Odom, Rodgers Help Send Racers To OVC Tournament

Sunday, May 8

Clarksville, Tenn.

12 p.m.

Murray State

23-29, 12-14

Austin Peay

9-38, 5-22

Murray State

Austin Peay

Photo by: Patti Twaddle

5/8/2016 3:45:00 PM | Softball

Box Score

Back-to-back homeruns from Taylor Odom and Jocelynn Rodgers helped break up a 1-1 tie and send the Murray State softball team past Austin Peay, 6-1, Sunday at Cheryl Holt Field in Clarksville, Tennessee. With the win, the Racers claimed the last spot in next week's OVC Tournament, marking their seventh straight season to qualify for the event.

The game remained scoreless until the third when Maddy Feeney began the frame with a double. After she advanced to third on a fly out from Shelbey Miller, the freshman then scored on an Austin Peay (9-38, 5-22 OVC) error that also allowed Brenna Finck to reach base. The 1-0 lead did last long as Danielle Liermann tied game on a solo homerun in the bottom of the fourth.

The game remained tied until the sixth when Odom and Rodgers went yard in consecutive at bats to take a 3-1 lead. Murray State (23-29 -12-14 OVC) added three runs in the seventh on RBI singles from Shelbey Miller, Jessica Twaddle and Leah Kesel to cap the scoring at 6-1 and help the seal the win and tournament berth for Racers.

Kesel was 2-for-4 in the game, as was Jocelynn Rodgers, while Feeney was 2-for-3 and scored twice. Mason Robinson improved to 18-14 on the year with the win in which she allowed just one run on four hits with four strikeouts and two walk.

The Racers will enter next week's tournament as the eighth seed and will take on top-seeded Jacksonville State at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday at Choccolocco Park in Oxford, Alabama. This 2016 tournament will mark the first time in OVC history that the event will be help at a neutral site.