CONWAY, Ark. – The Central Arkansas softball team heads out for its final road trip of the regular season, taking on Austin Peay in a three-game set this weekend. The Bears and Governors will kick off the series on Friday at 5 p.m., then play one game on each of Saturday and Sunday at 1 p.m.
The Bears (23-24, 11-6 ASUN) clinched a spot in the ASUN Championship last weekend after sweeping Lipscomb at home, winning the three games by a combined score of 24-11.
Addie Graham hit .667 in the series, going 6-for-9 in the series with two home runs, five RBI and eight runs scored. She now leads the team in overall batting average, hitting .391 as a freshman, which ranks sixth in the ASUN this season.
Central Arkansas has been able to flip the script offensively in conference play, hitting .320 since the start of league play. Graham, for her part, hits .455 in ASUN games, one of four Central Arkansas players to hit .420 or better.
Kaitlyn Graham and
Madi Young are tied for first in the ASUN with seven doubles each since the start of conference games, and Graham's .440 average ranks fourth among all hitters in ASUN games.
Last time the Bears and Govs met was earlier this season in Conway. After a high-scoring game one that went 16-15 in favor of the Bears, the teams traded run-rule wins, with Central Arkansas winning the series after a 12-3 drubbing in game three.
Kaitlyn Graham went 7-of-12 in the series, including a 5-for-6 game one, which tied the program record for hits in a single game, including the game-winning 2-RBI single in the bottom of the seventh.
Austin Peay (34-11, 11-7 ASUN) continues to post one of its best seasons in program history; the 34 wins this season are the most since 2018. The Govs have done so using one of the best power-hitting offenses in the country. Their 62 home runs this season top the conference by nearly 30, and rank 23
rd in the nation. Katie Raper and Sam Leski rank second and fourth, respectively, in home runs this season, hitting 11 and 10.
The Govs tagged six home runs in the series in Conway, and have had five games of multiple home runs in the 11 games since then. Austin Peay has gone 6-5 in those games, including four losses in ASUN games.
Game time on Friday is set for 5 p.m., with 1 p.m. starts on Saturday and Sunday. All three games will be streamed on ESPN+, with live stats available online as well.
