By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – It may be a rainy day in Clarksville today, but there's still softball tentatively on the schedule for Friday as the Tennessee Tech softball team will make its way there to take on Austin Peay.
The Governors have an 18-9 record thus far in the 2018 campaign, including a 3-1 mark in Ohio Valley Conference play after sweeping Morehead State and splitting with Eastern Kentucky last weekend.
The doubleheader with Austin Peay is scheduled for 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. starts, weather permitting.
Danielle Liermann has been a one-woman wrecking crew on defenses, hitting .407 on the season with 35 RBI and 12 home runs. Her slugging percentage stands at .938 and has a .484 on-base mark.
Kacy Acree is also in double figures for runs batted in, driving in 19, along with Morgan Rackel (18) and Carly Mattson (11).
Natalie Schilling has been a patient base-runner for the Govs, driven in a team-high 29 times and leads the team with a perfect 20-for-20 on stolen bases.
In the circle, Rackel has been one of the surprises in the OVC season thus far, posting a 9-4 record in 16 appearances. The junior college transfer from Calgary has three shutouts this year with a 2.05 earned run average, walking 12 batters and striking out 93.
Kelly Mardones' numbers haven't been anything to sneeze at either, posting a 6-2 record with a 1.97 ERA. In 11 appearances, she has two shutouts with 11 walks and 17 strikeouts, while batters are hitting .240 against her.
Tech (9-21, 0-4 OVC) has two batters hitting over .300 with Raegan Sparks (.316) and Hallie Davis (.310) leading the way. The Golden Eagles have four with double-digit RBI totals, led by Bayli Cruse with 23, Sparks with 19, Callen Griffin with 14 and Davis with 12.
In the circle, Taylor Waldrop has led the way with a 5-7 record and a 4.33 ERA, but she did not pitch last weekend at Southeast Missouri and UT Martin. In league play, Kayla Hughes and Leigh Ellen Thomas both went 0-2 in the opening weekend, with Hughes posting a 4.08 ERA, Thomas a 7.00.
Updates on the game's status can be found on the team's Twitter feed -- @TTU_Softball – and on the Tech athletics website.
