JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (March 7, 2014) – A winner of six of its last seven contests, the ETSU softball team will begin Atlantic Sun competition as it hosts Mercer for a three-game series beginning Saturday, March 8.

GETTING UP TO SPEED

The Buccaneers (9-6) are coming off a series win over Morehead State in which they outscored the Eagles 14-6 during a three-game span.

ETSU picked up wins in the first and third games of the series, beating Morehead State, 3-0, in the series opener before winning the rubber game, 10-2, in six innings.

In eight starts on the mound, freshman Taylor Carter (Brazil, Ind.) has gone 7-1 with a 1.45 ERA. The freshman pitcher has recorded 27 strikeouts while allowing just two walks. At the plate, Carter has batted .319 with 13 RBI.

Catcher Jackie Baird (Ooltewah, Tenn.) has scored 13 runs while driving in 20 more, both team highs. The senior slugger has blasted nine home runs in just 15 games, standing only two long balls shy of matching Stephanie Gaynord's (2004-07) single-season record of 11.

WEEKEND SCHEDULE - Directions to Betty Basler Field

ETSU will play a double-header Saturday followed by one game Sunday.

Saturday, March 8

Game One: Mercer vs. ETSU – 1:00 p.m. – LIVE STATS

Game Two: Mercer vs. ETSU – 3:00 p.m. – LIVE STATS

Sunday, March 9

Game Three: Mercer vs. ETSU – 1:00 p.m. – LIVE STATS

The weather forecast in Johnson City for Saturday is 61 degrees, partly cloudy, with a negligible chance of rain. Sunday is expected to be 54 degrees with a 30 percent chance of rain.

MERCER BEARS - Macon, Ga.

The Bears (15-6) have won nine of their last 12 games and will enter the weekend fresh off a dominating 8-0 victory over North Carolina Central.

Mercer is outscoring opponents by an overage of three runs per game, bosting a powerful offensive attack including six players who have driven in 10 or more runs.

Taylor Miller is leading the Bears with a .408 batting average, while Kaytlin Haney has driven home a team-best 26 runs.

On the mount, Kirsten Stevens and Anna O'Neill have combined to post a 2.04 ERA over 82 innings of work. Opponents are batting just .228 and .211 against Stevens and O'Neill, respectively.

Four of Merce's six losses this season have come away from home.

BY THE NUMBERS

• In eight games, freshman outfielder Brooke Baxter is batting .545 (6-of-11) with five runs scored.
• Through ETSU's first 15 games, Jackie Baird has a slugging percentage of 1.024. Last season, only two players in the nation finished with a slugging percentage above 1.000.
• Katie Wolff has recorded a hit in nine of her last 10 games.
• Nicole Fox leads the Bucs with five stolen bases on the year and has been caught stealing just once.
• Kelsey Chernak has slugged a team-best five doubles.
• Taylor Carter and Wolff have combined to post a 1.68 ERA this season, striking out 34 batters while walking just eight.
• Carter has not allowed a walk in her last 37 innings of work.
• As a team, ETSU has recorded 10 or more hits in four games this season.

FOLLOW THE BUCS

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• For schedule and time changes due to weather, please follow the above links to follow the Bucs on Twitter or sign up for Buc Updates. For directions to Betty Basler Field, click here.