Barton Blasts Bears To Historic Start, Frederick Fills Up Stat Sheet To Claim Student-Athlete Of The Week Honors
2/11/2026 1:05:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse, Softball, Athletics Department
MACON – This week's Mercer Student-Athletes of the Week go to a pair of Bears that turned in vital performances to propel their respective teams to a perfect start in the 2026 season.
Avery Barton's bat caught fire and pushed the Mercer softball team to its first 5-0 start in 27 seasons. The senior infielder posted a .400 batting average (8-for-20) with four home runs, a double and eight RBI in the Heart of Georgia Classic. Barton began the 2026 campaign with a game-tying home run in the bottom of the seventh inning to set up a walk-off home run the following frame in Mercer's 16-14 season-opening win over Evansville. Barton followed that up with a 3-for-3, two-homer performance with five total RBI against North Carolina A&T. The next day, Barton turned in her second multi-hit outing already this season with a 2-for-5, two-RBI game against Maine.
Michael Frederick found the back of the net three times to power the Mercer men's lacrosse team to one of its biggest non-conference wins in program history. The midfielder from Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, opened the scoring for the Bears after just a minute into the match before notching his first assist on the day just a mere 30 seconds later. Frederick connected with nylon for the second time on the day with 2:44 left in the first quarter. The senior opened the second half with his second assist on the day before securing his hat trick with 6:56 left in the third. Mercer would go on to win 13-9 and keep its perfect season alive by improving to 2-0.
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| 2025-26 MERCER STUDENT-ATHLETES OF THE WEEK | |||
| Week Ending | Male Honoree | Female Honoree | Official Release |
| February 11 | Michael Frederick, Lacrosse | Avery Barton, Softball | February 11 |
| February 4 | Zaire Williams, Basketball | Ines Hömberg Fernandez, Tennis | February 4 |
| January 28 | Baraka Okojie, Basketball | Marina de Diego Quinones, Tennis | January 28 |
| October 6 | Braden Atkinson, Football | Marie Bannmeyer, Tennis | October 6 |
| September 28 | CJ Miller, Football | Katie Scheck, Golf | September 29 |
| September 21 | Braden Atkinson, Football | Sammi Bergjans, Volleyball | September 22 |
| September 14 | Andrew Zock, Football | Nikki Harris, Cross Country | September 15 |
| September 7 | Henry Hampshaw, Soccer | Morganne Eikelbarner, Soccer | September 8 |
