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HomeSportsAPSU Baseball plays three-game series against Eastern Kentucky

APSU Baseball plays three-game series against Eastern Kentucky

Austin Peay vs. Eastern Kentucky

Friday, April 13th, 2018 | 2:00pm CT
Clarksville, TN | Raymond C. Hand Park

APSU BaseballClarksville, TN – Due to forecast inclement weather, Austin Peay and Eastern Kentucky have agreed to modify their weekend Ohio Valley Conference series schedule.

The three-game series will now begin with a 2:00pm, Friday doubleheader at Raymond C. Hand Park. Game 3 of the series will be scheduled as field conditions warrant during the weekend.

Austin Peay Baseball has weekend schedule changed due to rain forecast this weekend. Will now play doubleheader against Eastern Kentucky, Friday. (APSU Sports Information)
Austin Peay Baseball has weekend schedule changed due to rain forecast this weekend. Will now play doubleheader against Eastern Kentucky, Friday. (APSU Sports Information)

Friday’s fireworks presented by Fuse Fireworks will follow Friday’s doubleheader. The Stephen Huff Lung Cancer Awareness day scheduled for Saturday will now be held Saturday, April 28th as part of the series with UT Martin.

Fresh off its longest road trip of the season, Austin Peay’s baseball team hosts Eastern Kentucky in a three-game Ohio Valley Conference series, Friday-Sunday, at Raymond C. Hand Park.

Austin Peay closed its six-game road trip with a 3-3 record that also saw it win a OVC series at Belmont, 2-1, last weekend. The Governors have won seven of their eight weekend series this season and are 17-7 in weekend play in 2018.

Eastern Kentucky returns to the road after completing a six-game homestand that saw it post a 4-2 record, including a three-game sweep of SIUE that has catapulted it into a tie for second place in the OVC standings. The Colonels are 6-14 on the road this season, but have won their last three road outings.

Ticket Information

Single-game, flex, season and boxLife Suite tickets for Austin Peay baseball are available by calling the Governors Athletics Ticket office at 931.221.PEAY [7329] or online at LetsGoPeay.com/SportTix

The Suite Life

Fans interested in more information or renting an Austin Peay-themed boxLIFE suite for the season, a weekend or a game should complete the online form available at LetsGoPeay.com or contact Mike Minyard, Associate Athletics Director at minyardm@apsu.edu.

Suites may be rented each weekend series ($1,000 per weekend) or on a single-game basis.

First Hacks

Austin Peay is ranked No. 78 in the NCAA’s April 11 RPI rankings. The Govs have recorded six or more walks 16 times this season and they rank 11th nationally with 189 base on balls (5.56 per game). Austin Peay also is ranked among the nation’s Top 50 in doubles per game (2.29, 12th) and scoring (7.0 runs per game, 31st) entering the weekend.

Second baseman Garrett Giovannelli has reached base in 32 of his 33 games played this season; he is batting .378 (28-74) since moving into the leadoff spot, March 16th (16 games). Shortstop Garrett Kueber is batting .420 (21-50) with 15 RBI in his last 13 games, opening with back-to-back four-hit outings on March 18th and 20th.

Third baseman Malcolm Tipler became the regular third baseman in the Govs OVC opener at Jacksonville State, March 9th, and is batting .317 (26-82) with a team-best 23 runs scored in the 21 games since. First baseman Parker Phillips is batting .343 (12-35) with three home runs and a team-best 14 RBI since the start of the Tennessee Tech series (12 games).

Center fielder Imani Willis supplied two insurance runs with a ninth-inning double in the Govs win at Murray State, Wednesday, it was his first RBI since a March 16th outing against Murray State. Left fielder Kyle Wilson has started each of the Govs last 17 games, including 13 consecutive games in the outfield; he has seven doubles, 10 RBI and 11 walks in those 17 games.

Right fielder Nick Walker missed five games and did not start another four, March 16th-30th, due to a lower-body injury but returned to the starting lineup in the Southeast Missouri finale, March 31st; he is batting .355 (11-31) in the Govs last nine games with six of his 11 hits going for extra bases (3 doubles, 2 triples, home run). Catchers David Martinez and Alex Sala have split starts behind the plate since March 6th, Martinez starting 11 games and Sala making 10 starts while Phillips has two starts in that 23-game span.

The 2018 Govs offense is a collectively young group with only 15 years of Division I experience between the 20 available position players entering the season. Since the start of OVC play 16 different Govs hitters have started a game and only third baseman Malcolm Tipler has started each of the 21 games since the March 9th OVC opener (only three have played all 21 games).

Toeing The Rubber

Left-hander Michael Costanzo will make his ninth consecutive start as the Governors No. 1 this season in the Friday series opener. He went a career-high 7.1 innings for a win at Belmont, last Friday, his second outing of seven-plus innings this season.  

Lefty Jacques Pucheu will make his ninth straight start as the Govs No. 2 this season in the series’ second game. His seven-inning outing at Belmont, last Saturday, was his second straight seven-inning outing this season. APSU’s Game 3 starter is to be announced prior to the series finale.

Right-hander Brandon Vial made the start at Belmont, last Sunday, and supplied 6.2 innings of work – the longest start by any Game 3 starter since Vial’s 7.1-inning outing in the season’s opening week. Govs pitchers have 248 strikeouts in 279 innings (8.00 K/9) this season.

Austin Peay pitchers amassed a record-tying 466 strikeouts (8.07 K/9) last season.

On Deck

Austin Peay is scheduled to get a much-needed four-day break after playing 17 games – 11 on the road – in a 26-day span since March 20th. The Governors are scheduled to return to action when they travel to Morehead State for a three-game OVC series next Friday-Sunday in Morehead, Kentucky.

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