MACON, Ga. – With a solid non-conference performance now in the rear view mirror, the Mercer baseball team now shifts its focus to the start of Atlantic Sun Conference play against Kennesaw State this weekend.

Mercer (13-5) is currently tied with Stetson with a conference-high 13 wins and owners of an impressive No. 31 ranking in the Ratings Percentage Index (RPI).  

Game one of the Bears series against the Owls is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Friday evening, with game two to be played on Saturday at 1 p.m. and game three set for Sunday at 1 p.m.

Last Time Out

The Mercer baseball team scored 10 or more runs for the seventh time this season and got a stellar start from freshman Dimitri Kourtis in an 11-0 shutout win over Georgia State on Wednesday evening at Claude Smith Field.

After redshirt sophomore Austin Barrett clubbed a two-RBI double in the first, it would be all Kourtis from that point forward. The Alpharetta, Ga. native threw five shutout innings and limited the Panthers to just four hits to go along with three strikeouts.

Junior Evan Boyd led the charge offensively with three hits, three RBI and a run scored while sophomore Nate Moorhouse went 2-for-4 on the evening with two RBI and a pair of stolen bases.

Scouting the Opposition

Kennesaw State (9-8) enters play this weekend after most recently dropping a 9-6 decision to Presbyterian, whom Mercer swept in a three-game series earlier this season, on Wednesday evening. 21st year head coach Mike Sansing leads a Kennesaw State squad that was picked to finish fourth in the 2012 Atlantic Sun Preseason Coaches' poll. The Owls are led offensively by the two-headed monster of junior Ronnie Freeman and senior Aaron Dobbs. Freeman is hitting .338 with two home runs and 16 RBI while Dobbs currently carries a .343 batting average to go along with a team-high 24 hits and 11 stolen bases.

Quick Hits

- Mercer continues to dominate in-state competition; with Wednesday night's victory over Georgia State making it nine-straight wins against schools in the state of Georgia dating back to last season.