Mercer rallies to claim the SoCon Softball Championship

No. 5 Mercer 6, No. 1 Chattanooga 5
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The No. 5 seed Mercer avoided elimination by defeating No. 1 seed Chattanooga, 6-5, at the SoCon Softball Championship on Saturday at Hope Field.

The Bears (37-24) and the Mocs (41-14) will now play a winner-take-all contest at 4:10 p.m. today. Mercer will be looking for its first tournament title. Chattanooga, the 2024 champion, will be looking for its 17th tournament crown.

Chattanooga got on the board in the first inning via a single through the left side by Baileigh Pitts, which scored Camryn Cernuto and Kailey Snell. Two batters later, a RBI single from Raven Jones brought Acelynn Sellers across home plate, giving the Mocs a 3-0 lead after one inning.

In the second frame, Mercer got two quick outs before a rally by Chattanooga. Cernuto and Olivia Lipari had back-to-back singles, placing runners on first and second. Sellers doubled on the next at-bat, scoring both runners and prompting a pitching change from the Bears. The Mocs led 5-0 after two innings of play.

After going hitless for the first four innings, Mercer’s bats woke up in the fifth. Laura Vigna got the squad’s first hit, which was followed by a pair of walks to load the bases. Grace Jones then hit a bases-clearing triple to right center field, scoring the first runs of the game for the Bears. KiKi Daniels hit a sacrifice fly to center field on the next pitch, bringing Jones across home plate and making the score 5-4 in favor of the top seed.

In the top of the sixth inning, Mercer began the frame with back-to-back bunt singles, placing the go-ahead runs on base. After a groundout moved both runners into scoring position, Paris Wiggs singled through the right side and both runners came across home plate, moving the Bears ahead 6-5.

Chattanooga got a leadoff walk in the bottom of the seventh inning but were unable to get any hits after that, ending the game and forcing a winner-take-all game.

Grace Taylor entered the game in the second inning for Mercer, tossing 5.1 innings and striking out three batters en route to her third victory of the tournament.

Grace Jones and Vigna both went 2-for-4 and scored a run in the contest. Cernuto had three hits and two runs scored to lead the Mocs at the plate.

No. 5 Mercer 5, No. 1 Chattanooga 2

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – No. 5 seed Mercer won its second game of the day over the No. 1 seed Chattanooga, winning 5-2 on Saturday at the SoCon Softball Championship presented by One Spartanburg at Hope Field.

With their first SoCon tournament title, the Bears (38-24) claimed the SoCon’s automatic bid to the NCAA Regionals. The selection show will air on ESPN2 on Sunday at 7 p.m. ET.

Mercer won five straight elimination games over the past three days at the conference tournament to win the title. The Bears broke or tied 12 different individual and team conference tournament records over the past four days of play. Some of the records broken by the team were most hits (75), home runs (11) and runs (65) in a tournament.

Both teams scored one run in the opening inning. Mercer’s run came from a RBI double by Tori Hedgecock, scoring Paris Wiggs on the play. Chattanooga saw Kailey Snell score on a double by Olivia Lipari. Two innings later, Mercer broke the 1-1 tie with a two-run homer by Hedgecock.

In the fourth frame, Hannah Rivers doubled to left field and used an error to advance all the way around the bases, making the score 4-1 in favor of the Bears. Daniella Monaco scored KiKi Daniels on a RBI single in the top of the sixth inning, giving Mercer a four-run advantage.

Chattanooga got a run back in the bottom of the sixth. Raven Jones had a RBI groundout to the shortstop, bringing Abi Pikas across home plate to make the score 5-2.

Grace Taylor, the tournament’s most outstanding player, tossed a complete game, striking out two batters and giving up three hits. Taylor went 4-0 with a 2.59 ERA over 24.1 innings pitched during the championship.

Hedgecock went 3-for-4 with a home run, a double, a run scored and three RBIs to lead the Bears at the dish. Snell, Lipari and Presley Williamson accounted for the Mocs’ three hits during the game.

Tournament Most Outstanding Player

Grace Taylor, Jr., RHP, Mercer
 
Knight Commission Pinnacle Award (highest GPA on championship-winning team)

Emma Dorval, Sr., INF, Mercer
 
All-Tournament Team
Cameron Young, ETSU

Kaylyn Belfield, UNCG

KiKi Daniels, Mercer

Tori Hedgecock, Mercer

Grace Jones, Mercer

Hannah Rivers, Mercer

Grace Taylor, Mercer

Parris Wiggs, Mercer

Peja Goold, Chattanooga

Acelynn Sellers, Chattanooga

 
2025 SoCon Softball Championship
Spartanburg, S.C.
Wednesday, May 7
Game 1: No. 5 Mercer 11, No. 8 Furman 7
Game 2: No. 7 ETSU 12, No. 6 Western Carolina 9
Game 3: No. 5 Mercer 5, No. 4 Wofford 2
Game 4: No. 3 Samford 7, No. 7 ETSU 6

 
Thursday, May 8
Game 5: No. 1 Chattanooga 8, No. 5 Mercer 7 (9 innings)
Game 6: No. 3 Samford 5, No. 2 UNCG 4
Game 7: No. 5 Mercer 11, No. 7 ETSU 3
Game 8: No. 2 UNCG 3, No. 4 Wofford 1
 
Friday, May 9
Game 9: No. 1 Chattanooga 8, No. 3 Samford 3
Game 10: No. 5 Mercer 7, No. 2 UNCG 3
Game 11: No. 5 Mercer 13, No. 3 Samford 5

Saturday, May 10
Game 12: No. 5 Mercer 6, No. 1 Chattanooga 5
Game 13: No. 5 Mercer 5, No. 1 Chattanooga 2