MAGNOLIA, Ark. – The Great American Conference Softball Championship Tournament has arrived, and the 2025 GAC Regular Season Champions, Mulerider Softball, prepare for the gauntlet in Bentonville, Arkansas. With their regular-season championship, the Muleriders enter the week as the top seed in the league and are set to face the eight-seeded Henderson State on Thursday, May 1, at 1:00 PM. 

The Blue and Gold make their 13^th appearance in the GAC Championship Tournament and look to claim their first tournament title since doing so back in 2016. Southern Arkansas enters the bracket as the number one seed for the first time since the 2021 campaign after the Muleriders claimed the top seed for three straight seasons. 

While the group has yet to win a tournament title since the 2016 season, SAU is no stranger to the championship game, as they have been the tournament runners-up the past three seasons and now look to get over that hump this weekend by making it to its fourth straight championship round and being the ones to hoist the trophy at the end of the day.  

Leading up to this point in the campaign, the Muleriders, on paper, have been a dominant force to be reckoned with in the Great American Conference. The group currently sits at 39-8 overall with a 28-4 record in the GAC. In the Central Region, Southern Arkansas sits at 38-7 and boasted the NCAA's longest winning streak (27) at one point this season. Most recently, the unit dropped its first league series against the 2024 GAC Regular Season Champs, the two-seeded Oklahoma Baptist Bison. While losing the series, the Muleriders and Bison were unable to play game three of the series due to the ongoing weather in Shawnee, Oklahoma. 

Heading into the league tournament, the group is ranked number 12 in the most recent National Fastpitch Coaches Association DII rankings, as the team fell just three spots due to Friday's doubleheader at OBU. In the Central Region, the Muleriders rank ___ and are still in search of potentially hosting their first regional since the 2018 season, when the group made their last trip to the Women's College World Series. 

The last time the Muleriders and the Reddies met this campaign, Southern Arkansas swept the group from the ravine with final scores of 1-0, 6-1, and 7-3, all while inside the Dr. Margaret Downing Softball Complex. Following that weekend, SAU swept the Great American Conference's weekly honors with Regan Dillon claiming her lone Player of the Week honor and Brinson Rogers earning Pitcher of the Week number seven. 

Notable Players for Southern Arkansas

Leading the team, and the conference, in nearly all pitching statistics has been senior pitcher Brinson Rogers, as the Statesboro, Georgia native leads the GAC in complete games (23 | 7^th DII), ERA (0.87 | 7^th DII), hits allowed per seven innings (3.45 | 3^rd DII), innings pitched (193.0 | 6^th DII), shutouts (18 | 1^st NCAA), strikeouts (269 | 2^nd DII), strikeouts per seven innings (9.8 | 8^th DII), WHIP (0.80 | 4^th DII), and victories (26 | 2^nd NCAA). 

The top three batters for Southern Arkansas have all accounted for above .300 averages as Sophia Stoddard leads the pack on batting average and hits with .362 and 51 hits. Stoddard this season has recorded eight doubles, a triple, and three home runs with 16 RBIs. She is second on the team for most walks drawn as she has worked 20 walks out of opposing pitchers this season. 

Regan Dillon sits at second for her batting of .333 and is second on the team in hits, but leads in runs scored with 41, home runs with 12, and RBIs with 36. The Bryant, Arkansas native is the team's leader in slugging percentage at .674 and has tallied the most walks drawn for the group and the Great American Conference with 35. 

A Glimpse at the Reddies

Since being swept by the Muleriders in the regular season series, the Reddies have won 14 games and have lost just five games since. As of now, the group are riding a five-game winning streak after sweeping a midweek doubleheader against Delta State and the weekend series against East Central. 

For HSU in the circle, Makenna Keeton has led the team in ERA at 2.56 and is second on the team in games won with a 10-7 record, a pair of complete games, and has accounted for the most innings pitched by the staff with 95.2 IP. She is second in the staff in strikeouts with 52, but has also surrendered the most doubles and home runs by anyone on the staff, with 24 doubles and 12 home runs. With the best record out of the Reddies' pitchers, is Jersey Cabana as the Sam Dimas, California native is currently 11-2 and has recorded a 2.69 ERA with six complete games and 88.1 innings pitched. 

Leading the group in batting average with at least 50 contests played is Hilary Akers, a Houston, Texas native has recorded a .383 batting average with a team-high 69 hits, 18 doubles, two triples, eight home runs, and 45 RBIs. Akers is second on the team in walks drawn with 18 and sits right behind Justine Burch with 24. Burch has also recorded the team-high of 27 stolen bases on 31 attempts for an 87.1% success rate. 

Previous GAC Tournament Champions
2024 – Southern Nazarene

2023 – Southeastern Oklahoma State
2022 – Arkansas Tech
2021 – Arkansas Tech
2020 – No Champion; Covid-19
2019 – Arkansas Tech
2018 – Arkansas Tech
2017 – Harding
2016 – Southern Arkansas
2015 – East Central
2014 – Southern Arkansas
2013 – Southeastern Oklahoma State
2012 – Arkansas-Monticello

Tickets and Broadcast Details

All ticketing, live stats, and broadcast information for the 2025 Great American Conference Softball Championship Tournament can be found at www.greatamericanconference.com or can be found at the top of this article, where it says "Tournament Central".