FRIDAY'S SCORES
Morehead State 1, @Tennessee State 0
@Tennessee State 6, Morehead State 2
Eastern Kentucky 6, @Belmont 0
Eastern Kentucky 7, @Belmont 1
@Jacksonville State 9, Murray State 1 (5)
@Jacksonville State 8, Murray State 0
Austin Peay 4, @Tennessee Tech 3
Austin Peay 12, @Tennesee Tech 0
@Southeast Missouri 7, Eastern Illinois 0
UT Martin 3, SIUE 0
MOREHEAD STATE 1, TENNESSEE STATE 0; TENNESSEE STATE 6, MOREHEAD STATE 2
NASHVILLE, TENN. - Morehead State earned its first conference victory of the season by defeating the Tigers of Tennessee State University in game one of the doubleheader between the two teams this afternoon. After securing the 1-0 win, the Eagles eventually fell 6-2 to TSU in game two at Tiger Field.
Today's victory for MSU represented the first OVC win for the Eagles since May 5, 2019, coincidentally also against Tennessee State. It also puts a stop to Morehead State's 10-game losing streak that began on March 21.
Lennon Spicer was the star of the day as she threw two complete games for Morehead State, including a shutout in game one, with eight combined strikeouts. She was also a key contributor to the MSU batting order, going 2-for-6 at the plate with one home run, two RBI and one run on the day.
EASTERN KENTUCKY 6, BELMONT 0; EASTERN KENTUCKY 7, BELMONT 1
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Eastern Kentucky University softball team swept a doubleheader against Belmont University on Friday afternoon in Nashville
Eastern Kentucky (20-9, 12-4 OVC) took game one, 6-0, before winning game two of the doubleheader 7-1.
The Colonels wasted no time in the top of the first taking the lead over the Bruins.
Ariyana Miranda got things started with a one out walk. With two outs in the inning, back-to-back doubles by Vianna Barron and Zoe Mihalicz gave the Colonels an early 2-0 advantage.
That was more than enough for Tori Peterson.
Mihalicz got things started in the top of the fourth after reaching via a Bruin error with one out. Mattira Morales made them pay taking the 3-2 pitch deep to center field for her second home run of the season and gave Eastern a 4-0 lead.
The Colonels pushed two more across in the sixth on singles by Kara Gunter and Miranda Lopez to give EKU a 6-0 advantage.
Peterson (9-2) went the distance in the circle tossing seven innings, allowing four hits, zero runs and striking out six.
Mihalicz went 2-for-3 with one double and one RBI. Morales chipped in a 1-for-3 performance with one home run and two RBIs.
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Belmont (8-17, 4-12 OVC) struck first in game two.
Alicia Veltri led the bottom of the second off with a single to right field. Savannah Halterman came on to pinch run after the single. Halterman stole second and came around to score on a throwing error by the second baseman on the play.
Eastern answered back with four runs in the third and two runs in the fourth to take a commanding 6-1 lead and never looked back.
Sammi Miller doubled down the left field line to get things started with one out in the third.
After a Miranda walk and a Carly Robinson single loaded the bases, Barron brought home the first run with a RBI ground out. Mihalcz followed with a single to right field to bring home two more to give EKU a 3-1 advantage. Lopez brought home the final run after reaching via a Belmont error.
Again, Miller got things started in the top of the fourth with a single to left field. Robinson delivered the big blow with a two-run home run to left field to give Eastern the 6-1 lead.
Lou Bowers brought home the final run with a single up the middle in the sixth.
Samantha Reynoso (5-2) tossed five scoreless innings in relief to pick up the win in the circle.
Mihalicz went 3-for-4 with two RBIs on the contest. Robison chipped in 2-for-3 with one home run and two RBIs in the win.
JACKSONVILLE STATE 9, MURRAY STATE 1; JACKSONVILLE STATE 8, MURRAY STATE 0
JACKSONVILLE, Ala. - Four home runs led the Jacksonville State softball team to a doubleheader sweep of Murray State on Friday at University Field.
Karsen Mosley hit two round-trippers, and Jada Terry and Alexis Jimmerson each blasted home runs as the Gamecocks (10-16, 9-7 OVC) took the first game 9-1 and the second game 8-0 - neither making it past the fifth inning.
Reagan Watkins earned her third win of the season with a one-hitter in the first contest. The senior struck out eight and faced just 16 batters in the near-shutout. The lone run the Racers (14-18, 11-5 OVC) plated Saturday was a fourth-inning home run off the bat of Lily Fischer.
Terry's three-run homer in the first innings gave Jax State an early lead. The senior lifted a no-doubter to left, scoring Shelby Newsome and Savannah Sudduth. It was her team-leading sixth home run of the season and the 10th of her career.
The Gamecocks tacked on three more runs in a miscue-riddled second inning. A throwing error allowed Keeli Bobbitt and Caroline Lively to score following a Newsome flyout, and Sudduth crossed the plate moments later courtesy of a wild pitch, pushing JSU's lead to 6-0.
Murray State got one run back in the fourth with Fischer's solo home run, but three Jacksonville State runs in the bottom of the fifth ended the game early. Alex Howard's second pinch hit plated Mosely, and Lindsey Richardson's first RBI of the season came on a groundout to second that scored Megan Fortner.
Leading 8-1 with one out, Sudduth hit a high chopper to second base. MSU's Lindsey Carroll fielded and had to rush to beat the speedy leadoff hitter, but the throw went wide and pinch runner Ellie Largen scored from third, sealing the victory in the bottom of the fifth.
Nicole Rodriguez pitched a two-hit shutout, struck out seven and had the backing of three home runs in the game-two win.
A three-run second inning gave Rodriguez the foundation of her team-best fifth win of the year. Mosely crushed the first of her two dingers on an 0-1 pitch to lead off the frame, and Fortner later took advantage of a passed ball. Newsome's second of three hits on the afternoon two batters later scored Bobbitt from third.
Already leading 3-0, Alexis Jimmerson made it a four-run game with her second homer of the season. The leadoff shot in the bottom of the third was her second of the season, 12th of her career and opened the door for two more JSU runs to score. Following a Fortner double and base hit by Chaney Phillips, a single off the bat of Bobbitt drove in the fifth and sixth runs of the contest. Phillips scored from third and Fortner scored from second on a throwing error.
Mosley's second home run - a two-run shot in the bottom of the fourth inning - moved Jacksonville State into an 8-0 lead and made the third baseman JSU's active career leader in homers with 13. Rodriguez then retired the Racers in order in the top of the fifth to close out the twinbill.
Fortner ended the afternoon with four hits against the Racer pitching staff, while Newsome, Mosley and Sudduth each tallied three hits in the pair of games. Mosley and Terry each drove in three runs, as well, while Mosley totaled a whopping nine bases and posted a 1.800 slugging percentage.
Murray State managed just two hits and struck out 15 times in 10 innings against the senior arms of Watkins and Rodriguez.
AUSTIN PEAY 4, TENNESSEE TECH 3; AUSTIN PEAY 12, TENNESSEE TECH 0
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - Austin Peay State University's softball team took both ends of its Ohio Valley Conference doubleheader versus Tennessee Tech, Friday, at Tech Softball Field, as the Govs extended their season-best win streak to five games after grinding out a 4-3 victory in the opener before running away with a 12-0 final in the nightcap.
The Govs will look to make it two straight three-game OVC series sweeps in as many weekends, 1 p.m., Saturday, as they close out the series versus the Golden Eagles with a single game.
Game 1
Austin Peay 4, Tennessee Tech 3
In a game that would go down to the last pitch, Austin Peay broke a 2-2 tie with the go-ahead run in the top of the fourth inning, aided by two Tennessee Tech errors, as Katie Keen reached on a dropped pop-up by the Golden Eagles catcher, then come all the way around the bases on a wild throw by the catcher trying to throw out Keen.
The Govs added what turned out to be a huge insurance run in the fifth, also aided by an error, as Lexi Osowski, who reached on a single, scored when the Tech left fielder dropped a fly ball off the bat of Kelsey Gross, making it 4-2.
Tennessee Tech cut the Govs lead to one, 4-3, in the bottom of the fifth, but that would be as close as the Golden Eagles would get as APSU starter Harley Mullins (5-5) retired four of the last five hitters she faced before giving way to Gross, who picked up her season's second save with a scoreless seventh inning.
Tennessee Tech opened the game with a first inning run to take an early lead, but the Govs answered back in the top of the second, scoring twice to take the lead on a double by Emily Harkleroad.
Harkleroad and Bailey Shorter led the Govs with two hits each.
The Golden Eagles tied the game for the final time in the third, 3-3, before the Govs took the lead for good in the fourth.
Game 2
Austin Peay 12, Tennessee Tech 0
After scoring a single run in the top of the first inning, coming on a sacrifice fly by Harkleroad, the Govs all but put any question of who was going to win this game in the second by sending 11 batters ito the plate n the frame and scoring seven times to pull away for an 8-0 advantage.
Emily Moore opened the inning going with a one-out bunt single, then get into scoring position by stealing second base.
Kelsey Gray then reached on an infield single, followed by a double by Shorter to score both Moore and Gray to make it 3-0.
After a single by Brooke Pfefferle and Osowski reaching on a fielder's choice to load the bases, Gross drove in a run with a single to make it 4-0.
Tennessee Tech retired the next Gov for the inning's second out, but Kendyl Weinzapfel followed with an RBI single for a 5-0 advantage.
The inning's final three runs came on a bases-loaded throwing error by the Tech first baseman on a ball hit by Maddie Boykin, clearing the bases to put the Govs up by eight.
That would be more than enough for Gross (5-1), who picked up her season's second shutout, limiting the Golden Eagles to just three hits, while striking out five.
The Govs added two more runs in the third on a Shorter home run and an RBI fielder's choice by Gross, before closing out the game's scoring with two final runs in the fourth on a double by Pfefferle, who finished the game with three hits.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 7, EASTERN ILLINOIS 0
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Ashley Ellis hit two home runs and Rachel Rook threw her fifth complete game shutout of the season to lead red-hot Southeast Missouri (16-10, 12-1) to 7-0 series opening win over Eastern Illinois (16-9, 9-5) Friday afternoon.
SEMO increased its Ohio Valley Conference winning streak to 11 games and posted its ninth-straight victory overall. Friday's win also marked the Redhawks 13th in 14 contests.
With runners on first and second after Katie Dreiling singled and Kaylee Anderson reached on a fielder's choice, Ellis stepped in and belted her first home run of the game to right field giving SEMO a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning.
The Redhawks added to their lead in the bottom of the fifth when freshman Jillian Anderson smacked a three-RBI bases clearing double to make it a 6-0 ballgame.
Ellis capped the win with another home run, this time a solo shot to right field in the sixth.
Ellis went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and four RBI as the multiple home run game was the seventh of her career and third this season. She also ran her career home run total to 45 and needs four more to break the program's all-time record currently held by Michelle Summers (48, 2005-08).
SEMO finished with seven hits. Kynzie Wrigley, J. Anderson, Dreiling, Karsyn Davis and Austine Pauley followed with one hit apiece.
Rook (11-5), who went over 300 strikeouts in her career and 100 this season, struck out seven, walked none and allowed four hits in seven sparkling innings. It was the third complete game shutout in Rook's last four starts.
Olivia Price (6-3) took the loss. Price scattered six hits, gave up six runs, struck out four and walked none in 4.2 innings.
Megan Burton had two of EIU's four hits. The Panthers left four runners on base, all of which were in scoring position.
UT MARTIN 3, SIUE 0
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. -UT Martin took game one of a three-game Ohio Valley Conference weekend series with a 3-0 score over SIUE softball Friday at Cougar Field.
Both teams will match up for a 1 p.m. doubleheader Saturday.
SIUE Head Coach Jessica Jones expects her team to make adjustments for the rest of the series.
Alexis Groet picked up her ninth victory of the season for the Skyhawks, now 19-7 overall and 8-5 in the OVC. Hannah Ridolfi pitched the seventh and earned her first save.
Sydney Baalman took the loss for SIUE and is now 2-5. She fanned four and walked two.
SIUE, 5-16 overall and 5-10 in the OVC, had four hits on the day with two from Amber Storer and one each from Alana Cobb-Adams and Ava Bieneman.
UT Martin used an RBI single from Kaityln Kelley in the third and a two-RBI single off the third base bag from Kallie Pickens in the sixth to account for its scoring.
SIUE and UT Martin each stranded seven runners.