Clarksville, TN – Sammie Shelander went 3-for-3 from the plate with four RBI and a home run, while Cameron Grayson tossed five scoreless innings in the circle as Austin Peay State University’s softball team earned an 11-3 win to secure a series sweep over Bellarmine, Saturday, at Cathi Maynard Park.
After being held scoreless across Friday’s doubleheader, Bellarmine scored three runs in the opening inning of Saturday’s contest. The Knights opened the contest with three singles and a pair of walks.
Following its second-straight RBI walk, Grayson entered the circle, allowing just one hit before the APSU Govs retired the next three Knights courtesy of a pop up, an infield fly, and a ground out, stranding three on the bases heading to the home-half of the opening frame.
Shelander tallied the Govs’ first hit of the morning on a double, but was left in scoring position in the bottom of the first. In the bottom of the second, Kiley Hinton singled up the middle before advancing to second following an Ashlyn Dulaney ground out. Natalie Burns then drove a ball up the middle of the field to score Hinton from second and cut the APSU deficit to 3-1.
In the bottom of the third – after Grayson and company stranded two Knights on first and second – Brie Howard singled and was brought across the plate by Shelander’s second double of the afternoon. A base knock by Katie Raper then scored Nadia Glass – pinch running for Raper – from first to tie the game at three.
The Govs retired Bellarmine in order in the top of the fourth and Makayla Navarro opened the home-half of the inning with a double to center field. The Altamonte Springs, Florida native then advanced to third on a wild pitch before scoring just two pitches later on a passed ball. Emilee Baker and Brie Howard tallied back-to-back singles before being driven across the plate by Shelander’s second home run of the weekend – a ball that cleared the Govs’ indoor training facility in right field – extending the APSU lead to 7-3 heading into the fifth.
Bellarmine put up just a single hit in the top of the fifth inning. A Shelby Allen walk loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the fifth. Following the free base, Emilee Baker hit into a fielder’s choice, with Bellarmine stopping a run at the plate to keep the bases loaded but keep the score off the board.
Howard then singled to left field to drive in Allen and Navarro, before Shelander was intentionally walked to reload the bases. In the final at-bat of the ballgame, Raper hopped a ball at the plate, which rolled past the Knights’ infield, driving in a pair of runs and bringing up the run-rule decision in five innings.
Shelander and Howard led the Govs with three hits apiece, with all three of Shelander’s hits going for extra bases. Raper and Hinton followed with two hits, while Raper’s three RBI were second on the team, trailing only Shelander’s four.
In the circle, Grayson allowed just four hits and walked just a single batter to earn her eighth win of the season and second of the weekend.
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Next Up For APSU Softball
The Austin Peay State University softball team continues its seven-game homestand when it hosts Middle Tennessee for a Tuesday 4:00pm contest at Cathi Maynard Park.
