No. 8 SAU Softball set for battle in Super Region with No. 25 Minnesota Duluth in Magnolia (GAME NOTES)

5/16/2018 2:40:00 PM | By: By: Darian Harris

Leading Off
The No. 8-ranked Southern Arkansas softball team and No. 25 Minnesota Duluth are set to square off in a best two-of-three Super Regional for the right to go to Salem, Virginia for the 2018 NCAA Division II Women's College World Series next week.

This is SAU's first time in program history to host a Super Region tournament and second time in three years to appear in the tournament as they claimed the Central Region Championship title in 2016 to punch their ticket to the World Series held in Denver, Colo. that year where they finished fourth in the nation.

SAU won a regular season program record 49 games and finished its 56-game slate leading the Great American Conference in eight offensive categories and ten pitching categories, while ranking second in six additional categories. Six of those league-leading statistical marks rank in the top seven of the country.

The Lady Muleriders have hit a GAC-record and nation-leading 107 home runs which includes Division II's second-highest home runs per game average at 1.67. Additionally, the SAU offense owns the seventh-best slugging percentage in the country at .565.

In the circle, the Lady Muleriders combat opposing bats with one of the best pitching staffs in the nation. The staff ERA of 1.66 is the seventh-lowest in Division II and even more impressive is the group's 4.54 strikeout-to-walk ratio which is the fourth-highest mark nationally.

To say it has been a collective effort at the plate for Southern Arkansas this season would be an understatement. As a team, the Lady Muleriders are slashing .328/.421/.565, while just over 33% of their total hits this season have went for extra bases.

Seven players have hit eight or more home runs with six players having collected at least seven doubles. All nine every day starters have recorded 37 or more hits with six having picked up 63 or more hits this season. Seven players have registered 36 or more RBI with five players having scored 44 or more runs this season.

Minnesota Duluth went 4-1 in their Central Region tournament as the fourth-seed to advance to the Super Regional tournament and carries an overall record of 44-14 into the weekend. The Bulldogs enter with a .329 batting average in the tournament with an impressive 129-of-144 stolen base attempts on the year. In terms of pitching, Minnesota State-Mankato's staff holds a 3.08 ERA, while opponents hit .271.

Game one of the series is scheduled for a first-pitch of 6 p.m. CST on Thursday afternoon at Dawson Field at the Mulerider Softball Complex in Magnolia. Game two is scheduled for 2 p.m. CST on Friday with an "If Necessary" game scheduled for 4 p.m. later that day.


#8 SOUTHERN ARKANSAS LADY MULERIDERS 55-9	LIVE STATS \| LIVE VIDEO TOURNAMENT HOME PAGE \| TOURNAMENT BRACKET	#25 MINNESOTA DULUTH BULLDOGS 44-14
vs. #25 Minnesota Duluth Thursday, May 17 \| 6 p.m. Dawson Field \| Magnolia, Ark. vs. #25 Minnesota Duluth Friday, May 18 \| 2 p.m. Dawson Field \| Magnolia, Ark.

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