Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

MAGNOLIA, Ark. – The No. 4-ranked Southern Arkansas baseball team showed a tremendous amount of resilience on Friday as they picked up a doubleheader sweep over Northwestern Oklahoma in Great American Conference play inside Walker Stadium at Goodheart Field.
 
In the opener, the Muleriders (11-2, 4-1 GAC) came out on top of a great pitcher's duel by a score of 3-1 and in the nightcap, SAU overcame a 5-0 deficit to claim a 7-6 win.
 
The opening game's pitching duel featured SAU's Dylan Lynn and NWOSU's Corey Korenic. Lynn (2-0) would get the upper hand on Korenic early in the game as the Muleriders gave Lynn a run of support in the bottom of the first inning on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Justin Buchanan.
 
That run, however, would be the lone run to cross the plate for either team until the top of the sixth inning when the Rangers (5-5, 1-4 GAC) tied the game up at one-all on a two-out double by Calvin Ellis. The Ranger run would be unearned against Lynn, however, as Jeff Martin reached first base in the previous at-bat on an error by the Muleriders third baseman.
 
With the score now tied at one-all through five and half innings, the Muleriders would regain the lead as they benefited from three Ranger errors by scoring a pair of runs in the bottom of the sixth. That inning started with an error as Preston Gray reached first base on an error by the Rangers' shortstop. In the ensuing at-bat, Rod Lewis got down a sacrifice bunt, but an errant throw by the Rangers' catcher trying to cut down Gray at second base, allowed both runners to be safe.
 
Following a pop out on a sacrifice bunt attempt by Chase Harvey, the Rangers would commit their third error of the inning as Korenic threw the ball into shallow centerfield on a pickoff attempt of Gray at second base. Both Gray and Lewis would advance 90-feet on the failed pickoff attempt, drawing the infield in. In the next at-bat, William Townsend would drive in Gray and Lewis as he lofted a well-placed single over the head of the drawn-in Ranger shortstop.
 
Lynn would then go back out the mound and make that two-run lead hold up as he allowed just two hits over the final three innings of the game as he picked up his first complete game win of the season.
 
In the nightcap, the Muleriders found themselves down 5-0 in a hurry as the Rangers scored four runs in the top of the first and added a run in the top of the second inning off of SAU starter Timothy Buchanan. Four of those five runs scored by the Rangers came on homeruns as Buchanan surrendered a three-run shot in the first to Jonathan Freemyer and a solo homer to Alex Marquez in the second.
 
Janson Carr would come on in relief of Buchanan with one out in the second inning and after allowing a single to the first man he faced, Carr (1-0) got out of the inning with a double play. From there, Carr was virtually unhittable as he allowed just one more hit and struck out five batters over the next four innings, giving the Muleriders a chance to comeback.  
 
And comeback they did.
 
The rally for the Muleriders started in the bottom of the second inning when Tyler Cameron blasted a no-doubt two-run homerun to left field. An inning later, the Muleriders would get a run closer as Jackson McCurdy went opposite field for a solo homerun out to right field.
 
Now trailing by two runs, 5-3, the Muleriders would once more benefit from Ranger errors as they scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the fifth. In that frame, Carver Rademacher singled to lead off. After a strikeout in the next at-bat, Rademacher came around to score after an error by Rangers' second baseman on a fielder's choice led to a throwing error by the Rangers' shortstop, who threw the ball into the NWOSU dugout. J. Buchanan was the batter on that fielder's choice and he ended up on third base following the errors. During the next at-bat, J, Buchanan scored the tying run as he raced home on a wild pitch.
 
An inning later, the Muleriders would push across two more runs to make it a 7-5 game in favor of SAU. In that frame, William Townsend singled to right field with one out. Townsend then stole second base to move himself into scoring position. After a groundout of Cameron, Jon Phillips would cash in Townsend as he singled up the middle. Three batters later, J. Buchanan drew a bases-loaded walk to score the second run of the inning.
 
Now playing with a two-run lead, the Muleriders sent Preston Gray to the mound for the save. Gray would surrender a run, but a swinging strikeout would end the game, giving the Muleriders the doubleheader sweep.
 
The Muleriders will now look for the sweep as they conclude the series with a single game starting at noon on Saturday.