(Murray State Athletics photo)
Former Caldwell County standout Shane Burns looks for his first win of the season when the Murray State Racers open Ohio Valley Conference play at Eastern Illinois on Friday afternoon.
The Racers (5-7) and Panthers (8-5) will play the new OVC format of a single game on Friday and a doubleheader on Saturday. The Panthers are on a three-game win streak and have won all four of their series to start the 2021 season.
Burns, a redshirt sophomore left-hander, will get the ball in game one of the series for Murray State.
The Caldwell County product pitched well in the season opener at Lipscomb, going five innings and allowing two earned runs on four base hits. However, he suffered the loss in a 4-2 setback.
Burns went 3.2 innings against Purdue Fort Wayne in his second start but gave up four earned runs on eight hits. He got a no decision when the Racers won that game 5-4.
Last Friday, Burns took the mound at No. 1-ranked Arkansas. He went three innings, allowing three runs on three hits. Five walks hurt him in that start. Again, though, he did not figure in the decision in a 7-6 loss to the Razorbacks.
For the season, Burns has an earned run average of 6.94.
At Caldwell, Burns is the school’s winningest pitcher, posting a 31-8 mark on the mound and helping the school capture 2nd Region championships in 2016 and 2017 and a state runner-up finish in the All A Classic in 2017.
