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ARKADELPHIA, Ark. — No. 18 Henderson State looks to keep its eight-game winning streak intact this weekend when the Reddies open Great American Conference play against Oklahoma Baptist. HSU hosts the Bison at Clyde Berry Field for a single game at 4 p.m. Friday and a doubleheader at 12 p.m. Saturday.

REDDIES REPORT
- Henderson is off to its best start in over 30 years and is now 8-0 thanks to four wins at the HSU invitational and a midweek victory on the road at Mississippi College. The Reddies vaulted into the Top-25 of the NCBWA DII Poll on Wednesday, going from unranked to No. 18 nationally — their first NCBWA ranking since the 2015 season. HSU has outscored its opponents 70-29 through eight games and has scored 10 or more runs in four-straight contests.

- Transfer catcher and outfielder David Vilches had a monster week for the Reddies and was named GAC Player of the Week on Tuesday and NCBWA Central Region Hitter of the Week on Wednesday. Vilches hit five home runs in the HSU Invitational, drove in 12 runs and finished with 24 total bases in just four games. For the year, he is hitting .313 and slugging .875.

- Several HSU hitters are off to terrific starts in 2022. Alec Lewis is hitting .476 through seven games played and has five doubles to his credit. Kaden Argenbright has already recorded four multi-hit games and had a six-game hitting streak prior to Tuesday's contest at Mississippi College. Greyson Stevens has hit two home runs and had a season-high three hits on the road against the Choctaws.

- As impressive as Henderson's offense has been, its pitching has been equally strong to open the 2022 campaign. The Reddies are 16th nationally in team ERA (2.74) and its three weekend starters — Spencer Taack, Cade Tucker and Ryan Galvan — all have ERAs of 2.08 or lower. HSU is giving up just 7.17 hits per nine innings and opponents are hitting just .219 against Henderson this year. The three starters have combined to strike out 36 batters and have walked just 10.

- The Reddies' young bullpen has also been stellar during the eight-game win streak. Underclassmen Ethan Perry, Cole Oswald, Andrew Howard, Ethan Roark and Henry Coppens have combined to pitch 17 innings of relief so far this season and have surrendered just three earned runs.

- HSU was excellent at Clyde Berry Field last season and that trend has continued into 2022. The Reddies are 7-0 at home this year and are 25-6 overall in games played on the turf since 2021.

- Henderson is 9-11 against Oklahoma Baptist since the start of the 2016 season, but has won three of the last four meetings in Arkadelphia, including the GAC series played at Clyde Berry Field in 2020. Friday is the first matchup between the two programs since the 2021 GAC Tournament semifinals, when the Reddies defeated the Bison 16-1 to advance to the title game.

SCOUTING OKLAHOMA BAPTIST
- The Bison are 4-3 on the year entering conference play this weekend. OKBU finished 26-15 last year and won the GAC Tournament title back in 2019. Oklahoma Baptist's only common opponent with Henderson to this point is Pittsburg State, who the Bison beat twice by scores of 15-14 and 10-4.

- Oklahoma Baptist is a potent offensive club and has been one of the best home run-hitting teams in the country over the past several seasons. In 2021, OKBU hit 87 homers, which tied a school record and was No. 1 in the GAC by a wide margin. This year, the Bison are No. 3 nationally in home runs per game (2.14) and No. 7 in total home runs (15). They have hit three or more home runs in four of their seven games in 2022 and in their three losses, they have hit one combined.

- OKBU has five players with batting averages of .333 or higher. The Bison's top hitter is infielder Dan Pruitt, who is hitting .407, slugging .889, and has a team-high 11 RBIs and four home runs. Infielder Ramon Gomez and outfielder Walker Keller are each riding seven-game hitting streaks and have recorded a base hit in every contest this year.

- The Bison have a staff ERA of 4.73 through seven games. Their top arm is starter Tyler Frank, who carries a 3.86 ERA and has struck out 20 batters and walked just three in 14 innings of work. In the bullpen, OKBU turns to Devin Crawford, who has a perfect 0.00 ERA in 7.2 innings pitched this year. Crawford boasts a WHIP of 0.65 and opponents are hitting just .083 against him in 24 at-bats.