Harding Baseball
Harding (26-19, 16-11) vs. Arkansas Tech (38-8, 22-5)
Location: Searcy, Ark., Jerry Moore Field
Times: Friday, Apr. 25 at 3 p.m. & Saturday, Apr. 26 (DH) at noon
Series: Tech leads 100-52
Coaches: Harding - Dr. Patrick McGaha (260-202, 9th season at Harding). Arkansas Tech – Dave Dawson (5th season at Arkansas Tech)
Coverage: Live stats and live video only through a link on HardingSports.com.
Harding will host No. 5 Arkansas Tech on Friday and Saturday in a three-game series that will determine if the Bisons make their second straight appearance at the Great American Conference Tournament in Enid, Okla.
Harding enters the weekend in fourth place in the GAC standings. The Bisons clinch one of the six spots in the tournament with one win against Arkansas Tech, OR one loss by Ouachita Baptist in its series against Henderson State, OR one loss by Southwestern Oklahoma in its series against Northwestern Oklahoma. Even if none of those three things happen, Harding still gets in as long as the East Central-Southeastern Oklahoma series ends with any result other than East Central winning two of three games.
Arkansas Tech enters the series ranked No. 5 in Division II. The Wonder Boys are 38-8 overall and have won 19 straight games, tied with the University of Mount Olive for the longest current streak in Division II. Arkansas Tech is at the No. 1 spot in the first edition of the NCAA II Central Region Rankings.
Harding has played 10 games against nationally-ranked teams this season and has a 3-7 record in those games. The Bisons have two wins over No. 3 Southern Arkansas (3/14-15) and one over No. 26 Arkansas-Monticello (4/16).
Senior Matt Calhoun was honored Wednesday as Harding's Berryhill Award winner. The award is given to the school's top senior male athlete. Harding baseball has won the award twice in the last three years with Chase Presley winning in 2012.
Calhoun has reached base in 22 straight games entering the series. It is tied for the ninth-longest streak in Harding's NCAA era (since 1997) and is the longest since Adam Darby reached in 27 straight games in 2007. Harding's record is 29 straight by Ben James in 1999.
Calhoun leads Harding with a .382 average, five home runs, and 38 RBI. Only 13 times since 1970 has the same player led the Bisons in all three categories at the end of the season. The last was Jason Nappi (.384, 9, 54) in 2011.
Harding has a chance to end the regular season by leading the conference in all three major statistical categories. The Bisons enter the weekend ranked second in batting average (.294), first in ERA (3.50), and first in fielding percentage (.972).
Arkansas Tech enters the weekend ranked third in batting average (.293), fourth in ERA (3.88), and fourth in fielding percentage (.970).
Harding's Trent Wooldridge, who went 10-for-10 over a four-game stretch last week, had the first 6-for-6 game in GAC history last weekend at Ouachita Baptist. He is second in the conference with 40 runs scored and is sixth with 26 walks.
Harding sophomore Collin Campbell enters the weekend 8-1 overall with a 2.78 ERA. Campbell's eight wins are tied for third in the GAC. Only three Harding pitchers have ever had more than eight wins in a season (John Kodatt, 10 in 1989; Justin Phillips, 10 in 2007; Lucas Waddell, 9 in 2011). Campbell's ERA ranks fifth in the conference.
Campbell has earned the win in his last four starts. He has consecutive complete game shutouts in his last two victories, allowing only 10 hits and one walk with 10 strikeouts in his last 14 innings. Campbell is the first Harding pitcher with consecutive shutouts since All-American Justin Phillips in 2007. Phillips had combined shutouts against Christian Brothers and Henderson State in which he allowed eight hits and three walks with 28 strikeouts in 18 innings.
Bison sophomore reliever Andrew Fiddler leads the GAC with a .203 opponents' batting average, the sixth-lowest figure in a single-season by a Harding pitcher with more than 30 innings pitched. Fiddler has allowed only two earned runs over 28 1-3 innings in his last 13 appearances, an ERA of 0.64.
This is the 10th time in the last 11 seasons that Harding and Arkansas Tech have met in the final regular season series of conference play. In 2004, Harding hosted Southwestern Oklahoma to conclude the season. The Wonder Boys have won five of six regular season games, including two of three last season in Russellville, since the start of the Great American Conference in 2012. Harding defeated Arkansas Tech 14-8 last season at the GAC Tournament.
