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Holt’s big day at plate can’t overcome Hogs’ pitching problems

Peyton Holt blasts pair of homers, but pitching problems come up again as Hogs knocked out of SEC Tournament quickly.

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HOOVER, Ala. — Peyton Holt’s first career multi-homer game was not enough to power No. 5 Arkansas (43-14) past No. 2 Kentucky (40-13) in a 9-6 elimination-game loss Thursday at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium in the SEC Tournament.

The Razorback outfielder led the charge offensively, bashing a pair of home runs and matching his career high with four RBI in Thursday’s setback. For the season, Holt is now slashing .309/.409/.468 with six homers and 23 runs batted in.

Working on a pitch count, Razorback ace and SEC Pitcher of the Year Hagen Smith tossed 36 pitches over his two-inning start. The junior left-hander, who was charged with his first loss of the year, struck out four while allowing two unearned runs on two hits and a walk, lowering his nation-leading season ERA to 1.48 and raising his season strikeout total to 154.

Kentucky scored twice in the first inning on a pair of errors before extending its lead to 6-0 with a run in the fourth and three more in the fifth. Arkansas, however, responded with a four-spot in the top half of the sixth, thanks to Wehiwa Aloy’s RBI groundout followed by Holt’s three-run homer – his first of the day – with two outs in the inning.

Aloy collected his team-leading 55th RBI of the season to put the Razorbacks on the board before Holt’s three-run blast cut the deficit to 6-4. Right-hander Brady Tygart made his first relief appearance of the season in the bottom half of the sixth and tossed a scoreless frame before he was tagged by the Wildcats for three runs (one earned) in the seventh.

Trailing by five, Arkansas got one back on Holt’s second homer, which was a one-out solo shot to left in his very next at-bat. Jared Sprague-Lott chipped in with a two-out solo blast in the ninth, but the Razorbacks would come up short, 9-6.

Sprague-Lott was one of three Hogs, including Holt and Stovall (2-for-4), to record multiple hits in Thursday’s game. The senior third baseman, who finished 2-for-5, is slashing .295/.431/.494 with eight homers and 25 RBI on the season.

In relief, Mason Molina also emerged from the bullpen and spun two scoreless innings with three strikeouts. Over his last two appearances, the junior left-hander has tossed five scoreless frames with five strikeouts in relief.

Up next, Arkansas, expected to be one of the top eight national seeds in the NCAA Tournament, awaits its postseason fate. The selection show is scheduled for 11 a.m. Monday, May 27, on ESPN2/ESPNU.

Information from Arkansas Communications is included in this story.

2024 Razorbacks Football

Thu, Aug 29vs UAPB (Little Rock)W, 70-0
Sat, Sep 7@ Oklahoma StateL, 31-39 2OT
Sat, Sep 14vs UABW, 37-27
Sat, Sep 21@ AuburnW, 24-14
Sat, Sep 28vs Texas A&M (Arl)L, 21-17
Sat, Oct 5vs TennesseeW, 19-14
Sat, Oct 19vs LSUL, 34-10
Sat, Oct 26@ Mississippi StateW, 58-25
Sat, Nov 2vs Ole MissL, 63-31
Sat, Nov 16vs TexasL, 20-10
Sat, Nov 23vs Louisiana TechW, 35-14
Sat, Nov 30@ MissouriL, 28-21

2024 High School Rankings

Following is the Arkansas Sports Media High School Football Poll including the Overall Top 10, the top five in Classes 7A, 6A, 5A, 4A, 3A and 2A, plus the top three in the 8-man division, as voted by a panel of sports media from around the state for the week ending August 24. Ranking is given with first-place votes received, records, total points and ranking from last week's poll:
OVERALLRecordPtsPrv
1.Bryant (25)10-02681
2.Greenwood (2)10-02343
30Conway9-12022
4.Little Rock Parkview9-11714
5.Bentonville7-31625
6.Benton9-11486
7.Fayetteville8-21117
8.Pulaski Academy8-2898
9.Rogers7-3439
10.Joe T. Robinson9-122
Others receiving votes: Valley View 8, Mountain Home 7, Cabot 6, Little Rock Catholic 6, Shiloh Christian 6, Elkins 1, Farmington 1.
CLASS 7A
1.Bryant (27)10-01351
2.Conway9-11022
3.Bentonville7-3813
4.Fayetteville8-2454
5.Pulaski Academy8-2395
Others receiving votes: Rogers 3.
CLASS 6A
1.Greenwood (27)10-01351
2.Benton9-11082
3.Mountain Home8-2623
4.Shiloh Christian7-3494
5.Little Rock Catholic9-1345
Others receiving votes: Marion 6.
CLASS 5A
1.Little Rock Parkview (27)9-11351
2.Joe T. Robinson9-11062
3.Valley View10-0793
4.Farmington9-1484
5.Hot Springs Lakeside8-2205
Others receiving votes: Camden Fairview 7, Harding Academy 7, Morrilton 3.
CLASS 4A
1.Elkins (20)10-01261
3.Arkadelphia (5)8-2913
2.Little Rock Mills (1)10-0682
4.Warren8-2554
5.Dardanell (1)9-123
Southside Batesville10-023
Others receiving votes: Malvern 12, Gravette 5, Highland 2.
CLASS 3A
1.Bismarck (12)10-01051t
2.Fordyce (10)10-0961t
3.Prescott (1)9-1704
4.Osceola (2)8-1543
5.Booneville (1)9-1395
Others receiving votes: Mansfield (1) 23, Rivercrest 10, Rison 4, Salem 4.
CLASS 2A
1.Carlisle (20)10-01271
2.Conway Christian (7)10-01152
3.Des Arc8-2595
4.East Poinsett Co.7-352
5.Bigelow6-4183
Murfreesboro7-3184
Others receiving votes: Mount Ida 6, Junction City 4, Cross County 3, Poyen 3.
8-MAN SANCTIONED
1.Strong-Huttig (27)5-0811
2.Midland9-0532
3.Cedar Ridge8-1253
Others receiving votes: Woodlawn 3.

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ESPN ARKANSAS 99.5 IN FAYETTEVILLE, 95.3 IN THE RIVER VALLEY, 96.3 IN HOT SPRINGS, 104.3 IN HARRISON-MOUNTAIN HOME.