MAGNOLIA, Ark. – #25 Southern Arkansas is back in action inside Walker Stadium at Goodheart Field this weekend as the team is set to host Northwestern Oklahoma State in the third Great American Conference series of the season. The Muleriders (13-2, 4-2 GAC) and the Rangers (6-10, 3-3 GAC) open the three-game set on Friday with a single nine-inning game at 6 p.m., while a doubleheader slated for a 1 p.m. first-pitch on Saturday will conclude the series. Live coverage links are available at www.MuleriderAthletics.com.
 
Southern Arkansas went a program-record 11-0 to begin the season, before dropping two of three on the road last weekend to league foe Harding. The Muleriders bounced back on Tuesday in the team's first midweek game of the season with a 4-1 win over then #25 Mississippi College in Clinton. At 4-2 in conference play, SAU is among four teams with that same league record as the group is two games back of league-leading Oklahoma Baptist.
 
The Rangers, at 3-3 in GAC play, are currently tied with Harding and Arkansas Tech as the three teams are a game back of the 4-2 foursome. NWOSU swept Southern Nazarene to open conference play two weekends ago and has picked up nonconference wins over Pittsburg State, Washburn, and Newman to account for the team's six victories through 16 games this season.
 
This weekend's matchup will be the eighth series played between the two programs since NWOSU joined the GAC in 2012-13. In the previous 21 games, the Muleriders hold an 18-3 advantage in the series with an 8-1 mark at home and enter the weekend having won ten consecutive games against the Rangers. In the last series, which was played in early March of last season, the Muleriders swept Northwestern Oklahoma by just a combined five runs.
 
The Muleriders rank in the top 30 nationally in seven significant statistical categories. Most notably, through 15 games, Southern Arkansas ranks third nationally in fielding percentage at .987 and is fifth in Division II in stolen bases with 39, while the team's 2.60 swiped bags per game ranks 17^th in the country. Four players have stolen six or more bags this season and all four of those players have yet to be caught stealing. Senior Austin Baker leads the team with a perfect 10-for-10 on the base paths which is tied for seventh in Division II.
 
As a team, SAU is hitting .282 with 137 hits, including 42 extra base hits and is averaging just over six runs per game. Seven players have recorded at least a dozen hits this season with Mason Peterson's 22 hits leading the team and ranking 23^rd nationally. His 37 total bases is currently the 25^th-most in DII baseball. Peterson is also tied for the team-lead in runs scored as him and Baker have each crossed home 15 times to lead five Muleriders with at least ten runs scored this season.
 
Additionally, Peterson leads the team in doubles (6) and RBI (14), while Brett McGee is off to a powerful start to his sophomore campaign as he holds team-bests in home runs (5), slugging percentage (.698), walks (14) and on-base percentage (.492). McGee is one of five players hitting .300 or better this season with Peterson's .400 average leading the team. Senior Kobe Morris has recorded 18 hits, 14 runs scored and 12 RBI and is behind Baker in stolen bases with 7 in as many attempts. Sophomore Ty Manning has been just as impressive in the early going as he has recorded 19 hits, eight runs scored and six RBI to go along with a perfect 6-of-6 in stolen bases.
 
On the mound, the Muleriders' weekend trio has been solid as has the production out of the bullpen. Southern Arkansas leads the GAC in team-ERA at 3.25 in a league-high 130.1 innings.
 
Senior Zach Smith owns a 0.71 ERA and is one of eight pitchers nationally with 4 wins as he is 4-0 on the season in four appearances with three starts. Junior Hunter Brantley (2-1) leads the staff in strikeouts with 34 which ranks 23^rd nationally. Sophomore Parker Abrego (2-0) has went the distance twice and has tossed a staff-high 26.0 innings or work. He has recorded the second-most strikeouts on the team with 25.
 
In relief, five arms have seen action in at least three games this season. Junior Tanner Vaught (2-1) owns a pen-low 1.98 ERA with a pair of saves and 16 strikeouts in 13.2 innings of work. Sophomore Remy Bilodeau (1-0) has tossed 14.1 innings with a seven-inning complete inning and has recorded 13 punch outs this season. Senior Matt Kortendick leads the team in saves with three in just 6.0 innings, while freshman Kade Garmany (2-0) has worked 10.1 innings with the second-lowest opponent batting average at .194.
 
Northwestern Oklahoma enters the weekend with the third-highest batting average in the GAC at .299 with a league-leading 160 hits. The team's 22 home runs are the second-most in the GAC this season. However on the mound, the Rangers have a team-ERA of 8.22, but own the second-best team fielding percentage behind SAU at .978.
 
Four players own batting averages at .333 or better and the team is led by Bryce Donovan's .397. Donovan leads the team in hits (23), home runs (6), RBI (18), total bases (45), slugging percentage (.776), walks (13), stolen bases (4-for-4) and on-base percentage (.500). Four other players have recorded ten or more RBI this season and five have scored at least 11 runs.
 
On the mound, Colby Carson has accounted for a third of the team's victories in 13.0 innings pitched. Brody Shook's 2.70 ERA leads the team among pitchers with at least three appearances and no starts. Scott Creedon leads the team in strikeouts (22) and innings pitched (22.0). Three other pitchers have reached double-digit K totals and five arms have seen action in at least 10.0 innings this season.