MAGNOLIA, Ark. – It was an instant classic that they'll talk about for years to come and the Muleriders were made for the moment. Sophomore Isaiah Haynes' first pitch to the fourth batter he faced in the bottom of the ninth inning was popped up and out near the left field line where sophomore Chris Lyles tracked down the contact for the game's 27^th out, backflipped and then raced to the infield to join the celebration as Southern Arkansas capped the wildest ninth inning rally most will ever witness.
 
Down 11-6 in the top of the ninth of Saturday afternoon's second installment of the NCAA Division II Central Super Regional from Walker Stadium at Goodheart Field, the Muleriders needed one more regional postseason rally to hold off an energized Augustana squad eager to force the "if-necessary" contest to decide the region's representative in June's DII Baseball Championship. Sixth-year head coach Justin Pettigrew's club engineered a furious comeback by plating seven runs with two outs highlighted by a go-ahead three-run blast off the bat of junior Brett McGee in the top half of the inning to take a 13-11 lead which would hold firm as Haynes worked quickly in the bottom half to secure the biggest win in the program's 26-year history as an NCAA member.
 
There are pileups. And then there is the euphoric, dugout emptying dog pile that ensued just below Goodheart Field's pitching mound after the "F7 LL" sent the standing room only crowd into a frenzy. Pure chaos. Southern Arkansas defenders enthusiastically joined their teammates on the infield grass as white jerseys poured onto the field from the dugout! Alongside them in spirit were players, coaches and team personnel of talented past teams who had endured seasons of "almost." Those past frustrations and disappointments were nowhere to be found as the Muleriders finally broke through with a knockout punch to secure its maiden trip to Cary, North Carolina.
 
For the 61^st time in program history, the Muleriders eclipsed the ten-run mark in a postseason contest and that run production came behind 15 hits of which a third occurred in the ninth inning alone, while three others went for extra bases. McGee's three-run homer marked the fourth time this NCAA postseason that Southern Arkansas has hit a go-ahead home run in its final at bat of the game, while the seven runs in the ninth marked the fourth time this postseason that the Muleriders manufactured five or more runs in either the seventh, eighth or ninth innings.
 
In the ninth, freshman Brandon Nicoll's season-long hitting showcase continued as he singled, his team-leading 82^nd hit of the campaign, to lead off the frame. With one out, junior Ty Manning was plunked to put runners at first and second, but a pop out would place Southern Arkansas down to its final out of game two. Lyles was hit-by-pitch to load the bases and junior Conner Allen, Friday night's hero, delivered again this time with an RBI single into left field that plated Nicoll and kept the bases full for junior Riley Orr.
 
Augustana went to its bullpen for the second time in as many innings and Orr welcomed the fresh reliever with a two-run single up the middle that chased home Manning and Lyles and brought SAU to within two runs of the lead at 11-9. The hit parade continued as sophomore Chris Sutton singled through the right side to score Allen and set the stage for McGee.

McGee, the ninth batter to the plate for SAU in the inning, took a 1-0 pitch from Augustana's Caleb Saari and banged if off the advertising signage in right field for his 16^th home run of the season; a blast that will be lauded in the annals of Mulerider Baseball forever.
 
The south Arkansas sun was out and so were the supporters as attendance figures neared 900 for the second straight day. SAU jumped out to an early advantage with an opposite field RBI single from freshman Jakob Machuca that plated McGee and opened scoring with one out in the top of the first inning. The lead grew to 3-0 after SAU's trip to the dish in the third. McGee's first of two home runs on the day beat the shift in a big way as the solo shot left quickly out to right field to give SAU a 2-0 start.
 
Nicoll followed by blazing out a bunt single on the right side and had plenty left in the tank as he moved to second on a hit-by-pitch to Manning, advanced to third on a fly out and then stole home as Manning forced a rundown which led to Nicoll sneaking his left arm in just under the tag for a key third run early.
 
The Muleriders tossed the ball to junior Wyatt Marr and he operated through 4.2 innings scattering ten hits and absorbing six earned runs with three strikeouts. He faced just one over the minimum through the first two innings of play.
 
Augie plated two in the third and the two teams traded runs in the fourth as a base hit by Nicoll scored Orr and briefly made it 4-2 SAU before AU grabbed a run back in the bottom half. The Vikings heated up at the plate in the fifth as five hits and an error led to four runs and a 7-4 advantage. SAU reliever Chance Bolter took over for Marr with two outs in the fifth, recorded the final out and then worked a clean 1-2-3 sixth.
 
Southern Arkansas stranded a runner in scoring position in the seventh and following the stretch, Augustana struck for a lone run against Bolter and added one more against senior Reed Osborn who entered the frame with two outs and the bases loaded. Osborn stranded the bases loaded and received a stellar defensive play behind him as Sutton recorded the final out on a diving stop and throw to first to limit the damage.
 
The ninth boasted the fireworks, but the fuse was lit in the eighth for the Muleriders. Senior Tucker Burton led off the inning by becoming only the third player in program history to hit 20 home runs in a single season as his 20^th left quickly out to right field and served as the fifth run of the game for SAU as the deficit closed to four. Lyles moved around the base paths in the frame as he reached on a bunt single, moved to second on a passed ball, took third on a ground out and scored following a single by Orr into right centerfield as the Augie lead was cut to 9-6.
 
SAU ran into trouble again in the eighth as a two-run home run pushed the lead back to five at 11-6, but when you're at destiny's doorstep you sometimes have to just kick in the door and absolutely nothing was more evident of that effort than the Muleriders' seven runs on four two-out hits in the visiting half of the ninth.
 
Osborn earned the win, his fourth of the season and Haynes snagged his fifth save and third of the postseason. McGee and Nicoll each recorded three hits, while Allen and Orr both followed with two. McGee scored three times and Nicoll, Lyles and Orr crossed twice. McGee's four RBI and Orr's three RBI highlighted an afternoon that saw SAU set the single season program record for RBI with 537 to surpass the 2010 team's mark of 530. The Muleriders are three hits shy of becoming the ninth team in program history to record 600 hits in a single season, while the squad's current team totals in runs scored and total bases are both second all-time in a single season and closing in on the program records.
 
Southern Arkansas' 46 wins entering the national tournament are tied for the third-most in a single season in program history. For the first time in program history, the Muleriders will play in June as the DII Baseball Championship will get underway June 4-11 at the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, North Carolina. Southern Arkansas will be joined by seven other regional champions and the eight teams will be reseeded to form the double-elimination bracket. Information regarding national seeding, opening round matchup, tickets and merchandise will be made available at www.MuleriderAthletics.com.