SPARTANBURG, S.C. – After an hour-long rain delay, the Wofford baseball team jumped on Mercer early Friday night at Russell C. King Field and never looked back, winning 7-4 after holding firm against a late Bear push. Wofford improves to 26-21 (4-9 SoCon) as Mercer drops to 30-18 (9-7 SoCon).
 
Wofford needed only two pitchers in the contest with Alec Bouchard (2-0) earning the win as the starter. He tossed 5.0 frames, a career high, with four strikeouts to just one walk and four hits. He allowed one run, but it was unearned. Kenny Michaels (1) polished off the final 4.0 innings to secure a save, allowing three runs (two earned) on seven hits and one walk. He struck out three.
 
Mercer starter Colton Cosper (6-2) suffered the loss after surrendering five runs on 11 hits.
 
The Terriers outhit the Bears 15-11 with six Terriers recording multiple base knocks. Tyler Bak led the way with three hits and an RBI. Ryan Wynn totaled two hits with a team-high two runs driven in, both coming from his two-run home run. It was his team-leading fifth long ball of the season. Niko Brini added an RBI with his two knocks. Ben Timblin and Tanner Hardin each had one hit with one RBI. Bak and Lucas Manning each hit a double with Timblin adding a triple.
 
Wofford jumped on the board in the bottom of the first inning.
 
Niko Brini drew a lead-off walk and was sacrificed over to second. Ryan Wynn then connected on a 351-foot blast to plate both and give the Terriers an early 2-0 lead.
 
Wofford tacked on one more in the second. Lucas Manning hit a lead-off double to right center and moved to third on a bunt. Brini singled back up the middle to plate him for a 3-0 edge.
 
Mercer broke through in the top of the third when an RBI groundout pushed one across. However, two more scored for Wofford in the bottom of the third after James Layman singled and came home on a two-out triple by Ben Timblin. Tyler Bak then doubled him in for a 5-1 lead.
 
Pitching settled in for both squads from there until the sixth when the Bears scratched across a run with an RBI single for a 5-2 margin.
 
Mercer added one more in the top of the seventh with a throwing error bringing home a runner, and a sacrifice fly in the top of the eighth brought the Bears within one at 5-4.
 
Wofford secured much-needed insurance in the bottom of the eighth with a pair of runs. Bak singled and came home on a merry-go-round play. Manning put down a bunt that he beat out at first, but the throw sailed away to bring Bak home. Tanner Hardin then singled to plate Manning for a 7-4 lead.
 
The margin stood there as Kenny Michaels hurled a scoreless ninth to lock down the win 7-4 for the Terriers.
 
Wofford and Mercer meet in game two of the series tomorrow afternoon. First pitch is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. at Russell C. King Field.