Nick Backlund is the designated hitter and plays first base for the Mercer baseball team. He is a registered junior, but a senior by hours and has one more semester left at Mercer. Cluster: When did you start baseball? Backlund: I started playing baseball when I was five years old. C: Were you singled ...
With an infectious smile and a packed schedule, softball player McKenzie Woody faces her busy day with the same stoic confidence that her sport demands. Known as “the feisty one,” due to her strong athletic ability and petite stature, Woody’s 5-foot-3-inch frame can be seen hustling from practice, ...
The Mercer women’s basketball team has proven to be unstoppable and the team to beat by winning 12 straight games this season. The Bears racked up their ninth straight win on Feb. 9 at home against North Florida, 51-49. With just 21 seconds left in the game, sophomore Precious Bridges dodged through ...
The road has not been the friendliest place for the Bears so far this season and as of late it has proven to be even tougher. On Sat. Jan. 24, the Bears took to the road to face to the Atlantic Sun’s newest conference member, Northern Kentucky. Despite a season-high scoring contest from junior Bud ...
After an impressive five-game winning streak, the Mercer women’s basketball team looked to add three more wins to their record when they played on the road against Lipscomb and Northern Kentucky and then at home against Kennesaw St. Starting off in Nashville, Tenn., Precious Bridges lead the Bears ...
The Mercer women’s tennis team most recently took their talents to Birmingham, Ala. to take on Samford and UAB. In their first match against Samford, the talented Bulldog squad proved to be too much for the Bears as they were upended 7-0. In doubles play, the Bears were unable to gain any momentum ...
The Mercer men’s tennis team dropped its most recent match to the No. 29 ranked Florida State Seminoles and moved to 0-4 on the young season. Florida State came into the match on the heels of a loss to the No. 7 ranked Pepperdine Waves, and were looking to come away with a win against the Bears. The ...
Head coach Kyle Hannan looks to improve upon years past The Mercer men’s lacrosse team enters their third competitive season in 2013. With several new faces, including first-year head coach Kyle Hannan, the team looks to improve upon their losing efforts in years past and move forward in a winning ...
Coming off of an unsuccessful 2012 campaign, the Mercer women’s softball team is looking to make waves this year in the Atlantic Sun Conference. The team, led by junior outfielder McKenzie Woody, is looking to move past year’s past and help head coach James DeFeo have his first winning season at ...
Veteran lacrosse coach Kyle Hannan enters his first year as head men’s lacrosse coach at Mercer University. Coach Hannan was hired to help the lacrosse team prepare for the team’s third season as a competitive lacrosse program. Hannan sat down with The Cluster to discuss his experience in lacrosse ...
The Mercer Men’s Baseball team looks to have yet another successful season this year as they kick it off next weekend against Ohio State at the Snowbird Baseball Classic in Sarasota, Fla. on Feb. 15. After a disappointing loss in the Atlantic Sun Conference Championship last year, the Bears are coming ...
The Mercer women’s basketball team suffered through a tough 74-41 defeat in its Atlantic Sun Conference opener against Stetson on Dec. 31 at Hawkins Arena. Mercer’s scoreless streak for more than six and a half minutes from the end of the first half through the beginning of the second allowed for ...
The men’s basketball team has been struggling away as of late, but is still dominant at home going 4-2 in their last 6 competitions, with the only two losses coming on the road to conference opponents. The men’s basketball team took on FGCU in their first conference match-up. FGCU knocked the Bears ...
Mercer lacrosse player Cole Branch is always on the go. From class, to practice, to homework, to workouts, this athlete always has a busy schedule. At 7:00 a.m., Branch rolls out of bed and turns on the shower to start his day. Each morning for breakfast, the standout athlete consistently prepares himself ...
The 2012 college football season has brought us some memorable stories: the first freshman to win the Heisman, Alabama’s third national championship under Nick Saban, Penn State rising from the ashes of a massive scandal. The biggest story of the season, though, comes to us courtesy of the off-season. ...
The Mercer men’s Tennis team kicks off their season at Auburn on Saturday, Jan. 19 while the women begin on Friday, Jan. 25 at Alabama State. After a solid fall season, the Bears look to continue their success throughout their spring season when winning is most important. On the girls’ side, there ...
Within the past few months, two Bear athletes have garnered some of the most prestigious honors in their respective sports. Senior midfielder for the Mercer men’s soccer team Will Betts was named a Capital One First Team Academic All-American while junior designated hitter for the Mercer baseball ...
In 2010, the Auckland, New Zealand native, Kate Alemann, decided to take her basketball career out of her home country and into the United States. For her freshman and sophomore year of college, Alemann played basketball at Mineral Area College, a two-year public community college located in Park Hills, ...
The mantra, “Two is better than one,” is something the Mohanty twins believe to be true. Fraternal twins Arnav and Arsav Mohanty play on Mercer University’s Division I Men’s Tennis Team. Every day the brothers eat, sleep, and practice together with dreams of one day playing professional tennis. As ...
History is in the making this spring semester, as Mercer University welcomes a women’s track and field team. A group of 16 girls expressed interest in being on the team. Mercer’s head coach Ryan Bailey has been coaching Mercer’s cross country team for 11 years and will now coach women’s track ...
Solutions by The State News