NASHVILLE, Tenn. — For the first time in 15 years, Arkansas has won an SEC road weekend series in Nashville.
The second-ranked Razorbacks (25-3, 7-1 SEC) held off No. 14 Vanderbilt (20-7, 4-4 SEC), 6-4, in 10 innings Saturday afternoon at Hawkins Field to win its seventh consecutive conference game and clinch its first road weekend series win against the Commodores since 2010.
With Saturday’s win, the Hogs have started SEC play with three consecutive series wins for the seventh time (2007, 2009, 2017, 2021, 2022, 2024 & 2025) since joining the conference ahead of the 1992 season.
The Razorbacks will go for their first series sweep against the Commodores since 2005 as well as their first series sweep in Nashville since 1994 in tomorrow’s series finale at Hawkins Field. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. on SEC Network.
Starter Gabe Gaeckle’s strong outing on the mound set the tone in Arkansas’ series-clinching win Saturday.
The right-hander fired a career-long 5.2 innings, striking out seven while allowing two runs on six hits with zero walks.
Cam Kozeal, the Vanderbilt transfer, landed the ballgame’s first punch with his two-run home run in the top of the second inning to open the scoring.
The Razorback first baseman’s third home run and seventh RBI of the weekend series gave Gaeckle and Arkansas an early 2-0 advantage, which would hold up until the bottom of the fifth inning.
Vanderbilt cut its deficit to one in the fifth before tying the game at two on a two-out RBI single sixth, which ended Gaeckle’s day.
True freshman Carson Wiggins emerged from the bullpen and recorded the final out of the inning, extinguishing the Commodores’ go-ahead threat on two pitches to keep the score level at two entering the seventh.
Justin Thomas Jr. swatted a leadoff home run to put Arkansas back up, 3-2, but Vanderbilt came right back with a run of its own in the bottom of the seventh, evening the game at three on a run-scoring wild pitch with two outs.
Aiden Jimenez took over on the mound for Wiggins in the seventh and closed out the game with 3.1 innings of one-run ball and four strikeouts, earning his third win of the season.
The right-hander retired the first six batters he faced, striking out the side in the bottom of the eighth, and prevented the Commodores from winning the game in regulation.
In the top of the 10th, the Razorback offense used small ball, including two bunts, to scratch out three runs and build a 6-3 lead.
After Wehiwa Aloy and Logan Maxwell reached base to begin the inning, Brent Iredale’s RBI single broke the deadlock before Kozeal and Ryder Helfrick each executed perfect run-scoring squeeze bunts to put the Hogs up three.
Vanderbilt gave Arkansas a scare in the bottom of the 10th, putting the first two batters on base and scoring a run on a sacrifice fly to center.
Jimenez did not blink, however, and induced a game-ending groundout to first to seal the win.
