BENTONVILLE, Ark. – Henderson State's 2024 season comes to an end in the first round of the 2024 GAC Tournament after seventh inning rally falls short in back-and-forth game to No. 5 seed Arkansas Tech 6-5 from the Tiger Athletic Complex.
The Reddies finish the season 22-30 overall and 13-20 in Great American Conference games. HSU won five GAC series this year, including two of its last three to reach the conference tournament for the first time since 2018.
Hilary Akers led the team with her third-straight multi-game, recording three hits in four plate appearances, including a home run.
Jorika Alvarez finished the game with two hits, while
Emylee Bittinger went 1-2 with a two-run home run.
Meagan Allen saw the longest outing in the circle after coming in for relief and pitched the final 3.1 frames, striking out three and allowing one run on two hits.
A fast start to the game saw four combined runs and six hits in the first inning. HSU opened the game with a home run off the bat of Akers to carry an early 1-0 in the top of the first before the Golden Suns saw a three-run frame in the bottom half to go ahead 3-1. Both sides went scoreless in the second inning, which would be one of two frames HSU and ATU would not record a run.
Arkansas Tech added to its lead in the following frame, plating two more runs on four hits before leaving the bases loaded. Henderson replied in the top of the fourth with a pair of scores to cut ATU's lead to two, 5-3.
Jodi De Hart reached first with two outs and pinch-hitting for
Addison Tidwell, Em. Bittinger recorded the team's second home run of the day with a blast over the left field wall.
The Reddies continued to chip away at Arkansas Tech's advantage, scoring another run in the fifth to trim it to a one-run game, 5-4. Akers, with her second hit of the day, would score
Macy Hoskins from first after a throwing error by the Golden Suns. However, ATU matched HSU in the bottom half, scoring a run of its own to keep a two-run contest.
Following a scoreless sixth inning, HSU quickly had runners on in the top of the seventh with
Mackenzie Williams on third and
Jorika Alvarez on first with one out. A sacrifice fly-out by Hoskins brought one run home to make it 6-5, but the Reddies were now down to their final out.
Akers notched her third hit of the game to put runners on first and third after ATU's second error of the game. The tying run would not come for Henderson, as Arkansas Tech got the final out on a putout at second, as the Reddies fell 6-5.
