CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Austin Peay State University's baseball team welcomes back a familiar face as it opens the home portion of its Atlantic Sun Conference Schedule this weekend. The Governors host Queens University, led by former assistant coach Jake Hendrick, in a three-game series that is schedule to start with a 1 p.m., Friday game on Joe Maynard Field at Raymond C. Hand Park. The Govs and Royals continue the series with a 2 p.m. Saturday game followed by a 1 p.m. Sunday game.

ON THE MOUND FOR THE GOVS

Right-hander Jacob Weaver looks to bounce back following his first loss of 2024 in the ASUN opener at Lipscomb last week. He went 6.1 innings against the Bisons last Friday while allowing five runs for the fifth time in as many starts. Weaver enters the weekend eighth among ASUN pitchers with 36 strikeouts.

Right-hander Andrew Devine is one of four ASUN pitchers with a league-leading four victories this season and the only pitcher among the league-leaders with five starts. He picked up his fourth win at Lipscomb last Saturday, notching his third quality start with one run allowed on three hits over a complete-game seven-inning effort.

The Govs enter the weekend with its Game 3 starter to be named during the series. Left-hander Josh Howitt has started the last three Game 3s and has a 8.44 ERA in four Game 3 starts this season, striking out 16 batters in 10.2 innings. Righty Adam Walker has the Govs other Game 3 start, taking the mound against UMES on Feb. 25.

FIRST HACKS

• Center fielder John Bay has a home run in four of his last seven games. He is batting .307 (8-for-26) with 10 RBI and has a .885 slugging percentage over those seven games.
• Right fielder/first baseman Harrison Brown has a hit and an RBI in all four games since his return to the Govs lineup at Lipscomb. He has two home runs and a double while reaching base at a .450 clip in those four games.
• Utility man Jaden Brown had five hits during the Lipscomb series and has reached base safely in 12 consecutive games. He is batting .314 (16-for-51) during his reached safely streak.
• Catcher Trevor Conley extended his hit streak to nine games with a base hit at Auburn in the series opener on March 8. However, he was injured in that game and has missed the Govs' last seven games.
• Catcher Keaton Cottam started the Govs' last two games. He was held hitless in a Sunday start at Lipscomb but bounced back with a 1-for-2 effort against Southeast Missouri, which included a sac bunt.
• Catcher Gus Freeman returned to the Govs' lineup on March 9 at Auburn and went 2-for-5 with two RBI in his return. He has started five games and is batting .286 (4-for-14) since his return.
• Shortstop Jon Jon Gazdar leads the ASUN with a .412 batting average, which he has boosted with eight hits over his last three games. He is batting .615 in the three games with a 1.231 slugging percentage and a .667 on-base percentage. Once again, he is the ASUN's toughest batter to strike out (6.2 K%) and is 29th nationally among qualifying batters at D1Baseball.com.
• Infielder Conner Gore made his season debut off the bench at Lipscomb on March 17 and then started at second base two days later against Southeast Missouri. He has a hit in each game, with a double and a walk versus SEMO.
• Right fielder Clayton Gray is batting .341 (14-for-41) with eight RBI and 11 runs scored in his last nine games. His 30 base hits this season are third most in the ASUN, and his seven doubles rank sixth in the league.
• Lyle Miller-Green, the ASUN Preseason Player of the Year, became the first ASUN batter to belt their 10th home run, hitting No. 10 at Lipscomb on Sunday. He hit No. 11 & 12 against Southeast Missouri and is one of six Division I hitters with 12 or more home runs.
• Justin Olson reached base in five of 14 plate appearances at Auburn, March 8-10. However, he did not play at Lipscomb after Harrison Brown returned to the lineup. With Brown taking Miller-Green's spot in right field against Southeast Missouri Tuesday, Olson started at first base.
• Starting with his 2-for-5 outing at Auburn on March 9, which included a home run, infielder Brody Szako is batting .304 (7-for-23) with seven walks (.485 OBP) and seven RBI.
• Infielder Ambren Voitik had a quiet weekend at Lipscomb with one hit and two sac bunts over the three games. It ended a 10-game stretch that saw him bat .470 (16-for-34) with 12 RBI.
• Infielders Andres Matias, Mateo Hernandez, and outfielder Nathan Barksdale have been part of the Govs' "Hands Team," each entering the game defensively when the Govs are leading late.

GOVS TOP NOTES AND NOTABLES

GAZDAR FOURTH GOV TO WIN ASUN WEEKLY AWARD: Highlighted by his eight-RBI day at Lipscomb on Saturday, shortstop Jon Jon Gazdar picked up ASUN Player of the Week honors, Monday. In the Govs' Game 2 win against Lipscomb he was 4-for-4 with a triple and a home run. He is the third Governors hitter with at least eight RBI in a game all time and was two RBI shy of the program record. For the week, Gazdar batted .412 (7-17) during the week with 10 RBI and had a double, a triple, and a home run over four games.

THREE SEC DUBS: With its March 9 win at Auburn the Governors picked up their third victory against a Southeastern Conference foe this season. It is the fifth time in program history APSU has recorded three wins against the SEC in a season. The 2024 Govs join the 1974, 1980, 1990, and 1996 teams with three SEC wins. This season's version has one SEC game remaining on the schedule – a March 26 date at Ole Miss.

800 AT THE HAND: Entering this week's action, Austin Peay has recorded 796 wins at its current location on campus. Originally Governors Park when the facility hosted its first game on April 16, 1970 the current site has been the Governors home for 55 seasons. It was renamed Raymond C. Hand Park during the 1993 season and renamed Joe Maynard Field at Raymond C. Hand Park at the start of the 2019 season.

ROYALS BY ROTE

Queens is led by former Govs associate head coach Jake Hendrick. He was head coach at Northeastern State (Okla.) for seven seasons before joining the Govs staff for the 2023 season. Queens hired him as their third head coach during the offseason… In addition to Hendrick's return to Clarksville, Royals starting catcher Tyler Cotto makes his second trip back to The Hand. He played 48 games over three seasons (2020-22) at Austin Peay and also made a pair of pitching appearances in his final season with the Govs. Last season, he started two games against APSU and was 1-for-6 with an RBI… Queens was picked to finish 10th in the ASUN Preseason Coaches Poll, ahead of North Alabama and Bellarmine… Outfielder Dillon Lewis has been the Royals do-everything bat this season. He leads Queens with a .366 batting average, six home runs, 16 RBI, and nine stolen bases… Outfielder JJ Sousa also has six home runs entering this weekend's series and is batting .258 with 13 RBI… Cotto has started 19 of the Royals 21 games this season and has five home runs, 13 RBI and a team-leading 13 walks… Right-hander Landry Jurecka, a transfer from Kansas State, has five starts to his credit entering this weekend's series. He has a 7.09 ERA and 1-4 record so far with 30 strikeouts in 26.2 innings pitched, but has only issued nine walks… Freshman Carson Magill, the Game 2 probable starter, has three starts this seson and is second on the team with a 5.09 ERA, recording 13 strikeouts in 17.2 innings pitched..

SERIES DETAILS

THE SERIES: Austin Peay has won the three previous meetings in the series.
NOTABLY: APSU and Queens met for the first time in 2023 with the Govs sweeping the three-game series… APSU won the series by a total of six runs, including a one-run victory in extra innings during Game 2 of the set.

BROADCAST INFORMATION

Fans unable to make it to Raymond C. Hand Park can listen to all three games of the series on ESPN Clarksville 104.1 FM in the Clarksville area or online. Brian Rives, who is in his 17th season with the Governors Sports Network has the call on Friday.  Van Stokes, who is in his 24th season as the Govs play-by-play voice, returns for play-by-play on Saturday and Sunday. The game also will be available on ESPN+ with Alex Gould calling the action.

FOLLOW ALONG

Keep up to date with all Governors baseball on the official website of Austin Peay Athletics - www.LetsGoPeay.com. Follow @GovsBSB on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram for all Governors Baseball updates and ticket information as they happen.