The Samford baseball team lost to Mercer, 6-3, in the opening game of their series on May 1 at Joe Lee Griffin Field.
The result leaves Samford with a record of 23-20 overall and an 8-5 mark in Southern Conference play. Mercer improved its record to 34-12 overall and also stands at 8-5 in conference games.
“It was a good college baseball game,” Samford head coach Tony David said. “They’re really good, they’re 34-12 for a reason. Overall, we just weren’t good enough offensively.”
Jeffrey Ince led Samford’s offense with a home run and two runs batted in during his one-for-three performance at the plate. Luke Boykin added a solo home run while Cade Carr and Trey Higgins each collected two hits for the Bulldogs. On the mound, Joseph Lee pitched four and one-third innings, allowing three runs on seven hits and took the loss for Samford.
For Mercer, Eli Stephens had four hits including a double and a home run while driving in three runs. Titan Kamaka contributed an RBI triple as part of Mercer’s scoring effort. Garrett Lambert earned the win after pitching six innings for Mercer.
After falling behind by two runs early, Samford tied the game in the second inning with Ince’s home run following Higgins’ leadoff double. However, Mercer regained control with additional runs throughout the later innings including Stephens’ two-run homer in the ninth inning that extended their lead to four runs before Boykin’s late solo shot made it 6-3.
The teams are scheduled to continue their series Saturday at Joe Lee Griffin Field.
