Four weekends remain in Ohio Valley Conference play for Austin Peay State University's baseball team and they start that closing stretch with a three-game series against SIUE. Due to inclement weather this weekend, the Govs and Cougars will play a 1 p.m., Friday doubleheader followed by a 1 p.m., Saturday contest on Joe Maynard Field at Raymond C. Hand Park.

This weekend's series is the start of a nine-game, 12-day homestand – Austin Peay's longest of the season. The Govs will look to improve on their 4-7 home mark (4-5 in OVC play) over the next two weeks. That effort will be led by third baseman Gino Avros and second baseman Malcolm Tipler. Avros leads the Govs with a .469 batting average at home in OVC play while Tipler is batting .467 in home OVC games with six doubles.

SIUE returns to action for the first time since Sunday when it completed a four-game nonconference series at Western Michigan, winning the set 3-1. Second baseman Connor Kiffer batted .471 with a home run and six RBI during the series in Kalamazoo. Meanwhile, first baseman Ole Arntson leads SIUE with six home runs and 18 RBI in OVC play this season.

INSIDE THE SERIES

The Series: 39 previous meetings, APSU leads 23-16
Previously: APSU swept the 2019 series, 3-0, in Clarksville
Notably: Austin Peay has won the last two meetings in the series thanks to pitcher's duels in the first two games of the set. In 2018, APSU won the first two games 7-0 and 4-0 as part of a record-tying three-game shutout streak. The following season the Govs claimed 6-1 and 7-1 victories to start the series before a 13-11 sweep-clinching Game 3.

PROBABLE STARTERS

GAME 1 | Luke Brown (RHP) vs. Noah Matheny (RHP)

• Brown will make his fifth straight start as the Govs No. 1 after posting a complete-game victory at UT Martin last weekend, where he scattered five hits, walked none and struck out four batters. In five OVC starts, he is 3-0 with 22 strikeouts in 34.0 innings.

GAME 2 | Govs Starter TBA vs. Jake Bockenstedt (RHP)

• LHP Harley Gollert moved into the No. 2 role last weekend and picked up the win. The previous three weeks he came out of the bullpen behind Brown's starts with Nolan O'Shoney in the the Govs' No. 2 role in those weekends.

GAME 3 | Govs Starter TBA vs. Brant Glidewell (RHP)

• RHP Sebastian Martinez made the Game 3 start at UT Martin last weekend, opening with seven scoreless innings before leaving after 7.1 innings.

FIRST HACKS

• Catcher Jack Alexander went 5-for-9 with three doubles and three RBI in the UT Martin series last weekend, including a 3-for-5, two double effort in Game 2 of the set. It was his team-leading fourth three-hit outing this season.
• Third baseman Gino Avros hit a leadoff home run at Ole Miss, last Tuesday, and added a double for his fourth-straight multi-hit game. He has reached safely in his first plate appearance in six of his last seven games (2 BB, 2 1B, HR).
• John Bolton moved back into the starting shortstop role at Ole Miss, April 13. He posted a hit in all three games of the UT Martin series, his first three-game hit streak of the season.
• Outfielder Knaje Guthrie made his first collegiate home run count, hitting a grand slam in Game 2 of the Morehead State series, April 9. He went 3-for-9 with two RBI in the UT Martin series.
• Bobby Head moved to right field at the start of the UT Martin series – his fifth different position started in 2021. He has been the Govs best hitter in April, batting .378 (17-45) with nine RBI and 11 runs scored.
• First baseman John McDonald had a hit in all three games of the UT Martin series, batting .357 (5-14). However, he saw his seven-game hit streak end at Vanderbilt while he extended his reached safely streak to 14 games.
• Center fielder Garrett Spain leads the Govs with 12 multi-hit outings and six multi-RBI outings this season. Austin Peay is 9-3 in his multi-hit outings and 4-2 in his multi-RBI efforts.
• Second baseman Malcolm Tipler saw his seven game-hit streak end at Vanderbilt but extended his reached safely streak to eight games with a sixth-inning walk.  
• Austin Peay has used three different players at designated hitter over the past four games: Xavier Torres, Matt Joslin and Ty DeLancey. Torres started Game 2, his first start since March 6, and was 1-for-4 with a sac hit. Joslin started Game 3 in his first start since March 20 and had a walk in four plate appearances. DeLancey started in the UT Martin opener and at Vanderbilt.
• The Governors newly constructed outfield of Guthrie, Spain and Head combined to bat .310 (9-for-29) with seven RBI and nine runs scored during the UT Martin series.
• Austin Peay has recorded nine of its 10 double-digit hit outings this season since March 20.

RAYMOND C. HAND PARK ADMISSION POLICIES

• Purchase tickets online at www.LetsGoPeay.com/BuyTickets.
• Guests must maintain proper social distancing while inside the facility.
• Masks are required to cover both the mouth and nose at all times while in the facility.
• Failure to wear masks or maintain proper social distancing may result in guests being asked to leave the facility.
• No seating permitted in the upper two rows of the chairback seating.
• Pets are not permitted inside Raymond C. Hand Park; however, service dogs (i.e., guide dogs for persons with disabilities) are allowed in the ballpark.