BETHANY — After taking two of three games against Southern Arkansas a season ago in Magnolia, Southern Nazarene picked up right where they left off by snatching the first two games of the 2019 series with the No. 22 ranked Muleriders in a couple of thrilling games of 9-8 and 7-6.
 
The Crimson Storm ripped off 15 hits in the first game and after falling behind 8-1 in the sixth inning, rallied back by scoring nine unanswered runs to take game one. They had to grind out the win in game two, as SNU only tallied five hits, but used strong defense down the stretch to close out the Muleriders. Tanner Ladon had himself quite a day at the plate as the freshman recorded a walk-off single and a walk-off sacrifice fly to secure a couple of key victories at Feland Field.
 
For the second consecutive game, Noah Serrano picked up a win in the series opener as the junior provided one inning of relief and struck out two batters. Tyler Thompson got the start on the mound for SNU as he tossed 5.0 innings and allowed six runs on three hits. Thompson also struck out five Mulerider hitters as well.
 
Freshman Tanner Ladon was a monster at the plate, as he led the way with his 4-for-5 performance. He recorded two RBI's, two runs scored, and provided the walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth. Jack Campbell also finished with a couple of RBI's as he went 2-for-4 at the dish. Elijah Brady also had a solid outing at the plate in game one as he finished 3-for-4 with with an RBI and a run scored.
 
Emilio Escobedo and Cole Lee each went 2-for-4 while Garrett Perez and Jefferson Harris each finished the game with a hit as well. The Storm finished the contest with 15 straight hits for the second straight game, as the Muleriders tallied six in the game.
 
Southern Arkansas took an early 1-0 lead right out of the gate in the top of the first, before scoring another run in the top of the fourth to make it 2-0. Southern Nazarene's bats finally came alive in the bottom of the fourth when Brady's single to right field scored Ladon to cut the Mulerider lead to 2-1. SAU's bats exploded in the top of the sixth, as the No. 22 ranked team in the country scored six runs to extend their lead to 8-1.
 
The Crimson Storm slowly chipped away at the lead as they scored one run in the bottom of the sixth courtesy of Harris' home run to left field. They really made things interesting in the bottom of the seventh by scoring four more runs to cut the lead to 8-6. Ceron's groundout single in the bottom of the eighth scored Ladon to trim the SAU lead to 8-7 heading into the final inning.
 
After the Storm got a couple of runners on in the bottom of the ninth, Ladon stepped to the plate with two outs and runners on second and third base. His single to left center scored Campbell and Landon Walker to give SNU the successful rally comeback.
 
Southern Nazarene's ace got the start on the bump in game two as Jefferson Harris tossed 5.2 innings and allowed five runs on eight hits while also striking out six batters. Cole Lee picked up his first win of the season on the mound as the sophomore came in with two outs in the bottom of the seventh. Noah Serrano also provided an inning in relief and struck out one for SNU.
 
After sitting out the series opener, Shelby Reese returned to the lineup for the Crimson Storm and led the way with two RBI's at the plate. He also scored a run as Cobi Ceron finished 2-for-2 with two runs scored and an RBI as well. Jack Campbell went 1-for-3 while Tanner Ladon, Elijah Brady, Garrett Perez, and Landon Walker each scored a run for the Storm.
 
Just like the series opener, Southern Arkansas wasted no time in getting on the board as the Muleriders pushed two runs across the plate in the top of the first to take the early lead. They extended that lead to three in the top of the second before SNU ripped off four runs in the bottom half of the inning. Ceron's single to right scored Ladon to make it 3-1, before SAU walked Lee which scored Brady and made it 3-2. Reese's single later in the inning scored Perez and Ceron to give SNU the 4-3 advantage.
 
The Muleriders battled back in the top of the third by tying the game 4-4 with a run, and later took the lead in the fourth inning at 5-4. SNU quickly tied the game in the bottom of the fourth when Reese scored on a passed ball to make it 5-5. The Storm re-gained the lead at 6-5 in the bottom of the sixth when Ceron scored on a throwing error. SNU was one out away in the top of the seventh from securing the Friday sweep before SAU scored one run to tie the game 6-6, but the Storm still had a chance at the plate.
 
After a couple of runners reached base, Ladon stepped in with one out, and a chance to record two walk-offs in the same day. His deep fly ball to left field scored Landon Walker to give SNU their third straight win.
 
Southern Nazarene will close out the series tomorrow against Southern Arkansas at 10 a.m. at Putnam City High School. The game has been moved to a turf field because of inclement weather expected overnight in Oklahoma City.