MAGNOLIA, Ark. – Southern Arkansas combined to score 29 runs on 25 hits in 14 trips to the plate on Saturday afternoon as the Muleriders claimed both ends of the Great American Conference doubleheader against East Central to earn a series sweep of the Tigers from Walker Stadium at Goodheart Field. SAU trailed 3-0 through four innings in the first game of the day before pushing across 13 runs in innings 5 through 8 to take the series with a 13-6 game two win. In the finale, the Muleriders finished off the Tigers with 16 runs over the final four innings to win 16-3 and claim its first league series sweep of the season.
 
Southern Arkansas managed just one hit through the first four innings of play against ECU start Jonny Chavez, but in the fifth inning the Muleriders broke through for five runs on five hits and an error to take a 5-4 lead.
 
Sophomore Riley Orr recorded SAU's second hit of the afternoon with a leadoff single into centerfield and with one out in the frame, senior Kobe Morris doubled down the right field line to push Orr to third and put a pair of runners in scoring position for junior Jacob Martinez.
 
Martinez delivered as he singled into left field which scored both Orr and Morris and in the following at bat Martinez scored from first as junior Tucker Burton doubled into the gap in left centerfield to pull the Muleriders to within a run of the ECU lead at 4-3.
 
The final hit of the frame for Southern Arkansas came off the bat of sophomore Brett McGee as he singled into right field to plate Burton and prompt a pitching change by the Tigers. With the game tied at 4, sophomore Ty Manning reached on a fielder's choice that erased McGee at second, but set the stage for SAU to take a lead that it would not surrender.
 
Manning stole second, moved to third on an errant throw from the Tiger catcher and then scored on a close play at the plate following a slow reaction from the ECU outfield which encouraged Manning to head home.
 
The Muleriders were just getting started offensively with the five-run fifth inning as head coach Justin Pettigrew's squad added three runs in the sixth, two runs in the seventh and three more runs in the eighth as SAU pushed across 10+ runs for the fourth time this season.
 
Highlighting the late inning surge offensively was RBI hits from both Morris and Martinez in the sixth inning, a two-run home run out to left field off the bat of sophomore Conner Allen in the seventh and an RBI groundout by Peterson and a two-run single from Allen in the eighth.
 
Southern Arkansas recorded a dozen hits in the game two win with doubles from Morris, Martinez, and Burton and a round tripper from Allen. Martinez and Orr each had three hits, while Allen and Morris collected two. SAU drew five walks and was hit-by-pitch five times in the opener.
 
Sophomore Parker Abrego started Saturday's opener and went 3.1 innings for Southern Arkansas with four strikeouts, while freshman Santos Sosa picked up his third win in relief as the worked the middle 3.2 innings. Sophomore Maddux Solomon faced the minimum in the eighth and ninth innings with three groundouts, two fly outs and a strikeout.
 
In the series finale, the Muleriders again trailed early as ECU plated three runs in the visiting half of the second inning. And just like Saturday's opener, the Muleriders responded in a big way as a six-run frame on the team's third trip to the plate staked Mulerider reliever Jacob Womack to a three-run lead.
 
Womack tossed 4.1 innings in relief of game three starter James Janco. Womack fanned five and faced one over the minimum. Freshman Dakota Frachiseur worked the final frame allowing a walk and a hit with a strikeout.
 
Morris connected on a two-run double that opened scoring for the Muleriders and Burton singled home Morris to tie the finale at 3. A two-run single by Manning and a sacrifice fly by senior Mason Peterson capped the game-changing inning as the Muleriders led 6-3 through three.
 
A triple from the bat of Martinez plated Baker and Burton lifted a sacrifice fly to score Martinez in the two-run fourth and in the fifth the Muleriders relied on the big fly as a solo shot from Manning and a three-run blast by Orr pushed SAU out front for a 12-3 lead marking the fifth game this campaign with 10+ plus runs.
 
Freshman Chris Lyles reached on a fielder's choice that plated Baker and a dropped fly ball with two outs in the sixth inning in junior Ty Bowring's at bat emptied the bases as the Muleriders matched their season-high in runs scored. Morris, Manning and Orr all had two hits in game three with Manning and Orr combining for six RBI.
 
The Muleriders hit the road for Durant, Oklahoma next weekend for a three-game GAC series with Southeastern Oklahoma State. The series opener is scheduled for Friday, March 26 at 2 p.m. with Saturday's doubleheader set for a 1 p.m. first pitch. Live coverage links are available at www.MuleriderAthletics.com.