Georgia Southern Strikes Early, Holds Off Bears

Wednesday, April 8

Statesboro, Ga.

6 p.m.

Mercer University

16-21

Georgia Southern

18-20

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Mercer	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	6	0
Georgia Southern Softball	2	2	0	0	0	0	X	4	7	2

Georgia Southern Strikes Early, Holds Off Bears

4/8/2026 8:43:00 PM | Softball

Box Score

By: Todd Anderson, anderson_t02@mercer.edu

STATESBORO – Georgia Southern plated a pair of runs in each of the first two innings to provide more than enough offense to support Bailey Holland's solid outing from the circle as the Eagles snapped a three-game series skid with a 4-1 victory over the Bears on Wednesday at the GS Softball Complex.

The setback marked the last rung in a five-game road trip for Mercer (16-21) who played error-free softball for the sixth time this season, but mustered just a 1-for-9 clip with runners on the base paths. It was the first series win for the Eagles (18-20) who improved to 19-4 all-time against the Bears in Statesboro.

GAME SUMMARY
FINAL	Georgia Southern 4, Mercer 1
PITCHERS	WP: Bailey Holland (7-9) LP: Grace McKillop (5-3) Save: None
RECORDS	Mercer 16-21 (4-5 SoCon); Georgia Southern 18-20 (5-7 SBC)

KEY INNINGS
TOP 1	Avery Barton hit a leadoff double and Grace Jones followed with a single to rightfield to set the table for a sacrifice fly from Olivia Lenzen.
BOT 1	Kayla Christensen drew a four-pitch walk to lead off the bottom of the frame, stole second base and eventually scored on a game-tying triple from Emma Davis. A sacrifice fly from Valerie Combs one pitch later plated Davis with the go-ahead score.

MER LEADERS	GSU LEADERS
Megan Loughren 2-3 Grace Jones 2-3 Avery Barton 1-3, 2B, R Isabel Fernandez 1-3	Kayla Christensen 3-3, BB, 3B, 2 R Emma Davis 1-2, BB, 3B Demere Gray 1-2, BB Bailey Holland 6.0 IP, 6 H, R, 3 K

UP NEXT
The Bears are back at home again on Saturday and Sunday to take on Furman (7-31, 1-8 SoCon) in a three-game series at Sikes Field. The squads will open up the weekend with a 1 p.m. twinbill on Saturday, and close out the series with a 1 p.m. single dip on Sunday.

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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 email *maf@mercer.edu*.