LOUISVILLE, Ky.— The Bellarmine softball team is back in its home state but continues its 14-game road stretch this weekend. 

The Knights will play the following schedule at the Velvet Milkman Invitational hosted by Murray State (named in honor of former Murray women's golf coach Velvet Milkman):

Friday – Bellarmine vs. Ball State (11:00 a.m. ET/10:00 a.m. CT)
Friday – Bellarmine vs. Miami OH (1:15 p.m. ET/12:15 p.m. CT)
Saturday – Bellarmine vs. Miami OH (10:00 a.m. ET/9:00 a.m. CT)
Saturday – Bellarmine vs. Ball State (12:15 p.m. ET/11:15 a.m. CT)
Sunday – Bellarmine at Murray State (3:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. CT)

Bellarmine went 1-4 last weekend at the Furman Invitational, picking up its first win of the season against Sacred Heart.  The Knights' bats exploded in the 13-2 victory, accumulating their most runs in a single game in the Division I era.  Alexis Hargrove homered twice, while Megan Konermann added her first career home run.  Olivia Bricker sealed the game with a grand slam in the sixth inning.  In the circle, Elli Jensen nabbed her first career victory with four shutout innings.

Through nine games, Hargrove leads Bellarmine with a .320 batting average and five extra-base hits.  Anna Greenwell is batting .280, while Chloe Collins is batting .276.  Bricker leads the Knights with 6 RBI this season.

In the circle, Jensen has a team-best 3.59 ERA, while Claire Lehmkuhler leads Bellarmine with 23 strikeouts in 24.1 IP.

Bellarmine's first opponent, Ball State, is 2-3 this season after competing at the Blazer Bash in Birmingham, Alabama.  The weekend was bookended with victories over Samford and Lindenwood.  The Cardinals went 22-31 last season with a 15-14 record in the Mid-American Conference.  BSU was picked to finish fourth this season in the MAC pre-season poll.   Miami Ohio is 3-2 this year, coming off a 12-0 midweek win over Purdue Fort Wayne.  The Redhawks went 2-2 in a tournament at Charlotte, including wins over East Tennessee State and Campbell.  Miami Ohio went 40-17-1 last season with a 24-5 record in the MAC.  The Redhawks won their conference tournament and fell to national seed Virginia Tech in the Blacksburg Regional last year. 

Host Murray State is 4-5 this season and played at the Trojan Classic (hosted by Troy) last weekend.  The Racers went 2-2 with a pair of wins of Kennesaw State.  Murray State posted a 40-18-1 record last season with a 18-3-1 mark in the OVC.  The Racers rans through the OVC Tournament and fell in the Tuscaloosa Regional last year.
 
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