Mercer completes sweep of East Carolina

Junior right-hander Chase Burks earned his first career victory Sunday as Mercer beat No. 8 East Carolina 8-2 to complete a three-game sweep.

Burks (1-0) went seven innings and struck out seven as Mercer improved to 17-4. The Bears’ offense gave Burks plenty of runs to work with, jumping on top with five runs in the first inning. The Bears added one run in the second, seventh and ninth.

“This was a great weekend for us, capped by a solid Sunday win,” Mercer head coach Craig Gibson said. “I thought Chase Burks was outstanding in his second start for us. Offensively, we got off to a good start by jumping on them and adding a run or two later. I’m really proud of the guys to beat a great ballclub in East Carolina.”

LSU 7, Georgia 6

Georgia (8-13, 0-3 SEC) led 2-1 following a two-run home run by freshman Will Proctor in the fifth, but the Tigers responded in their half of the inning, scoring three runs for a 4-2 advantage. LSU completed a three-game sweep in the first SEC series of the season for both teams.

North Carolina 7, Georgia Tech 4

North Carolina claimed the ACC series, rallying from a 4-0 deficit. Georgia Tech (12-6, 2-4 ACC) scored three runs in the third and another in the fourth, but North Carolina responded with three runs in the sixth, two in the eighth and two in the ninth.

South Alabama 5, Georgia Southern 0

Georgia Southern dropped its Sun Belt Conference opening series as it struck out 13 times. The Eagles fall to 10-9 overall and 1-2 in the conference.

Texas-Arlington 7, Georgia State 1

Georgia State lost its Sun Belt Conference-opening series as Texas-Arlington starter Jakob Hernandez held the Panthers to two hits in 6 1/3 innings.

This story was originally published March 19, 2017 at 6:47 PM with the headline "Mercer completes sweep of East Carolina."