MAGNOLIA, Ark. – For the third time this season, #8/7 Southern Arkansas will meet a Great American Conference foe sitting directly behind the league-leading Muleriders in the standings. SAU gears up for a three-game conference series with (RV) Henderson State who at 12-6 in conference play is tied for second place with Ouachita and currently five games back of the Muleriders' 17-1 mark in GAC action. First pitch on Friday, April 1 is scheduled for 6 p.m. with Saturday's series-deciding doubleheader slated for a 2 p.m. first pitch. Live coverage links are available at
www.MuleriderAthletics.com.
Southern Arkansas (23-5, 17-1 GAC) enters the weekend having won six-straight league games. The 28-game start for the Muleriders matches the same start as the 2017 club and Friday night's opener is the first of four-straight games against the Henderson State (21-8, 12-6 GAC) which includes a nonconference meeting on Tuesday, April 5 in Arkadelphia.
Since the 2012 season, the Muleriders hold a 34-16 lead in the series with Henderson State. In Magnolia, SAU is 12-2 against the Reddies. The two defeats were a 9-8 decision in 11 innings in the second game of three-game series in 2013 and a 9-6 loss that ended the Muleriders' GAC Tournament run last spring.
Averaging a GAC-leading 10 runs per game, currently the 13
th-best run-producing output in the country, the Muleriders 289 hits are the third-most in the league. SAU's team batting average of .319 leads the conference. Five players have eclipsed the 30-hit mark this season led by freshman
Brandon Nicoll's team-leading 38 base knocks. Two other players currently have 29 hits this season.
SAU has recorded 118 extra-base hits with its 61 doubles (11; Nicoll,
Ty Manning) ranking fourth in the GAC, its 11 triples (2; Manning,
Riley Orr,
Jakob Machuca,
Jacob Martinez) leading the GAC and 46 home runs (9;
Tucker Burton) standing as the second most in the league and tenth-most nationally. The squad's slugging percentage of .559 is 12
th nationally.
Hitting certainly has not been an issue for sixth-year head coach
Justin Pettigrew's squad, but the run production can be attributed to much more than merely swinging the bat. The Muleriders rank fifth in Division II in walks (172) and tenth in hit-by-pitch (58) which has led to the club currently holding the ninth-highest on-base percentage in the country at .449.
On the mound, SAU ranks 25
th nationally in strikeouts per nine (10.3) which ranks second in the GAC as does a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 2.26. The team's 8.29 hits allowed per nine are 26
th in Division II and second in the conference.
The Muleriders' pitching staff is highlighted by the GAC's top two arms in strikeouts and strikeouts per nine innings. Freshman
Jeremy Adorno, who leads the nation in wins with eight, also ranks first nationally in strikeouts with 74 and first in the GAC in strikeouts per nine innings at 12.97. Junior
Jacob Womack follows closely behind with 64 total strikeouts, which ranks ninth nationally, and a K/9 clip of 11.29.
The pair, along with fellow weekend arm junior
Wyatt Marr, all rank in the conference's top five in ERA. As a team, SAU's 4.33 ERA ranks second. Individually, Adorno's 1.58 leads the league and ranks 21
st nationally, Marr follows with the league's third-lowest at 3.23 with Womack's 3.53 ranking fifth. Sophomore
Chance Bolter's 1.23 ERA leads all SAU relievers. In six appearances, Bolter has scattered eight hits and five walks over 7.1 innings pitched, while striking out four. He has earned three wins and a save.
Junior
Parker Abrego and sophomore
Kade Garmany both own ERAs south of 2.00. Abrego has throw 10.2 relief innings over five appearances totaling 14 strikeouts. In three appearances, Garmany has totaled 4.2 innings pitched with seven strikeouts and just three hits allowed. Junior
Maddux Solomon has four relief outings this season totaling four innings with four strikeouts and just three hits surrendered.
The Reddies counter with the league's top team ERA at 4.07. The staff's 7.37 hits allowed per nine innings is the lowest in the GAC as is the unit's 1.35 WHIP. The Muleriders will most likely see the Reddies ace Spencer Taack in Friday night's contest. His six victories are second behind Adorno's eight and his 43 strikeouts rank eighth and just behind teammate Cade Tucker's 44.
As a team, the Reddies are hitting .291 and have scored the fourth-most runs in the GAC at 228. HSU is slugging .481 and has totaled 107 extra-base hits this campaign. Greyson Stevens' 40 hits are the third-most in the GAC, while David Vilches' 10 home runs are tied for third.
