Magnolia, Ark. – The SAU Baseball team split their doubleheader today against Oklahoma Baptist, only managing to score three runs in each game, coming up short in game one but enough to get the win in game two.

The visitors opened the scoring in game one in the fourth inning, scoring on a Garrett Walker wild pitch. The Muleriders' response was immediate as they pushed across two runs in the bottom half of the inning to take the lead.

Kane Koenigseder led off the inning with a double to right field and advanced to third later in the inning on a wild pitch. A Cooper King single brought home the designated hitter to tie the game. King himself then advanced to second on a wild pitch, and later scored when a ball hit by Dakota Wright caused the Bison shortstop to throw the ball into the Mulerider dugout, scoring King and giving the home side the lead.

The Bison scored four runs in response in the top half of the fifth inning, with the nine batters in the inning drawing two walks and totaling four hits, as well as a Mulerider error, to put the Bison on their final run total of five.

Austin Baker pulled back a run in the seventh inning, singling up the middle to score King and the game ended two innings later with the score remaining 5-3.

Walker receives his first loss of the season, giving up four runs (two earned) on only two hits and six strikeouts but walked four batters and threw a pair of wild pitches.

Nathan Stubber pitched 4.2 innings in relief of Walker, allowing four hits and a run (unearned) while striking out three.
Game two saw all the scoring take place in the second inning as a Bison triple scored their lone run of the second game.

Wright responded in the bottom half of the inning by hitting his team-leading sixth home run of the season, a three-run bomb over the left field fence that scored King and Zach Muldoon, who reached on a single and double, respectively. The deep fly also saw the center fielder claim his team-leading 24^th RBI of the season.

Hunter Brantley came one batter short of being the first Mulerider to throw a complete game this season, going 6.2 innings, only allowing four hits and one run, while walking four batters and striking out eight Bison. The southpaw picks up his team-leading fourth win of the season; in his relief came Matt Kortendick, who punched out the final batter of the game to secure the victory and his seventh save of the season.

The split sees the Muleriders now stand at 20-10 on the season and 15-4 in conference play. The rubber match against the Bison takes place tomorrow at 1 p.m.