MAGNOLIA, Ark. – The Southern Arkansas baseball team is preparing for a stiff road test against GAC-leading Ouachita Baptist this weekend at Rab Rodgers Field in Arkadelphia, Arkansas. First pitch for the series opener is scheduled for 2 p.m. on Friday, March 13, followed by a Saturday twin-bill slated to start at noon.
The Muleriders (15-8, 6-3 GAC) enter the weekend series with momentum having defeated former GSC-rival Delta State, 6-5 on Wednesday night in Cleveland, Mississippi. Last weekend, SAU took a conference series from Northwestern Oklahoma, 2-1, and are currently tied for third place in the Great American Conference standings.
Twenty-three games into the 2015 campaign; Southern Arkansas has been led by their pitching staff, which ranks atop the conference in earned run average (2.55). Junior rotation men,
Timothy Buchanan and
Landon Simpson rank in the top-10 individually in ERA. Buchanan boasts a 2.04 earned run average, while Simpson's sits at 2.33. Both pitchers are holding opponent bats to under a .240 average, while compiling a combined 57 strikeouts.
Senior staffer
Preston Gray is first in the GAC in innings pitched (43.2), an average of almost 7 1/3 innings an outing. He is also averaging seven strikeouts a game, the second best mark in the conference. The Mulerider bullpen has been just as good while being led by newcomers
Hunter Mayo and
Travis Johnson who have combined for 28 strikeouts. Mayo is 4-0 on the year in split duties with a .84 ERA in five appearances, including three starts, while Johnson owns a 1.32 ERA with a win and a team-leading two saves in nine appearances out of the pen.
Offensively, SAU is led by four Muleriders batting .310 or higher, including junior DH/catcher
Billy Germaine's team-leading .342 batting average. Germaine also leads the team in RBIs (25), runs scored (21) and homeruns (5) and boasts the fourth best slugging percentage in the conference.
Senior
Chase Harvey's 28 hits (2
nd – GAC) pace the Muleriders, while senior
Jon Phillips and sophomore
Trevor Rucker each have 27 hits apiece, third best in the conference.
For Ouachita Baptist, the bats have vaulted them to the top spot in the Great American Conference standings. As a team, the Tigers (9-5, 5-0 GAC) are hitting a GAC-best .303 with 133 hits in 14 games. Five players sport over a .300 batting average led by Justin Weigle's team-best .404.
On the mound, OBU is led by John Franklin Matros and Connor Eller who are a combined 7-0 with ERAs of 2.37 and 2.50 respectively. Eller was named GAC Pitcher of the Week for his Week 6 performance against Southeastern Oklahoma St. that saw him deliver a seven-inning complete game shutout, allowing only three hits while striking out six.
Following the three game set in Arkadelphia, the two teams will play a non-conference game on Tuesday, March 17, at Walker Stadium in Magnolia.
For fans interested in following live stats of this weekend's pivotal GAC series:
http://www.sidearmstats.com/ouachita/baseball/
