ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – Savannah Carrigan and Erika Bittinger combined to give up just four hits on the afternoon as Henderson State swept the day's doubleheader against the Southwestern Oklahoma State Bulldogs, 4-1 and 3-2, to clinch the series with one game still to play.
 
Carrigan saw only her second complete game of the season in game number one of the twin bill, picking up her second win of the season, while Krystal Lindsey earned her second save after maintaining the lead in the second outing after Bittinger claimed her team-leading fourth win.
 
Savannah Hughes delivered a season high three hits in the afternoon's second outing, going a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate while also logging two steals, one of which registered a run for the Reddies. Bre Jones led HSU in the first game, going 2-for-3 with one RBI and one run.
 
Game 1: Henderson State 4, Southwestern Oklahoma State 1
Play started with three total errors coming in the first inning, one of which came from the Henderson defense to score Southwestern's first run, followed by two from the SWOSU infield, allowing HSU to knot it up at one apiece.
 
Both teams settled down coming into their second at-bats, with Savannah Carrigan only allowing one hit until the fourth inning, only to be matched by the Bulldog pitcher to keep the score tied at 1-1. Southwestern logged one final hit in the top of the fifth before the Reddies broke the tie with a two-hit fifth that saw Erika Bittinger, who singled to lead off the at-bat, score on a wild pitch.
 
With Carrigan continuing to work a near-perfect outing, after retiring the next three SWOSU batters in order, Henderson opened things up in the home-side of the sixth, loading the bases off thanks to a pair of lead-off hits from Monica Monreal and Abbie Moore and a Southwestern error to plate two more runners to extend the lead, 4-1.
 
With HSU sitting three outs away from a game-one victory to open the series, Carrigan claimed one strikeout and a pop-up before forcing a flyball to center field to finish things off as Henderson took the weekend-opening contest, 4-1.
 
Game 2: Henderson State 3, Southwestern Oklahoma State 2
After Bittinger went unscathed through the first two SWOSU at-bats, Justine Burch got everything going in the bottom of the second with the first home run of her young career to give the Reddies the early 1-0 lead. Another scoreless inning from the visiting Bulldogs allowed HSU to open a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the third with a double steal sending Hughes across the plate.
 
A three up, three down half inning orchestrated by Bittinger in the top of the fourth once again yielded an insurance run from HSU, with Hughes this time delivering one of her three base-knocks to score Britlyn Garrett, who had reached on a two-out double just prior.
 
The Bulldogs only saw one more hit over its next two at-bats as Henderson drove a 3-0 lead into the seventh and final inning. With Krystal Lindsey relieving Bittinger after six innings, SWOSU threatened the previously-thought of safe lead of the Reddies, using three hits to score two runs and close the margin to 3-2, but a 5-3 third out left no doubt, giving HSU the 3-2 victory and the series clincher.
 
Henderson State (9-26, 6-10) will try for the series sweep tomorrow at 11 a.m. when game three against Southwestern Oklahoma State gets underway at Dee White Field.