FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Tension hung over Baum-Walker Stadium, and boos rained down on the umpires as Arkansas freshman Brady Tygart walked the bases loaded Sunday afternoon.
Clinging to a one-run lead, he got Ole Miss first baseman Tim Elko to fly out to center field, and Arkansas hung on for a 4-3 win to clinch the series.
The Rebels struck first, making sophomore right-handed pitcher Jaxon Wiggins pay for walking the first batter of the game. With one out and a runner on second, Elko singled to left field to put the visitors on top.
Arkansas did not have an answer until the third inning, when it turned two extra-base hits into two runs. Sophomore third baseman Cayden Wallace doubled to lead off the frame, and graduate right fielder Chris Lanzilli drove him in with a two-run shot to left-center field.
With a one-run lead in the fourth, Wiggins allowed the first three Rebels to reach, the third of whom hit a two-run single to chase him from the game.
In three innings of work, he allowed three hits, three runs and three walks, striking out just two batters. Sophomore lefty Zack Morris got the call, retiring three of the four batters he faced to escape the inning without any further damage.
After two quick outs for Ole Miss right-hander Derek Diamond in the fifth, Lanzilli changed the course of the inning with an eight-pitch at-bat that culminated in an infield single.
Representing the go-ahead run, graduate catcher Michael Turner hit a laser beam of a home run into the right field bullpen, making it a 4-3 game.
Morris tossed two more scoreless frames, bringing his ERA to 1.00 and leaving after the sixth as the pitcher of record.
Freshman righty Brady Tygart, who threw 23 pitches in Saturday’s win, took care of the late innings in complicated fashion. He allowed a hit and four walks, but he racked up five strikeouts to notch his seventh save of the season.
Arkansas will be back in action at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, when the Missouri State Bears come to town.
The contest will stream live on the SEC Network+.
