Don’t sleep on what the Razorbacks just got through Friday night.
Missouri State had Arkansas uncomfortable early and often in a 9-5 Arkansas win that wasn’t nearly as smooth as the final score might suggest to some.
The history between these two programs has a way of making things messy, and Friday was no different. Dave Van Horn wasn’t sugarcoating anything.
The Hogs’ dugout wasn’t exactly buzzing with confidence early, and that’s coming from the coach himself.
“It was kind of quiet, but we kept talking to them and saying ‘we’ve got plenty of time,'” Van Horn said.
That’s the kind of game Missouri State has made a habit of delivering against Arkansas. Van Horn said the outcome was about what he expected before the first pitch.
“I thought it was pretty much the game the coaches thought we were going to have,” Van Horn said. “It was going to be tight, we were going to have to score.”
That cuts both ways, though. The Bears know the Hogs and the Hogs know the Bears, and that tends to raise the level of difficulty on both sides.
Kansas is a different situation entirely. The Jayhawks are a team Arkansas hasn’t had that kind of ongoing back-and-forth with, which can work in the Razorbacks’ favor today.
Van Horn Knew What Was Coming
Starting pitcher Gabe Gaeckle gave up a home run on the second pitch of the game, and Missouri State grabbed a 2-0 lead before most fans had settled into their seats.
Arkansas then gifted the Bears a third run on an error that allowed a runner to advance and come home on a safety squeeze.
Van Horn was clearly grateful Gaeckle didn’t let it spiral further.
“It was huge for Gaeckle to get us four innings,” Van Horn said. “Didn’t have great stuff, didn’t have command, but he gave us four.”
He knew it might have looked a lot worse early.
“It could’ve been 6, 7 to nothing before we had a chance to get him out, really,” Van Horn said. “But he showed his stuff got a little bit better and gave us a chance to win. I told him that in front of the whole team, I appreciated his effort.”
The bullpen then took over and delivered.
Steele Eaves got six outs, Coil got four and Ethan McElvain closed it out over the final inning and two-thirds on just 22 pitches, 16 of which were strikes.
The Fifth Inning Changed Everything
Arkansas trailed 3-0 heading into the fifth before a six-run frame flipped the game.
Damian Ruiz got it started with a single back up the middle and Van Horn made sure to point that out in his postgame comments.
“Yeah, he got the big hit to get that thing rolling,” Van Horn said. “Hit a ball extremely hard – they had that little shift on for him, but he split them there kind of up the middle, up the six hole. We needed it.”
Ruiz had struggled at the plate earlier in the day, and Van Horn acknowledged the redemption angle.
“He struck out on a curveball and was really frustrated earlier,” Van Horn said. “But for him to get that hit, that was big.”
From there, Ryder Helfrick doubled in a pair, Zack Stewart plated one and Maika Nui lit up a relief pitcher with an RBI-double before Ruiz capped the rally with a run-scoring fielder’s choice. Nui finished 4-for-4 with four RBI.
Why the Bears Were a Real Problem
Van Horn was blunt when he talked about what Missouri State brought to the table. The history between these programs is full of wild, tight games and he rattled off the details without hesitation.
“The games we’ve played against them have been crazy,” Van Horn said. “The first game we lost in that extra innings, they walked us off with a home run, 13-12 or whatever the score was. Then the game we beat them in Fayetteville, it was like 2-2 going into the eighth and we scored like eight runs. Just knew it was going to be a big game.”
He was also complimentary of what Missouri State puts on the field offensively. “They’ve got a really good lineup. Look at the numbers, the home runs, batting average, the experience, size – there’s a lot to that offense.”
One Bears hitter in particular has made life especially difficult for the Hogs over the years. Van Horn didn’t dance around it when asked about Bryce Cermenelli.
“He kills us, let’s just say it. The guy wears us out,” Van Horn said.
Now Comes Kansas
TJ Pompey was quietly one of the best players on the field Friday, making back-to-back defensive stops in the eighth inning to end a Missouri State bases-loaded threat while also scoring twice and driving in a run. Van Horn pointed to a line-drive catch by Pompey as a turning point.
“If the ball gets by him, that’s two in and probably runners at first and third and two outs. Who knows what would’ve happened there, all of a sudden we’re down a lot,” Van Horn said.
With that behind them, the Razorbacks now face a Kansas team that beat Northeastern 6-3 earlier Friday. McElvain’s low pitch count could give Van Horn options out of the bullpen Saturday, though the head coach was characteristically understated about it.
“We’ll just see how he feels tomorrow,” Van Horn said. “I think he threw, what, 22 pitches? He’s a big ol’ boy, he’ll be okay.”
Eaves, who was one of the bullpen heroes Friday, has his eyes wide open about what Kansas brings.
“I also think they’re a really good team and from the first pitch, get after them,” Eaves said. “They’ve got something to prove, they’re going to bring energy, they’re going to bring juice.”
The Hogs got through the team that knew them best Friday night. Now they’ve got to handle one that doesn’t — and in tournament baseball, that can be a very different kind of challenge.
