Dates: April 17th (1 & 3 PM), April 18th (1 PM)
Site (Venue): Murray, Ky.
Live Video: ESPN+
Live Stats: goracers.com/coverage
MSU Record (Streak): 15-23, 12-10 OVC (L1)
Racers All-Time vs. Belmont: 16-5
Belmont Record (Streak): 10-18, 6-13 OVC (Won 2)
MSU Next Game: April 24th at Eastern Illinois
MSU Next Home Game: May 8th vs. Morehead State
Murray State softball will wrap up its current six-game homestand with a pivotal three-game weekend series against Belmont at Racer Field. The series will feature a Saturday doubleheader followed by a single game on Sunday. All three games will stream live on ESPN+ with live stats available on goracers.com. First pitch for both days is slated for 1:00 p.m. With 12 games left to play, the Racers (15-23, 12-10 OVC) currently sit in sixth in the OVC standings as they fight for a spot in this year's four-team OVC Tournament Field. Current OVC standings can be found HERE.
All-Time Series:
The Racers and Bruins have collided 21 times prior to the weekend, with Murray State holding a commanding 16-5 lead in the all-time series. MSU has won four-straight contests against Belmont that includes blanking the Bruins in both ends of a doubleheader in the most recent clashes by scores of 1-0 and 3-0 on March 31st, 2019. Hannah James tossed the third perfect game in program history in that 1-0 win. The Racers are also 9-1 against Belmont when playing in Murray.
A Look at the Racers:
After beginning the conference slate with an 11-3 record against OVC foes, the Racers are now trying to turn a corner after dropping eight of their last 10. Batting .214 as a team in 2021, the Racers have averaged 2.8 runs per contest on the year. Sierra Gilmore has been a bright spot in the Murray State lineup as the senior shortstop leads the team in batting average (.281), RBI (26), on-base percentage (.351), and slugging percentage (.447). Senior center fielder Jensen Striegel has also produced quality at-bats for the Racers this season, hitting .276 with 18 runs scored and a team-high 16 stolen bases. Logan Braundmeier and Lily Fischer have supplied the power as each have belted four home runs thus far.
The Racer pitching staff continues to be stellar in the circle as they lead the OVC with a 2.52 ERA through all competitions in 2021. Their 190 strikeouts is also the most in the conference. Murray State features three pitchers with a sub-three ERA with Hannah James (5-8, 2.47 ERA) leading the way with 107.2 innings of work on the season. She is holding opposing hitters to a .208 average at the dish, and her 107 strikeouts rank second in the league. Jenna Veber (6-11, 2.52 ERA) has also been impressive as the sophomore has collected four saves, while her 7.57 strikeout-to-walk ratio ranks 16th in the nation. Taylor Makowsky (4-2, 2.60 ERA) rounds out the top-notch trio as the fifth-year senior has struck out 26 in 37.2 innings of work on the season.
Scouting Belmont:
The Bruins (10-18, 6-13 OVC) enter the weekend on a two-game winning streak after taking a pair from Tennessee State last Wednesday in convincing fashion with victories of 12-0 and 8-0 over the Tigers. Senior Cheyenne Cavanaugh paces an offense that is batting .237 while averaging 3.1 runs per contest, as she is batting .371 with 13 runs scored on 33 hits, four doubles, three triples and 16 RBI. Kailey Brown is also seeing success at the dish in 2021, as the sophomore is batting .271 with six runs scored, 19 hits, three doubles, and six RBI.
Alicia Veltri (5-8, 4.03 ERA, 50 K) has seen the bulk of the workload with 66 innings on the year to lead a pitching staff that has turned in a 4.25 ERA through 28 games in 2021. Autumn McDaniel (3-2, 3.28 ERA 29 K) and Alex Clesi (2-7, 4.57 ERA) have also seen a fair share of innings in the circle this year with 47 and 46 respectively.
Notes/Upcoming Milestones
· With two stolen bases in last weekend's series against Tennessee Tech, Jensen Striegel continued to climb the ladder on Murray State's all-time stolen base list with 44 in a Racer uniform. She needs just six more to tie Mo Ramsey's 50 (2012-15) to move into second place in program history.
· Jensen Striegel enters the weekend riding a five-game hitting streak.
· The Racers are 7-2 when they score a run in the first inning.
· In games where the Racers hit at least one home run, they are 8-2 in 2021.
· Fifth-year senior Lexi Jones needs just one more home run to break into the top five on Murray State's all-time home runs list. Her 24 career round-trippers currently sits one behind Casey Castile's 25 for fifth-most in Racer history. Castile played for MSU from 2012-14.
· With two RBI in last weekend's series against Tennessee Tech, Sierra Gilmore tied Maggie Glass (2014-17) for fourth in Murray State history with 110 RBI in a Racer uniform. She needs 16 more to catch Jocelynn Rodgers" 126 (2014-17) for third on the program's all-time list.
· With 107 strikeouts on the year, junior Hannah James owns sole possession of the #4 spot on the program's all-time strikeout list with 277 total in a Racer uniform. Her 22 career wins are also sixth-most in Racer history as she chases Chelsey Sullivan's (2010-12) 27 to move into the top five. She also needs just 47 strikeouts in 2021 to set the Murray State single-season strikeout record that is currently held by CheyAnne Gaskey.
· With 107 strikeouts in 2021, Hannah James is just 41 away from the Murray State single-season strikeout record of 148 set by CheyAnne Gaskey in 2013.
· Murray State's 2-1 defeat to Tennessee State in 16 innings on March 26th marked the longest game in Murray State history, and also served as the longest contest in the OVC dating back to at least 2013. The one-of-a-kind competition is also the longest game of the season in NCAA Division-I, outlasting a 15-inning contest between Wisconsin and Ohio State on March 11th. Hannah James also set a new Murray State single-game record for innings pitched as she dealt 10.1 scoreless frames, striking out seven while allowing just three hits without issuing a single walk in the outing.
· Sierra Gilmore has posted 11 multi-hit games on the year to lead the Racers in that category, while her and Lily Fischer have also produced six multi-RBI performances.
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April 17, 2021 at 08:14AM
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Racers Host Belmont in Weekend Series to Close Six-Game Homestand - MSU GoRacers
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