Clarksville, TN – The Austin Peay State University (APSU) baseball team is set for its final midweek contest of the season against the Morehead State Eagles, starting on Tuesday at 5:00pm CT, at Allen Field in Morehead, Kentucky.
Leading Off
The Austin Peay State University team heads to the Bluegrass State after sweeping their eighth weekend series this season. The previous program record was set at six in a season by the 2013 championship team. That year, the Govs had 47 wins in the season.
So far with this year’s team, the Govs have 37 following their second series sweep over Bellarmine, finishing the final two games of the weekend in run-rule fashion.
Governors Bullpen
Austin Peay State University had a team ERA of 3.48 last week over four games, while striking out 27 batters. As a staff, the APSU Govs also held batters to a .244 batting average.
Graduate left-handed pitcher Gavin Braunecker earned his ASUN-leading eighth win of the season and improved to 8-0 following his quality start in Game 1 against the Knights.
Junior right-hander Lyndon Glidewell had another solid performance, going six scoreless innings in Game 2 against Bellarmine, striking out a career-high nine batters, while only allowing two base hits.
Senior right-handed pitcher Jacob Weaver tossed his second complete game this season in the series finale against the Knights. He matched a season-high with seven strikeouts in the win and improved to 5-1, which is the most wins he has had in a season in his four-year career.
First Hacks
The APSU Govs had another successful week on the diamond, coming away with another series sweep against the Bellarmine Knights. As a team, the Govs batted .394 with 20 of their 52 hits going for extra bases. Not only did their power show in their weekend series, but their speed showed, as they swiped 13 bags over four games.
Nine of which came in the series finale against Bellarmine. The Governors currently rank in the top 10 nationally in hits, runs, home runs, doubles, batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging. The APSU Govs also have the 10th-best win-loss percentage (.771).
Center fielder John Bay continues to lead the nation in runs scored with 78 this season after crossing the plate five times last week. After batting .357 last week, Bay hit .286 (4-for-14) with a triple and a home run, while tallying five RBI. He is now just eight home runs away from claiming the all-time home run record at Austin Peay, with 49 in his career with the Govs.
Austin Peay State University outfielder Cameron Nickens had another great week at the plate, batting .600 (9-for-15) with a home run, a triple, and four doubles over four games. The senior transfer is in the running for ASUN player of the year as he has had an amazing year at the plate up to this point, batting .438 on the season with 16 home runs, 23 doubles, a pair of triples, and 61 RBI. He leads the ASUN in all three triple-slash categories and ranks in the top 10 in 11 offensive ASUN categories, leading in batting average, slugging, on-base percentage, OPS, hits, RBI, and doubles. Nickens also leads the nation with 160 total bases.
Outfielder Brody Szako batted .250 (4-for-16) last week, with a double and a triple, and tallying a pair of RBI. He bats .280 on the year, with 21 of his 33 hits going for extra bases. He has 13 home runs and seven doubles to his name this season.
APSU infielder Andres Matias brought his season batting average above .300 again after batting .357 (5-for-14) last week, while tallying four RBI. Matias also fielded a perfect 1.000 last week with 12 assists and four putouts.
First baseman/catcher Gus Freeman batted .294 (5-for-17) with a pair of doubles, an RBI, and a stolen base. Freeman comes into the week ranking in the top 10 in seven offensive ASUN categories. Freeman’s 43-game reached base safely streak came to an end in Game 1 against Bellarmine on Friday. His streak tied for the second-longest streak in program history with Chuck Abbot (1996) and Garrett Spain (2019).
Infielder Kyler Proctor batted .250 (4-for-16) last week with a double and a pair of RBI. Proctor has struggled at the plate over the last few weeks, but he still bats .320 on the year with six homers, 13 doubles, and a pair of triples, while tallying 37 RBI and scoring 50 runs.
Austin Peay State University infielder/designated hitter Cole Johnson earned ASUN Player of the Week recognition after batting .643 (9-for-14) with a pair of home runs and a double, while tallying 10 RBI. He had a multi-hit performance and collected an RBI in every game last week, including a 2-for-3 performance against No. 23 Ole Miss, where he hit a two-run go-ahead homer in the fourth inning.
Infielder Ray Velazquez turned in another good week at the plate, batting .357 (5-for-14) with two homers and four RBI. He also showed off his speed, stealing three bags. He had a pair of multi-hit games in the final two games of the Govs’ weekend series against Bellarmine, going 2-for-3 and tallying a pair of RBI in each.
Catcher Keaton Cottam shared his time behind the dish last week, starting in two games. He batted .667 (4-for-6), which included a 4-for-4 game against Bellarmine, where he set a new single-game high with four hits. It was his fourth multi-hit performance this season.
Facing The Eagles
Series History
Austin Peay State University leads the all-time series 63-43 after falling to the Eagles in its last matchup earlier this season. The Govs lost that game 5-10 on April 15th in Clarksville. The Governors’ record on the road against MSU is 23-21.
About The Morehead State Eagles
Morehead State comes into the week 10th in the OVC standings, 13 games back from SIU Edwardsville. They have a 2-19 record in conference play and are 12-33 overall this season. The Eagles are on a 10-game losing streak after being swept at Lindenwood last weekend.
At The Plate
The Eagles come into the week batting .272, which ranks sixth in the OVC. As a team, MSU has recorded 146 extra-base hits, which include 63 home runs, 72 doubles, and 11 triples, while tallying 289 RBI over 45 games.
Graduate catcher Hunter Thomas has supplied the majority of the offense for Morehead State this season, hitting a league-leading 17 home runs and 53 RBI.
On The Mound
Morehead State has a team ERA of 8.79. Over 45 games and 387 innings, the Eagles have allowed 436 runs, 378 earned, and opponents are batting .316 against their staff, which is the highest of any team in the league.
Broadcast Information
The midweek contest will be streamed on ESPN+.
Follow Along
Keep up to date with all Governors baseball on the official website of Austin Peay State University Athletics – www.LetsGoPeay.com. Follow @GovsBSB on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram for all Governors Baseball updates and ticket information as they happen.
