DENVER, Colo. – No. 15 Southern Arkansas' greatest postseason run in program history came to an end on Thursday night at the Regency Athletic Complex in Denver, Colorado, as No. 3 North Alabama (58-6) topped the Lady Muleriders 10-2 in the second semifinal of the NCAA DII Women's College World Series placing SAU fourth in their inaugural appearance in the national tournament.
The Lady Muleriders (53-11) complete a season that saw the program set a single-season wins record, capture a GAC Tournament Championship and a Central Region Championship, while appearing in the program's first national tournament; the first national tournament appearance for the school in any sport in its twenty-year tenure as a Division II member.
In the game, Southern Arkansas pushed across single runs in the second and fourth innings on four total hits. Seniors
Liz Hudgins,
Taylor Guin and
Chelsea Jordan as well as junior
Tyler Casada collected a hit each, while the latter two recorded single RBI. Casada's RBI came via a run-scoring double in the second that plated senior
Darian Harris and Jordan's RBI came courtesy of her seventh home run of the season after she laced a 2-2 offering into the left centerfield street.
Junior
Kaylee Garner (25-4) received the nod in the circle a night after shutting out Charleston and kept a powerful UNA offense off-balance through two innings of work. She worked 3.2 innings, before junior
Peyton Jenkins tossed the final one-third of an inning for Southern Arkansas.
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