Hogs have no answers for LSU’s offense in doubleheader loss

BATON ROUGE, La. — No. 5 Arkansas (20-4, 4-2 SEC) had no answers for the potent offense of No. 1 LSU (21-3, 4-2 SEC) on Saturday at Alex Box Stadium, losing both games of the day-night doubleheader to snap its 15-game winning streak and drop a series to the Tigers for the first time since 2018.

LSU defeated Arkansas, 12-2, in seven innings in game one of the doubleheader before clinching the series with a 14-5 win in the nightcap. The Razorbacks had won three consecutive series against the Tigers and were seeking back-to-back series wins in Baton Rouge for the first time in program history.

Arkansas returns home next week to host Omaha at 6 p.m. Tuesday, March 28, in a midweek clash at Baum-Walker Stadium. The Razorbacks are 17-1 at at home this season with a current 14-game winning streak.

Game 1: LSU 12, Arkansas 2 (7)

The Razorbacks carried Friday’s momentum into the very first inning of Saturday, jumping out to an early 2-0 thanks to Jared Wegner’s two-run homer. Wegner’s 10th home run of the year gave Arkansas starter Will McEntire a two-run lead to work with, but it would not hold up.

LSU scored four in the bottom half of the second before adding one in the third, two in the fifth, two in the sixth and three more in the seventh. The Tigers tagged McEntire for seven runs on nine hits and a walk in 4 1/3 innings of work.

The bullpen did not fare much better in relief of McEntire. LSU scored five runs on six hits and a pair of walks against Razorback relievers Austin Ledbetter and Gage Wood, invoking the run rule with a 12-2 lead in the seventh.

Arkansas had only three hits, including Wegner’s first-inning home run, in the loss. Kendall Diggs and Hudson Polk also recorded hits in game one of the doubleheader.

Game 2: LSU 15, Arkansas 5

Once again, Arkansas jumped out to a first-inning lead with a pair of runs in the opening frame. Jared Wegner’s solo home run and Caleb Cali’s bases-loaded walk put the Razorbacks up, 2-0. Wegner, who has a team-leading 11 home runs and 38 RBI, raised his season slash line to .384/.514/.826 in Saturday’s doubleheader.

For the second game in a row, however, an early Arkansas lead would not hold up. LSU tied the game at two apiece with two runs of their own against Razorback starter Cody Adcock in the bottom half of the first.

A two-run double by Cali in the top of the third gave the Hogs a 4-2 lead, but the Tigers continued to mash. LSU tied it back up with two in the bottom half before breaking it open with six runs in the fourth and four more in the sixth.

All told, the Tigers tagged the Razorback pitching staff for 14 runs (10 earned) on 11 hits, six walks and two errors. On the mound, LSU limited Arkansas to just one run over the final six innings en route to its series-clinching 14-5 win.

Information from Arkansas Communications is included in this story.