By COURTLIN HAYGARTH | HSU Sports Network

Jacob Carroll recorded two hits in the midweek showdown, both of which were no-doubter home runs over the left field wall as Henderson State topped No. 20 Arkansas Tech at Clyde Berry Field Tuesday night, 14-6. The win marked HSU’s second Top-25 midweek victory of the season.

The Reddies had six of their 12 hits go for extra bases, including three homers. Luke Rice was the responsible party for the third home run, giving the red and gray their first two runs of the contest with his right-field line two-run blast in the bottom of the first inning. Rice ended his day going 3-for-5 at the plate with three RBIs and scoring two runs.

Four Henderson batters recorded multiple hits, as Luke Farrar and Cade Tucker joined Carroll and Rice with the busy day at the plate. The quartet combined for nine hits and 11 RBIs with two doubles and three home runs.

Starting pitcher Dawson Goines opened the contest by no-hitting Tech in the top of the first before Henderson started the scoring off with Rice’s two-run blast following a lead-off walk from Greyson Stevens. The Wonder Boys quickly took the lead, however, with a three-run second frame.

Ethan Perry (3-0), who was awarded the win after just 1.1 innings of relief work, came to the bump in the second with one out still needed to put an end to the threat as he forced ATU to strand three base-runners. The Wonder Boys maintained the one-run lead into the third, where they added another two runs to open a 5-2 lead.

The Henderson offense truly came alive in the bottom of the third, stringing together five consecutive hits to open the at-bat which saw the Reddies seize its second lead of the game, 6-5. A Logan Cowart hit-by-pitch with the bases loaded scored the final run of the half-inning to make it 7-5.

With the offense doing its job, the Reddie pitching staff held the ATU offense scoreless for the next three innings as Henderson was able to add another two runs for the 9-5 advantage. In the visitor’s half of the seventh, a sixth run from Arkansas Tech cut the HSU lead to three, 9-6, with two innings remaining.

That was just enough time for Jacob Carroll to put the finishing touches on the statement victory. Coming to the plate in the seventh with two flyouts and a strikeout highlighting his day up to that point, the Rawdon, Quebec, native delivered a pair of home runs on back-to-back plate appearances in the seventh and eighth inning, including a three-run shot for his latter missile, to seal the deal for the home team.

Henderson St. (19-12, 10-8 GAC) will head to Searcy, Arkansas, this weekend for a weekend series against Harding as postseason implications surround the trio of contests. The fourth-place Bisons are currently one game ahead of Henderson in the conference standings.