MAGNOLIA – The SAU Baseball team welcomes Oklahoma Baptist into Walker Stadium at Goodheart Field this weekend in a three-game conference series that carries big GAC Tournament implications for both the Muleriders and the Bison.
Atop the standing right now is Arkansas Tech, who are 17-4 in conference play. They currently sit one game ahead of the Bison, who in turn are one game ahead of the Muleriders.
The Bison are 18-8 overall and 16-5 in conference play. After winning two of three against Northwestern Oklahoma last weekend, they won a midweek contest against Northeastern State.
Offensively, the Bison are hitting .301 as a team this season, led by Kaimana Bartolome's .410 at the dish. One of three Bison to play in and start every game, the third baseman is one of four Bisons hitting over .300.
Hector Ruvalcaba leads the team with nine homeruns, with teammate Cliff Pradd not trailing too far behind with eight of his own this season.
On the mound, they own a 5.45 ERA with 222 strikeouts in 203 innings pitched. Their ace, Jake Lipetzky, has a 3.32 ERA and a 3-2 record in eight starts. He has struck out 52 batters in 40.2 innings this season.
The Muleriders are 19-8 overall this season and 15-6 in conference play. They took two of three from Harding last weekend, dropping the opening game 11-10 before a double-header that saw the Muleriders win 13-7 and 10-6 saw them clinch the series.
The Muleriders are hitting .283 as a team this season, led by
Kobe Morris' .366 and
Austin Baker's .352. Averaging 7.5 runs per game, the Muleriders have left the yard 34 times this season, with
Tucker Burton's eight and
Brett McGee's seven tops on the team.
Burton and McGee are two of four Muleriders with over 20 RBIs, with Morris' 22 leading the other three, which includes shortstop
Riley Orr, who all have 20 RBIs on the season.
The Mulerider pitching staff has a 3.94 ERA on the season, striking out 187 batters in 224 innings pitched. Starters
Jacob Womack (3.55),
Remy Bilodeau (3.95) and
Zach Smith (4.05) all have ERAs at or under 4.00, while reliever
Santos Sosa, who has four wins this season, owns a 2.25 ERA in his 20 innings on the mound this season.
Games this weekend will start with the double-header on Saturday at 3 p.m. before the series wraps up on Sunday at 1 p.m. Live coverage link are available on MuleriderAthletics.com.
