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SEARCY – No. 18 Delta State defeated No. 30 Harding 3-1 on Tuesday in a pitchers' duel between of two nationally-ranked teams at Jerry Moore Field.

Harding (16-9) will next play at Arkansas-Monticello beginning Friday in a three-game Great American Conference series.

The Bisons gave the starting nod to sophomore Jacob Stripling, who made only his third collegiate start against the Statesmen. Stripling was outstanding through five innings. He allowed only two hits--a first inning double to Carlos Leal and a fifth inning double to Dex Harrington.

In the sixth, Stripling (1-1) hit Landon Thibodeaux to open the inning and walked Jordan Chovanec before leaving the game. Hunter Payne entered for the Bisons and retired two hitters before Ricky Velez lined a single to right center to score both Thibodeaux and Chovanec and give Delta State a 2-0 lead. The runs were charged to Stripling and were the first two he has allowed this season in 12 innings of work.

Chovanec drove in another run in the seventh off Harding reliever Alan Copeland to make it 3-0.

Delta State's starter was Ricky Winters, who is usually pitches on Sunday for the Statesmen, but missed his turn last weekend when Delta State (13-6) was rained out against Union. Winters, a senior, did not allow a hit until the sixth inning when Harding junior Kyler Offenbacker shot a single back up the middle into centerfield.

Winters (5-0) walked only one and struck out seven in six innings, lowering his ERA to 1.27 for the 2014 season.

A late Harding rally brought the potential winning run to the plate in the ninth inning. Trent Wooldridge singled to lead off the inning and advanced to second on Harrison Hunter's ground out. Matt Calhoun's single to right scored Wooldridge. Following a strikeout by Delta State closer Taylor Stark, Noah Chandler singled to left and moved Calhoun to second. Both runners moved up a base on a wild pitch with designated hitter Erin McCarver at the plate. With the count full, McCarver lined a pitch back up the middle but Statesmen shortstop Benji Sullivan made a lunging catch to end the game.

Stark earned his third save.

Offenbacker had two of Harding's five hits for his second multi-hit game of the season.