CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. --- The Chattanooga softball team travels to Macon, Ga., this weekend to open Southern Conference action at Mercer.
 
GAME DAY INFORMATION
Mocs at Mercer
Saturday, April 1 – doubleheader
2:00 p.m. & 4:00 p.m.
Sunday, April 2
1:00 p.m.
Macon, Ga. | Sikes Field
Live stats are available at GoMocs.com for all three games.
 
LAST OUTING
Chattanooga beat Lipscomb 3-1 Wednesday night at home, snapping a six-game skid. The Mocs got hits from seven different batters and scored three runs in the bottom of the third to take the lead. Peja Goold got her first win and combined with Taylor Long for nine strikeouts.
 
CHATTANOOGA vs. MERCER
The Mocs and Bears have met 52 times. UTC holds a 28-24 lead in the series. In SoCon play, however, Mercer leads Chattanooga 14-8. In Macon, the series is tied 12-12.
 
LAST TIME THEY MET
The two teams faced off in Chattanooga last season with the Bears winning the three-game series 2-1. Chattanooga got the first win (6-3) but fell 3-6, 3-4 in the next two in the home finale. In the last game of the series, the Mocs got on the board first but fell behind in the fifth, 3-2, on three runs for the Bears. Emily Coltharp tied the game in the bottom of the inning with a single to center field, but Mercer got a run on a bases-loaded walk and held the Mocs off in the bottom of the seventh for the win.
 
CHATTANOOGA (15-13, 0-0 SoCon)
The Mocs are the only SoCon team yet to play a league game. UTC is batting .281 through 28 games and has 213 hits on 761 at-bats. The Mocs have 56 extra base hits including 17 home runs and 99 RBI. Kaili Phillips leads the team, hitting .358 (24-67), has five home runs and 15 RBI. Emily Coltharp is hitting .305 (29-95) with six doubles. Peja Goold picked up her fifth win this week and has a team-best 2.36 ERA in 56.1 innings pitched. Taylor Long got her second save in the Mocs win over Lipscomb and has a 2.51 ERA.
 
MERCER (9-23, 0-3 SoCon)
The Bears fell in three straight to Samford in their start to the SoCon season and are in the midst of a five-game skid. Mercer is hitting .232 through 32 games getting 178 hits on 767 at bats. The Bears have 39 extra base hits with 19 home runs and 88 RBI. Rebeca Laudino is hitting a team-high .374 (37-99) and has 12 RBI. Kylie Helm (.281) and Tori Hedgecock (.233) lead the Bears with 18 RBI with a combined 14 home runs. Katie Rearley has a team-best 6.29 ERA in 21 appearances. Grace Taylor has a 6.88 ERA in 28 appearances and has three complete games.
 
PHILLIPS SOCON STUDENT-ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
For the week of March 14-20
Kaili Phillips has a 3.589 GPA as a Master's Candidate earning her the SoCon Student-Athlete of the Week nod. This is on top of her Player of the Week honor earlier in the week. She hit .500 on the week with four home runs and seven RBI. She went 4-for-4 against Princeton with a pair of home runs and three RBI. Her second homer of the game was a walk-off in the bottom of the seventh for the 7-6 win. She went 2-for-2 against FGCU with a home run on Thursday, scoring twice and driving in a run. She closed out the weekend with her fourth deep drive in the top of the seventh to tie the Eagles 3-3 before FGCU won it in the bottom of the inning.
 
PHILLIPS NAMED SOCON PLAYER OF THE WEEK
For all games played March 13-19
Kaili Phillips blasted four home runs with seven RBI and drew three walks last week to earn Southern Conference Player of the Week. Her first of two homeruns against Princeton was in the fifth to give UTC a 6-2 lead. After the Tigers tied the game in the top of the seventh, Phillips launched a walk-off in the bottom of the inning for the 7-6 win. Against FGCU, Phillips hit a two-run blast to break up a 2-2 tie in the fifth, giving UTC a 4-2 lead in the opening game of the series. She had a two-run shot in the top of the seventh to break a 3-3 tie. UTC lost both games.