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MOREHEAD, Ky. – The Morehead State softball team shifts its focus back to Ohio Valley Conference play with a doubleheader date at Belmont, getting underway at 3 p.m. ET on Friday in Nashville at E.S. Rose Park.
 
The Eagles look to improve on their 19-11 overall record and pull themselves back to .500 in OVC play as they currently sit at 2-4. Belmont enters the contest with a 21-13 mark and is 2-6 in the conference. Morehead State and Belmont both stepped away from OVC play over the past week as the Eagles split games on the road with Conference USA foe Marshall Wednesday, while the Bruins fell at home to Middle Tennessee on Tuesday and then to Ole Miss in Oxford, Miss., on Wednesday.
 
Senior left-handed pitcher Chelsea McManaway continues to be Morehead State's ace in the circle this season, holding a 13-4 record. McManaway, who set Morehead State's single-season record for strikeouts with 244 in 2017, has been a force for batters to reckon with at the plate by holding opposing batters to a .155 batting average and striking out an OVC-best 158. Junior Allison Rager has started 11 games for the Eagles and has a record of 5-6 over 75 innings with an ERA of 2.99 and 43 batters retired via strike three at the plate.
 
In the batter's box senior infielder Ellen Barrett and senior utility player Taylor Wheeler lead Morehead State in batting average with .320 clips. The duo leads several other offensive categories as Wheeler bests the team in hits (32), runs scored (23), at-bats (100 and total bases (49) and is tied with senior Robyn Leighton with a team-best four home runs. Barrett, who has reached base safely in seven consecutive contests, holds the top spots in slugging percentage (.493), on-base percentage (.427), and bases on balls (13).
 
Belmont, who has struggled since the calendar turned to April losing six of seven games, also possesses one of the OVC's best pitchers in Brooklin Lee. The right-handed sophomore sports an 11-6 record with an ERA of 1.52 and ranks a close second in the OVC behind McManaway in the strikeout category with 155.
 
The Bruins' offense poses a challenge with four batters hitting  the over the .300 mark. Senior Lexi Rose tops the team with a .376 average and has blasted eight homers. Rose is tied for the team high in hits with fellow senior Jess Andre at 35.
 
The games will be streamed live on the OVC Digital Network and Eagle fans can follow the action on twitter by following @msueagleslive for live in-game updates of both games Friday in Nashville.