MACON, Ga. – The Wofford College baseball team was defeated 7-5 by Mercer at Claude Smith Field on Friday night to begin Southern Conference play. The Terriers scored first, but the Bears scored four runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to take a lead they would not relinquish.
 
Wofford is now 15-8 on the season and 0-1 in the Southern Conference. Mercer is 18-5 overall and 1-0 in league play. The Terriers were led by Colin Davis with three hits, coming a single short of the cycle. Lawson Hill added two hits for the Terriers. The Bears had 12 hits in the game, with nine batters having at least one hit.
 
The Terriers had two runners on base with one out after a single by McClain Bradley and a walk by Mack Nathanson, but a pair of strikeouts ended the top half of the first inning. Mercer was retired in order in the bottom of the first. Colin Davis led off the second with a double and moved to third on a wild pitch. A single by Lawson Hill drove in Davis for a 1-0 lead. After a walk by Brett Rodriguez put runners on the corners with two outs, a throwing error on a double steal attempt allowed Hill to score for a 2-0 advantage.
 
Mercer's Trey Truitt led off the bottom of the second with a solo home run to cut the lead to 2-1. Wofford was retired in order in the top of the third inning. With two outs and a runner on first, a single to right center drove in a run to tie the game at 2-2. Colin Davis regained the lead for the Terriers with a solo home run to start the fourth inning. It was his third home run of the season. Max McDougald and Lawson Hill followed with back-to-back singles. A ground out advanced the runners into scoring position, however a pair of strikeouts stranded the runners.
 
The Bears began the bottom of the fourth with a single and a double. A ground out drove in a run to tie the game and an RBI single gave Mercer a 4-3 advantage. With two outs, a hit combined with a fielding error allowed another run to score. A hit and a throwing error plated a run as the Bears took a 6-3 lead. Wofford was retired in order in the top of the fifth inning. Mercer had two outs in the bottom of the fifth when R.J. Yeager hit a solo home run for a 7-3 score.
 
Colin Davis hit a triple to lead off the top of the sixth inning and he scored on a ground out by Max McDougald to cut the lead to 7-4. Mercer was retired in order to end the sixth inning. Brett Rodriguez singled to open the seventh inning, which was followed by the Bears turning a double play. Mack Nathanson was hit by a pitch and then stole second. On a walk by Cody Miller, Nathanson stole third. On a double steal attempt, Nathanson scored as the throw to second was wide and it was a 7-5 game at the seventh inning stretch.
 
With two outs in the bottom of the seventh, the Bears had a walk and single before a fly ball ended the inning. Colin Davis and Max McDougald walked to lead off the top of the eighth. A strikeout and double play ended the scoring chance for the Terriers. Mercer left one runner on base at the end of the eighth after a single. Wofford went in order in the top of the ninth to end the game.
 
Austin Higginbotham (2-2) started for the Terriers and went seven innings with seven runs allowed on eleven hits. He walked one batter and had six strikeouts. Jake Hershman threw the eighth inning with one hit allowed and a strikeout.
 
Mercer starting pitcher Austin Cox (5-0) threw six innings with four runs allowed on seven hits. He struck out 11 batters and walked a pair. Zach Graveno went two-thirds of an inning with one run allowed on one hit. Nick Spear had one out and walked two batters. Kevin Coulter earned the save by going the final two innings without allowing a hit, along with two strikeouts.
 
Wofford and Mercer continue the series on Saturday at 2:00 p.m., with the conclusion on Sunday at 1:00 p.m.