HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – A trio of fifth inning doubles helped #11/14 Southern Arkansas extend a 3-1 lead to a 6-1 advantage and the Muleriders backed another strong starting effort from league pitcher of the year Jeremy Adorno by adding five runs in both the seventh and eighth innings to cruise to a 17-2 win over (8) Arkansas Tech in the opening round of the Great American Conference Tournament on Saturday afternoon from Majestic Park's Babe Ruth Field.
 
The Muleriders (38-11) head into Sunday's action following the program's 24^th GAC Tournament win and will face (5) Ouachita at 9:30 a.m. in the first game of the four-game slate. Live coverage links are available at www.MuleriderAthletics.com.
 
No pitcher in the decade-plus history of the Great American Conference had ever won 14 games in a single season entering the start of Saturday's action. That all changed at the conclusion of the day's second contest as Adorno improved his nation's best record to 14-0 and became the GAC's single season wins leader; topping the previous mark of 13 set by former Mulerider All-American and MLB draft pick James Baune in 2013. The win total also moves the freshman right hander into a tie with Larry Lundeen for the program's single season wins record which was set in 1987.
 
Adorno allowed one hit, walked three and tossed eight strong innings in his second start against the Wonder Boys this season. He picked up five strikeouts to run his season total to 124 which makes him just the second pitcher in program history to record 120+ punch outs in a single season. The record book is far from shut on his 2022 campaign as he is just three Ks back of the league's single-season strikeout mark and nine away from claiming SAU's record.
 
Senior Reed Osborn worked the ninth to finish out the superb all-around effort by Southern Arkansas in its postseason opener.
 
Southern Arkansas' 17 runs mark the ninth time in GAC history that the Muleriders pushed across 10+ in a tournament game and are the most in a postseason contest for the program since May 16, 2004: a 17-14 win over #18 Incarnate Word in the NCAA DII South Central Region Tournament.
 
Seven Muleriders combined to account for the club's 13 hits, eight of which went for extra bases, on the day with four players recording two or more. Junior Brett McGee produced a 3-for-4 effort with four RBI, three runs scored and two walks. Sophomore Chris Lyles posted a 3-for-4 afternoon with three RBI, two runs scored and a walk. Both players stole a pair of bags as did junior Ty Manning who delivered a pair of doubles including one in the aforementioned fifth inning along with McGee and Lyles.
 
McGee doubled with one out in the frame, advanced to third on single by freshman Brandon Nicoll, who homered with two outs in the home half of the first to open scoring, and scored on a sacrifice fly from the bat of Jakob Machuca to cushion Adorno's start with a three-run lead at 4-1. Manning then doubled to put Nicoll at third and set the table for Lyles who plated the pair to push the Muleriders out front and in control at 6-1.
 
A Chris Sutton sacrifice fly in the sixth and an RBI single from junior Conner Allen in the seventh scored Lyles who walked with one out and then proceeded to swipe both second and third before trotting home on the contact by Allen. With two outs following the stretch, McGee cranked a grand slam that all but put the game away, however the Muleriders headed back to the run-scoring well in the eighth as the final five runs crossed with the benefit of only two hits and the addition of three walks and two HBP.
 
Southern Arkansas walked ten times in the contest, was hit-by-pitch twice and recorded three sac flies with two coming from Sutton. Allen and McGee scored three times, junior Riley Orr and senior Jacob Martinez chipped in with RBIs.