FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The Diamond Hogs hit around three times Tuesday night at Baum-Walker Stadium, erasing a six-run deficit against the UALR Trojans and winding up with a 16-8 victory.
Sophomore right-handed pitcher Mark Adamiak got shelled in the first inning, walking his first two hitters and surrendering three hits and four runs before head coach Dave Van Horn pulled him from the game. The skipper called on junior righty Miller Pleimann to end the frame, which he did with a strikeout.
Pleimann allowed an unearned run in the second inning, when senior center fielder Braydon Webb committed a two-base error on a routine single up the middle. The Trojans tagged him for a pair of two-out hits in the third, stretching the margin to six runs.
The Razorbacks put on a two-out hitting display of their own in the bottom half of the inning, including an RBI double by junior second baseman Robert Moore and an RBI single by graduate left fielder Chris Lanzilli.
After UALR first baseman Canyon McWilliams took Arkansas senior righty Kole Ramage deep to left field for a solo home run in the fifth, sophomore third baseman Cayden Wallace led off with a solo blast of his own, and the comeback was on. After a hit batter and a pair of walks with one out, senior shortstop Jalen Battles moved the line along with an RBI single, cutting the deficit to three runs. A fielder’s choice which resulted in no outs, a wild pitch and a single from freshman right fielder Drake Varnado later, the Razorbacks tied it.
The Hogs picked up right where they left off in the sixth, with Wallace reaching on an error to get things going. With runners on the corners, graduate catcher Michael Turner sliced a double into the left-center field gap, scoring two runs to give Arkansas a 9-7 lead. He scored on another RBI knock by Battles, and Varnado got credit for a sacrifice fly to shallow left field when Moore charged home, unbeknownst to the shortstop who fielded the ball.
Arkansas tacked on five more runs in the eighth, courtesy of a three-run blast by freshman designated hitter Kendall Diggs — the first of his career — and a two-run shot by Webb. Senior right-hander Zebulon Vermillion allowed a pair of doubles in the ninth, but that was it for the Trojans.
Barring inclement weather, the Razorbacks and Trojans will play again at 4 p.m. Wednesday. The contest will stream live on the SEC Network+.
