Racers Look to Continue Momentum Against Aces

Dates (Times): April 18 (DH 2:00 p.m. CT), April 19 (1:00 p.m. CT)

Opponent: Evansville Purple Aces

Site: Racer Field

Stats: GoRacers.com

Streaming: ESPN+

Murray State Softball (16-23, 6-12 MVC) returns home to Racer Field for a weekend Missouri Valley Conference series against the Evansville Purple Aces (18-25, 4-14 MVC) in Murray, Ky.

Friday will mark the 23rd and 24th meetings between the Racers and Purple Aces. Murray State holds a 12-10 edge in the all-time series despite losing the most recent match ups between the teams on Sunday, April 21 2025 in Evansville 5-2. The Racers are 6-3 all-time when hosting the Aces at Racer Field.

The Racers sit one spot ahead of Evansville in the MVC standings in ninth place, while the Aces are in tenth. Both teams are currently slated to play on the first day of the MVC Softball Championship on May 7, 2025.

The Racers are looking to build on the momentum from their series win over UNI last week. In a series that saw the Racers take two of three, they set a new MVC season high with 21 hits in Saturday's 16-15 win. Several Racers added new entries to the all-time records as Kenley Minor tied a Murray State record with five hits in a game, and Taylor Franzen became the 16th Racer of all time and second this season with two homers in a single game. Hannah Sutton also added her name to the records with the second-most RBI in a single game with five.

As a team, the Racers have an ERA of 4.26 with four different pitchers having multiple starts. Bre Haislip leads the team in innings pitched (105.1) and strikeouts (55) and has the lowest ERA among Racer starters at 3.19. The junior went the distance and recorded a no-hitter through five innings in the Racers' 9-0 win over Cleveland State on March 8. Haislip had a season high seven strikeouts on February 23 against Butler has pitched seven complete games this season with a record of 6-10. Freshman Karlye Graber (6-8) features an ERA of 3.66 across 26 appearances and eight starts. Opponents are batting just .258 against her on 80.1 innings pitched.

Following her five-hit day, Kenley Minor now leads the Racers with a .318 batting average, 42 hits, and 23 runs scored. The freshman infielder also leads the team with ten stolen bases on 12 attempts. Another freshman infielder, Hannah Sutton, was named MVC Freshman of the Week. Sutton is batting .262 on the year and has eight total RBI. Katy Huels pushed her hitting streak all the way to 15 games and is batting .305 on the season.

Shortstop Parker Holcombe has cemented herself as a staple in the field and at the plate this season. Second on the team with a .311 batting average, Holcombe features 38 hits and has posted multiple hits ten times. She has reached base in 12 consecutive games and recorded a hit in six straight. She recorded her first homer of the season in a Racer victory over UIC.

The Aces have struggled through MVC play despite starting 14-11 in non-conference play with a win over #24 Kentucky. They are coming off of a midweek win over Indiana State after being swept by Drake over the weekend. The Aces are fifth in the MVC with a .277 team batting average, lead the conference in hits with 318, and are second in the league with 48 home runs. Niki Bode leads the Aces with a .371 batting average and is second on the team with 39 hits. Jess Willsey leads the team with 40 hits and features 28 RBI and eight home runs. Junior infielder Morgan Adams leads the Purple Aces with 14 home runs and 36 RBI on the season.

The Evansville pitching staff is fifth in the MVC with a 3.92 combined ERA. Gracie Hollingsworth (7-4) leads the team with a 3.39 ERA across 21 appearances and 12 starts. Kate Ridgeway (5-9) leads the team with 77 strikeouts through a team-high 102 innings pitched through 26 appearances and 17 starts.

Follow the Racers on Twitter (@MSURacers), Instagram (@RacersAthletics), and Facebook to stay up-to-date on all that is happening with Murray State Athletics. Follow Murray State softball on Twitter and Instagram (@RacersSoftball).

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Players Mentioned

Taylor Franzen

Karlye Graber

Bre Haislip

Parker Holcombe

Katy Huels

Kenley Minor

Hannah Sutton

Murray State University