MAGNOLIA, Ark. – The Reddies lineup was quieted on Saturday afternoon, as Southern Arkansas pitchers held Henderson to just four total hits to take both halves of the twin bill 8-4 and 5-1.
The doubleheader loss ends the 2019 season for HSU, who finishes 25-31 overall.
Game One: Southern Arkansas 8, Henderson State 4
Saturday's first contest was a back and forth affair. Southern Arkansas struck first and held a 2-0 lead after the first inning, but the Reddies responded with a pair of runs in the fourth.Â
Marcela Lopez singled back up the box to get the inning going, but after two quick outs, it looked as though the Reddies would miss an opportunity. Freshman Monica Monreal changed that with one swing of the bat, and tied the game with her fifth home run of the season.
SAU pulled back in front in the bottom of the fourth, but the Reddies were quick to respond once again. Kailey Reese led off the top of the fifth with a single to left field before an error on the SAU infield gave Henderson runners on the corners with nobody out.Â
Following a stolen base by Ashleigh Erb, Nadia Ballarin reached on a fielder's choice which scored Reese to tie the game at 3-3. Two batters later, Lopez drove home Erb with an RBI groundout and the Reddies moved in front, 4-3.Â
Unfortunately, the Lady Muleriders tied the game in the fifth, and pulled in front with four more runs in the sixth. Henderson did not threaten in the top of the seventh, and dropped the first game of the day, 8-4.
Game Two: Southern Arkansas 5, Henderson State 1
For the second-straight game, HSU answered an early deficit in the series finale. Trailing 1-0 in the top of the third and looking for the Reddies' first hit of the ballgame, Erb hit her fourth home run in the last two weekends which tied the game at 1-1.Â
Henderson's Becca Almond was in the circle for Henderson, and kept the game close through the mid-way point, but did not get the run support she needed. Southern Arkansas pitcher Victoria Taylor dominated the Reddies lineup, and did not allow a baserunner after Erb's home run, which proved to the lone hit of the second game for HSU.
The Lady Muleriders scratched a run in the fifth, and nabbed three more in the sixth, to put the game out of reach, eventually winning 5-1 to sweep the four-game series from the Reddies.
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