GAME COVERAGE LINKS
***Visiting fans are asked to bring lawn chairs and must sit on the deck that runs along the first base line at Jerry Moore Field in Searcy. There is NO VISITOR SEATING in the main grandstand area.***
ARKADELPHIA, Ark. — Henderson State travels to Searcy, Arkansas this weekend to take on Harding in a three-game series at Jerry Moore Field. The Reddies and Bisons will face off in a doubleheader at 2 p.m. on Friday and in a single game at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
REDDIES REPORT
- Henderson (6-3, 4-2) dropped its home series last weekend at Clyde Berry Field when it fell in both games of the Saturday doubleheader to Arkansas-Monticello. The Reddies rebounded on Saturday with strong pitching performances to salvage the series with a 5-1 win.
- The Reddies' pitching staff has been impressive early in the season. HSU leads the GAC in team ERA (3.60) and has allowed the fewest runs of any program in the conference (32). Henderson and Southern Arkansas are the only teams in the league with sub-4.00 team ERAs.
- Greyson Stevens had a strong showing in the three-game series against UAM. The sophomore from Pottsville, Arkansas was 5-for-11 on the weekend with a double, a triple and a home run. Stevens drove in five runs for the Reddies, including three on Sunday in the 5-1 win. He, along with Kaden Argenbright, lead the team with 11 hits this year.
- Matthew Baker continued his stellar pitching against the Weevils and now boasts a 1.72 ERA — the best mark of any arm on the team. Baker has pitched a team-high 15.2 innings and given up just three earned runs on 11 total hits. His ERA ranks fifth individually in the GAC and he has pitched the most innings of any player in the Top-5.
- The bullpen continues to be a steadying force for Henderson to begin the year. The Reddies are 4-0 this season when leading after five innings and have given up just seven total runs in the seventh inning or later through nine games. Relievers Taylor Langston, Cade Tucker and Ethan Perry have combined to pitch 11.2 innings of scoreless relief and have given up just seven total hits.
- HSU has had the upper hand in the series with Harding in recent years. The Reddies have won 13 of the last 16 meetings between the two schools and have won six-straight season series against the Bisons. Harding last won the regular season series between the programs in 2013.
SCOUTING HARDING
- Harding is 5-2 on the year and 4-2 in GAC play through the first two weekends of conference action. The Bisons swept Southeastern Oklahoma State in Durant, Oklahoma, but dropped two games to Ouachita Baptist last week in Arkadelphia. HU has played just one home game coming into the weekend series.
- The Bisons have been one of the best hitting teams in the league to begin the year. Harding is second in the GAC in batting average (.316) and has scored 54 runs in just eight games. HU is also the best fielding team in the conference (.979) and has turned a league-high eight double plays this season.
- HU infielder David Butterfield has been on a tear early in the 2021 season. Butterfield is batting an absurd .593 and leads Harding in hits (16), runs (10), total bases (27) and on-base percentage (.645). The Tennessee native has a GAC-best five doubles on the year and was the GAC Player of the Week on Mar. 3.
- Harding's best arm is Ryder Yakel, who was the 2019 GAC Newcomer of the Year and an ABCA All-Central Region selection as a reliever. Yakel had five saves and a 0.00 ERA in eight appearances in 2020 and carries a 1.12 ERA in eight innings pitched this season. The Bisons' pitching staff as a whole has an ERA of 7.11 and their three primary starters have a combined ERA of 8.28.
