Mercer baseball rolls past Wofford

The Mercer Bears scored 10 runs in the final two innings to blow open a close game and coast to a 14-3 win Friday night over Wofford.

Junior Ryan Askew overcame a slow start to pitch into the seventh inning for his first win of the year, and Kyle Lewis drove in five runs with a double and a home run.

Wofford jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning, but Mercer scored twice in the second and twice in the third to take a 4-2 lead, then the Bears put the game away with a four-run seventh and a six-run eighth.

Mercer (15-8, 2-0 Southern Conference) also claimed the game that was halted by rain on Thursday and finished Friday, winning 12-7.

THREE WHO MATTERED

Askew: He was touched for two earned runs in the first inning, but he settled down and gave up only one run in the next 5-1/3 innings. The right-hander struck out six and walked only two batters before giving way to the bullpen.

Lewis: Lewis had three hits to go with his five RBI, and he also scored three times. The three hits raised his average to .474 for the season.

Danny Edgeworth: He had three hits and knocked in two runs in the fourth inning that gave Mercer the lead for good.

TURNING POINT

Mercer was in a tight 4-3 battle heading into the bottom of the seventh but scored four runs to give them a comfortable 8-3 lead. Lewis delivered the big blow with a two-run double, advancing to third on an overthrow and scoring on a perfect squeeze by Charlie Madden.

THEY SAID IT

Mercer head coach Craig Gibson on picking up two wins Friday: "You know it's always tough to win what basically turned into a doubleheader, especially against one of the better teams we have played this year in Wofford."

Gibson on how he feels the team is playing in what is now a six-game winning streak: "I have felt good about this team all year, even when we lost five games in a row. Baseball is a funny game, and we are riding the wave right now and hopefully we can get another win (Saturday)."

Lewis on the importance of getting on a roll at the beginning of conference play: "It's big going into conference play, and just being able to carry it into this series is very important. I think we always knew we had it in us, even when we were losing games. It's very important to keep that momentum going."

Lewis on his approach with men on base: "I just try to bear down and do something for the team and try to make something good happen for us."

Lewis on the importance of Saturday's game against Wofford: "It's big for us. We just don't want to settle for the first two games, so we will come out (Saturday) and bear down and try and get the third one."

Askew on his performance and getting his first win: "For sure it's good to get that first win, but I don't really worry about wins and losses as long as I keep the team in the ballgame and try to leave the game with the lead."

WHAT'S NEXT?

Mercer and Wofford are right back at it at 2 p.m. on Saturday at Claude Smith Field.

This story was originally published March 25, 2016 at 10:18 PM with the headline "Mercer baseball rolls past Wofford ."