BENTONVILLE, Ark. — The Arkansas Tech Golden Suns won their 40^th game for just the third time in program history in a 2-1 victory over Southeastern Oklahoma, but ultimately fell short of advancing to championship Saturday in an 8-5 semifinal loss to Henderson State on Friday at the Great American Conference championship tournament.

The Golden Suns saw a two-hit effort from both Alex Edinger and Alexa Wimberly in the opener, as the Golden Suns (40-20) downed the Savage Storm 2-1. Southeastern claimed an early lead on an RBI single by Laramie Beal in the third inning, but the base hit was the only offense the Savage Storm would muster against Sydnee Clark, who improved to 12-3 on the season after going the distance, scattering three hits and allowing just the one run.

Meanwhile, the Golden Suns knotted the game in the bottom of the third on an error before pulling ahead 2-1 on an RBI double by Wimberly.

After the Savage Storm's run in the third inning, Clark quieted the Storm, retiring nine of the final ten batters she faced, with the one batter reaching on catcher's interference.
While the bats were generally quiet against Southeastern, both teams turned on the offense in the day's finale, as Tech fell 8-5 to the Reddies (40-12).

HSU jumped to a 2-0 lead in the opening inning, but Tech knotted the game in the bottom of the frame after a double play scored a run and Whitney Robinson smashed an opposite-field home run.

HSU pulled ahead again in the second on a fielder's choice before the Golden Suns knotted it on a sacrifice fly by Reeves, and an RBI single by Edinger gave the Golden Suns the lead, 4-3, in the fourth.

However, HSU tacked on three runs in the fifth to pull ahead 6-4, and while the Golden Suns pulled to within 6-5 after an RBI grounder by Ashley Savage, the Reddies tacked on two insurance runs in the sixth to seal the victory.

The loss ended the Golden Suns' top postseason performance since the founding of the Great American Conference, as the Golden Suns were one of the three final teams in the tournament field. Whitney Robinson's 8-for-12 performance in the tournament (.667) was bolstered by five extra-base hits, including two home runs.

The Golden Suns' offense was keyed by the emergence of two freshmen in Edinger and Wimberly, who moved into the top two slots in the batting order and delivered with a regularity that would make the postal service jealous, as the duo both were 10-for-17 (.588) in the tournament.

 The offensive performance had a marked effect on their season statistics, as Edinger raised her batting average 31 points (.264 to .295) and Wimberly raised hers 64 points (.254 to .319).

The Golden Suns' postseason fate is in the hands of the NCAA regional committee, as the Golden Suns are in position to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. The selection will be announced Monday morning.