RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – Kaylee Garner (16-3) scattered five hits and struck-out six batters as #23 Southern Arkansas topped #5 Arkansas Tech 3-1 in the series finale to split Saturday's doubleheader and earn a series split in the first-ever matchup of top-25 programs in Great American Conference softball history on Saturday afternoon at the Chartwells Women's Sports Complex.
 
The Lady Muleriders (33-6, 26-6 GAC) topped a program-best 25 conference wins that was set by the 2014 team that won the GAC Tournament Championship. SAU is currently four victories away from tying the single-season school record for wins also set by the 2014 team. With Saturday's win, SAU clinches a spot in late April's Great American Conference tournament in Bentonville, Arkansas. 
 
After the Golden Suns scratched their lone run of the series finale in the bottom of the first, Garner allowed just three hits over the final six innings as she worked a flawless final two innings to register her 12^th complete game of the season.
 
Arkansas Tech (38-5, 29-4 GAC) used as a pair of singles and a throwing error to plate the final game's first run. SAU answered back in the top-half of the second off of Golden Sun starter Sydney Clark as a two-out walk to Chelsea Jordan kept the inning alive for SAU.
 
After the walk to Jordan, Summer Ehrig followed with a base hit to right field and Jordan advanced to third on a fielding error and scored to tie the game at 1 on an infield single by Taylor Guin in the ensuing at-bat.
 
Tyler Casada erased a potential run at second base as Alex Edinger was caught stealing in the third inning, before a two-out double on the next at-bat was erased as Garner induced a pop-out to end the frame. In the fourth, Garner worked around a two-out wild pitch that advanced a runner to second as she struck out Ashley Savage to end the Tech threat, before her offense gave her the lead in the next half inning.
 
In the fifth inning, three-consecutive one-out walks to Lady Muleriders loaded the bases for Ashton Atwell who grounded into a fielder's choice that scored Darian Harris to give Garner and SAU a 2-1 lead. However, SAU would only scratch a run in the fifth, but tallied an insurance run in the seventh as a pair of fielding errors and a fielder's choice by Liz Hudgins put runners at the corners for Casada. The junior followed with an RBI-double to aid her batterymate as SAU carried a two-run advantage into the home-half of the seventh.
 
Garner forced a groundout and picked up a pair of K's as she improved to 16-3 on the season, while helping SAU earn a critical series split.
 
In Saturday's opener, a two-out double from the Golden Suns in the first inning proved to be the difference as the 1-0 Tech lead after one became final as Kimmy Beasley (17-3) and Jalissa Gum battled in the circle, combining for 17 strikeouts, while collectively allowing just six hits.
 
Overall, Guin led SAU with three hits and Harris added a pair. Guin, Atwell and Casada accounted for the Lady Muleriders' three RBI on the day. Brooke Goad walked four times, while Maddie Dow reached base three times via base on balls.
 
Southern Arkansas returns to Magnolia for the second-half of their "Rivalry Tuesday" doubleheader with Arkansas-Monticello on Tuesday, April 12, with a first-pitch slated for 4 p.m. The Lady Muleriders and the Blossoms split the first-half of the rivalry twinbill in Monticello in late March.
 
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