MAGNOLIA, Ark. – After splitting a four game Great American Conference series with #5 Arkansas Tech last weekend in the league's first-ever matchup of nationally-ranked programs, the 23^rd-ranked Southern Arkansas Lady Muleriders will conclude their "Rivalry Tuesday" home-and-home with Arkansas-Monticello with a 5 p.m. doubleheader from Dawson Field at the Mulerider Softball Complex on Tuesday.
 
Tuesday's twin bill will include a ceremonial first-pitch by Murphy USA's Senior Vice President, General Counsel & Corporate Secretary John Moore in recognition of the corporation's generous donation for the completion of the Mulerider Softball Complex.
 
The Lady Muleriders (33-6, 25-6 GAC) are currently in the midst of just their fifth 30-win season in school history and are four victories away from tying the program's single-season wins record set in 2014. With a pair of victories over Arkansas Tech last weekend, SAU clinched a postseason berth into the 2016 GAC Tournament Championship and currently sits in second-place in the latest league standings with two weekends remaining in in the regular season.
 
As part of the Great American Conference's "rivalry home-and-home" mid-week series, these two teams squared off in late March with a doubleheader in Monticello. Each team came away with a win as pitching dominated the day. Recap and box score of the DH is available here: http://www.muleriderathletics.com/news/2016/3/29/softball-lady-muleriders-split-doubleheader-with-arkansas-monticello-on-rivalry-tuesday.aspx?path=softball.  
 
Southern Arkansas continues to sit atop several major statistical categories within the Great American Conference as they boast league-bests in team-batting average (.324), team-ERA (1.49) and team-fielding percentage (.972).
 
At the plate, Brooke Goad leads five other Lady Muleriders that own a .300 batting average or better as the sophomore is currently hitting .411. Goad leads the team in hits (46), runs scored (46), home runs (17), RBI (42), and total bases (106) and is tied for the team-lead in at-bats (112) and stolen bases (3). The lineup has been consistent for SAU this spring as eight players have played and started all 39 games. Darian Harris (45) and Taylor Guin (42) have each collected 40-plus hits this season, while Maddie Dow is second on the team in home runs (12) and RBI (38).
 
In the circle, Southern Arkansas has relied heavily upon the arms of Kimmy Beasley and Kaylee Garner as the duo has logged 235.2 of the team's 244.2 innings. Beasley has posted a 17-3 record and owns a 1.23 ERA with 16 complete games that includes seven shutouts and a pair of saves. Garner is just a single win back of Beasley in the win column with a 16-3 record. She has a 1.84 ERA with a dozen complete games and five shutouts. The pair has combined for 279 strikeouts, while opponents are hitting just .185 against the entire staff.
 
A full statistical preview of Lady Mulerider Softball is available here: http://www.muleriderathletics.com/custompages/Current%20Statistics/Softball/teamcume.htm.
 
Arkansas-Monticello (25-19, 20-14 GAC) owns the GAC's third-best fielding percentage at .964, while also having a fifth-ranked mark in team-batting average at .279. The Blossoms team-ERA is seventh in the league at 3.73.
 
Four players have a .300 batting average or higher, led by McKenzie Rice's .367. Rice leads the team in runs (39), walks (15), hit-by-pitch (8), slugging percentage (.647) and on-base percentage (.454). Holly Wilmarth swings at .356 and leads the team in hits (53), doubles (7), home runs (12), RBI (37) and total bases (96).
 
Elizabeth Delafield and Kendra Coleman have appeared in 20-plus games in the circle for UAM. Delafield holds a team-best in ERA (3.41) with an 8-4 record, while Coleman leads the staff in wins (11), complete games (14), shutouts (4), innings pitched (129.1), strikeouts (135) and opponent batting average (.219).
 
A full statistical preview of Blossoms Softball is available here: http://greatamericanconference.com/custompages/SOFTBALL%20Stats/2016/uam.htm.
 
Live stats for today's DH are available here: http://www.sidearmstats.com/saumag/softball/. Live audio will also be available here: https://livestream.com/accounts/10140781.
 
Be sure to check www.MuleriderAthletics.com or follow us on Twitter @MuleriderSports for the most up-to-date news on Lady Mulerider Softball.