DURANT, Okla. – Southern Arkansas received a pair of quality starting pitching performances across 13 innings of action on Saturday and used a combined 21 hits to plate 16 runs to complete the Great American Conference sweep of Southeastern Oklahoma State on Saturday afternoon. The Muleriders won 4-2 in game two and in the finale, the offense came alive to claim a 12-1 win in six innings and in the process push its winning streak to nine games and its league-best record to 14-3.
Freshman
Kiana Pogroszewski won her eighth game of the season in a seven-inning effort that saw her scatter six hits, allow an unearned run and three walks, while retiring seven via strikeout. Freshman
Sydney Ward reached the 10-win mark in the circle after the Savage Storm managed just three hits in five innings of work against the right hander in the finale. She struck out three and gave way to
Baylie Thornhill who faced the minimum in the sixth to ensure the series sweep.
Tiare Lee accounted for three of the team's four RBI in Saturday's opener as an RBI groundout pushed across the day's first run in the second inning, while a two-run home run in the fourth inning put SAU up 3-0.
Madison Miller delivered an RBI single in the sixth to cushion the lead at 4-0 and the Muleriders managed to hold off the late-inning surge by the host to claim the series.
The series finale was never in doubt, at least not after two innings of play, as the Muleriders answered a single Savage Storm run in the bottom of the first inning with a five-run second inning, a two-run fourth and capped the weekend with a five-run sixth to invoke a lingering run-rule. That productive sixth inning was highlighted by a grand slam off the bat of M. Miller.
Senior
Alese Casper led in the finale with four hits, four RBI and three runs scored. Sophomore
Jaxynn Dyson recorded three hits, three RBI and scored once.
Taylor Murphy,
Mariah Hamilton and
Jade Miller all picked up two hits each with the first two recording a hit in the first game of the day as well.
The Muleriders will now prepare to host Henderson State in Magnolia during the first weekend of the April. The Friday, April 1 opener, no joke, is set for a 5 p.m. first pitch and Saturday's doubleheader is slated for a 2 p.m. start. Live coverage links are available at
www.MuleriderAthletics.com.