Macon, Ga. – Trailing by seven runs entering the ninth inning, Western Carolina plated eight runs with two out on the strength of three home runs to rally past Mercer to win the series with a 15-14 come-from-behind victory in Sunday afternoon's rubber match at OrthoGeorgia Park. Sunday's victory coupled with Saturday's 9-4 triumph propelled WCU to the Southern Conference series win.
Cole Jones belted a three-run homer before the Catamounts went back-to-back with the second grand slam in as many days for
Pascanel Ferreras and a go-ahead solo blast by
James Hinson – his second homer run of the game – to take the one-run lead headed to the home half of the ninth.
Gavin Mortenson then worked a 1-2-3 ninth with a trio of ground ball outs to complete the comeback.
Seven Catamounts finished with multi-hit games as WCU pounded out a season-best 19 base hits including seven for extra bases with six total home runs. Ferreras finished 3-for-5 with a team-best five RBI including the game-tying grand slam in the ninth inning. Hinson homered twice in a 3-for-5, four-RBI effort, hitting a three-run shot in the third inning for a short-lived 5-4 WCU lead.
Kyle Riesselmann and
Brandon Butterworth also both collected three hits with Butterworth reaching a fourth time on a walk.
Nate Stocum delivered an early two-run home run to give the Catamounts the lead in the top of the second inning, finishing 2-for-6 with two RBI. Jones was 2-for-5 with a double and his three-run homer in the ninth.
Zach Ketterman added a solo home run in the winning effort.
Mercer scored runs in each of the first four frames on Sunday, erasing a pair of early Catamount advantages at 2-1 with a three-run second and 5-4 with a five-run third inning. The Bears bullied their way to a 13-6 lead through five complete and reclaimed the seven-run cushion with an insurance marker in the home half of the eighth to carry the 14-7 lead into the ninth inning.
Hinson led off the decisive ninth with a walk but was alone at second after the next two Catamounts were retired. Stocum extended the inning with a single to put runners at the corners before Jones blasted an 0-1 pitch over the fence in right-center field.
Kyle Harbison continued the two-out rally with a four-pitch walk on the ensuing at-bat with Riesselmann beating out an infield single back to the mound. Butterworth tallied his third hit of the day to load the bases ahead of Ferreras who came through in the clutch on the first pitch of his at-bat with the grand slam homer to center field.
Tied at 14, Hinson then homered on the very next pitch to right center to push the Catamounts in front for good. WCU threatened with consecutive walks, but the inning closed on a ground out with Mortenson emerging from the bullpen to close the game.
Mortenson earned his third save of the season with reliever
Jonathan Todd (1-1) collecting the victory as WCU used nine arms to secure the victory. Todd tossed two innings of one-run, two-hit relief with Mortenson tossing a perfect ninth on just six pitches.
Dylan Wheeler went two innings in the start while
Paddy McGonigal was the first Catamount hurler to keep Mercer off the scoreboard, finding a zero in the fifth inning.
Cole Beverlin also helped get WCU to the finish line, working around an HBP in an otherwise perfect inning of work out of the bullpen.
Mercer (18-11, 3-3 SoCon) had four players post multi-hit games as the Bears tallied four homer runs among their 12 hits including six for extra bases. Ty Dalley finished 3-for-5 with three RBI on a double and a home run. Jackson Cherry homered in a 2-for-5 effort with four RBI to pace Mercer.
Reliever Wesley Franklin (0-1) was saddled with the loss, tagged for three runs on three hits without recording an out. Franklin surrendered the consecutive homers to Ferreras and Hinson in the ninth. Starter Josh Farmer struck out two over 3.2 innings with Holton McGaha fanning three in matching Farmer's 3.2 innings of work as the Bears totaled six pitchers used in the loss.
Western Carolina (12-15, 3-3 SoCon) opens a four-game home stand on Tuesday, hosting USC Upstate (18-11) in midweek nonconference action at Childress Field / Hennon Stadium. The first pitch is slated for 5 p.m. in a game that will be broadcast on ESPN+ (
paid subscription required) with live stats available online at CatamountSports.com. WCU remains at home for a special three-game SoCon series Thursday through Saturday, hosting the resurgent VMI Keydets (16-13, 3-3 SoCon) in Cullowhee with each game slated to be on ESPN+.
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