Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Middle Tennessee
Belmont
In-State Rivarly Games Ahead for Raiders Midweek
4/9/2018 4:00:00 PM | Softball
Date: April 10 and April 11
Teams: Middle Tennessee at Belmont and at Austin Peay
Location: E.S. Rose Park – Nashville, Tenn. and Cheryl Holt Field – Clarksville, Tenn.
Live Stats – Live Video : Belmont
Live Stats : Austin Peay
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – The Middle Tennessee softball team plays a pair of midweek games against in state rivals this week. The Blue Raiders first travel to Nashville to clash with Belmont tomorrow, Tuesday, April 10 at 6pm. Then MT goes further north to face Austin Peay in Clarksville at 4pm on Wednesday, April 11.
Last season MT played Belmont twice with each side winning one game. Belmont won 6-1 in Nashville in early April and Middle won 2-0 in Murfreesboro a few weeks later.
In the MT win, Precious Birdsong and Summer Burgess put the Blue Raiders ahead early as they scored on a squeeze bunt and ground out in the first inning. Gretchen Greer shutout the Bruins in the circle, allowing a scattering of five hits through seven complete innings, striking out three.
The Bruins won their home contest last year behind four Blue Raider errors. Brooklin Lee silenced the MT bats with eight strikeouts. Offensively, Burgess and Birdsong combined for MT's lone run in the contest while Belmont's Bailey Sims was 2-for-4 with three RBI.
The Blue Raiders and Governors met once already this season, with MT taking the 3-2 win just last week. Middle had to come from behind in the game and scored three runs in the bottom of the sixth, playing small ball on APSU. The Raiders had three infield singles to take the lead. Lexi Cushing scored the game winning run, had a hit and a RBI.
Scouting the Blue Raiders (25-15)
Middle is coming off a 1-3 week, two of those losses came at the hands of No. 20 Kentucky. The Raiders mustered seven hits and two runs in Lexington, Ky. Morgan Harris had two of those hits and one RBI while Cushing accounted for the other RBI. She hit a solo home run, her ninth of the year, in the fourth inning of game two.
Cushing is batting .347 on the year with a team-best nine doubles and 31 RBI. Burgess continues to pace MT at the plate with a .402 average and 53 hits. She also leads the squad with a .459 on base percentage. Birdsong has a team-high 32 runs scored, two triples and 16 stolen bases.
Cori Jennings picked up the lone MT win last week to push her season record to 12-7. She holds a team-low 2.33 ERA in 105.0 innings of action. Jennings has picked up 69 strikeouts. Amber Baldwin has grown into the number two role in the Blue Raider pitching staff, earning 13 starts for an 8-5 record. She has struck out 40 in 84.0 innings in the circle.
Scouting Belmont (21-11)
Despite their winning record, the Bruins are in the midst of a slip. Belmont has lost five of their last six games. Their one win was a 1-0 defeat of Tennessee Tech in Cookeville last Sunday.
Lexi Rouse leads the Bruins at the dish, batting .371 on the year. She also has a team-high nine doubles, eight home runs and 24 RBI. Chelsea Thomas and Jess Andre are also offensive threats for Belmont. Thomas is hitting .286 with eight doubles, four homers and 21 RBI. Andre has a .323 average with a team-best 18 runs scored and six home runs.
Lee has pitched over half of Belmont's innings and is currently sitting at 123.1. She has a 1.48 ERA with an 11-5 record and 152 strikeouts. She has eight shutouts on the year, which is the sixth-most in the nation. Rouse is also a pitcher for the Bruins having seen 42.2 innings. She holds a 2.79 ERA and 6-1 record in the circle.
Scouting Austin Peay (24-11)
Since falling to the Blue Raiders last Monday, APSU has won four of their last five games. The Governors only lost to Southeast Missouri, 2-11, but they also beat the Redhawks, 5-2, in the first game of their doubleheader.
Danielle Liermann continues to lead the Governors at the plate with a .410 batting average and team-leading 24 runs scored, 15 home runs and 44 RBI. The third baseman is slugging .914 on the year and leads the squad in walks with 14. Liermann is sixth in the nation in home runs, eighth in slugging percentage and 13th in RBI.
Carly Mattson hit a solo home run against MT in the last meeting. She has six homers on the year, four doubles and 15 RBI.
Morgan Rackel has pitched 111.0 innings in the circle for the Governors and has a team-leading 1.83 ERA. She got the loss the last time out at MT, only her fifth of the season as she stands with a 12-5 record. Rackel has struck out 125. Kelly Mardones also saw time in the circle versus the Raiders, as she started the game. She has pitched 74.1 innings on the year for an 8-3 record. She holds a 1.98 ERA and has 24 strikeouts.
