CLEVELAND, Miss. – The Southern Arkansas University Muleriders (3-4, 0-0 GAC) defeated the Delta State University Statesmen (2-2, 0-0 GSC) today in Cleveland, Mississippi.
 
The Muleriders bats started off hot at the plate as Preston Smith led the game off with a bang as he homered to right field to take an early 1-0 lead. Unable to capitalize on early momentum for the rest of the first inning, Eli Hutcherson took the mound looking to earn his first win of the year. Hutcherson took the mound in the bottom of the frame and held the Statesmen scoreless as the teams headed to the second. A scoreless second from both teams saw SAU come to the plate in the top of the third with a chance to tack on.
 
The top of the third inning saw Preston Smith lead off with a walk followed by Jordan Owns reaching on an error by the second baseman, but Preston Smith was thrown out at second base from right field. Wyatt Fielding then stepped to the plate and homered to left field scoring Owns and putting SAU up 3-0 early. A scoreless bottom of the third for Delta State followed by a scoreless fourth from both squads led to the Muleriders tacking on again in the top of the fifth as Wyatt Fielding reached on a fielder's choice scoring Preston Smith who walked to lead off the inning. After five complete, SAU led 4-0.
 
A scoreless sixth for both squads set up another crooked inning for SAU in the top of the seventh. A leadoff single by Christian Gutierrez followed by a double from Tate Elliott and a Preston Smith hit by pitch to load the bases brought Jordan Owns to the plate. Owns quickly singled for an RBI, 5-0 which was followed by a sacrifice fly from Wyatt Fielding to score Elliott gave SAU a 6-0 lead. David Chandler then singled with two outs to score Preston Smith as the Muleriders went up 7-0. Eli Hutcherson came out of the game in the eighth inning after throwing seven scoreless innings.
 
The Muleriders tacked on another run in the top of the ninth inning as Christian Gutierrez collected his second hit of the game singling to left field to score Jacob Lang as he was hit by a pitch earlier in the inning. Heading into the bottom of the ninth, SAU led 8-0. The Statesmen were able to push three runs across thanks to a couple walks and a home run but SAU held on to secure their first road win of the year, 8-3.
 
Top Performers
Eli Hutcherson: 7.0 innings pitched, 6 strikeouts, 0 runs allowed
Wyatt Fielding: 1-for-4, home run, 4 RBI, 1 run scored
Preston Smith: 1-for-2, home run, 3 runs scored, 1 RBI, 3 walks
Christian Gutierrez: 2-for-5, 1 RBI, 1 run scored
 
Up Next
The Muleriders will hit the road again this weekend as they head to Shawnee, Oklahoma to open conference play with a series against Oklahoma Baptist. The series will begin on Friday, February 13th with a doubleheader starting at 2:00 p.m. followed by a single game on Saturday, February 14th at 12:00 p.m.