Box Score SEARCY – Harding baseball came out on top in a duel between two of the top pitchers in the Great American Conference on Sunday. The Bisons defeated Henderson State 3-1 to salvage the third game of the series after the Reddies won both games Saturday.

Harding starter Lucas Waddell (4-2) entered the weekend with the eighth-best ERA in the conference. The junior from Ladner, British Columbia, gave up a two-out RBI single to Josh Salmon in the first inning, but held the Reddies scoreless over the next six to earn his 19th career win at Harding. Waddell gave up six hits, walked two and struck out four.

Henderson State senior Brittain Diamond (5-3) had the second-best ERA in the conference entering Sunday's game. He pitched his fifth complete game of the season, but the Bisons did just enough to give him his third loss of the season.

The win could not have come at a better time for the Harding. The Bisons snapped a seven-game losing streak and improved 19-13 overall and 4-8 in conference play. Henderson State lost for the first time in its last six and dropped to 18-14 overall and 7-8 in the GAC.

Harding tied the game in the bottom of the first on a single by Kyle Atkins that scored Chase Presley from second base. The Bisons took the lead for good in the fourth when Tyler Stanford singled to right to score Anthony Guglielmi from third. Guglielmi led off the inning with his fifth double, Harding's only extra base hit in the game.

The Bisons tacked on another run in the eighth. With Atkins on second and no outs, Harding's Matt Calhoun squared around to bunt on the first two pitches. On the third pitch, Calhoun looped a single over the drawn-in infield for his team-leading 19th RBI.

Harding sophomore Bronson Smith relieved Waddell in the eighth. Smith worked around a one-out double by Salmon in the eighth, and got out of a bases-loaded jam in the ninth to earn his team-leading fifth save.

The teams combined for 21 hits, 11 for Harding and 10 for Henderson State, but left 20 runners on and went 5-for-30 with runners in scoring position.

Presley hit in the leadoff spot for Harding for the first time this season and had his second three-hit game of the series. Atkins, Calhoun, and Stanford also had two hits each for the Bisons.

Harding returns to Jerry Moore Field on Tuesday for a single, non-conference matchup with Southern Arkansas. First pitch is a 2 p.m.