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Kjerstad, Goodheart at plate, Campbell on mound pace Hogs past Tide

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — With the help of three home runs and another strong performance on the mound from redshirt junior Isaiah Campbell, Arkansas handily defeated Alabama, 12-3, Friday night at Sewell-Thomas Stadium to stay perfect in league play.

For the third-straight game, Arkansas (19-3, 4-0 SEC) scored four or more runs in the second inning when it plated six to jump out to a 7-0 lead before the completion of two innings. All six runs were scored with two outs as Alabama starting pitcher Sam Finnerty was put in a hole early.

Even before the big inning, the offense was kickstarted by sophomore Heston Kjerstad, who hit his fourth home run of the year in the first inning and his second in three games.

Kjerstad drove in four more runs on a bases-loaded single in the second inning, tying his career-high for RBIs after just two at-bats. The Amarillo, Texas native finished the game 3-for-5 with two runs scored. It’s his fifth three-hit game of the season and eighth multi-hit game.

After being handed a large cushion before the bottom of the second, Campbell went on to work six more innings, giving him seven before letting the bullpen take over. It was the fourth-straight quality start for Campbell as he scattered five hits without giving up a run, walking one with seven strikeouts.

Campbell moves to 5-0 with the victory, matching his win total from last season and has only walked two or less batters in all six of his starts.

Nesbit stays on fire; hits first collegiate home run

Redshirt freshman Jacob Nesbit stayed hot at the plate Friday night, going 2-for-4 with three RBIs, including a home run.

Nesbit’s double in the third inning not only brought in Arkansas’ eighth run of the game, but extended his team-best hitting streak to 12 games and reached-base streak to 19 games.

In the eighth inning, Nesbit crushed his first collegiate home run to make it 10-0 Razorbacks. Nesbit is the eighth different Hog hitter to hit at least one home run this year.

Razorbacks get production from 6-7-8 hitters

The combo of Matt Goodheart, Jack Kenley and Jacob Nesbit went a combined 8-for-14 (.571) at the plate Friday against the Crimson Tide, driving in four and scoring five.

Goodheart and Kenley each tallied three hits in the game, while Nesbit had two. For Goodheart, the sophomore notched his fourth multi-hit game in his last five starts.

Kenley extended his hit streak to four games and tallies his first multi-hit game since March 10 against Louisiana Tech.

Playing long ball

For the third time this season, Arkansas hit three or more home runs in a game as Heston Kjerstad, Jacob Nesbit and Dominic Fletcher all had the long ball working Friday night.

Kjerstad’s solo homer in the first inning got Arkansas’ offense started and then Nesbit followed in the eighth inning for his first collegiate home run.

Fletcher put an exclamation point on the night with a solo blast in the ninth, his third of the year.

Razorback quotables

“He saw the ball well tonight. He squared up two or three balls, took a nice walk and really didn’t go out of the zone too much. He had a really good night.” — Coach Dave Van Horn on Matt Goodheart’s two-hit night

“He battled and got out of a couple jams, but we spotted him a seven-run lead after two and it freed him up. His stuff wasn’t as good as it had been and he knew it. He still threw a lot of strikes and that’s what you do when you’re winning. You have to throw the ball over the plate and make them earn it.” — Van Horn on Isaiah Campbell’s outing

“Alabama had a veteran pitcher out there and he was just one pitch away from getting out of the second inning, but we just kept fouling pitches off and got some big hits and kept chipping away. All of the sudden, we punch in six runs and we’re up 7-0 with (Isaiah) Campbell on the mound.”  — Van Horn on the big six-run second inning

“Both (Jack) Kenley and (Jacob) Nesbit are swinging the bat well right now. It’s good we’re getting a lot of production at the end of the order and they’re contributing offensively. Really the whole lineup has been doing a great job. (Casey) Martin has been struggling a little bit, but he’s a great defender and we know he’s going to turn it around.” — Van Horn on the production from the bottom of his lineup

“I didn’t have the best command tonight and had to rely on my cutter heavily. If I didn’t have that, it would have been a really tough outing. When you get run support like that, it just gets easier because you just have to go out and throw strikes and let the defense do the work.” — Isaiah Campbell on his victory over Alabama

Up next

Arkansas and Alabama will be back on the field tomorrow at Sewell-Thomas Stadium for game two of the series.

First pitch is slated for 2 p.m. and will be broadcast on SEC Network+.

Arkansas drops close match at home to LSU, 4-3; host A&M on Sunday

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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FAYETTEVILLE — The No 46 Arkansas women’s tennis team fell 4-3 to No. 21 LSU in a heartbreaker Friday night.

The team dropped the doubles point in straight sets, with Lauren Alter and Thea Rice falling 6-3 before Martina Zerulo and Tatum Rice dropped their match to No. 10 Eden Richardson and Jessica Golovin.

Arkansas evened the match quickly, with Alter earning a 6-2, 6-4 victory at the No. 4 position. The Tigers pulled ahead again as No. 79 Tatum Rice fell to No. 60 Golovin. Jackie Carr tied the match at the No. 6 position before Miruna Tudor pulled the Hogs ahead of LSU.

The Tigers put the score at 3-3 as Laura Rijkers was defeated 7-5, 6-3, before clinching the match in a hard-fought tiebreaker set at the No. 1 position.

The Razorbacks will return to the court Sunday afternoon, hosting No. 11 Texas A&M to close out a five-match homestand.

No. 21 LSU 4, No. 46 Arkansas 3
Doubles Results – Order of Finish (2,1)
1. #10 Eden Richardson/Jessica Golovin (LSU) def. Martina Zerulo/Tatum Rice (ARK) 6-4
2. Anna Loughlan/Paris Corley (LSU) def. Lauren Alter/Thea Rice (ARK) 6-3
3. Laura Rijkers/Jackie Carr (ARK) vs. Kennan Johnson/Taylor Bridges (LSU) 5-5, unfinished

Singles Results – Order of Finish (4,2,6,5,3,1)
1. #10 Eden Richardson (LSU) def. #115 Martina Zerulo (ARK) 5-7, 6-4, 7-5
2. #60 Jessica Golovin (LSU) def. #79 Tatum Rice (ARK) 6-2, 6-4
3. Taylor Bridges (LSU) def. Laura Rijkers (ARK) 7-5, 6-3
4. Lauren Alter (ARK) def. Paris Corley (LSU) 6-2, 6-4
5. Miruna Tudor (ARK) def. Luba Vasilyuk (LSU) 6-0, 6-3
6. Jackie Carr (ARK) def. Anna Loughlan (LSU) 6-3, 6-3

Arkansas drops road match at Texas A&M on Friday, 6-1

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Arkansas fell to Texas A&M here Friday night, 6-1, in the first road conference match of the season.

The Razorbacks return to the court Sunday at LSU, with first serve scheduled for noon.

The Aggies jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead with a pair of 6-1 victories on courts one and two in doubles. The lead would grow to 2-0 as the highest-ranked Aggie in No. 32 Valentin Vacherot def. Josh Howard-Tripp, 6-1, 6-0.

Texas A&M would clinch the match with consecutive two-set wins on courts four and one. Arkansas would secure a victory on court two as Adam Sanjurjo def. No. 62 Hady Habib in three sets, 6-4, 4-6, 1-0(10).

The Aggies would take the final two courts to secure a 6-1 final. Arkansas, now 2-3 in conference play, will return to action this Sunday in Baton Rouge to face LSU at 12 p.m.

For more information on Arkansas men’s tennis, including in-match updates, follow @RazorbackMTEN on Twitter.

Doubles Results – Order of Finish (1-2)
1. No. 23 Juan Carlos Aguilar/Barnaby Smith (TAMU) def. Oscar Mesquida/Adam Sanjurjo (AR) 6-1
2. Hady Habib/Kevin Lam (TAMU) def. Maxim Verboven/Enrique Paya (AR) 6-1
3. Valentin Vacherot/Jack Pulliam (TAMU) vs. Alex Reco/Jose Alonso (AR) 4-4, unfinished

Singles Results – Order of Finish (3,4,1,2,6,5)
1. No. 77 Juan Carlos Aguilar (TAMU) def. Oscar Mesquida (AR) 6-2, 6-4
2. Adam Sanjurjo (AR) def. #62 Hady Habib (TAMU) 6-4, 4-6, 1-0 (12-10)
3. No. 32 Valentin Vacherot (TAMU) def. Josh Howard-Tripp (AR) 6-1, 6-0
4. No. 76 Barnaby Smith (TAMU) def. Alex Reco (AR) 6-2, 6-3
5. Noah Schachter (TAMU) def. Enrique Paya (AR) 6-2, 3-6, 7-5
6. Austin Abbrat (TAMU) def. Pedro Alonso (AR) 6-4, 7-6 (7-0)

Schultz grabs second-place finish in 3-meter diving at NCAA Championships

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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AUSTIN, Texas — Sophomore Brooke Schultz earned a second-place finish on the 3-meter Friday afternoon at the NCAA Swimming and Diving National Championships in her second Top 5 finish of the meet.

The Hogs opened the day with the 200 yard medley relay. Molly Moore, Sydney Angell, Kobie Melton, and Anna Hopkin earned a 27th place finish (1:39.10), recording the program’s third-fastest time of the season.

Schultz competed in Arkansas’ lone individual event of the day, earning an eighth-place finish (343.05) in the 3-meter preliminaries to advance to the finals. The Fayetteville, Ark. native took second in the finals with a score of 380.50.

“It was another great day for Brooke, Dale, and the Hogs,” coach Neil Harper said. “She battled hard this morning to make it to the finals and performed amazingly tonight to be the NCAA runner-up!”

Following Friday’s competition, the Razorbacks remain in 18th place with 46 points.

The championships will conclude tomorrow, with the mile, 100 yard freestyle, and the 400-yard freestyle relay on deck for the team.

Late comeback by Razorbacks falls short on road against Tennessee

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Arkansas’ comeback fell short as they saw a bases-loaded seventh inning fall short in a 6-4 loss in the first game of a weekend series against Tennessee.

The first inning went quickly with Arkansas’ Autumn Storms and Tennessee’s Ashley Rogers retired the opposing lineup in order.

The Vols struck first with an RBI single to right field that scored a runner from second to give them a 1-0 lead.

Senior Ashley Diaz crushed a 1-1 pitch in the third inning, bouncing it off the scoreboard, scoring sophomore Hannah McEwen and giving the Hogs a 2-1 lead.

Tennessee responded in the bottom of the inning with four more runs, two of which came after a Razorback error that allowed the Lady Vols to load the bases.

Tennessee tacked on an additional run in the fifth inning, after Lady Vol Ashley Morgan reached on a double and advanced to third on back-to-back ground outs.

Now trailing 6-2, the Razorbacks stepped up to bat in the sixth inning and fought back- plating two more runs to cut the Tennessee lead to 6-4.

Freshman Taylor Greene would start the sixth with a lead-off walk, as the Hogs called to pinch-runner Sam Torres to take the base.

Torres scored Arkansas’ third run, moving to second on a single by McEwen and onto third, and then home after a Tennessee passed ball and base hit by senior Katie Warrick.

With her 2-3 performance at the plate, McEwen extends her reached base streak to 25 and her hit streak to 13 games.

McEwen scored the final run of the game, off the bat of Diaz, who sent a perfectly executed sacrifice fly to the warning track in left field.

Sophomore Mary Haff entered in relief for Arkansas and was able to keep the Lady Volunteers scoreless through two more innings to keep the game within reach.

Top of the seventh and trailing by two, sophomore Nicole Duncan was hit by a pitch for a team-leading, 10th time this season. Greene followed with a seven-pitch walk and after a Tennessee pitching change, McEwen walked the bases loaded.

The Lady Vols would put out the Razorback fire there, striking out back-to-back Hogs and ending the game in their favor.

Arkansas and Tennessee will meet Saturday for game two in Knoxville, with first pitch schedule for 5:00 pm

Razorbacks meet top seed Indiana in NIT road matchup Saturday

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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FAYETTEVILLE — For the second time this season, Arkansas and Indiana will meet on the hardwood as the Razorbacks travel to Bloomington, Indiana, to face the Hoosiers on Saturday.

Tip-off is set for 11 a.m. and the game will be televised on ESPN.

Versus Indiana

• Arkansas is 2-1 all-time versus Indiana and this will be the second meeting between the two storied programs this season.

• Indiana won the first game in the series with a 75-50 decision early in the 1949-50 season in Bloomington.

• Arkansas won the next encounter, 86-72, in the first round of the 2008 NCAA Tournament East Regional.

• The Razorbacks took the rubber match in the series with an exciting 73-72 decision in Bud Walton Arena in game three this year to help Arkansas win the Hardwood Showcase as the Razorbacks were the only team to go undefeated in the exempt tournament.

Arkansas at NIT

• This is the fourth trip to the NIT for the Razorbacks and Arkansas is 6-4 in the postseason tournament.

• Arkansas went 1-1 in 1987

• Arkansas was 3-2 in 1997 and reached the Final Four. The Razorbacks lost in the semifinals before losing to UConn in the consolation game.

• Arkansas went to the NIT was 2014 and the Razorbacks were 1-1.

• Arkansas won a first-round NIT game for the fourth time in four tries, winning at Providence on Tuesday.

Anderson-Arkansas in the postseason

• In this the eighth year of the Mike Anderson era at Arkansas, the Razorbacks are playing in the postseason for the third consecutive year and the fifth time in the last six years. (NCAA in 2015, 2017-18 and the NIT in 2014 and 2019).

• This is Coach Anderson’s 12th postseason appearance in 17 years as head coach, including nine in the NCAA and three in the NIT.

• Overall, this is Arkansas’ 37th postseason berth, including 34 in the NCAA and three in the NIT.

Last time out for Razorbacks

• Reggie Chaney scored a career-high 14 points and blocked a career-high seven shots while Gabe Osabuohien scored 11 points and tied a career-high with eight rebounds to lead Arkansas to an 84-72 victory over Providence in the opening round of the 2019 National Invitation Tournament at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center.

• Chaney, Osabuohien, Adrio Bailey and Ethan Henderson combined to score 36 points and pull down 20 rebounds. However, it was Arkansas’ hot shooting from outside early that set the tone for the win.

• The Razorbacks made an old-fashion, 3-point play to start the game and then made its next five 3-pointers to race out to a 20-9 lead. Later, Arkansas went up 11 points, 26-15, with 9:23 left in the first half and held a double-digit lead the rest of the game.

Sullins sets Razorbacks’ hammer throw mark in first outdoor meet Friday

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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FAYETTEVILLE — Razorbacks senior Erich Sullins kicked off the Arkansas Spring Invitational with action in the men’s hammer throw at John McDonnell Field on Friday afternoon.

Sullins, the lone competitor on day one of the Spring Invitational, opened up his 2019 outdoor season in the hammer throw, an event he advanced to the NCAA Preliminaries in last season.

A scratch on the first attempt was quickly forgotten after a second attempt mark of 63.10m (207-0) that fell exactly two feet short of the program record of 209-0 held by Sullins from last season.

A scratch on his third attempt saw Sullins advance to the finals with the second-best mark from prelims trailing only Iowa State’s Vlad Pavlenko who registered a best of 63.67m (208-10) on his second attempt.

The fourth throw of the competition for Sullins proved to be the best of the afternoon as the hammer sailed a distance of 63.96m (209-10) to improve Sullins’ school record in the event, adding an additional 10-inches.

Iowa State’s Pavlenko took the event title with a best of 66.09m (216-10) on his final attempt, with Arkansas’ Sullins taking silver in a lifetime-best performance.

Day Two of the Arkansas Spring Invitational will resume Sat, Mar. 23 at 11 a.m. at John McDonnell Field.

Top 10 field facing Razorbacks at Evans-Derby Experience at Auburn

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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FAYETTEVILLE — Another talented field awaits Arkansas at the Evans-Derby Experience in Auburn, Alabama, this weekend.

The Razorbacks are teeing it up for the seventh time and head coach Shauna Taylor has the chance to compete six players this week. Seniors Maria Fassi, Dylan Kim and Kaylee Benton headline the traveling squad this week.

Also making the trip are Ximena Gonzalez, Maria Hoyos and, playing as an individual, Julia Dean.

Kim enters the event ranked No. 15 in the country and is one of seven players in the top-15 this week. She will join Fassi playing in the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur in April and she will make her second appearance on the Palmer Cup this summer.

Fassi, ranked No. 26 this week, is the defending medalist at the EDE. She shot 202 with rounds of 64-67-71 to win the event. Benton also had a top-10 finish tying for ninth last season.

The 14-team field features five top-10 team as No. 2 Texas, No. 3 Duke, No. 7 Florida and No. 9 South Carolina join the Razorbacks in Auburn.

Also in the field are No. 13 Auburn, No. 18 Alabama, No. 38 Baylor, No. 22 Clemson, No. 11 Florida State, No. 14 Kent State, No. 30 Louisville, No. 44 Mississippi State, and No. 42 Ole Miss.

Arkansas is hosting the 2019 NCAA Women’s and Men’s Championships at Blessings Golf Club in May.

Log on to NCAAGolf19.com for more information.

Gymbacks start postseason in SEC’s first session Saturday in New Orleans

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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NEW ORLEANS — Arkansas gymnastics begins its postseason run inside the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans Saturday in the early session of the Southeastern Conference Championships.

The meet is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. and will be televised by the SEC Network.

Session One Rotations

ROTATION VAULT BARS BEAM FLOOR
1 Alabama Auburn Missouri Arkansas
2 Arkansas Alabama Auburn Missouri
3 Missouri Arkansas Alabama Auburn
4 Auburn Missouri Arkansas Alabama

 

PEAKING AT THE RIGHT TIME
The Gymbacks have posted their two highest scores of the season over the last two weeks, earning a 197.000 at Elevate the Stage and a 196.525 at home on Senior Night. The Hogs are one of three league teams to score its highest scores of the season in the final two weeks of action.

CARTER ELITE ON THE FLOOR
Sophomore Sophia Carter continues her run on the floor, earning her fourth score of 9.950 last Saturday. The Blue Springs, Missouri native now has eight event titles this season and nine scores of 9.900 or higher on the event, good for second most in the SEC.

MCGLONE GOING OUT IN STYLE
Senior Sydney McGlone has made the most of her senior year at Arkansas, earning a pair of career highs of 9.925 on the floor, and vaulting over 9.800 in 10-of-11 meets. Overall, McGlone has vaulted to a 9.800 or higher in 31-of her 39 career vaults.

VAULTING CONSISTENTLY
After vaulting to team scores of 49 or higher in 7-of-11 meets this season, and missing the mark by a combined 0.125 in two combined meets, the Razorbacks have shown vast improvement on the event this season after hitting the mark in just four meets total last season. Arkansas is led by two 10.0 vaults from freshmen Amanda Elswick and Kennedy Hambrick.

CARTER MAKES TOP-10
Sophia Carter has made team history several times on the floor exercise this season, earning an individual No. 1 ranking on the event after the first week of action, and remaining in the top-10 at the conclusion of the regular season. Both accolades were the first of their kind for an individual at Arkansas since 2014.

STARTING ON THE FLOOR
The SEC Championships will mark Arkansas’ fourth quad meet this season, and second in which it will start on the floor. At Elevate the Stage on March 8, Arkansas started on the floor with a 49.400 en route to a 197.000; which marked its highest road score in the regular season in program history.

Neighbors previews UAB game Sunday, Williams’ big night Thursday

ESPN Arkansas News Services
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Arkansas coach Mike Neighbors talked about the matchup with Alabama-Birmingham in the WNIT and Kiara Williams’ game in win over Houston (15 points, 8 rebounds, 5 blocked shots).

Bud Light Morning Rush Podcast: Friday

Tye Richardson
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Bud Light Morning Rush Podcast: Friday

John & Nick discuss SEC picking up its basketball, recruiting misses, plus Mike Schumann of The Daily Hoosier joins the program!

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