Redhawks try to right ship vs. Governors

Austin Peay has rebounded nicely from a poor Ohio Valley Conference start, but Southeast Missouri State is still trying to dig out of a hole.

Those anticipated top two contenders for the OVC's regular-season championship square off this weekend in a three-game series that could go a long way toward determining their eventual league fate.

There will be a 1 p.m. doubleheader today and a 1 p.m. single contest Sunday on Austin Peay's field in Clarksville, Tenn.

"It's a very big series for both teams, no question about it," Southeast coach Mark Hogan said.

The Governors (19-13, 5-4) have won the past two OVC regular-season titles, but they started this year's conference schedule by losing all three games of a series at Morehead State. Austin Peay has won four of its last five conference contests and is tied for third place.

Southeast (12-19, 3-6), No. 2 in the OVC's preseason poll -- behind Austin Peay -- has not yet won a conference series, dropping two of three in all three series to date. Although there are still 18 league games remaining, the Redhawks are mired in eighth place.

"It's disappointing. We're all frustrated," Hogan said. "We need to string some wins together, but it sure doesn't get any easier this weekend."

It particularly doesn't figure to get any easier for Southeast's struggling offense. The Redhawks are hitting just .264 after batting .301 last season, and they are averaging about 4 1/2 runs per game after averaging nearly 6 1/2 runs per contest a year ago.

The Redhawks will face statistically the OVC's premier pitcher in today's opener, as junior left-hander Rowdy Hardy is 6-3 with a 1.93 earned-run average. He has thrown consecutive nine-inning OVC shutouts, and has not allowed a run in his last 22 innings.

And in today's nightcap, Southeast will face another tough left-hander in senior Devin Thomas (4-3, 4.19), who is also coming off a shutout in his last conference start.

"A lot of our hitters aren't doing what they did last year. I'm hoping the stats will start to come back to what they should be," Hogan said. "But we'll be facing some really tough pitchers this weekend."

Austin Peay is also strong offensively with a .308 batting average, as seven regulars are hitting above .300.

Southeast's pitching -- which features a 4.83 ERA compared to 5.11 for Austin Peay -- has actually been good enough to keep the Redhawks in most games.

Freshman right-hander Joey Evans (5-3, 2.62) has turned into the Redhawks' top pitcher. He has posted Southeast's last four victories, and in conference games he is 2-1 with an 0.95 ERA.

"Overall, I think our pitching has been pretty solid," Hogan said. "We just need to start doing more offensively."