The Mercer women’s lacrosse team rebounded from a previous regular season loss to High Point and the No. 2 seed Bears defeated the No. 1 seed Panthers, 16-13, on May 6 to claim the Big South championship and the conference’s automatic bid to the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
This will make the fourth consecutive NCAA appearance for coach Samantha Eustice’s Bears. Ironically, the Bears will meet the No. 7 Florida Gators in Gainesville for the second consecutive year in the Big Dance.
Mercer marched through a rigorous regular season with a 14-4 overall record, which included matchups against Oregon, USC, Florida and North Carolina. The Bears were 8-1 in their first year of play in the Big South, with their only loss on April 23 at High Point, 17-12. The Bears claimed championships in the Southern Conference in 2018, 2019 and 2021.
In the Big South tourney, the Bears eliminated Furman in the semifinals, 22-4. Two days later, they defeated High Point at home, 16-13, to claim the championship. Lyndsey Lewis, with five goals and an assist, led the Bears offensively and was named the Most Valuable Player. Also named to the All-Tournament Team were Iseabal Cryne, Hailey Rhatigan and Chloe Schaeffer.
Following the 14-4 season and the Big South championship, the Bears received votes in the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association’s final regular season poll earlier this week.
The Bears will face the No. 7 Gators in Gainesville at 5 p.m. on May 13. In addition to playing Florida in the NCAA Tournament last year, the two teams also met during the regular season at Five Star Stadium in March with the Gators winning 19-5.
Jonsson selected for NCAA Golf Tournament
For the first time since 2015, Mercer had an individual men’s golfer qualify for the NCAA Tournament.
Sophomore Tobias Jonsson will make an appearance in the NCAA Tournament May 16-18. He will play in the Palm Beach, Florida, regional at the PGA National Resort as the second-seeded individual.
Jonsson was named to the All-SoCon team after placing in the top five in seven of nine events played. In February, he won the Wexford Intercollegiate with a four-under 212 (71-71-70).
Twice he was tabbed as the league’s player of the week.
Final home stand for baseball this weekend at OrthoGeorgia Park
The Mercer baseball team will “batter up” this weekend at the friendly confines of Claude Smith Field at OrthoGeorgia Park for the final home series of the 2022 season. The Bears, now 36-12 on the season and 9-6 in Southern Conference play, will entertain the Keydets of VMI with the first pitch scheduled on May 13 at 6 p.m., May 14 at 2 p.m. and May 15 at 1 p.m.
Mercer currently stands in second place in the SoCon, three games behind conference leader Wofford.
The final week of the regular season will find the Bears traveling to Georgia Southern on May 17, and then the final SoCon series is May 19-21 at Samford.
The 2022 SoCon Tournament will run May 25-29 at Fluor Field in Greenville, South Carolina.
Softball at Southern Conference Tournament this week
Head coach Lindsay Fico is concluding her first season leading the Mercer softball team this week at the Southern Conference Tournament at the UNCG Softball Stadium in Greensboro, North Carolina. The Bears entered the tourney as the fifth seed with an overall record of 16-38 and a conference mark of 7-11.
