Bears Battle East Tennessee State In SoCon Tournament Play-In Game

Wednesday, May 6

Chattanooga, Tenn.

9 a.m.

Mercer University

East Tennessee State

Bears Battle East Tennessee State In SoCon Tournament Play-In Game

5/5/2026 8:29:00 PM | Softball

Tournament Headquarters

By: Todd Anderson, anderson_t02@mercer.edu

MACON – The Mercer softball team will begin its postseason road on Wednesday morning when the seventh-seeded Bears rematch with sixth-seeded East Tennessee State in the first of two play-in games at the 2026 Southern Conference Tournament. First pitch is scheduled for 9 a.m. at the Warner Park Complex.

Fans unable to make the trip to southeast Tennessee can still follow all of the action for free via a live statistics link provided by the SoCon office. Due to last-minute schedule changes due to expected inclement weather, the game will not be broadcasted.

ABOUT THE GAME
Dates: Wednesday, May 6 Time: 9 a.m. Location: Chattanooga, Tenn. I Warner Park Complex TV: None Live Statistics: MercerBears.com/Live Twitter Updates: @MercerUSoftball

ADMISSION
Single day tournament passes are $17.15 and can be purchased by visiting the Southern Conference's ticketing portal.

LAST TIME OUT
Mercer utilized five errors by visiting East Tennessee State to plate five unearned runs and provide more than enough offense behind a Senior Day gem from right-hander Katherine Rearley as the Bears salvaged their weekend series with a 6-1 win over the Buccaneers on Sunday at Sikes Field. The triumph snapped a two-game skid for the Orange & Black who produced seven hits on the afternoon, including a solo homer from junior Meredith Wayland in the bottom of the sixth.

MERCER IN THE SOCON TOURNAMENT
The Bears (20-29) are 21-19 all-time in 10 previous trips to the Southern Conference Tournament, including a 7-1 clip last season that culminated in the program's first league championship and initial NCAA Tournament berth … The Bears have captured at least one win in SoCon Tournament play in nine of their 10 appearances, with the only outlier coming at the 2022 event in which the Orange & Black dropped 1-run games to both Furman and Samford … MU will participate in a play-in game for the second-straight season … The fifth-seeded Bears defeated Furman, 11-7, in a play-in game last season.

SCOUTING EAST TENNESSEE STATE
The Buccaneers (21-28) have won four out of their last six games, including a series win over the Bears on Saturday in Sunday in Macon. East Tennessee State's pitching staff has yielded just 7.8 hits per/7 innings (3rd SoCon) this season and will tote the league's third-best team earned run average (4.08) into Wednesday as well. Senior Abigail Taylor picked up second team All-Southern Conference recognition on Tuesday after registering a team-best .343 batting average during the regular season, while rookies Riley Croley and Hailey Porter picked up SoCon All-Freshman Team nods. Eden Muncy (4-6, 2.65 ERA) and Taylor Suchy (4-11, 4.74) have both logged at least 75 innings of work from the circle.

MERCER/EAST TENNESSEE STATE SERIES
Mercer leads the 21-year-old series with ETSU, 33-24, including a 19-16 mark against the Bucs away from Macon. The sides have met five previous times in the Southern Conference Tournament, with Mercer carrying a 3-2 mark against ETSU in such contests. All three of MU's victories over the Buccaneers in the SoCon Tournament have come in elimination contests. The Bears avenged a first-round loss to ETSU in the 2019 event by delivering a 6-1 decision in the loser's bracket, while also ousting the Buccaneers from both the 2024 (4-3) and 2025 (11-3) tournaments as well.

WHAT'S WAITING
A win for Mercer over East Tennessee State on Wednesday morning would move the Bears into the double-elimination portion tournament bracket. The MU/ETSU winner is scheduled to take on third-seeded Western Carolina inside Frost Stadium at approximately 2 p.m.

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 email *maf@mercer.edu*.