Cosper’s Career Night, Frye’s Walk-Off Lead Bears Over Samford

Thursday, May 15

Macon, Ga.

6 p.m.

Mercer University

32-22, 11-8

Samford

27-24, 12-7

Samford

Mercer

Cosper’s Career Night, Frye’s Walk-Off Lead Bears Over Samford

5/15/2025 9:22:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

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

MACON – In his final start at OrthoGeorgia Park, Mercer left-hander Colton Cosper had a performance for the record books, striking out a career-high 11 in eight shutout innings before fellow senior Bradley Frye walked it off in the bottom of the ninth with a single, leading the Bears to a 2-1 win over Samford.

Frye (3-for-4) played a part in both of the Bears' runs, scoring a run in the eighth before driving in the game-winner in the ninth. Ely Brown (2-for-4) also had two hits to help lead the Bears offensively. Cosper dazzled, allowing only five hits while lowering his season ERA to 3.29. Collin Ewaldsen (2-2) got the win for Mercer, while Evan Steckmesser (3-4) took the loss for Samford.

HOW IT HAPPENED

In what would be expected in a battle between two of the top pitchers in the Southern Conference, Cosper and Samford starter Miller Riggins traded punches early, making life difficult on opposing hitters. After working around a one-out single in the first, Cosper struck out two in a 1-2-3 second to settle into a groove. The Bears threatened in the home half of the second, putting two on to begin the frame before a sac bunt advanced the runners to second and third. However, Riggins was able to work out of the jam, keeping the Bears off the scoreboard.

Cosper got some help from his defense in the top of the third, with right fielder Ty Dalley gunning down a runner at third to end the inning. In the fourth, Cosper added two more punch-outs to his line, putting up his fourth zero of the night.

Mercer looked poised to score again in the bottom of the fourth, as Titan Kamaka led off the inning with a single before a one-out bunt single from Brown forced a throwing error, putting runners on the corners. With his back against the wall, Riggins found a way to work out of the jam once again to keep things scoreless.

Unphased by the previous inning's momentum shift, Cosper continued to mow down the Samford lineup by striking out the side in the fifth.

Getting his second start in a row and third start of the season, freshman David Falloon put a charge into a two-strike offering to begin the bottom of the fifth, cruising into second with a stand-up double to left center field. However, the Bears were kept off the scoreboard again, leaving the bases loaded for a second straight inning.

Cosper finally ran into trouble in the top of the seventh, as the Bulldogs threatened with a two-out double. With reining SoCon Player of the Week Michael Gupton up to bat, Cosper was able to bear down and pick up his ninth strikeout of the night, tying a career-high.

Looking to cap off a career night, Cosper put an exclamation mark on his outing in the top of the eighth with two strikeouts to run his total to 11, setting a new career-high. Cosper has now worked 15 consecutive scoreless innings, dating back to the fourth inning against Wofford on May 2. His 73 strikeouts on the year are the highest single-season total of his career and bring his career total to 223.

Needing a run to break the ice, the Mercer offense got a spark to begin the bottom of the eighth on a base knock from Frye. The Bears' shortstop advanced to second on a sac bunt and advanced to third on a groundout, putting the go-ahead run 90 feet from home with two outs. With a 1-0 count on hitter Zack Thompson, a breaking ball got away from the Samford backstop, allowing Frye to slide into home for the first run of the night. However, the lead was short-lived as the Bulldogs drew even in the top of the ninth with a solo homer.

With the game knotted at one, Parker Lester led off the bottom of the ninth inning for Mercer and delivered a single to center field before Falloon lined a single of his own, putting two on with nobody out. Following a groundout that advanced the runners to second and third, Samford chose to intentionally walk Brant Baughcum to bring up Frye. The senior made the Bulldogs pay, drilling a ground ball past a diving shortstop to walk it off for a 2-1 final. The walk-off was the second of the season for the Bears and the first career walk-off for Frye.

With the win, Mercer moves to 32-22 overall and 11-8 in SoCon play. The win also marked the Bears' first over Samford in Macon since 2019.

UP NEXT

Mercer and Samford return to OrthoGeorgia Park tomorrow for game two of the series, starting at 6 pm. Fans can purchase tickets ahead of time at Mercerbears.com/tickets.