Box Score RICHMOND, Ky. - Austin Peay's softball team rallied to win its second Ohio Valley Conference series in as many weeks on Sunday by defeating Eastern Kentucky, 3-2.
The game's start was delayed 2:58 minutes because of heavy rains in the area, with both teams wanting to get the game in after splitting the first two games of the series, Saturday (EKU won the opener 3-2 before APSU won the nightcap, 8-5).
Once the rain ended and the field was prepared to play, the Colonels (15-18, 7-5 OVC) didn't take long to get on the scoreboard as Kate Tackett hammered a first-inning two-out, two-run homer over the left field fence to give Eastern Kentucky a 2-0 advantage.
Austin Peay (12-17, 6-9 OVC) cut the Colonels lead in half in the top of the third inning, with senior Catie Cozart leading off the inning with a double off the center field fence and then moved to third on a single by freshman Lauren Bradley.
After Eastern Kentucky got the Lady Govs' hottest hitter, sophomore Lauren deCastro, out on strikes for the first out, freshman Paige Neely's sacrifice fly to deep left field drove in Cozart as the Lady Govs cut the deficit in half, 2-1.
It remained that way until the top of the fifth inning when Bradley got thing started with a one-out walk. That brought up deCastro, who had struck out in her first two at bats. This time, though, the California native delivered. She smashed a towering blast over the left field fence and onto the top of the batting cages to give the Lady Govs their first lead at 3-2--deCastro and Bradley finished the game with two hits.
That would be all that Lady Govs junior starter Morgan Brewer would need, as she and the Lady Govs defense turned away the Colonels in both the fifth and sixth inning when they had the tying run in scoring position.
Eastern Kentucky got the first two hitters on to start the fifth inning, but Brewer got the next three Colonels out - including a diving catch in foul territory by senior right fielder Ashley Bolda for the second out of the inning.
In the sixth inning, Eastern Kentucky loaded the bases with one out, but Brewer got a ground ball to second baseman Bradley, who threw out the runner at the plate for the second out. Then red-shirt junior left fielder Jessica Ryan made a diving catch of a sinking line drivefor the inning's final out to end the threat.
Eastern Kentucky got the tying run on in the bottom of the seventh inning, but Austin Peay's defense stepped up once again, with the Lady Govs ending the game by turning a 5-4-3 double play to not only seal away Sunday's victory, but lock up the Lady Govs second winning conference series weekend as well.
Brewer (6-7) finished the day permitting eight hits and two runs while striking out four and walking one.
Austin Peay is off until Wednesday, when they host OVC-leading Tennessee Martin at Cheryl Holt Field for a doubleheader, starting at 5 p.m.