MURRAY, Ky.  – Starting pitcher Brandon Vial provided a quality start, but Austin Peay State University's baseball team could not get its offense on track in a 4-0 Ohio Valley Conference loss to Murray State, Monday, at Reagan Field.

MOMENT THAT MATTERED

Reliever Tucker Weaver entered Monday's contest in a less than enviable position, inheriting the bases loaded with one out in a game the Govs trailed 3-0 in the seventh inning. The junior college transfer surrendered a sacrifice fly then struck out consecutive batters to end the threat with the Govs still within four runs.

WATER COOLER CHATTER

Spain, Martinez Keep Plugging Away. With his eighth inning single, center fielder Garrett Spain extended his reached base streak to 12 games and his hit streak to six games. Catcher David Martinez saw his 10-game hit streak end with an 0-for-3 outing, but a sixth-inning walk extended his reached base streak to 11 games.

Quality Start #4. Vial's six-inning outing against Murray State was the fourth quality start provided by the Govs starting rotation in 2019. It was the first by a pitcher other than Jacques Pucheu, who posted his third quality outing of the season in the Govs Game 1 victory. However, Austin Peay now is only 1-3 in games with a quality start.

THE REST OF THE STORY

Vial (0-2) surrendered single runs in each of the first three innings.  He settled in after allowing the game's third run and retired 10 consecutive batters to hold the deficit at three runs into the sixth inning. Vial would surrender a one-out walk in the sixth but got a lineout and a fielder's choice to end the frame.

Austin Peay (5-8, 1-2 OVC) tried to forge a comeback but saw its attempts repeatedly snuffed out. The Governors brought the tying run to the plate in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings but the Racers found a way out of the jam each time, twice retiring two batters to end the threat.

Vial went a season-best six innings, allowing three runs on seven hits while striking out five batters. Tucker Weaver and Ryan Kouba tossed a scoreless inning each in relief.

Jake Jones (1-0) scattered a pair of hits over five scoreless frames to pick up the win. Braydon Cook picked up his season's first save, holding APSU to two hits over three innings.

Right fielder Patrick Anderson's 2-for-3, two RBI effort paced the Racers' offense and included a home run in the first inning.

Austin Peay continues its four-game road trip with a 3 p.m., Tuesday contest at Southern Illinois.