Phil Elson & Tye Richardson hit on what a LSU series victory would mean, interview Andy Hodges, plus a potential Oregon State-Arkansas rematch!
Bud Light Morning Rush Podcast: Wednesday
John & Tommy discuss the troubles against LSU, attendance this weekend, Clemson over Bama, plus Bubba Carpenter joins the show!
Razorbacks’ softball opens SEC Tournament against Georgia on Wednesday
COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Arkansas earned a ninth seed in the SEC Tournament and opens play Wednesday against Georgia on Wednesday afternoon at 5:30 p.m.
Arkansas (38-17, 12-12) finished SEC regular season at .500 for the second consecutive year, tying four other teams for sixth place in the conference rankings. The Razorbacks earned a ninth seed and will face the eighth seeded Bulldogs.
The Razorbacks are heading into the week after an impressive showing against then No.23 Auburn. Arkansas swept the home series, outscoring the Tigers 13-3 over the three-game weekend.
Senior Ashley Diaz hit the go-ahead home run in the bottom of the first inning to help the Hogs complete the sweep and junior Autumn Storms held it down in the circle for the Razorbacks.
Storms pitched 13 total innings, seven of which included a complete game shutout of Auburn in game one.
Storms has been strong for Arkansas all season. She currently holds a team-best and career-high 1.54 ERA, ranking fifth in the SEC. She is among the top five pitchers in the league in strikeout-to-walk ratio, strikeouts, and victories as well.
Arkansas can rely on Storms to not give up many free bases; with only 28 walks in over 180 innings pitched, she ranks first in the SEC in walks allowed per seven innings.
The Razorbacks have had no problem backing up Storms with some good play at the plate as well, and it all starts with the leadoff hitter, Hannah McEwen.
McEwen has started in all 55 games so far this season, reaching base in all but five games this season. She heads into SEC Tournament play as one of the most consistent hitters in the league, topping the conference in hits with 72 and ranking fourth in batting average (.402).
All-time against the Bulldogs, Arkansas is 19-37, including a key win at last year’s SEC Tournament when the Razorbacks defeated Georgia 8-3 to advance to the semi-finals.
Georgia concluded the regular season hosting the Ole Miss Rebels over the weekend, securing the Bulldogs’ first sweep of SEC play and fifth series win of the conference slate.
Media Information
TV: SEC Network
Play-by-play: Beth Mowins
Analysis: Michele Smith
Sideline: Holly Rowe
Streaming Video: SEC Network+
Satellite Radio: Sirius XM SEC Radio Channel 374
Razorbacks stay above cut headed into NCAA Regional final round
CLE ELUM, Wash. — Gusty winds and tough hole locations elevated scores but Arkansas women’s golf team remained above the cutline with one round remaining at the Washington Regional in Cle Elum, Washington, on Tuesday.
Yesterday’s friendly back nine was tougher but Arkansas managed the fifth-best round of the day shooting a 296.
The Razorbacks remain in fourth place shooting 287-296—583. They are five shots ahead of the sixth-place teams in the battle to advance to the NCAA Championship at Blessings Golf Club in Johnson, Arkansas, next week.
Senior Maria Fassi flirted with the lead and finished her day with an even-par 72. Fassi is tied for sixth at 69-72—141. She is just four shots back of the leader and Fassi is one of just 11 players who are under par after two rounds.
Senior Kaylee Benton and freshman Ximena Gonzalez both carded 75s on the day. Benton is tied for 13 overall shooting 70-75—145, followed by Gonzalez who is tied for 29th with 73-75—148.
Freshman Brooke Matthews dropped one stroke from her first-round total shooting 75-74—149. She is tied for 34 with one round remaining. Senior Dylan Kim is in the clubhouse with rounds of 80-82—162 and is tied for 87 overall.
The Razorbacks carded 11 birdies on the back nine yesterday but managed just five with today’s conditions. The front side of Tumble Creek Club at Suncadia Resort features stunning vistas and strong winds while the back side has extreme elevation changes and swirling winds — all of which impact play.
No team in the field, which features six programs in the top-25, was able to move up more than two positions on Tuesday.
Fassi leads the field in par-3 scoring playing the short holes 1-under through two rounds and she is 3-under on the par-5 holes. Benton has played the par-4 holes 2-under while Fassi is tied for the tournament lead with 10 birdies.
Final round action begins at 11:30 a.m. with Arkansas paired with Northwestern and Ohio State.
Razorback lineup
| 4 | Arkansas | 287-296=583 | |
| T6 | Maria Fassi (1) | 69-72=141 | -3 |
| T13 | Kaylee Benton (2) | 70-75=145 | +1 |
| T29 | Ximena Gonzalez (5) | 73-75=148 | +4 |
| T34 | Brooke Matthews (4) | 75-74=149 | +5 |
| T87 | Dylan Kim (3) | 80-82=162 | +18 |
The Field
| 1 | Southern California | 281-285=566 | -10 |
| 2 | Washington | 285-293=578 | +2 |
| 3 | San Jose State | 289-293=582 | +6 |
| 4 | Arkansas | 287-296=583 | +7 |
| 5 | Northwestern | 284-302=586 | +10 |
| T6 | Ohio State | 293-295=588 | +12 |
| T6 | UCF | 290-298=588 | +12 |
| 8 | Oregon State | 293-296=589 | +13 |
| 9 | Oregon | 295-296=591 | +15 |
| T10 | South Carolina | 298-296=594 | +18 |
| T10 | San Diego State | 296-298=594 | +18 |
| 12 | Iowa State | 299-301=600 | +24 |
| 13 | Old Dominion | 293-309=602 | +26 |
| 14 | Sacramento State | 302-302=604 | +28 |
| 15 | Miami | 299-314=613 | +37 |
| 16 | Boston University | 307-318=625 | +49 |
| 17 | New Mexico State | 321-305=626 | +50 |
| 18 | Southern Illinois | 322-320=642 | +66 |
From Coach Shauna Taylor
I thought the conditions were tough today. Obviously, a wind of 20-25 miles per hour on top of this mountain can be difficult. I thought we handled the conditions well, but we let a few slip coming in. This is a resilient group and I think we still have a chance to win a regional championship. We’re going to look ahead and try and put ourselves in a position to win a championship. I’m excited about tomorrow.
ANDY’S NOTES: Ibby reportedly leaving; four Hogs’ foes in Top 25
It’s a slow week when discussion of yet another addition to the collection of British hood ornaments gets more world-wide headlines than anything happening in the world of Arkansas sports.
Ibby has apparently entered the NCAA’s mysterious-sounding transfer portal, according to published reports Tuesday. He is not on the team roster published at ArkansasRazorbacks.com.
Ibrahim Ali, a 6-10, 244-pounder from Nigeria by way of Maumelle, redshirted this past season and never played in a game.
He is the second basketball player to leave after Mike Anderson was fired in April and replaced by Eric Musselman, who has hit the ground running on the recruiting trail.
But he does have just one assistant, which is interesting in a few areas.
The way-too-early football rankings
Basing any college football ranking on spring practice these days is a wild guess … at best.
In a world where players are changing teams on a seemingly daily basis, some news organizations are already putting out their rankings for the start of the 2019 season, which is about 114 days away.
The usual suspects are at the top — Clemson and Alabama, usually in that order.
In addition to the Crimson Tide, who are always up there these days, Razorback opponents getting high rankings now include LSU (7) and Texas A&M (8) are in the Top 10 while Auburn is up to No. 16 after not being ranked in the first too-early look back in January.
That’s too high for the Tigers. As I’ve said earlier, Gus Malzahn’s program is in so much chaos he will have to pull a rabbit out of his hat to make it to Halloween.
Only two teams out of the East make the list, Georgia at No. 3 and Florida at No. 13.
By the way, if you want to know why I have Auburn has my team that is over-rated, they open against Oregon (9) at AT&T Stadium, the Aggies, LSU and the Gators before Halloween.
They also come to Fayetteville on Oct. 19 to play the Hogs a week before playing LSU.
With five teams ranked higher than Auburn in the first eight games, well, if Gus has a winning record better than .500 by the end of October it will surprise me.
It’s not a guaranteed bet Gus will have a job being 5-3 at that point … and never forget they aren’t shy down on The Plains about paying coaches to NOT coach there.
Van Horn has Hogs ready for another run
Back before the season started and through some of the early games, Dave Van Horn kept trying to convince the media guys this team was probably over-rated a little bit.
Now it looks like either he under-evaluated the Hogs or everybody else in the SEC has backed up to them.
With just two weekends left in the regular season, Arkansas has the second-best record in the SEC, one game behind Vanderbilt.
There is a clear path to a national seeding that would ensure playing after the SEC Tournament in Fayetteville, including a Super Regional to go to Omaha again.
And that is something a lot of people, including me, didn’t see coming back in February.
This team may not be as talented as last year, but it’s good enough that Van Horn has made the right moves to put this team in a position where it may actually have a better record.
It may be an interesting postseason.
Arkansas officially announces Cylla transferring to Fayetteville
FAYETTEVILLE — Jeantal Cylla will join Arkansas’ men’s basketball team, coach Eric Musselman announced Tuesday.
There multiple reports several weeks ago he was headed to the Razorbacks.
Cylla will have one season of eligibility at Arkansas, coming to Fayetteville as a graduate transfer from North Carolina-Wilmington.
Cylla played one season with the Seahawks after beginning his career at Florida Atlantic. In addition to his collegiate experience, Cylla played on the Haitian National Team in the summer of 2018.
In his three-year collegiate career, Cylla has averaged 10.25 points (984 total) and 3.78 rebounds (363 total), making 40.3 percent of his field goals (336-833), 31.2 percent of his 3-pointers (100-321) and 78.5 percent of his free throws (212-270) with 47 assists, 48 steals and 42 blocked shots.
Jeantal Cylla
6-7, 215
Lake Worth, Fla./ UNC Wilmington
2018-19 (R-Jr. at UNCW): Ranked 61st in the NCAA and fourth in the Colonial Athletic Association in free throw percentage at 84.8 percent (106-of-125) … Played in all 33 games, starting 32 … Averaged 13.7 points and 4.6 rebounds while making 31.1 percent (33-of-106) of his 3-point shots … Scored a season-high 24 points at Elon and at James Madison … Overall, led the team in scoring 11 times including 24 at James Madison, 24 at Elon, 23 versus Elon, 22 versus Gardner-Webb, 20 versus East Carolina, 19 versus Northeastern, 16 at #14 North Carolina, 16 at Delaware, 16 at Hofstra and 14 versus Stanford … Reached double figures in 22 of his 33 games … Recorded third career double-double with 19 points and tying his career-high with 10 rebounds at Mercer … Was the Preseason CAA Newcomer-of-the-Year pick by Blue Ribbon Yearbook.
2017-18 (Junior at UNCW): Sat out at UNC Wilmington due to NCAA transfer regulations.
2016-17 (So. At FAU): Started all 26 games in his second year with Owls … Averaged 7.1 points and 3.4 rebounds … Had a double-double, scoring 10 points and pulling down a career-high 10 rebounds versus Webber … Scored in double figures 11 times, including a season-high points 16 versus Florida Gif Coast and Florida International.
2015-16 (Fr. At FAU): Appeared in all 33 games for Owls and made 24 starts … Averaged 9.7 points and 3.5 rebounds in rookie year … Closed out his first season by scoring in double digits in three of last four outings … Led team in Conference USA games with 12.5 ppg … Scored 18 points and grabbed seven rebounds versus Wagner … Registered back-to-back, 20-plus scoring games with career-high 25 points at UTEP and 22 points at UTSA … Posted first career double-double with 24 points and 12 rebounds in a win over UTSA.
HIGH SCHOOL: Three-time All-State and All-Conference selection … Scored 2,678 points at Lake Worth (Fla.) High School (Sr.) and Lake Worth Christian School (Fr.-So.-Jr.) … Averaged 27.0 points and 11.0 rebounds during senior campaign for Trojans … Ranked 38th nationally at small forward position in Class of 2015.
• Information from Razorback Sports Communications included in report
???? Tuesday Halftime Pod — featuring Nikki Chavanelle
Phil & Tye hit on what it will take for Arkansas fans to buy in to Chad Morris, Nikki Chavanelle, and more!
McEwen, Storms named to All-SEC teams for Hogs on Tuesday
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — For the third straight year, Arkansas has had two Razorbacks get All-SEC honors.
Sophomore Hannah McEwen and junior Autumn Storms have been recognized by the league’s head coaches with a pair of All-SEC accolades as announced Tuesday by the conference office.
McEwen earned a spot on the All-SEC First Team and Storms earned a spot on the All-SEC Second Team.
With Tuesday’s release, McEwen and Storms are the 18th and 19th all-conference performers in program history, and the fourth and fifth for coach Courtney Deifel, now in her fourth season in Fayetteville.
Storms is repeating as an all-conference honoree after collecting All-SEC Freshman honors in 2017.
McEwen becomes just the second Razorback to garner first-team recognition, joining Devon Wallace who was selected All-SEC First Team as a utility player in 2012.
McEwen’s first-team honor is not the first of her career either, as she was named to the All-SEC second team as a freshman in 2018.
McEwen and former Hogs Kimmy Beasley (2012-2013) and Brett Erickson (1999-2000) are the only three Razorbacks in program history to be recognized with all-SEC honors in back-to-back seasons.
McEwen has started in all 55 games so far this season, reaching base in all but five games this season.
She heads into SEC Tournament play as one of the most consistent hitters in the league, topping the conference in hits with 72 and ranking fourth in batting average (.402).
McEwen also leads the conference in hits against SEC opponents and is only one of three league hitters to average .400 or better in both overall and SEC play.
Storms wraps up her junior year with both weekly and conference awards, collecting her All-SEC honor just the day after earning SEC Pitcher of the Week for her outstanding 2-0 showing against Auburn last weekend.
Storms currently holds a team-best and career-high 1.54 ERA, ranking fifth in the SEC. She is among the top five pitchers in the league in strikeout-to-walk ratio, strikeouts, and victories as well.
Arkansas can rely on Storms to not give up many free bases; with only 28 walks in over 180 innings pitched, she ranks first in the SEC in walks allowed per seven innings.
Storms has recorded a career-high 163 strikeouts this season, including a career-high 13 strikeouts against SEMO.
Up next
With the sweep of Auburn complete, the Razorbacks finish the regular season 12-12 in conference play for the second year in-a-row.
The Hogs earned the ninth seed after a four-way tie for sixth place in the SEC rankings between Florida, Missouri and Georgia.
Arkansas will face eighth-seeded Georgia in the first round on Wednesday evening (May 8) at 5:30 p.m.
Bud Light Morning Rush Podcast: Tuesday
John & Tommy discuss Arkansas QB’s translating to the NFL, Gus Malzahn’s connection, and more!
Arkansas rallies on back nine at NCAA Regional to move into fourth
CLE ELUM, Wash. — Maria Fassi, Kaylee Benton and Dylan Kim birdied the final hole lifting Arkansas’ women’s golf team into fourth place after round one action of the 2019 NCAA Washington Regional in Cle Elum, Washington, on Monday.
Fassi and Benton both finished under par and are inside the top-10. The Razorbacks played Tumble Creek Club at Suncadia Resort 1-under shooting a 287 and are just six strokes back of top-ranked Southern California who leads the field with a 281.
Northwestern and host Washington are just ahead of Arkansas with San Jose State and UCF above the six-team cutline to advance to the NCAA Championship.
Fassi and redshirt freshman Brooke Matthews turned under par on the long and challenging front nine.
Fassi was 3-under through the first eight holes but found the thick, stick-line rough on No. 9 and doubled the hole. The senior All-American rallied with three birdies in the final four holes to shoot a 2-under 69. She is currently tied for fifth overall.
Benton’s successful senior campaign continues with the Buckeye, Arizona, native counting a 2-under 70 to come off the course tied for seventh overall. She turned even but bogeyed No. 11 to move to plus-1. Benton also rallied with three birdies in her final five holes to finish under par.
Freshman Ximena Gonzalez was the third Razorback who rallied late in the round. The Queretaro, Mexico, native turned 3-over but had four birdies on the back nine to shoot 73 and finish T-26th overall. Matthews finished her day with a 3-over 75 and Kim shot an 80 on Monday.
Arkansas will tee off in the late morning flight beginning on the back nine on Tuesday. Final round action takes place on Wednesday.
From Shauna Taylor
I think the meat of this golf course is really on the front side – probably through 11 holes and then you have three par fives in your last five holes. If you stay patient, you can get some back coming in. I’m really proud of our fight. I know we turned a little funky, but I love the resilience. Three of our five birdied the final hole and Maria (Fassi) birdied three of her last four holes. It says a lot about them and the fight they have. It takes a team effort. I’m really proud of Ximena (Gonzalez). She was 4-over at one point and got it back to 1-over. She had three birdies coming in and turned her round around.
We start on the back tomorrow and we have to really attack the course. We have to take advantage of those par-fives, two of the three are reachable. Every time you play the front side, you learn something, and your plan can be a little better and more precise. Having two rounds under our belts now we can be better prepared for the front side.
NCAA Golf Championships
The University of Arkansas and Blessings Golf Club are the proud hosts of the 2019 NCAA Women’s and Men’s National Championships.
Admission and parking for the entire two weeks will be free, courtesy of Tyson Foods and the Tyson Family Foundation.
The women’s event begins May 17 and is immediately followed by the men’s championship beginning May 24. For more information or to volunteer for the event, log on to www.NCAAGolf19.com.
Razorbacks’ Storms, Diaz pick up player honors from league Monday
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Right-handed pitcher Autumn Storms was named SEC pitcher of the week and Ashley Diaz was named SEC co-player of the week as the Razorbacks closed out the regular season with a sweep over Auburn.
Storms had another outstanding outing for Arkansas, recording a weekend 1.08 ERA. She struck out eight Tigers and gave up only two extra-base hits.
Storms held Auburn to a .118 average at the plate and gave up no sacrifice hits either.
In game one of the series, Storms held the Auburn offense to only two hits, gave up no extra-base hits, and allowed only one Tiger to reach second safely the entire contest. Her complete performance in the circle was her 13th of the season and fourth shutout.
She currently ranks third in the league for ERA in SEC play, and she is the only pitcher in conference play who not only maintained less than a 2.0 ERA in both overall and SEC play, but is also performing better against SEC opponents
Diaz was nothing but clutch this weekend in the Razorbacks’ sweep of Auburn, recording six hits and batting .600 with three runs batted in. Diaz finished the weekend with a .636 on base percentage and slugging 1.000 at the plate.
After trailing 1-0 in the first inning of game three, Diaz soared a two-run home run to left field. In the series finale victory, Diaz went 3-for-3 including her long ball, which was the 30th of her career, moving her into fourth all-time at Arkansas for career home runs.
Up next
With the sweep of Auburn complete, the Razorbacks finish the regular season 12-12 in conference play for the second year in a row.
The Hogs earn the ninth seed after a four-way tie for sixth place in the SEC rankings between Florida, Missouri and Georgia.
Arkansas will face eighth-seeded Georgia in the first round on Wednesday evening (May 8) at 5:30 p.m.
