RICHMOND, Ky. – To round out the 2023 regular season, EKU softball gears up for a three-game set of ASUN Conference softball action against in-state Bellarmine beginning on Friday at Gertrude Hood Field.
 
This weekend holds heavy weight to EKU softball as it is set to honor senior Lou Bowers on Saturday for her five years of service to the program. In five seasons, Bowers has a career batting average of .267 with 18 home runs, 11 of which came this season. She's helped EKU to over 130 wins during her time in Richmond, including the program's third conference title in 2021.
 
The series is scheduled to open with a doubleheader on Friday beginning at 4 p.m. ET. EKU's regular season will conclude on Saturday at 12:00 p.m. ET, fans are encouraged to arrive to the ballpark early to partake in senior day festivities. 
 
Tickets to see the Colonels in action can be found on EKUsports.com starting as low as $5. Fans not able to be in attendance can find all three games on ESPN+ on the ESPN app.
 
EKU enters the weekend winners of nine of its last 16 games, however, dropped all three in a series at Lipscomb last weekend. The Colonels have won two of their last three ASUN series over Jacksonville and Jacksonville State.
 
Vianna Barron enters EKU's regular season finale leading the team with a .375 batting average, 60 hits, 13 doubles, and 43 RBIs starting in all 49 of the team's games. The Elk Grove, Calif. native has also sent 10 homers this season, the most in her career.
 
Leading the charge in the infield, Maggie Pertee enters the weekend going 11-of-12 (.916) from the plate in her last five games over Kentucky, Jacksonville State, and Lipscomb. Out of those 11 hits, Pertee knocked three home runs, a triple, two doubles, and brought in eight RBIs.
 
Bowers enters the weekend atop the EKU stat sheet with 11 home runs, second in the ASUN, and tied for the ASUN lead with 43 RBIs on the season.
 
Going into the series, EKU rests inside the top three in the conference in home runs, hits, doubles, triples, on base percentage, slugging percentage, walks, scoring, and double plays per game. The Colonels' double plays value on the season ranks top 15 in the NCAA.
 
Scouting Bellarmine
After 46 games, Bellarmine has a 4-42 mark on the season and is 1-20 in ASUN play, defeating Queens in the second game of its series in April. BU's only road win of the season was an 8-3 result at Tennessee Tech.
 
The Knights are led by sophomore infielder Chloe Collins, who posts a .242 batting average and eight home runs, starting in all 44 games she's played in this year.
 
BU's main hurler, Claire Lehmkuhler, has a 2-23 mark from the circle with a 4.57 earned run average in 150 innings pitched. She leads the squad with 98 strikeouts on the season.