Setting the Scene
- SWOSU Baseball enters Great American Conference postseason play for the sixth time in seven years as a member of the league
- The Bulldogs will face top-seeded Arkansas-Monticello in Enid in the tournament's first game at noon on Saturday  
- Since 2012, SWOSU is 6-12 against the Boll Weevils including 0-2 against UAM in Enid
- Earlier this season, the Bulldogs were swept at the hands of UAM on the road in Monticello – losing three games by a combined five runs (6-3, 2-1, 6-5) 
 
The Opponent
Arkansas-Monticello (30-17, 23-10 GAC)
- The Weevils are the 2018 GAC regular season champions and are currently ranked No. 8 in the most recent NCAA Regional Poll
- UAM sits atop the conference in team hitting, holding a .322 team batting average collectively and have eight of nine players with at least 35 games started hitting above the .300 mark
- On the mound, the Weevils rank seventh in the league with a 6.08 team earned run average and are led by Michael Harrison (6-1) and Braden Chambers (6-0) who combine for 141.2 innings pitched between the pair
- In the field, Monticello is solid by ranking second in the GAC in fielding percentage (.968) with 53 errors in 47 games
 
The Coaches
Zack Saunders (176-151, 14th season)
- Two-time Great American Conference Coach of the Year, winning the award in 2013 and 2016
- Inducted into the Muskogee Athletic Hall of Fame on October 13, 2016
- Earned his 100th career victory at SWOSU against Northwestern Oklahoma State on April 24, 2015
- Previously served as an assistant at SWOSU for six seasons under former Bulldog coaches Charles Teasley and Scott Selby
- Played collegiately at Kansas State following two seasons at Connors State playing on nationally-ranked junior college teams
 
UAM: John Harvey (377-311, 14th season)
- Harvey is the winningest baseball coach in UAM history and earlier this season he recorded his 200th career victory for the Weevils
- Guided UAM to four 30-win seasons, included a program-best record of 40-16 in the 2016 season
- Previously coached at Henderson State for six seasons (2005-10), where he led the Reddies to a 154-148 record
 
Glance at the Bracket
Saturday, May 5
G1 - Noon: #1 Arkansas-Monticello vs. #6 SWOSU
G2 - 3:30 p.m.: #2 Southern Arkansas vs. #5 Arkansas Tech
G3 - 7:00 p.m.: #3 Oklahoma Baptist vs. #4 Henderson State 
 
Sunday, May 6
G4 - 12:30 p.m.: Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2
G5 - 4:00 p.m.: Winner Game 1 vs. Loser Game 3 
G6 - 7:30 p.m.: Winner Game 2 vs. Winner Game 3 

SWOSU Notes
- The Bulldogs end the regular season ranking fifth in the GAC in batting (.294 team average), fourth in pitching average (5.45 team ERA), and sixth in fielding (.958 fielding percentage) 
- Alex Pimentel's 70 hits during the regular season ties him with UAM's Sean Wagner and SAU's Jacob Richardson for the league lead
- Pimentel also finishes second in the league in batting average at .398, barely edged by Oklahoma Baptist's Brett Berghammer who hit .400
- Bryan Miranda (.374) is next on the conference hits list with 67 total, and also ranks atop the league in triples (8) and stolen bases (24-27)
- In GAC contests, Brady Burtner (.370) is tied for the team lead with seven doubles and is SWOSU's third and final hitter above the .300 mark for the season
- Senior Daniel Richardson is a power threat in the lineup, as he leads the team in home runs with nine and also has eight doubles
- SWOSU leads the conference in stolen bases, stealing 64-of-86 bags this season
- On the mound, the Dawgs don't give up free bases – issuing a league-low 128 walks in 361.2 innings of work
- Cooper Cantwell has the most wins of any SWOSU arm this season with a 5-5 record on the mound in a team-leading 75.0 innings
- Brendan Peitsmeyer, after being put in the starting rotation five weeks ago, has won three of those five starts and is 4-1 on the year in 47.2 innings
- Peitsmeyer leads all arms with 15 appearances this season (5 starts)
- Jose Laboy has proven to be the toughest arm to hit against, holding a team-leading .252 opponent batting average in 37.2 innings (12 app, 8 starts) and a 4.30 ERA
- Jake Cowan, SWOSU's No. 1 option on the mound to start the year, made his return from injury against Northwestern last week when he pitched a flawless three-up and three-down inning in relief with three strikeouts
 
Looking Ahead
- With a win on Saturday, plays at 4 pm vs loser of (3) Oklahoma Baptist / (4) Henderson State
- With a loss on Saturday, plays at 12:30 pm vs loser of (2) Southern Arkansas / (5) Arkansas Tech