JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (April 7, 2024) – The ETSU baseball team totaled 17 hits and scored 11 runs in a 11-4 victory over Mercer on Sunday afternoon at Thomas Stadium. Sunday's win not only improved ETSU's record to 20-10 overall and 5-4 in SoCon play but it also clinched the Bucs' first series win against Mercer since 2014.
ETSU's 17 hits were one shy of the season-high for the team (18 vs. Rider – Feb. 25).
Noah Gent totaled a career-high four hits in a 4-for-5 day at the plate with four RBI. Gent, who was a home run shy of the cycle, was joined by
Tommy Barth (3-for-5, two runs, two RBI, home run),
Cody Miller (3-for-4, two runs scored) and
Jackson Green (2-for-4, two RBI, one run scored) with multi-hit performances.
The Bucs used just three pitchers on Sunday.
Michael Harpster pitched well again for the Bucs going 5.1 innings allowed three runs on seven hits. Harpster notched his fifth win of the season for his efforts on Sunday.
Owen Kovacs pitched the final three innings for ETSU and tallied his sixth save of the season. Kovacs
Gent got the Bucs on the board in the bottom of the first with an RBI single. Gent than tripled home Miller in the fourth to double ETSU's advantage. ETSU was not done there, however, as Green and
Ryan McCarthy followed with RBI singles to push the Buccaneer lead to 4-0.
Harpster kept the Mercer's lineup scoreless until the sixth. A pair of Bears were hit by pitches before a three-run home run suddenly made it a one-run game, 4-3.
Kenny Keller came in and got the final two outs and kept it a one-run game heading to the bottom of the sixth.
ETSU swung the momentum back in its direction immediately after the Bears scored. The Bucs totaled five hits and scored five times to make the score 9-3. McCarthy, Barth, Gent (two) and
Ashton King all drove in runs in the five-run sixth. The Bucs added insurance runs with Barth's home run in the seventh and an RBI double from Green to finish off an 11-run day for the Bucs.
Kovacs, who entered the game in the seventh, finished the game off on the mound for ETSU. Kovacs allowed one run in the ninth but struck out four in three innings of work to pick up another save. Kovacs and his six saves are the most for a Buccaneer pitcher since 2018.
ETSU will return to action on Tuesday when it visits Radford in non-conference action. First pitch between the Bucs and Highlanders is set for 5 p.m. on ESPN+.
For more information on Buccaneer baseball, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the baseball tab.
