Columbia
0-1
Mercer
4-1
Late Mercer Rally Sinks Columbia Baseball in Season Opener
2/20/2026 10:23:00 PM | Baseball
MACON, Ga. — Mercer erased an early deficit and used a seven-run eighth inning to rally past Columbia baseball, 14-8, Friday night. The Lions (0-1) jumped out to an 8–1 lead through four innings, but the Bears (4-1) scored 13 unanswered runs over the final five frames to complete the comeback.
Columbia totaled 14 hits and received production throughout the lineup with six different players driving in runs. Sophomore Anthony Temesvary led the way with a two-hit, two-RBI performance, while junior Hunter Snyder and Jackson Brewer each scored twice. Junior Owen Estabrook blasted a solo homer in the fourth, and sophomore Ben Fishel swung a pair of doubles.
Sophomore Alex Sotiropoulos tossed four no-hit frames, only allowing one run off a wild pitch, while tallying four strikeouts.
The Lions set the tone early, scoring three runs in the top of the first inning. Fishel ignited bats with a leadoff double before Snyder drove him in with an RBI single to put Columbia on the board. Cole Fellows added another run on an RBI groundout, and Temesvary capped the inning with an RBI single to give the Lions 3-0 advantage.
Columbia extended the lead in the fourth inning thanks to Estabrook's solo homer, followed by a Brewer single RBI. The Lions capitalized on one of five Mercer errors to plate two more runs, giving the Lions an 8-1 cushion.
Mercer ignited their comeback in the sixth, highlighted by Logan Shepherd's two-run double and a three-run home run from Chris Katz, cutting the deficit to 8-6.
In the eighth inning, Braydon Kersey delivered a grand slam to right center, and two RBI from Michael Graziano and Shepherd to close the seven-run frame.
Mercer used eight pitchers in the game, and its bullpen was able to limit the damage after the strong offensive start by the Lions. Caden Alvey (1-0) picked up the win after tossing 0.2 innings.
UP NEXT
First pitch of the two remaining games in the series against the Bears has been changed due to impending weather. Game two will now begin at 5 p.m. on Saturday, February 21, and Sunday's finale is slated to start at noon.
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Alvey, Caden (1-0)
L: Huke, Ray (0-1)
Batting:
2B: Chadwell, Jimmy 1 ; Fishel, Ben 2
HR: Estabrook, Owen 1
RBI: Brewer, Jackson 1 ; Fellows, Cole 1 ; Estabrook, Owen 1 ; Snyder, Hunter 1 ; Temesvary, Anthony 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Brewer, Jackson 2 ; Chadwell, Jimmy 1 ; Fishel, Ben 1 ; Fellows, Cole 1 ; Estabrook, Owen 1 ; Snyder, Hunter 2
HBP: Brewer, Jackson 1
Batting:
2B: Shepherd, Logan 1 ; Graziano, Michael 1 ; Katz, Chris 1
HR: Kersey, Braydon 1 ; Katz, Chris 1
RBI: Stephens, Eli 1 ; Shepherd, Logan 3 ; Graziano, Michael 2 ; Kersey, Braydon 4 ; Katz, Chris 3
SF: Stephens, Eli 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Shepherd, Logan 2 ; Graziano, Michael 3 ; Kersey, Braydon 1 ; Rowland, Nathan 1 ; Kamaka, Titan 2 ; Katz, Chris 2 ; LaPointe, Dylan 1 ; Baughcum, Brant 1 ; Buffone, Ethan 1
CS: Johnson, Drew 1
HBP: LaPointe, Dylan 2
