Bardzell Albany
Steve McLaughlin
14
Hartford HARTFORD 0-2
20
Winner Mercer MER 6-0
Hartford HARTFORD
0-2
14
Final
20
Mercer MER
6-0
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Hartford HARTFORD 0 3 5 2 0 3 0 1 0 14 12 1
Mercer MER 3 0 1 1 10 2 0 3 X 20 17 4

W: Carter Varga (1-0) L: Stepniak, Brian (0-1) S: Chase Burks (1)

Game Recap: Baseball | | Hartford Athletics Communications

Mercer Outlasts Hawks In 20-14 Slugfest

THE BASICS:
 
RESULT:  Mercer 20, Hartford 14
LOCATION: OrthoGeorgia Park (Macon, Ga.)
RECORDS: Mercer (6-0, 0-0 SoCon), Hartford (0-2, 0-0 America East)
WP: Cqrter Varga (1-0) LP: Brian Stepniak (0-1) SAVE: Chase Burks (1)

THE LEAD: 
The University of Hartford baseball team fell, 20-14, at Mercer on Saturday afternoon. The Hawks led 10-4 in the fourth inning before Mercer rallied for 11 unanswered runs, including a 10-run barrage in the bottom of the fifth.  Hartford mounted a few rallies in the late innings but Mercer manufactured enough offense to protect the lead, with the Hawks never trimming the deficit to fewer than two runs down the stretch.
 
The two teams combined for 29 hits in the game. Center fielder Ashton Bardzell, catcher Erik Ostberg, third baseman TJ Ward, left fielder Chris Sullivan and second baseman Dalton Ruch each had two hits for the Hawks. Bardzell connected for a pair of home runs and drove in four. Sullivan and Ostberg also homered for Hartford.
 
Danny Edgeworth led the Bears' offense with four hits and three RBIs. Right fielder Trey Truitt also drove in three runs with a pair of homers, while teammates Charlie Madden and Jackson Ware also went deep for Mercer.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
  • The Bears got things started in the bottom of the first, following a walk with a two-run home run by Truitt. Two batters later Madden made it 3-0 Mercer with a solo homer to left center.
  • The Hawks made up the three-run deficit quickly in the second inning. Ward reached on an error and advanced on a walk by Sullivan, before designated hitter Trevor Thompson walked to load the bases. Ward scored Hartford's first run on a passed ball and Nick Campana drove in Sullivan and Thompson with a single to left to make it 3-3.
  • Hartford piled on the runs in the third, with Ostberg leading off with a solo blast to center and, three batters later, Sullivan connecting for a three-run bomb to right. After a double from Thompson and a single by Ruch, Campana picked up his third RBI of the game with a sac fly to left, giving the Hawks an 8-3 advantage.
  • Truitt connected for his second home run of the afternoon to make it 8-4 in the bottom of the third.
  • Ostberg opened the fourth with a double and eventually came around to score on a fielder's choice by Sullivan. With two outs Ruch singled down the right field line to bring Ward home and give the Hawks a 10-4 edge.
  • Ware led off the bottom of the fourth with a solo shot to make it 10-5.
  • The Bears' offense exploded for 10 runs in the bottom of the fifth. Mercer strung together six singles, before back-to-back doubles from JT Thomas and Edgeworth helped the Bears come from behind to take a 15-10 lead.
  • Bardzell provided a quick answer for the Hawks, lifting a three-run home run over the fence in left-center that made it 15-13.
  • The Bears got back to some small ball in the bottom of the sixth, with Ryan Hagan's sac fly pushing Mercer's lead to 16-13. Alex Hanson scored another run on a wild pitch to make it 17-13.
  • Bardzell's second home run of the game brought the Hawks back within three runs in the top of the eighth.
  • Mercer scored a trio of unearned runs in the bottom half of the inning, pushing their lead to 20-14.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
  • Bardzell, who ranked second on the team with five homers as a freshman in 2016, notched his first multi-homer game as a Hawk.
  • Thompson's third-inning double was the first extra-base hit of his collegiate career.
  • The teams combined to use 10 pitchers, who threw a combined 411 pitches.
  • After the two sides finished with zero extra-base hits during Friday's opener, they combined for 12 on Saturday. Both teams finished with two doubles and four home runs.
  • Despite all the offense, Hartford still left 10 runners on base.
  • Mercer went 9-for-18 (.500) with runners in scoring position and was a perfect 3-for-3 with the bases loaded. The Bears' also went 7-for-8 (.875) to lead off each inning.

 
NEXT UP:
The Hawks will conclude their season-opening series against the Bears on Sunday, starting at 1 p.m. Sophomore right-hander Connor Lewis will make his first career start for the Hawks, with Mercer sending out their own sophomore righty, Kevin Coulter. Lewis, a Waterford native, redshirted in 2016. Coulter led the Bears with an 8-3 record this past season, earning a spot on the SoCon All-Freshman Team. Live stats will be available on MercerBears.com, along with updates on Twitter from @HartfordBASE.
 
 
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