After losing its first conference series of the season last weekend against Southeastern Oklahoma, Henderson State looks to rebound as the Reddies welcome East Central for a three-game GAC series at Clyde Berry Field beginning with a Saturday double-header at 2 p.m.

The Reddies are looking to end a three game losing skid. Henderson has won seven of its last nine home games.

East Central has won conference series' against Arkansas-Monticello and Northwestern Oklahoma. Both were played at Ken Turner Field in Ada, Okla. The Tigers are 2-9 in games away from their home park. The two victories include an 8-2 win at Southern Arkansas and an 8-3 victory at Southwestern Oklahoma.            

Henderson is coming off a 15-13 loss to No. 19 Delta State in a game that saw the Reddies collect a season-high 16 hits including seven for extra-bases.          

Last weekend, the Reddies lost their first conference series as Southeastern Oklahoma took two of three games. Henderson managed just two runs in the three games despite out-hitting the Storm 22 to 16.

Henderson has a team batting average of .253. The Reddies are looking for the same type of run production they had against Delta State on Tuesday. 

Hayden Lessenberry leads the Henderson offense with a .333 average including a team-best 8 doubles and a .484 slugging percentage. The senior from Bryant, Ark. has a .392 average in GAC play.

Joe Myers follows with a .326 average which includes a .477 slugging percentage. The freshman from Little Rock is hitting .344 in the last 10 games.    

Parker Jones has had the hot bat as of late going 9-for-20 in the last five games. Jones has lifted his season average to .311 which includes 10 RBI.    

Luke Tebbetts, Chris Hunt and Bryant Haralson make up the Reddies weekend pitching rotation.           

Tebbetts suffered his first loss of the year last weekend despite allowing just one unearned run and giving up only two hits. The right-hander from Winnsboro, Texas has a 2.22 ERA and has fanned 30 batters in 44.2/3 innings. Opponents have a .219 average against the Henderson senior.

Hunt enters with a 5-2 record and a 3.07 ERA. The senior from Greenwood, Ark. is third all-time in HSU history in career strikeouts with 190 and needs just seven more punch outs to surpass T.J. Hendricks who struck out 196 batters from 1999 to 2003. Hunt has fanned six or more batters in six of seven games this season. The only game he failed to record a strikeout was last week in a 7-1 loss to the Savage Storm.

Haralson leads the Reddie pitching staff with a 4-2 record overall and a league best 1.45 ERA. Haralson ranks fourth nationally in strikeout to walk ratio having recorded 49 strikeouts and just three walks. The junior from Atkins, Ark. has not allowed a run in the last 23 innings of work. Opponents are hitting just .153 against the right-hander. 

East Central enters the series with an 8-15 overall record and a 7-8 mark in the league after losing two of three games last weekend to Ouachita Baptist.

The Tigers have a solid .263 team batting average which ranks sixth in the GAC.

First baseman Jake MeKeel leads the Tiger offense with a .398 average which includes a team-best nine doubles along with 16 runs batted in. The senior from Dunsmuir, Calif. is hitting .476 in the last 10 games going 20-for-42 including 7 doubles and 8 RBI.

Third baseman Connor Stevenson follows with a .329 average including a team-high 5 home runs, 22 RBI and a .589 slugging percentage. The junior from Keswick, Okla. has gone 11-for-24 in the last seven games while collecting 11 RBI.

The ECU pitching staff enters with a team earned run average of 5.10 with opponents having a .283 team batting average.

Dylan Sanchez, Jake Wellington and Brandon Dusenberry make up ECU's weekend pitching rotation.
Sanchez is 1-6 on the season after struggling against Ouachita Baptist last weekend giving up four runs in two innings of work. The senior right-hander from Olustee, Okla. picked up a win earlier this year against Arkansas-Monticello. In 35.1 innings of work, Sanchez has recorded 26 strikeouts.

Wellington sports a 2.81 earned runs average with a 1-2 record. The senior right-hander has recorded 28 punch outs in 25 2/3 innings.

Dusenberry has been the most effective pitcher for the Tigers having a 4-2 record with a 3.67 ERA. The left-hander from Paris, Texas has won four straight games including victories over Arkansas-Monticello, Southern Arkansas, Southwestern Oklahoma and Ouachita. In the last five games, Dusenberry has pitched 32 1/3 innings and surrendered just 7 earned runs for a 1.95 ERA.

Live stats and video streaming will be available on the Henderson State Athletics website at www.hsusports.com.