Scott Mercer 4-15-16
Jesica Gonzalez
Scott Mercer (#12)
2
North Dakota UND 6-20, 3-8 WAC
12
Winner UT Rio Grande Valley UTRGV 16-14, 5-3 WAC
North Dakota UND
6-20, 3-8 WAC
2
Final
12
UT Rio Grande Valley UTRGV
16-14, 5-3 WAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 R H E
North Dakota UND 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 9 1
UT Rio Grande Valley UTRGV 0 0 0 5 0 2 0 5 12 13 0

W: Garcia, Andrew (6-2) L: Brett Degagne (1-5)

Game Recap: Baseball |

Mercer's Career Game Propels Baseball Past North Dakota

EDINBURG – Senior Scott Mercer hit a grand slam as part of a career-best five-RBI night to lead the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros baseball team past the University of North Dakota Fighting Hawks 12-2 in eight innings on Saturday at UTRGV Baseball Stadium.
 
Mercer's grand slam capped a five-run fourth inning. It came on the ninth pitch of his two-out at-bat against Brett DeGagne' (1-5) and landed well past the left-center field wall. It was the Vaqueros' (16-14, 5-3 WAC) second home run of the inning, as junior Austin Oakes hit his first-career home run into the leftfield bullpen earlier in the frame. It was also one of seven Vaqueros at-bats to last at least seven pitches.
 
Mercer came up with an RBI-single to start the two-run sixth. He later scored on a single by junior Joseph Collazo after stealing second. Mercer then walked and scored in the five-run eighth.
 
Mercer finished 2-for-4 with a career-high tying three runs scored.
 
He also made a pair of sparkling defensive plays. With runners at first and third and nobody out in the fifth, Mercer made a leaping catch of a sharply hit liner and then dove to the third base bag to tag it and complete the double play.
 
Then, in the seventh, with one on and nobody out, Mercer ranged to his left to snag a line drive before firing to first to turn another double play.
 
That gave junior Andrew Garcia (6-2) the support he needed, as Garcia struck out six while allowing two runs on nine hits and four walks in seven innings.
 
The Fighting Hawks (6-20, 3-8 WAC) scored their runs on a second-inning single by Ellery Bresnahan and a fifth-inning single by Tyler Midas.
 
The Vaqueros won the game in the eighth when junior Jose Garcia drew a bases-loaded walk. Garcia finished with a career-high three walks.
 
The Vaqueros and Fighting Hawks complete this three-game series on Sunday at 12 p.m. in a game that will be broadcast live throughout Texas on Time Warner Cable SportsChannel (323). Any fans bringing four non-perishable food items to the game will receive a free ticket as part of the Strike Out Hunger Promotion. All donations benefit the Food Bank RGV. Gates open at 11 a.m.

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