CHARLESTON, S.C. – Mercer pitcher Eric Nyquist pitched a complete-game shutout as the Bears defeated Samford, 5-0, in the championship game of the Southern Conference Tournament Sunday afternoon at Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park.
 
"He was really good," Samford head coach Casey Dunn said of Nyquist's performance. "He really filled up the strike zone. I thought we hit the ball well, but they played really well defensively. They really didn't give us any opportunities today."
 
Nyquist (9-2), who was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, allowed just six hits in earning the win. He struck out five batters, while allowing just one walk. For the game, Nyquist threw 111 pitches.
 
For Samford offensively, T.J. Dixon went 2-for-4 at the plate. Heath Quinn, Alex Lee, Danny Rodriguez and Richard Greene added one hit each for the Bulldogs. Austin Edens, Rodriguez and Quinn were all named to the All-Tournament team following the game.
 
Alex Ledford (7-6) pitched 5.2 innings, giving up four runs, just three earned, on nine hits to take the loss on the mound for Samford. Philip Flach, Eric Wright, Wyatt Burns, Mikel Belcher and Andres Gracia also pitched in the game for Samford.
 
For Mercer offensively, Trey Truitt went 3-for-3 with a home run and two RBI. Defensively, Truitt also robbed Quinn of a home run with a spectacular catch in the first inning. Danny Edgewood went 2-for-5 with an RBI. Devin Bonin and Jackson Ware added two hits each for the Bears.
 
The teams were scoreless for the first three innings until Mercer plated three runs in the bottom of the fourth inning. With one out in the inning, Nate Moorhouse doubled to get things started for the Bears. With two outs, Truitt homered to right field for a 2-0 Mercer lead. Matt Meeder was then hit by a pitch and later scored on a Samford error to make the score 3-0.
 
Mercer added a run in the sixth inning to push its lead to 4-0. Truitt and Meeder led the inning off with back-to-back singles. With two outs, Edgeworth singled to drive in Truitt for a four-run Mercer advantage.
 
The Bears plated one final run in the bottom of the eighth inning to make the final score 5-0. With two outs in the inning, Ware singled and stole second base. Charlie Madden then singled up the middle to drive in Ware for the game's final run.
 
Samford ends its season with a record of 32-26. The Bulldogs reached the finals of the Southern Conference Tournament for the fourth time in the last five years. Mercer improves to 35-21, and the Bears earn the SoCon's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
 
The Bulldogs had a strong year offensively in 2015. The team led the nation in home runs with a school-record 85 for the season. The team also set school records for runs batted in (404) and slugging percentage (.489).
 
2015 ALL-SOCON TOURNAMENT TEAM
C: Charlie Madden, Mercer
1B: Austin Edens, Samford
2B: Jacob Watcher, The Citadel
SS: Danny Rodriguez, Samford   
3B: Danny Edgeworth, Mercer
OF: Kody Ruedisili, Wofford
OF: Troy Truitt, Mercer
OF: Heath Quinn, Samford   
DH: Matt Ramsay, Wofford
RP: Morgan Pittman, Mercer
SP: Adam Scott, Wofford
SP: Eric Nyquist, Mercer
 
TOURNAMENT MVP: Eric Nyquist, Mercer