Hogs take six-game win streak into South Carolina series

FAYETTEVILLE — Second-ranked Arkansas tries continue its strong play at home this weekend as it welcomes South Carolina from the SEC East for a three-game set starting on Thursday at Baum Stadium.

First pitch between the Hogs and Gamecocks on Thursday is set for 6 p.m. and it will be televised nationally on the SEC Network.

It’s the fifth nationally televised game this season for the Razorbacks.

After four-straight weeks against top-13 opponents to open conference play, Arkansas faces an unranked South Carolina team in hopes of adding to its lead in the SEC Western Division.

The Hogs are currently 8-4 in league play, one game ahead of No. 4 Ole Miss and two games ahead of No. 19 LSU.

Arkansas has been especially good at home during conference play, sweeping both of its series against then-No. 4 Kentucky and No. 13 Auburn.

It’s the first time since 1990 that a Razorback team has won its first six conference games in a season and they’ve been able to do it by getting great starting pitching and a consistent offense.

In just the six home conference games, Arkansas has won by a combined 39 runs and hit .369 as a team, which is 36 points higher than its team batting average in all other home games.

Last week against Auburn, the Razorbacks had to win two one-run games, but still scored 20 combined runs over the three-game series and needed only one home run during the weekend.

This weekend’s series will mark the first time the Hogs and Gamecocks have faced each other since 2016 when South Carolina swept the Razorbacks in three games in Columbia, S.C.

Last time South Carolina visited Baum Stadium, it was Arkansas that came away with a series win in 2014.

FOLLOW LIVE

Games one will be televised on the SEC Network with Mike Morgan (PxP) and Chris Burke (Analyst) calling the game.

Games two and three will be available for viewing on SEC Network+, the online-only arm of the SEC Network on the WatchESPN app and WatchESPN.com.

Brett Dolan (PxP) and Troy Eklund (Analyst) will have the call for both of those games.

Phil Elson will call all three games on the radio for the Razorback Sports Network from IMG and he’ll be joined by former Razorback Bubba Carpenter.

That radio broadcasts are also available on the Razorback Gameday app.

IMPORTANT LINKS (ALL TIMES CENTRAL)

Thu, April 12 – Arkansas vs. South Carolina – 6 p.m. – LIVE STATS | WATCH (SEC Network)
Fri, April 13 – Arkansas vs. South Carolina – 6:30 p.m. – LIVE STATS | WATCH (SECN+)
Sat, April 14 – Arkansas vs. South Carolina – 2 p.m. – LIVE STATS | WATCH (SECN+)

PROBABLE STARTERS

FRI: ARK RHP Blaine Knight (6-0, 193 ERA, 48 K, 11 BB) vs. SC RHP Logan Chapman (2-0, 3.86 ERA, 32 K, 16 BB)
SAT: ARK LHP Kacey Murphy (4-2, 2.31 ERA, 33 K, 6 BB) vs. SC RHP Adam Hill (3-3, 4.79 ERA, 55 K, 23 BB)
SUN: ARK RHP Isaiah Campbell (2-3, 4.03 ERA, 33 K, 16 BB) vs. SC RHP Cody Morris (6-2, 4.04 ERA, 46 K, 16 BB)

RAZORBACK PRIME 9

• Arkansas continues its 10-game homestand with a three-game set against South Carolina starting on Thursday. Game one is set to be broadcast nationally on the SEC Network.

• Kjerstad’s second-inning home run last Wednesday against ULM was a tape-measure shot, traveling 430 feet well over the right-centerfield scoreboard at Baum Stadium. He leads the team with eight homers.

• Arkansas heads into the weekend with a fully announced rotation of Blaine Knight, Kacey Murphy, and Isaiah Campbell. Combined the three Hog hurlers have 12 victories and a 2.60 ERA.

• Both Blaine Knight and Kacey Murphy have built up ERA’s of 1.93 and 2.31, respectively. Both are top-10 averages in the SEC.

• Arkansas still leads the SEC and ranks second in the nation with 56 home runs, 16 ahead of its SEC-leading pace last year.

• Last week against Auburn, Blaine Knight won his third-consecutive start to move to 6-0 on the year. In six of his eight starts, Knight has thrown six or more innings and struck out four or more.

• In 20 games this year, Arkansas has totaled 10 or more hits. In those games, the Hogs are 17-3 with 14 of those wins coming at Baum Stadium.

• The 7-6 win over Grambling State Tuesday night was Arkansas’ second-straight one-run victory and 12th overall this year. This year, the Hogs are 7-5 in one-run games.

>> Sophmore Matt Cronin picked up his seventh save of the year Wednesday against Grambling and sixth of his last eight appearances. Cronin is currently second in the SEC in saves and his .132 opposing batting average is lowest among all league pitchers.