MAGNOLIA, Ark. - Mother Nature has had her fun, but the Great American Conference Baseball schedule moves on for Southern Arkansas as the league-leading Muleriders are set for a second-straight week of Sunday-Monday league action. Southern Nazarene comes to Magnolia for a three-game series beginning with a 2 p.m. doubleheader and followed by a 1 p.m. finale. Live coverage links are available at www.MuleriderAthletics.com.
The Muleriders (16-6, 10-2 GAC) enter looking to shake off a small skid that has seen the squad lose three of its past four games including a pair of league tilts at home last weekend. SAU is currently a single game up as the top team in the GAC standings entering the fifth league weekend of the season. Southern Arkansas holds the #8 ranking nationally in both the NCBWA and D2 Baseball Insider Top 25 polls.
SAU and SNU have met 30 times prior to Sunday's opener. The Muleriders lead the series 24-6 and have won ten straight crossing over the 13-run mark in seven of those contests. Southern Arkansas is 9-3 against the Crimson Storm at home.
Southern Arkansas holds top 15 marks nationally in complete games (4, 3rd), hit-by-pitch (47, 14th), runs scored (197, 17th), home runs (30, 18th) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.62, 18th). The Muleriders lead the GAC in CGs, HBP, runs and K-to-BB ratio as well as runs per game (9.0) and walks allowed per nine (3.41).
Brandon Nicoll leads the GAC in home runs with eight which ranks 13th nationally and Will Richardson's 32 RBI are a league-high and the eighth-most nationally. Richardson also holds a top 40 mark in DII with 33 hits. Isaiah Haynes' four saves are the seventh-most in the country and lead the GAC, while Tim Ruffino's strikeout-to-walk ratio of 7.0 is a league-best effort and inside the top 25 nationally. Jeremy Adorno's 39 strikeouts are the third-most in the GAC and rank him 15th among all DII arms.
Southern Nazarene (6-17, 3-10 GAC) enters the weekend following a midweek, non-conference win over East Central. SNU ranks in the GAC's top five in walks (108, 5th), hit batters (39, 2nd), hit-by-pitch (31, 5th) on-base percentage (.396, 5th) and sacrifice bunts (10, 5th).
Jacob Martinez is the top hitter for SNU with a .378 average, 31 hits, nine doubles and 22 runs scored. He is one of six players with a dozen or more RBI. Trey Orman leads with 23 runs batted in. Patrick Hine leads with 29.0 innings pitched. Martinez's 32 strikeouts paced the staff as do his two saves.
