first while driving in Kamaka to make the score 3-0.

Johnson remained on cruise control in the third and fourth innings, working two more 1-2-3 innings to retire 11 straight Spartans.

The Bears added on the bottom of the fourth, as Kamaka led off the inning with a single and stole second base for the second of five Mercer stolen bases on the day, getting himself in scoring position. Following a walk from Brown, the Bears cashed in, with Kamaka coming around to score on a throwing error and Brown scoring on a wild pitch to make it a 5-0 ballgame.

In the top of the fifth, the Spartans got the leadoff man on base for the first time in the game, but Johnson quickly erased him with a 4-6-3 double play to put up another zero.

Mercer continued to pour it on in the home half of the fifth, as Kamaka added to his big day with a two-run homer off the top of the left field wall for his seventh long ball of the season.

Following his fourth clean inning of the day in the sixth, Johnson lost the shutout in the seventh on an RBI single up the middle with the bases loaded. However, Frye was there to make a play, making a diving stop to keep the ball in the infield and firing a strike home to nab the UNCG runner at the plate, limiting the damage to one.

The bottom of the seventh saw two more runs for the Mercer offense, with Brant Baughcum and Frye picking up RBI singles to make it 9-1.

After working yet another 1-2-3 inning in the eighth, Johnson took the mound in the ninth looking for the complete game. Johnson plunked the first batter before striking out the next two, leaving himself one out away from his first career CG. Following a single, Johnson induced a flyout on pitch number 126 of the day, finishing off his career performance. The complete game was Mercer's second of the season and first nine inning complete game since Colton Cosper went the distance against UNCG on March 22, 2024.

UP NEXT

The Bears will go for the sweep against the Spartans tomorrow at 1 p.m. at OrthoGeorgia Park. Fans can purchase tickets ahead of time at Mercerbears.com/tickets.