MAGNOLIA, Ark. – The 24
th season of Southern Arkansas Softball begins on Saturday in southeast Texas as seventh-year head coach
Jason Anderson's Muleriders open play at the Arkansas Tech Winter Invitational in Conroe. Five games, all regional affairs, are on tap for the country's 16
th-ranked program which includes matchups with three teams ranked in the NFCA DII Preseason Top 25. Live coverage links, if available, can be found at
www.MuleriderAthletics.com.
The Muleriders are coming off of a solid 29-10 campaign that resulted in a Great American Conference regular season title and the program's sixth appearance in NCAA postseason play, but the expectations for Anderson's bunch are as high as they've ever been as the mission remains the same: reach the game's biggest stage and claim its ultimate prize of a national championship.
A steady mix of veteran returners and experienced newcomers begin the ride to Denver. Sixteen players return from last season's squad headlined by D2CCA All-Region Second Team and All-GAC First Team selection
Alese Casper. All-GAC honorees
Sarah Evans and
Jaxynn Dyson also return to give Anderson a formidable "up-the-middle" presence for a club that lost three all-region performers and five all-league selections to graduation. In the circle, Southern Arkansas will not benefit from a single-third of its 256.0 total innings pitched last season, but the new-look staff will be led by a highly-touted group of first year Muleriders in freshman transfer
Sydney Ward (Crowder College), graduate transfer
Baylie Thornhill (Ohio), freshman transfer
Kiana Pogroszewski (Bossier Parish CC), freshman transfer
Macie Welch (Memphis) and freshman Mackenzie Baldwin (Klein Oak HS).
Preseason favorites in the GAC, Southern Arkansas will be tested early and often this weekend at the Scrap Yards. The Muleriders' campaign begins against the Lone Star Conference's St. Mary's on Saturday at 11 a.m. The Rattlers finished 2021 at 21-23 overall and return ten players from last spring's squad including a trio of All-LSC performers in catcher Victoria Aldridge, second basemen Jayme Johns and outfielder Abigale Carney.
Saturday's second opponent will be a familiar one for the Muleriders. #2 Augustana, Central Region champions a year ago and 3-2 winners in eight innings against the Muleriders in that tournament last spring, enters the weekend at 1-1 after opening the season at Texas A&M-Commerce earlier this week. The Vikings produced a 49-8 overall record last spring with a national semifinal berth. AU returns a trio of NFCA All-Americans in outfielder Mary Pardo, the NSIC Preseason Player of the Year, pitcher Ashley Mickschl and catcher Torri Chute in addition to four All-NSIC selections. SAU and AU square off at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
Sunday's action pits the Muleriders against Texas A&M International at 2 p.m. and will be followed by a 4 p.m. first-pitch with #18 Angelo State. TAMIU posted an overall mark of 26-19 last season and return three All-LSC selections in pitcher Erika Cortez, outfielder Darrian Smith and utility player Briana Arredondo. For the Rambelles, four All-LSC first team performers return in Ashlyn Lerma, Madison Fernandez, Keilei Garcia and Ashlynn Box.
SAU closes out its five-game slate against #20 Central Oklahoma, 2021 MIAA Champions, on Monday at 1 p.m. Last spring, the Bronchos went 36-14 and hosted the Central Region Tournament in which they were eliminated by Southern Arkansas 5-4. UCO returns eight players that appeared on an All-MIAA team a season ago including second-teamers second baseman Tarin Dubler and outfielder Jacee Minter as well as MIAA Co-Defensive Player of the Year Lexy Dobson.
Since 2015, Southern Arkansas is 25-4 in season-opening weekends. Under Anderson, the Muleriders are a combined 6-1 against the competition that his squad will face in Conroe. It will be the first meeting between SAU and TAMIU.
