BETHANY, Okla. – Harding baseball made the best of another schedule change by sweeping a Great American Conference doubleheader against Southern Nazarene on Saturday. The Bisons took the opener 10-5 and won game two 6-4. The series finale is Sunday at 1 p.m.
The series was originally to be played in Searcy, but snow and ice forced the three games to be moved to Bethany. Harding batted last in both games Saturday and will do so again Sunday.
Entering the series, Harding had only scored one run in the first or second inning of its previous 15 games but erupted for three runs in each inning to take an early 6-0 lead.
Noah Chandler hit a two-run home run to key Harding's three-run second inning. The Bisons added a unearned run in the third, and moved ahead 9-1 after RBI singles from Zac Stewart and Noah Chandler in the sixth. Stewart was 2-for-4 and scored three times, and Chandler was 3-for-5 with two runs and three RBIs. Chandler's home run was his first of the season and second of his career.
Harrison Hunter went 3-for-4 and drove in Harding's final run in the seventh.
Collin Campbell (2-1) had his fourth strong outing in five starts. The junior went eight innings and allowed only one earned run. He tied a season high with five strikeouts.
Southern Nazarene scored four in the top of the ninth off Harding reliever Andrew Ralston, but junior Hunter Payne came on to record the last out of the game.
Southern Nazarene had 13 hits but stranded 15 runners in game one.
Mason Pinion (1-2) suffered the loss for the Crimson Storm, allowing nine runs (seven earned) in 5 1-3 innings.
Another quick start in game two gave the Bisons an early advantage. John Chapman walked to lead off the first inning and later scored on a wild pitch. Davis Richardson added a solo home run, his team-leading third of the season, to give Harding a 2-0 lead.
Southern Nazarene cut the lead to 2-1 in the top of the fourth, but Harding tacked on two more in the bottom of the inning on Jaxon Mohr's RBI double and a Jesse Cox sacrifice fly.
Four hits led to three Southern Nazarene runs in the fifth to tie the game at 4-4.
Harding added two more in the bottom of the inning to take the lead for good. Zach Beasley's one-out single to right scored Chandler with the eventual game-winning run. Alan Copeland's sacrifice fly to score Richardson provided Harding an insurance run.
Payne (1-1) earned the win in relief of Harding starter Jacob Stripling. Payne pitched 1 2-3 scoreless innings. Stripling went 4 1-3 innings and allowed four earned runs. Stewart pitched the seventh for his first save.
Southern Nazarene starter Jacob Spruill (1-1) gave up six earned runs in 4 1-3 innings and suffered the loss.
